Federal Grants

A Federal Pell Grant is a need-based grant awarded to undergraduate students working on a first bachelor's degree. Financial need is determined by the U.S. Department of Education using a standard formula to evaluate the financial information reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

How to Apply

Complete the FAFSA. You will have to fill out the FAFSA every year you’re in school to stay eligible for federal student aid, including Pell Grant awards.

The amount a qualifying student will receive can depend on the following:

• The Student Aid Index
• The Cost of Attendance
• The number of credit hours enrolled each semester.

Pell Grant funding is not unlimited. The U.S. Department of Education limits the amount of Pell Grant you can receive over your lifetime, which is measured through Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU).

Your LEU is calculated as a percentage, based on how many Pell Grant awards you’ve received compared to the maximum allowed over time. By federal law, you can receive Pell Grant funds for the equivalent of 12 full-time semesters (or approximately six years of full-time study). This equals 600% of your lifetime eligibility.

For example:

• If you receive a full-time Pell Grant award for one academic year, you use 100% of your LEU.

• If you attend part-time and receive half of the maximum award for a year, you use 50% of your LEU.

Once you reach 600% LEU, you are no longer eligible to receive Pell Grant funding, regardless of your financial need or academic program.

Students can track their Pell Grant LEU through their account on the Federal Student Aid (FSA) website at studentaid.gov.

The Federal TEACH Grant provides financial assistance to students majoring in an academic program that will allow them to teach in high need subject areas, as highly qualified teachers, at Title I (low income serving) elementary or secondary schools in the United States.

Recipients must complete four years of qualified teaching service at a low-income school within the first eight years after completing or withdrawing from their degree. Failure to meet this or any other requirement of the TEACH Grant will result in the grant converting into a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, with interest assessed from the first disbursement date.

High-Needs Fields

High-needs fields are determined by the U.S. Department of Education and the Mississippi Department of Education. A list is available online at https://tsa.ed.gov/. A list of low income elementary schools, secondary schools, and educational agencies (ESA's) that qualify as low-income for purposes of the federal student aid programs, including the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Programs can be found at https://studentaid.gov/tcli/directory-search. 

National High-Needs Fields

• Bilingual education and English language acquisition
• Foreign language
• Mathematics
• Reading specialist
• Science (including, but not limited to, computer science)
• Special education

TEACH Grant-Eligible Degrees

Not all degrees and majors are TEACH Grant eligible. An eligible degree is generally one that prepares the student to teach in a high-need field. Students must be working toward state teacher certification or be currently certified while receiving the grant. 

To be eligible for a TEACH Grant you must:
1. Complete the FAFSA on the Federal Student Aid website.
2. Be a US citizen or eligible non-citizen.
3. Be admitted into one of the eligible degree-seeking programs listed on the application.
4. Have an overall grade point average of at least 3.25 at the time of initial and subsequent disbursements in addition to meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress standards for financial aid.
5. Complete the online TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve and entrance (or subsequent) counseling prior to disbursement of the TEACH Grant. You must also complete exit counseling at the time of degree completion or leaving the program.

Undergraduate students must be issued a Red Card by the School of Education before applying. An education student receives a red card when they are officially accepted into the teacher prep program and are eligible to receive a pre-service license from the Mississippi Department of Education.

Important TEACH Grant Resources
Department of Education’s TEACH Grant Informational Page
Provides a detailed breakdown of the TEACH Grant program and a useful FAQ section directly from the Department of Education.

Teacher Cancellation Low Income Directory
Provides a directory of low-income elementary and secondary schools where you may be able to complete the teaching service required by your Agreement to Serve or Repay.

Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing
Provides a full list of high-need fields across the nation. Allows you to search by year, state, subject matter, and discipline.

TEACH Grant Entrance Counseling
Entrance counseling provides an overview of the TEACH program as well as how to keep your TEACH Grant from converting to an unsubsidized loan. This counseling must be done every academic year in which you apply for the TEACH Grant.

TEACH Grant Application

*Due to federal sequestration, the most a student can receive in a single academic year is $3,772.

Agreement to Serve - agreement to teach full time for at least four years at a low-income elementary school, secondary school, or educational service agency. They must also meet other requirements.

Cost of Attendance - An estimate of a student’s educational expenses for the period of enrollment. The cost of attendance (COA) is the cornerstone of establishing a student’s financial need, as it sets a limit on the total aid that a student may receive for purposes of the Campus-Based, TEACH Grant, and Direct Loan programs, and is one of the basic components of the Pell Grant calculation.

FAFSA - The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is a form completed by current and prospective college students (undergraduate and graduate) to determine what federal aid may be available for attending a college or university.

Federal Pell Grant - a type of grant that provides funds to help pay for an undergraduate degree. Pell Grants are awarded to students who display exceptional financial need. Unlike federal student loans, Pell Grants don’t have to be paid back. Students can receive up to a total of 6 years worth of funds or 600% towards their Lifetime Eligibility.

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) - a form of federal financial aid designed to assist students with exceptional financial need.

Full-time Enrollment - Undergraduate students must be enrolled in at least 12 hours per semester to be considered full-time. Graduate students must be enrolled in at least 9 hours per semester to be considered full-time. This applies to all terms including the summer semester.

Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) - The U.S. Department of Education keeps track of your Pell LEU by adding together the percentages of your Pell Grant awards that you received for each award year (A student typically receives 100% per academic year). If your Pell LEU equals or exceeds 600 percent (typically 6 years), you may no longer receive Pell Grant funding. Similarly, if your Pell LEU is greater than 500 percent but less than 600 percent, you will not be able to receive a full scheduled award.

Red Card - An education student receives a red card when they are officially accepted into the teacher prep program and are eligible to receive a pre-service license from the Mississippi Department of Education.

Satisfactory Academic Progress - A federal regulation that requires the office of financial aid to closely monitor the progress of each student receiving financial aid to ensure they are successfully completing their courses. All students receiving financial aid are required to meet SAP standards.

Sequestration - Due to federal sequestration, TEACH Grants disbursed on or after October 1, 2020 must be reduced by 5.7% from the amount for which a recipient would otherwise have been eligible.

Student Aid Index (SAI) - an eligibility index number that William Carey University's financial aid office uses to determine how much federal student aid a student may receive. This number results from the information that is provided on the FAFSA.

Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant - This grant is different from other federal student grants because it requires a student to agree to complete a teaching service obligation as a condition for receiving the grant. If the student doesn't complete the service obligation, the TEACH Grant will be converted to a loan that you must repay, with interest.

Verification - A federal process that ensures the information submitted on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is correct. If you have been selected for FAFSA verification, it does not necessarily mean you have made a mistake. Only that additional information is required before federal aid eligibility can be determined.