You must maintain satisfactory progress and academic eligibility. As a student, you are expected to meet the minimum grade and GPA requirements of the university. Failure to meet the standards of progress will result in an "Insufficient Progress" designation being reported to the VA. This in turn may affect your monthly benefit.
Grades
Non-Punitive: A NP "not-passed" or U "unsatisfactory" or W "withdrawal" grade is considered a non-punitive grade with the VA, meaning it is a grade that doesn't earn credit towards your degree program and does not affect your GPA. These grades will be reported to the VA as they do not qualify for payment by the VA because they do not count towards your degree. This will generally cause a student debt/overpayment with the VA and you will be responsible for repaying the VA any payment you received for such classes.
It is recommended that students receiving VA educational benefits do not elect to take a course as P/NP. A "failing" F grade is considered a punitive grade eligible for benefits with the VA since it counts towards your degree requirements. So, an F grade will be eligible for reimbursement by the VA as long as it is an "earned" F rather than an F based on non-attendance.
NG/NR: Students who receive a grade of NG "no grade" or NR "not reported" must communicate to the VA Certifying Official as to the circumstances surrounding the grade and must keep the veterans office up to date one the situation. A failure to communicate could result in a termination and create an overpayment with the VA, as NG and NR grades are not passing grades.
I/IP: Students who receive a grade of I "incomplete" or IP "in progress" must communicate to the Veterans Specialist as to the circumstances surrounding the grade and must keep the Veterans office up to date as to the situation. A failure to communicate could result in a training time adjustment being reported to the VA. The VA allows a student 1 year (with petition extensions) to complete the work required. Our office tracks students' progress.
Repeat Courses: Courses that are failed or for which the grade does not meet the minimum requirements for graduation may be certified for VA purposes if they are repeated. Courses that are successfully completed may not be certified for VA purposes if they are repeated. If you must take additional courses in order to raise their GPA to graduate, the courses must have not already been successfully completed. To be paid for a repeat course that was not failed, the requirement must not be able to be met by any other course.
Please review the UCSB General Catalog for further information regarding the grading system, repetition of courses and additional academic policies.