Federal Grants

Federal Pell Grant assistance is for undergraduate students who have not earned a bachelor's or professional degree, have not met their lifetime eligibility maximum, show financial need and are maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).

Beginning with the 2024-2025 aid year, the Federal Pell Grant will no longer be based on enrollment status (half time, three-quarter time, full time, etc.) Instead, amounts will be calculated using Enrollment Intensity, which is a percentage value based on the number of credits a student is enrolled in during a term. For financial aid purposes, full-time enrollment is 12 credit hours. The chart below illustrates enrollment intensity based on credit hours. Note: Enrollment intensity cannot exceed 100% for purposes of Federal Pell Grant proration.

No. This award does not have to be repaid.

NDSU will automatically accept this award for students. Because your disbursed Federal Pell Grant amount is based on your enrollment status on a specified time and date, as published in the Dates and Deadlines, plan your registration accordingly. Wait list classes and certain repeat courses are not counted as enrolled credits. More detailed information on the Federal Pell Grant program.

The amount of Federal Pell Grant funds a student may receive over his or her lifetime is limited by federal law to be the equivalent of six years of Federal Pell Grant funding (12 full-time semesters).

Where can I find my Federal Pell Grant Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU)?

To view your Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU), log into "My Aid"  using your FSA ID to view your LEU.

How is my Federal Pell Grant Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) calculated?

To determine how much of the maximum six years (600%) of Pell Grant you have used each year, the US Department of Education compares the actual amount you received for the award year with your scheduled award amount for that award year. 

Your scheduled award is the maximum amount you would be able to receive for the award year if you were enrolled full-time for the full school year. Your scheduled award represents 100% of your Pell Grant eligibility for that award year.

If you receive the full amount of your scheduled award, you will have used 100%.  If you were not enrolled for the full year or not enrolled full-time, (or both), a percentage of the scheduled award will be calculated. 

For example, if your scheduled Federal Pell Grant award is $5,000, but because you were enrolled for only one semester you received only $2,500, you would have received 50% of the scheduled award for that award year. 

The Department of Education keeps track of your Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) by adding together the percentages of your Federal Pell Grant scheduled awards that you received for each award year.  Once your total reaches 600%, you have reached your Federal Pell Grant eligibility.

Federal law requires that payment of the Federal Pell Grant be based on the student’s enrollment status. In addition, activity must be documented in all coursework counted in the enrollment status. The university, in collaboration with the instructors, must determine that the student was active in each course they were paid Federal Pell Grant for. At the time the university verifies activity, discovery of failure to attend a course in which the student received a failing grade may require that the Grant be recalculated based on the lower enrollment status.  

“Activity” is determined as follows:  

For students attending classes on campus: 

• Document physical attendance in the classroom 
• Quiz, exam, assignment, paper, report or group project, study group participation 
• In person meeting with instructor or email discussing specific subject matter of the course 
• Blackboard discussion thread or submitted assignment 

 For students taking courses online: 

• Participating in an online discussion thread 
• Quiz, exam, assignment or paper 
• Email communication with the instructor discussing specific subject matter of the course 

Note - Logging on to Blackboard to access notes or the syllabus, telephone correspondence or sending an email to the instructor asking to make up assignments or quizzes is NOT acceptable activity.  

Procedures

1. Instructors are required to document your last date of activity for all dropped or failed courses. 
2. If activity is not able to be documented for either a dropped or failed course, even though you remain enrolled, your Pell Grant may need to be adjusted.

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) assistance is for undergraduate students enrolled at least half time, show financial need and maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP). Priority is given to Federal Pell Grant recipients.

No. This award does not have to be repaid.

NDSU will automatically accept this award for students. Because your Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) award is based on your enrollment status on a specified time and date, as published in the Dates and Deadlines, plan your registration accordingly. Wait list classes and certain repeat courses are not counted as enrolled credits. More detailed information on the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) program.

Note: Due to limited funds, some eligible students may not be awarded this grant.

Undergraduate and graduate students admitted to the School of Education at NDSU or Dual Degree Program students (Human Development and Family Science at NDSU and Elementary Education at Valley City State University) admitted to the Teacher Education Program at VCSU who plan to teach in a high need field at a low-income school for at least four of the eight years after their degree completion or they otherwise cease to be enrolled in the program(s) for which they receive the TEACH grant funds. Students must have a cumulative GPA of 3.25 or received above the 75th percentile on one battery of a college admissions test (ACT or SAT) and maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP).

NOTE: To meet the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve or Repay (Agreement) requirements:

• Your teacher education program must be listed on the Department of Education's Annual Teacher Shortage Areas Report located at https://tsa.ed.gov/#/reports for the state where you teach either at the time you begin your qualifying teaching service or at the time you received a TEACH Grant.

      AND

• The school where you teach must be listed on the Department of Education's Teacher Cancellation Low-Income Directory or be a school operated by the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) or operated on Indian reservations by Indian tribal groups under contract or grant with the BIE to qualify as low-income schools.

If you fail to complete the four year teaching obligation within eight years of completing or ceasing your program of study, your grant will convert to an Unsubsidized Direct Loan which will have to be repaid with interest accrued from the date the grant funds were first disbursed. Once a TEACH Grant is converted to a loan, it cannot be converted back to a grant.

Complete the TEACH Grant Application found below. Return it to NDSU One Stop. Further instructions will be sent to your NDSU e-mail account after the grant application has been processed.

Additional Information

• TEACH Grant Application

More detailed information on the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant program.

You may be eligible to receive the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant if:

• you are not eligible for a Federal Pell Grant on the basis of your Expected Family Contribution but
• meet the remaining Federal Pell Grant eligibility requirements, and
• your parent or guardian was a member of the U.S. armed forces and died as a result of military service performed in Iraq or Afghanistan after the events of 9/11, and
• you were under 24 years old or enrolled in college at least part-time at the time of your parent's or guardian's death.

No. This award does not have to be repaid.

NDSU will automatically accept this award for students. More detailed information on the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant.