Alternatives and Complements to the Pell Grant

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The Pell Grant is a fabulous financial aid award that never has to be paid back due to the fact that it is a grant, and not a student loan. While it can provide a significant amount of funding for your education-related expenses, it sometimes isn’t enough to cover all of your tuition, and other costs when you are going to an expensive four-year college or university. The best way to utilize the Pell Grant is by using it as complementary piece of aid in accord with the other kinds of financial aid you may have at your disposal. This way you can hopefully pay for you entire tuition and other costs by way of financial aid, and therefore be able to attend school without having to worry so much about money. The following is just a brief list of the major kinds of financial aid that many students take out in combination with the Pell Grant, it is not meant to be comprehensive, and is rather just a simple guide you can use if you are in search of additional funding beyond the Pell.

-Federal Subsidized Stafford Loans: These are federally-backed student loans that you don’t have to pay interest on while you are attending college. They are perhaps the best types of student loans to have in your portfolio.

-Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loans: These are similar to their subsidized counterparts, except for the fact that interest accrues while you are in class.

-Federal Perkins Loan: Another federal loan that is only approved if you exhibit significant financial need.

-Federal PLUS Loans: These are federal loans that your parents can take out. They typically come with fairly low interest rates, and if you are parents are willing to apply for these kinds of loans then you should not prevent them from doing so.

-Private Student Loans: These are student loans that are not insured by the federal government, and they most often carry much higher interest rates than the variety of federal student loans that are available. They are made by a variety of private lenders, and should ultimately be used as a last resort if you need money for college.

-Scholarships: There are all sorts of different kinds of scholarships, from academic scholarships, to athletic scholarships, and organizational-based scholarships. These of course don’t have to be paid back, and if you can obtain any of these you should not hesitate to do so with a smile on your face.

-More Federal Grants: There are actually a number of other federal grants besides the Pell that are based on need. While it may be a bit difficult to qualify for any of these, they are great types of aid to get approved for.

-FSEOG (Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant) – possible to get up to 4,000 annually
-ACG (Academic Competitiveness Grant) – 750 first year, 1,300 second year
-SMART Grant (National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent) – 4,000 dollars during years 3 and 4 of undergraduate study
-TEACH Grant (Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education) – 4,000/ year of undergraduate study for prospective teachers
-State Grants – varies from state to state, see your state’s educational department.

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