I was attending a community college in Arizona, and failed most of my classes because i was hospitalized due to my high risk pregnancy. i was put on bed rest for the remainder of my pregnancy at the time and had no access to a computer to do my work, so i had no choice but to drop my classes. Thus i sapped out for Finical aid, so i submitted everything every doctors note, every visit and even my ultra sound pictures. after doing so they denied me saying i didn’t explain why i withdrew from classes previous semesters,
So i explained i was kicked out of my home for getting pregnant and had to stay on the streets, and still they denied me.they wanted me to go back to the beginning of my freshman year explaining why i received an F i explained that i had trouble in math and didn't pass the course, they said it wasn't enough to grant me finial aid, but i told them it shouldn't count as i was paying directly out of pocket that semester i didn't need Aid. i understand that they need a full write up of every indecent but ive been though alot and for them to say being pregnant and being on bed rest not being able to get up and go to the bathroom isnt Extenuating isnt fair. what should i do next?
I don’t think you will like my reply…but here it is.
You have appealed your lack of SAP, and it’s been denied. At this point, you need to contact you college and find out what to do to satisfy SAP requirement. Then start doing whatever it is that will get you there. And yes, this means you may need to pay out of pocket for a while.
What IS your GPA? What %age of courses have you completed? Are you on academic probation?
The college is doing its due diligence. They cannot, and really should not fund you unless you can prove to them that you can be a successful college student. What did you put in your SAP appeal about what you are DOING to reconcile your previous poor grades? The schools expect to hear what you have done to show you can be a successful college student AND what you will continue to do if you are given another chance.
Do you have a baby now? Do you have a home now? The college part seems to be secondary in your current situation, how can you be successful if that isn’t sorted out? Are you working?
everything is fine now i have my home, and with my baby’s father we both have jobs, we just not making enough to afford college thus i need aid. i listed in my letter how i will do better by stating
1.Inform my professors when a life-altering event occurs such as having to go to the hospital or upcoming doctor appointments that might interfere with class scheduling.
2.Take advantage of my professor’s office hours if I need them.
3.Keep my school work as a top priority.
4.Make appointments with an on-campus counselor if needed to keep me focused.
5.Complete classes C or better.
Maybe they just want you to adjust to your new life before adding school to it again.
While your explanation seems reasonable, this wasn’t your first appeal and they have to take the whole story into consideration. You knew you were pregnant when you signed up for classes and you thought you could handle it. You couldn’t. You now think you can handle college again with a new baby and a new living situation. Trust the experts when they say they think you need more time to adjust.
What have you already done? Have you taken any college courses with A or B grades? Have you met with an academic advisor to determine what courses you should take to be successful…and if full time course work will even work with your other obligations (job and family)?
You mentioned in your appeal what you plan to do…but none of that has been put into action. Colleges want to hear about and see that you have taken action and show success. I don’t see that in your appeal letter.
What do you need to do to satisfy SAP at your college? Maybe take some part time courses…do very well…and appeal again…showing your progress. Ask them if that is possible.
With a baby and a job, you probably can’t study full-time anyway. If you can find one class that you can fit into your life that applies to the degree or certificate you are working toward, and that you can pay for out of pocket, then take just that one class. It is OK if you are on the slow plan for a while.
The fact that you failed math even while paying for it out of pocket just might mean you really need more prep courses, what were you studying,. what are your high school stats? Have you tried self studying (like Khan academy etc) to get yourself ready to be CC ready? There is zero point paying for courses you are not able to succeed in. Can you study PT, work PT, manage a baby FT ? (slippery little suckers) Because you need to pass with good grades. What are you going to do with CC courses at grade c and below? What is your goal?
Unfortunately, getting C’s after failing numerous courses and not making satisfactory academic progress will not be enough to raise your gpa to the point where you will have an overall C average.
Your list of what you hope to do is really a been there, done that as literally thousands of students have said the same thing. Your plan does not sound like a concrete plan andyou dont sounf fuuly committed to it especially when you use qualifiers as “if needed”, informing the professor, etc. it is nice that you ket the professor know if you are not or cannot make it to class, but how are you going to get the work.
you stated that you failed math because you dont understand the concepts, but your plan has nothing about going to tutoring, using the school’s resource center, etc.
At this point, your plans and assurances do not count anymore. You need to show what you can do with your own money in the game. You’ve used up federal funds until you do some very specific things, like pay out of pocket for the classes you need to take to bring yourself up to s C average. Those are parts of the rules. You should read every requirement thoroughly and slowly work towards them.
Before all of that, I recommend that you address your difficulties with math. Do you have a computer you can use at home? There are a number of free mathematics courses you can take on line. Khan Academy goes through all of the college prep math. Start going through these foundation courses until you are facile in all of the prerequisites for college courses. Start putting a way a little bit at a time into a 529 maybe to defray some state taxes maybe.
Before even thinking about taking more college courses, it’s essential to get that academic base built. You put yourself in an untenable situation racking those college courses before you were prepared to take them. Get these foundation highschool college prep courses out of the way.