Grants

The Pell Grant is a federal grant awarded to undergraduate students with exceptional financial need. It helps cover the cost of tuition, fees, books, and other expenses. To be eligible, students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) each year. The amount of the Pell Grant award varies depending on the student’s financial need and enrollment status. It’s important to note that Pell Grants have a lifetime limit, so it’s crucial to maximize the award each year by enrolling full-time and maintaining satisfactory academic progress.

The Federal Pell Grant is based on the Student Aid Index (SAI), which is calculated by the Department of Education based on the information listed on the FAFSA form, the number of credit hours per semester and your cost of attendance.

Federal Pell Grant funds are not available for certificate, special admit, transient, second degree, non-degree, learning support, high school and graduate students. This grant is also limited to 12 full-time semesters.

Visit the Federal Pell Grant Website

Pell Grant Eligibility

Pell Grant eligibility will be determined in three steps:

1. Maximum Pell Grant – Applicants may qualify for a Maximum Pell Grant based on family size, adjusted gross income (AGI), and poverty guidelines. Students qualifying for a Maximum Pell Grant will have an SAI between negative $1,500 (-$,1500) and $0.

2. Student Aid Index (SAI) – Applicants who do not qualify for a Maximum Pell Grant may still qualify if their calculated SAI is less than the maximum Pell Grant award for the award year. The applicant’s Pell Grant award for full-time enrollment will be equal to the maximum Pell Grant for the award year minus SAI. The Pell Grant will be adjusted (prorated) if an applicant enrolls in less than full time, or if the applicant’s Cost of Attendance (COA) is less than the calculated Pell Grant award.

3. Minimum Pell Grant – Applicants whose SAI is greater than the maximum Pell Grant award for the award year may still qualify for a Pell Grant, based on family size, AGI, and poverty guidelines.

• Non- Filers – Independent student (and spouse, if applicable) tax non-filers and dependent children of non-filing parent (s)
• Children of certain deceased veterans and public safety officers- Students under age 33 whose parent died in the armed forces after September 11, 2001, and or students under age 33 whose parent (s) died in the line of duty as a public safety officer

Automatic Pell Grants based on income household and size: Families making less than 175% and single parents making less than 225% of the federal poverty level will see their students receive a maximum Federal Pell Grant award. Minimum Pell Grants will be guaranteed to students from households below 275%, 325%, 350%, or 400% of the federal poverty level, depending on household structure. Pell awards between the maximum and minimum amounts will be determined by SAI.

Once the annual Federal Pell Grant is determined, half of the award will be offered in each semester of the award year and will be prorated by Enrollment Intensity instead of Enrollment Levels.

Year-Round Pell Grant Eligibility

For Summer 2025: Otherwise Pell eligible students will be eligible for additional Pell Grant funds for summer semester if permitted by their SAI. SSU treats the summer term as a trailer term for federal aid purposes so students will have their Federal Pell Grant eligibility for summer 2025 determined by their 2024-

Pell Grant Recalculation

Pell recalculation is setting a date each term for which the enrollment status of the student will be locked for the term for purposes of determining Pell for the term. Savannah State establishes the Pell recalculation date as the day after the first drop/add period of each term.

Guidelines for Pell Grant Recalculation

• The enrollment status of the student is locked on the Pell recalculation date, not the specific classes.
• A student may swap courses that haven’t started yet in the term in later modules as long as the student’s enrollment status stays the same as it was on the recalculation date.
• A student who has attended a prior term and received Pell in the prior terms must be registered for the courses Pell will pay by the recalculation date of the subsequent terms.
• If a student is enrolling for the first time for the award year in the later part of a term, the student’s enrollment status for Pell is the date the student first enrolls.
• If a student has attended in prior terms but never received a Pell Grant for the award year (due to circumstances such as being selected for verification and not completing the verification until the middle of the term), if the student completes the verification and is then awarded a Pell Grant, the date the student is first awarded the Pell becomes the freeze date for the enrollment status for that student.  The student would then have to be enrolled by the next terms recalculation date to receive Pell for the next term.

Pell Grant Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU)

The amount of Federal Pell Grant funds a student may receive over their lifetime is limited by federal law to be the equivalent of six years of Pell Grant funding.  The Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) is the sum of the percentages of your Federal Pell Grant awards that you received for each award year.  Students can receive the Federal Pell Grant for no more than 12 semesters or the equivalent (roughly six years = 600%). You’ll receive an email notification if you are getting close to your limit.  If your Pell Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) equals or exceeds 600%, you will no longer receive Pell Grant funding.  Similarly, if your LEU is greater than 500% but less than 600%, while you will be eligible for a Pell Grant for the next award year, you will not be able to receive a full scheduled award.

The Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant is awarded based on your Student Aid Index (SAI) number, determined upon completion of FAFSA, your financial need and funds available. Federal SEOG funds are not available for certificate, special admit, transient, non-degree, learning support and high school students. FSEOG is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis to students with exceptional financial need, in average amounts of $1000 per school year. Recipients must be an undergraduate student who is Pell eligible and who has not already earned a baccalaureate degree.

The Public Safety Memorial Grant is an award for children of Georgia Public Safety Officers who have been permanently disabled or killed in the line of duty. The grant covers the cost of attendance minus other aid, but may not exceed $18,000 per award year. Recipients are eligible to receive payment for a maximum of eight semesters or 12 quarters of undergraduate study.

The Georgia College Completion Grant (GCCG) assists eligible students who are experiencing a financial aid gap with their cost of education.

Eligible students must have completed at least eighty (80) percent of credit requirements for graduation from their enrolled undergraduate major or program of study. Eligible students must owe their institution for an outstanding balance of direct costs for the current term of enrollment, such as tuition, fees, room and board.  The charges or fines incurred due to actions by a student such as parking tickets, library fines, or late fees are not considered direct charges for the purpose of this grant.

Students do not need to apply for this fund. The Office of Financial Aid will automatically award eligible students. Funding for this program is limited and will be awarded until all funds are exhausted.

Eligible students may receive a College Completion Grant award of up to $2,500 as a lifetime amount. Funds may only be applied to direct charges owed the University for the term of the award. GCCG funds cannot be used for study abroad or student exchange programs. GCCG funds cannot be issued as a refund. GCCG award amounts will be reduced if the award results in a refund to the student.