Teach Grant 2016
The TEACH Grant Program provides grants of up to $4,000 a year to students who are completing or plan to complete course work needed to begin a career in teaching in a high-need field in a low-income area.
As a condition for receiving a TEACH Grant, you must sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve in which you agree to (among other requirements) teach:
- in a high-need field
- at an elementary school, secondary school, or educational service agency that serves students from low-income families
- for at least four complete academic years within eight years after completing (or ceasing enrollment in) the course of study for which you received the grant.
To receive a TEACH Grant, you must:
- Meet the basic eligibility criteria for the federal student aid programs.
- Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®).
- Be enrolled as an undergraduate, postbaccalaureate, or graduate student at a school that participates in the TEACH Grant Program.
- Be enrolled in a TEACH-Grant-eligible program.
- Meet certain academic achievement requirements (generally, scoring above the 75th percentile on one or more portions of a college admissions test or maintaining a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25). For specific information about the academic requirements, talk to the financial aid office at your college or career school.
- Receive TEACH Grant counseling that explains the terms and conditions of the TEACH Grant service obligation. You must complete counseling each year that you receive a TEACH Grant.
- Sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve.
High-need fields are:
- bilingual education and English language acquisition,
- foreign language,
- mathematics,
- reading specialist,
- science,
- special education,
- any other field that has been identified as high-need by the federal government, a state government, or a local education agency, and that is included in the annual Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing (Nationwide List).
The Fine Print: If you do not complete your service obligation, all TEACH Grant funds you received will be converted to a Direct Unsubsidized Loan. You must then repay this loan to the U.S. Department of Education, with interest charged from the date the TEACH Grant was disbursed (paid to you or on your behalf).
Full TEACH Grant details and application information can be found here.
