• Low-income Virginia students can apply for a Pell Grant to help cover costs of tuition.check book image by Rob Hill from Fotolia.com
  
  The Pell Grant program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education and is designed to offer federal grants to low-income students. The grants are distributed based on a financial need formula determined by the U.S. Congress. High school students can apply for Pell Grants in their home states by filling out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSFA). Unlike loans distributed by the U.S. Department of Education, Pell Grants do not require repayment.
  
  

Expected Family Contribution

• Students who are interested in applying for a Pell Grant must meet the appropriate Expected Family Contribution (EFC) requirements. The EFC is determined from a formula established by Congress, and takes into account a student's income or assets, a contributing parent's income or assets, and a family's household size. Students must fill in this information on a FAFSA and wait to receive a Student Aid Report (SAR) in response. The SAR determines if a student meets the minimum requirements necessary to receive a Pell Grant.
  
  

Cost of Attendance

• The annual award limit of a Pell Grant is $5,550. To determine if a student is eligible to receive the full amount of the grant, his or her cost of attendance must be established. The cost of attendance is a rough estimate of how much a student will spend on tuition and related educational expenses during the period enrollment. Students are allowed to use the average tuition costs of an institution instead of the actual tuition paid when determining their costs of attendance.
  
  

Enrollment Status

• Another requirement students must meet before receiving a Pell Grant is gaining enrollment into a participating institution. Students can be enrolled in one of those institutions full-time or part-time, and should attend classes for at least one academic year. A Pell Grant must pay student directly via check at least once per term. It is the responsibility of the student to apply the Pell Grant towards tuition, room and board, books, supplies and transportation to and from classes.
  
  

Virginia Schools

• Nearly a hundred Virginia universities, community colleges, technical schools and private institutions accept federal Pell Grants as a form of tuition. For different Virginia schools, Pell Grant award amounts can vary from year to year depending upon the costs of various programs. Students should check in with the financial aid departments of their top colleges of choice in the state if they are interested in using a Pell Grant towards tuition payment in Virginia.