Satisfactory Academic Progress

To receive financial aid you must be making satisfactory progress toward a degree. Maintaining satisfactory progress at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln requires you to successfully complete a minimum number of credit hours according to the schedules that appear in the Full Semester Equivalent (FSE) table. Satisfactory progress is measured once each year at the end of the second semester.

• If you have not completed sufficient credit hours with appropriate grades you will not be eligible to receive financial aid.
• If you do not meet the University’s academic standards policy as it relates to dismissal, you will be ineligible to receive financial aid.

Appeal Process

Should you be notified that you do not meet the satisfactory progress guidelines, you may appeal the decision. Contact the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid for further assistance.

Full Semester Equivalent

For undergraduates, a Full Semester Equivalent (FSE) is calculated by dividing the number of credit hours in which a student is enrolled on census date, by 12 (the minimum number of credit hours considered as full-time) or by 14 for transfer hours. Students enrolled in 12 or more credit hours are counted as having consumed one FSE; students with less than 12 credit hours will consume a fraction of an FSE.

The FSE calculation for graduate students is the same as for undergraduates, with the exception of using a divisor of nine (ten for transfer hours) rather than 12.

The FSE calculation for law students uses 12 as a divisor (15 for transfer hours).

Undergraduate students will be allowed 12 full semester equivalents to complete their undergraduate degree(s). Law students will be allowed nine full semester equivalents to complete their degrees. The number of FSEs a graduate student will be allowed for degree completion will depend on the program they are in as depicted in the above table. Transfer hour FSEs are only included when calculating the maximum allowable number of FSEs per program level. Students who have earned more than the allowable full semester equivalents for their current level will no longer be eligible for financial aid at that level.