The most important federal Pell Grant qualifications have to do with EFC, which is supposed to act as a direct measurement of your ability to contribute money towards your education-related expenses. EFC is directly related to your level of financial need, which is the primary eligibility requirement for the Pell Grant.
The maximum EFC cutoff threshold for the 2010-11 school year is set at 5,273, and you must have an EFC below this amount to become eligible for the Pell Grant. EFC will also play a role in determining the amount of aid you receive via the award, with lower EFC values resulting in higher amounts. There are still other federal Pell Grant requirements and qualifications beyond EFC, and these mostly have to do with your ability to become eligible for federal student aid.
The Pell Grant Specific Requirements
Beyond the EFC and need there are still other qualifications that you must satisfy in order to become eligible for a Pell Grant. These include both Pell Grant specific, and general federal student aid requirements. There are only two Pell Grant specific requirements, and these have to do with being enrolled as an undergraduate student, and not being incarcerated in a federal, or state penal institution.
The Pell Grant was designed to benefit undergraduate students, and is therefore not available for most graduate students. The main exception to this is if you are attending a professional degree program that leads to licensure. For example you may be able to qualify for a Pell Grant is you are enrolled in certain pharmacy, and dental programs. You hopefully aren’t currently serving jail-time, but if you are, you may not become eligible for the Pell Grant.
General Federal Student Aid Requirements
The other Pell Grant qualifications that remain don’t pertain exclusively to the Pell Grant, and are in place for all forms of federal student aid. First you must be a United States citizen, or eligible non-citizen with a valid social security number. You must show an “ability to benefit” from your postsecondary education. This can be done by showing proof of a high school diploma, or GED, by completing an “ability to benefit” test, or a qualified homeschooling curriculum, or by passing a sampling of coursework from a postsecondary institution.
You must be going to school at a participating four-year college or university, and you must be making satisfactory academic progress in a curriculum that leads to a degree. Having been convicted of a drug-related crime while receiving federal student aid may serve as a disqualifying factor, although this will be evaluated via a separate worksheet beyond the FAFSA. You also must be enrolled in the Selective Service if you are a male between the ages of 18 and 25, and you must not be in default on any federal student loans, or owe money on any federal grants. Upon satisfying these Pell Grant requirements you should become eligible for the Pell Grant, and the amount of aid you receive will be dependent on a distinct calculation that will include factors such as EFC, cost of attendance, and enrollment status.
