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- Grants—financial aid that doesn’t have to be repaid (unless, for example, you withdraw from school and owe a refund).
- Work-Study—allows you to earn money for your education.
- Loans—allow you to borrow money for your education. You must repay your loans, with interest.
- Federal Pell Grant
- Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)
- Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG)
- National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant (National SMART Grant)
- Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant (this grant will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan that you must repay, with interest, if you don't fulfill your teaching service obligation)
- Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants
Unlike loans, grants are not repaid unless, for example, you are awarded funds incorrectly or you withdraw from school prior to the planned end of term or, if you have a TEACH Grant, you do not meet the terms in your "Agreement to Serve" (additional details on that will follow).
Almost all federal grants are awarded to students with financial need. The amount of your Federal Pell Grant depends on your cost of attendance,Expected Family Contribution, enrollment status (full- or part-time) and whether you attend for a full academic year or less. To receive a FSEOG, ACG, or National SMART Grant, you must first be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant. The amount of your FSEOG, ACG and National SMART Grant depends on your financial need and other criteria see Financial Need and Expected Family Contribution (EFC).
- Pell Grants are the foundation of federal student financial aid, to which aid from other federal and nonfederal sources might be added.
- Pell Grants are generally awarded only to undergraduate students—those who haven’t earned a bachelor’s or graduate degree.
- In some limited cases, however, you might receive a Pell Grant if you’re enrolled in a postbaccalaureate teacher certificate program.
- Amounts can change yearly. The maximum award for the 2009–10 award year was $5,550.
- You may receive up to two consecutive Pell Grant awards during a single award year to accelerate your program toward your degree. You must be enrolled at least halftime and in a program that leads to an associate or bachelor's degree or certificate. Summer 2010 may be paid from either 2009-10 or 2010-11 funds; contact your FAA if you are receiving payment for the summer from the year in which you are less eligible.
- The maximum award grant is given for any Pell Grant-eligible student whose parent or guardian was a member of the U.S. Armed Forces and died as a result of service performed in Iraq or Afghanistan after Sept. 11, 2001. You must be under 24 years old or enrolled at least parttime in college at the time of your parent's or guardian's death. Effective July 1, 2010, if you are not eligible for a Pell Grant but your parent or guardian met the same post-Sept. 11, 2001 conditions above, you will be eligible to receive an Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant equal to the amount of a maximum Pell Grant for the award year, except that the amount will not exceed the cost of attendance for that award year.
- If you're eligible for a Pell Grant you'll receive the full amount you qualify for—each school participating in the program receives enough funds each year from the U.S. Department of Education to pay the Pell Grant amounts for all its eligible students.
- The amount of other student aid you might qualify for does not affect the amount of your Pell Grant.
- You are not eligible to receive a Pell Grant if you are subject to an involuntary civil commitment upon completion of a period of incarceration for a forcible or nonforcible sexual offense.
- You can receive Pell Grants only up to 18 semesters, or the equivalent, if you received a Pell Grant for the first time on or after July 1, 2008.
- FSEOGs are awarded to undergraduate students with exceptional financial need—those with the lowest Expected Family Contribution (EFC) numbers.
- Federal Pell Grant recipients receive priority for FSEOG awards.
- FSEOG awards range from $100 to $4,000 a year. The amount of the award is determined by your school’s financial aid office.
- Unlike Pell Grants, the amount of FSEOGs you receive depends not only on your financial need but also on the amount of other aid you get and the availability of funds at your school.
- Receiving other aid might reduce the amount of your FSEOG award.
- Not all schools participate in the FSEOG Program.
- The school's financial aid office decides how to award these funds.
- Each school participating in the FSEOG Program receives a certain amount of FSEOG funds each year from the U.S. Department of Education's office of Federal Student Aid. When all of those funds have been disbursed for that award year, no more FSEOG awards can be made for that year.
- Due to limited funds, it's important to apply early to be considered for these funds. Not everyone who qualifies for an FSEOG will get one.
The maximum award for a first year eligible undergraduate student is $750; the maximum award for a second year eligible undergraduate student is $1,300.
ACG Requirements
To receive an ACG, you must
- be Pell Grant-eligible during the same award year;
- be enrolled at least half-time;
- be a first-year or second-year undergraduate student or a student in a certificate program of at least one year in a degree program at a two-year or four-year degree-granting institution;
- have completed a rigorous secondary school program of study;
and
- if a first-year student, have completed secondary school after Jan. 1, 2006; not have been enrolled in an ACG-eligible program while at or below the age of compulsory school attendance except as part of a dual-enrollment program; or
- if a second-year student, have completed secondary school after Jan. 1, 2005, and have at least a 3.0 grade point average as of the end of the first year of undergraduate study.
For a list of recognized rigorous programs of secondary school study in your state visit www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/about/ac-smart/state-programs.html.
This grant program is for full-time undergraduate students who are enrolled in the third or fourth year of undergraduate study. The award is for up to $4,000 for each of the third and fourth years.
National SMART Grant Requirements
To receive a National SMART Grant, you must
- be Pell Grant-eligible during the same award year;
- be enrolled at least half-time;
- be in the third or fourth year of an undergraduate degree program (or fifth year of a five-year program);
- be pursuing a major with at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA in physical, life, or computer sciences, mathematics, technology, engineering or a critical foreign language, or a non-major in a single liberal arts program; and
- have at least a 3.0 GPA as of the end of the second award year and continue to maintain a 3.0 GPA that must be checked prior to the beginning of each payment period (e.g., semester).
For a list of National SMART Grant eligible majors, visit
ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN0909.html.
- The ACG is for undergraduate students who are enrolled in the first or second a year of an eligible program in any field, who have completed a rigorous secondary school program of study, and who also have at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA for the first year.
- The National SMART Grant is for undergraduate students who are enrolled in the third or fourth year of an eligible program (or fifth year of a five-year program) and pursuing an eligible major with at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA. A student does not have to complete a rigorous secondary school program of study to be eligible for this grant.
There are additional steps you need to take to ensure you’re considered for an ACG. Students who fill out FAFSA on the Web are asked questions particular to the ACG. If you’re eligible for a Federal Pell Grant, and within the age range to have graduated from high school after Jan. 1, 2005, these questions appear as additional screens during the application process. The paper FAFSA does not contain these questions. If you file the paper FAFSA, if you are eligible for a Federal Pell Grant, and within the age range to have graduated from high school after Jan. 1, 2005, in your Student Aid Report (SAR) you will be instructed to use FAFSA on the Web or call the Federal Student Aid Information Center (1-800-433-3243) to provide additional information. When you receive a SAR, remember to read the comments and respond appropriately. Because of this extra step in the paper process, we urge you apply for federal student aid using the online application, FAFSA on the Web.
The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program provides you with up to $4,000 a year in grant assistance if you are completing or plan to complete course work needed to begin a career in teaching.
As a condition for receiving a TEACH Grant, you must sign an Agreement to Serve promising to teach full-time in a high-need field at a low-income school or educational service agency, or teach at certain low-income schools and within certain high-need fields for at least four complete academic years within eight years after completing (or ceasing enrollment in) the course of study for which you received the grant.
If you do not complete your teaching service obligation, the amounts of the TEACH Grants you received will be converted to a Direct Unsubsidized Loan that you must repay with interest charged from the date of each TEACH Grant disbursement.
For detailed information on this grant, visit www.teachgrant.ed.gov.
If you are not eligible for a Pell Grant but your parent or guardian was a member of the U.S. Armed Forces and died as a result of service performed in Iraq or Afghanistan after Sept. 11, 2001, you are under 24 years old or enrolled in college at the time of your parent's or guardian's death, you will be eligible to receive an Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant equal to the amount of a maximum Pell Grant for the award year, except that the amount will not exceed that cost of attendance for that award year. You must be at least a part-time student at the time of your parent's or guardian's death.
Pell Grant
- " Pell Grant award amounts can change yearly. The maximum award for the 2010-11 award year is $5,550.
- How much grant aid you get depends on:
- You may receive only one Pell Grant in an award year.
- You may not receive Pell Grant funds from more than one school at a time.
FSEOG
- You can get between $100 and $4,000 an academic year, depending on:
- When you apply.
- Your financial need.
- The funding level of the school you're attending.
- The policies of your school's financial aid office.
ACG
- Up to $750 for first year students.
- Up to $1,300 for second year students.
National SMART Grant
- Up to $4,000 for each of the third and fourth years (or fifth year of a five-year program).
TEACH Grant
Your school will:
- Credit your grant funds to your school account;
- Pay you directly (usually by check);
- Combine these methods; or
- With your permission, credit your bank account.
- Schools must pay you at least once per term (semester, trimester or quarter).
- Schools that don’t use formally defined, traditional terms (e.g., semester, quarter, etc.) must pay you at least twice per academic year.
Yes, less than half-time students are eligible for Pell, FSEOG and TEACH Grants.
The information in this guide was compiled in the summer of 2009. For changes to the federal student aid programs since then, visit www.FederalStudentAid.ed.gov.
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