Students in the M.P.H. program must pass all core and departmental/track requirements. Any student who fails a required course must retake it and pass it. The Committee on Academic Progress will review the academic performance of a student whose record in any term shows significant decline, or if there is a reason for concern about the overall quality of a student’s work.

The Office of Student Affairs will evaluate academic progress for the current student population one week after the grading deadline for the term in question. A student must obtain passing grades in 50 percent of courses toward the M.P.H. degree in order to maintain academic progress toward degree completion. The cumulative average grade should be a Pass (P) upon review of quality points.

Students in the Advanced Professional M.P.H. program or the Executive M.P.H. program who fail a course in the summer term of the first year will be withdrawn from the M.P.H. program and will be required to reapply to the program if they wish to be considered for readmission.

For students who are pursuing more than one degree at Yale simultaneously (joint degrees), calculations will be performed separately by each school and consider degree applicable coursework.

If a student withdraws from an M.P.H. program and re-enrolls in another M.P.H. degree program at a later date, the Committee on Academic Progress will determine if prior credits apply toward the new degree’s completion. Generally, YSPH does not accept transfer credits from outside institutions toward degree completion.

All required coursework for the M.P.H. program must be completed within five years of the date of matriculation, with the exception of the one-year Advanced Professional program. All required coursework for the one-year Advanced Professional program must be completed within three years of the date of matriculation. This is inclusive of all periods of non-attendance such as leave of absence. If the degree program has not been completed within the appropriate time frame, the student may request an extension from the Committee on Academic Progress. Extensions will be granted only in rare circumstances, and only for a period of one year for the two-year standard M.P.H. program and the Executive M.P.H. program, and only for a period of one term for the one-year Advanced Professional Program.

Academic Probation

The Committee on Academic Progress will place students whose academic work is unsatisfactory on Academic Probation. The committee will take into account the personal situation of the student, but a failing grade in any course will normally result in Academic Probation. Students who receive failing grades in two or more courses during a term, or who receive a second failing grade after being placed on Academic Probation, will be withdrawn from the M.P.H. program and will be required to reapply to the program if they wish to be considered for readmission. Academic dismissal will be recorded on the student’s transcript.

Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress

Federal regulations require institutions to monitor each student’s progress toward earning a degree within the maximum time frame permitted for the student’s degree or course of study.

These Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements are designed to be equal to or more rigorous than the academic standards that apply to all students at the School of Public Health. If any difference arises between the two sets of requirements, the stricter standard will prevail.

To remain eligible for university or federal financial aid students must meet the following minimum qualitative and quantitative standards. Failure to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) jeopardizes a student’s eligibility to receive university or federal financial aid. Satisfactory Academic Progress is checked at the end of each term and Title IV payment period.

Qualitative Standards

Students must maintain a minimum cumulative average grade of a Pass (P) upon review of quality points at each evaluation point.

Students who receive failing grades in two or more courses during a term, or who receive a second failing grade after being placed on Academic Probation, will be ineligible for further financial aid and subject to dismissal from the school.

Additionally, students in the Advanced Professional M.P.H. program or the Executive M.P.H. program who fail a course in the summer term of the first year will be ineligible for further financial aid and subject to dismissal from the school.

Note on Summer Term Coursework in the Executive and Advanced Professional M.P.H. Programs:

Due to the structure and sequencing of these programs, summer term courses serve as foundational competency-building blocks required for successful progression. Failure of a summer term course in either program results in immediate dismissal from the program and loss of financial aid eligibility. This policy reflects a qualitative standard specific to program design and is distinct from the general SAP progression of warning and probation. Students dismissed under this provision may reapply for admission to the program but must meet all reentry requirements.

At the end of the second academic year, after completion of four terms, each student must show a cumulative grade of Pass (P) or higher across all attempted coursework. Because the School evaluates performance on a Honors/High Pass/Pass/Fail scale rather than GPA, a cumulative result below Pass at this checkpoint constitutes failure to meet the qualitative SAP standard.

Quantitative Standards

Students must successfully complete 67 percent of attempted courses in each degree program. Pace is calculated as credits earned divided by credits attempted.

Repeated coursework will count toward both qualitative and quantitative progress.

Incomplete courses will be excluded from the SAP evaluation and will be assessed at the next evaluation point, once a final grade is issued. Courses with incomplete grades will be converted to a standard grade within three months of the term end date, and those grades will be included in the next SAP calculation accordingly.

Course withdrawals do not count towards a student’s quality points; however, they do count towards a student’s credits attempted and degree completion for financial aid SAP purposes.

Audited courses are not included in the SAP evaluation.

The school does not offer or accept remedial coursework; therefore, remedial credits are not included in any SAP calculation.

In general, YSPH does not accept transfer credits from outside institutions. If a student withdraws from one M.P.H. program and later enrolls in another, the Committee on Academic Progress will determine whether any prior credits may transfer. If any credits are approved for transfer, they will count only toward the quantitative pace calculation and will be excluded from the qualitative measure. All other prior credits will be excluded from SAP evaluations for the new program.

For students enrolled in dual degree programs, SAP is calculated separately for each program, with all qualitative, quantitative, and maximum time frame standards applied independently to the coursework applicable to each degree.

Maximum Time frame

All required course work for the standard M.P.H. and Executive M.P.H. programs must be completed in no more than 30 attempted credits.

All required coursework for the one-year Advanced Professional program must be completed in no more than 24 attempted credits.

This is inclusive of all periods of nonattendance such as leave of absence. If the degree program has not been completed within the appropriate credit amount, the student may request an extension from the Committee on Academic Progress. Extensions will be granted only in rare circumstances, and only for a period of one year (10 credits) for the two-year regular M.P.H. program and the Executive M.P.H. program, and only for a period of one term (5 credits) for the one-year Advanced Professional Program.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Notification and appeals

A student who fails to meet SAP at the end of a term will be notified in writing by the associate dean responsible for academic matters, and the Financial Aid Office will place the student on financial-aid warning until the end of the next term.

During the financial-aid warning term, the student may receive financial aid, despite the determination of not meeting SAP. Students on financial-aid warning who fail to return to SAP by the end of the term will lose their future financial aid eligibility unless they successfully appeal and are placed on financial-aid probation. 

A student who has not successfully met SAP by the end of the financial-aid warning term has the right to appeal the loss of financial aid eligibility. Appeals must be submitted to the associate dean’s office in writing within two weeks of receiving notice that the student did not meet SAP after a term on financial-aid warning. The appeal must include information about why the student failed to meet SAP, and what has changed, or is expected to change, that will allow the student to meet SAP in the future. The written appeal should be accompanied by documentation that verifies the extenuating circumstances (e.g., death of a relative, an injury or illness of the student, or other special circumstances).

The associate dean’s office shall notify the student of the outcome of the appeal within ten business days of receiving it. If the appeal is approved, the student is placed on financial-aid probation until the end of the next term and may receive financial aid during that term. Students on financial-aid probation are required to meet with the associate dean responsible for academic matters to establish an individual academic plan to enable the student to meet SAP at some point in the future, according to specific benchmarks established by the plan.

Students on financial-aid probation who fail to meet SAP by the end of the financial-aid probation term or fail to meet the benchmarks of their individual plans on time will not be eligible for financial aid for the subsequent academic term. Students who are ineligible for financial aid may reestablish eligibility in future terms by meeting SAP.