| AwardYear: 1996-97 EnterChapterNo: 4 EnterChapterTitle: Federal Pell Grant Program SectionNumber: 1 SectionTitle: Student Eligibility PageNumbers: 3 -7 Unlike the student's eligibility for the campus-based programs (see chapters 5 through 8), a student's eligibility for Pell does not depend on the availability of funds at the school. The Department provides funds to each participating school to pay eligible students based on the Payment Data the school submits to the Department. (See Section 7 of this chapter for more on the funding process.) Because the Department pays Pell awards to all eligible students, the school is not responsible for selecting recipients. However, the school must ensure that each recipient meets the eligibility requirements for the Federal Pell Grant Program, as discussed below, and that each eligible student is paid the amount for which he or she is eligible. GENERAL ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS Most of the student eligibility requirements for the Federal Pell Grant Program are common to all the Student Financial Assistance (SFA) Programs. General SFA eligibility requirements are discussed in greater detail in Chapter 2, Section 1. Briefly, for a student to be eligible to receive assistance from the SFA Programs, he or she must - be either a U.S. citizen or an eligible noncitizen; - have a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent (such as a General Education Development [GED] certificate). Two alternatives, which are acceptable for all SFA Programs, are for the student to pass an independently administered test approved by the Department, or meet other standards an individual state establishes that are approved by the Department (see Chapter 2, Section 1); - be meeting satisfactory academic progress standards in his or her course of study; and - file a Statement of Educational Purpose and a Certification Statement on Refunds and Defaults. These statements are printed on the FAFSA. (See Chapter 2, Section 1.) A student is NOT eligible for any SFA funds if he or she - is enrolled in an elementary or secondary school, - is in default on an SFA loan or owes a repayment or is liable for an overpayment on an SFA grant, or - has borrowed in excess of the annual or aggregate loan limits for the SFA loan programs. In most cases, if a student is a member of a religious order, he or she is eligible ONLY for a Federal Stafford Loan (see Chapter 2, Section 1). [[Financial aid transcript]] If a student transfers from one postsecondary school to another, the new school must request a financial aid transcript from the previous school. The school may also be able to use NSLDS to receive financial aid transcript information. (See Chapter 3, Section 4 for a discussion of the financial aid transcript.) UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT A student must be an undergraduate to receive a Pell. The regulations define an undergraduate as one who is enrolled in an undergraduate course of study and who has not earned a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent or a first professional degree.*1* ("Professional degree" means a degree offered by professional programs such as pharmacy, dentistry, or veterinary programs.) [[Length of undergraduate study]] An undergraduate course of study under this definition is one that usually does not exceed 4 academic years or is a program of 4 to 5 academic years designed to lead to a baccalaureate or first professional degree. If the program is longer than 5 years (for example, a 6-year pharmacy program), then students enrolled in that program are considered undergraduate students only for the first 4 academic years of the program. [[Foreign, unaccredited degrees]] It does not matter if the baccalaureate or professional degree is from an unaccredited or foreign school, or is not accepted or recognized by the school at which the student is enrolled. A student who has earned such a degree is still ineligible for Pell. [[Degrees below the baccalaureate level]] Note that a student who has already received an associate degree, but who enrolls in another undergraduate program, would continue to be considered an undergraduate student until he or she has completed the academic curriculum requirements for a first bachelor's degree. (This is true for ANY student who has received a certificate or diploma below the baccalaureate level.) If a student who is an undergraduate incorrectly reported on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that he or she will be a graduate student or has a bachelor's degree, this information must be corrected. Because the application information indicated that the student was not an undergraduate, the Department's records will show that he or she is ineligible for Pell. If the application information is not corrected, the school will be unable to receive Pell funds from the Department for that student. DURATION OF ELIGIBILITY The duration of eligibility for Pell is defined as the period required for the student to complete the first undergraduate baccalaureate course of study. [[Coursework not counted toward degree]] Any noncredit or remedial coursework the student takes is not counted toward the period of time required to complete the first baccalaureate degree. However, there is a separate, one-year limit on the amount of noncredit or remedial coursework for which the student may receive SFA Program funds (see "Remedial Coursework" in Section 3 of this chapter). THE EFC AND FEDERAL PELL GRANT ELIGIBILITY The Expected Family Contribution (EFC) formula is the standard formula used in determining financial need for the SFA Programs (except for unsubsidized loans, which do not require a determination of need). The formula produces an EFC number. To be eligible for a Pell for 1996-97, a student must have a nine-month EFC of 2270 or less. The less the student and family can contribute to education costs, the greater the Pell the student may receive. Thus, the neediest students will have an EFC of 0 and may be eligible for the maximum Pell award ($2,470 for 1996-97) if their cost of education (also known as cost of attendance) will be at least $2,470 and if they will be attending full time for a full academic year. [[The illustration on page 4 -6 is currently unavailable on the for viewing. Please reference your paper handbook for additional information.]] As the EFC increases, the amount of the award decreases; after the maximum EFC eligibility (2270 for 1996-97), the award becomes 0. The EFC is computed by the Central Processing System (CPS) in Iowa and is based on the information the student reported on the FAFSA. The EFC is included along with the student's application information on a Student Aid Report (SAR) or Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR). (See A Guide to 1996-97 SARs and ISIRs for more information.) [[Professional judgment]] The financial aid administrator, through professional judgment, may adjust one or more of the data elements used to calculate the EFC. The adjustment must be based on a student's individual circumstances and must be documented in the student's file. Note that aid administrators may not adjust the EFC number or the formula. If the financial aid administrator makes an adjustment for the Federal Pell Grant Program, the same adjustment must be used when awarding campus-based aid, subsidized Federal Stafford Loans, and subsidized Direct Stafford Loans. For more information on adjusting the EFC, see the 1996-97 Counselor's Handbook for Postsecondary Schools. [[EFC change affecting award reprocessed through CPS]] Note that any recalculation of the EFC that results in a change in the student's Pell award must be submitted through the CPS to establish the student's eligibility for Pell payment. Resubmission is not a requirement for EFC changes that do not affect the Pell award; however, if the school does not submit these changes for reprocessing, it must be sure that the EFC it submits on its payment record to the Department for the Federal Pell Grant Program matches the EFC calculated by the CPS. A school is never required to resubmit corrections or adjustments for recalculation of the EFC for the campus-based programs, the Federal Family Education Loan Program, or the Direct Loan Program. DOCUMENTING THE STUDENT'S ELIGIBILITY FOR PAYMENT [[SAR or ISIR]] The SAR is a paper document sent to the student by the application processor. An ISIR is a computer-generated electronic record sent to a school by the CPS. Both SARs and ISIRs contain the student's application information, the EFC, and the results of the database matches. To pay a student his or her Pell award, a school must have received a valid SAR or ISIR containing an eligible nine-month EFC while the student is still enrolled and eligible. Once it is received, assuming all other eligibility requirements are met, the school MUST pay the student. [[NEW]] Beginning in 1996-97, all students will receive a SAR in the mail from the CPS. Students who apply through EDE will receive a one part SAR, called a SAR Information Acknowledgement. The school is no longer required to provide these students with a copy of the ISIR it received from the CPS. For purposes of documenting the student's eligibility for payment, the SAR Information Acknowledgement is the same as a two part SAR: A school MUST pay a student who submits a valid SAR Information Acknowledgement. [[Signature not required]] A valid SAR or ISIR is defined as a SAR or ISIR where all the information is complete and accurate. The student is not required to sign either the SAR or ISIR. As a result, an electronic ISIR may be stored electronically. Schools must be careful to store the record as received from the CPS. Note that the student is still required to sign the statement on the FAFSA certifying that the information provided is correct. If the student applies electronically through his or her school, the school must be sure that it keeps the original signed FAFSA. In addition, the school must keep signed documentation of any corrections submitted electronically. (See the 1996 97 Counselor's Handbook for Postsecondary Schools for more information on signature requirements.) [[NEW]] [[August 30/last day of enrollment deadline]] The school must receive the valid SAR or ISIR no later than August 30 following the end of the award year, or the student's last day of enrollment, whichever comes first. (Note that if August 30 falls on a weekend, the previous Friday is the deadline). As mentioned above, the student must still be enrolled and eligible for payment at the time the SAR or ISIR is received. If the student leaves school or completes the program and the school does not have a valid SAR or ISIR, the student is not eligible for a Pell. [[Verification extension]] The deadline above is extended for students undergoing verification. The verification extension allows the school to accept a student's revised SAR or ISIR up to 60 days after the student's last day of enrollment. However, the extension cannot go beyond the August 30 deadline mentioned above. The school must have ALREADY received a SAR or ISIR with an eligible EFC while the student was enrolled and eligible for payment. *1* Occasionally, a student will complete the requirements for a bachelor's degree but will continue taking undergraduate courses without accepting the degree. The school must decide at what point it considers the student to have completed the baccalaureate course of study--when the student completes the requirements for the degree, or when the student actually receives the degree. If the school considers the student to have completed the baccalaureate course of study, the student is no longer eligible to receive a Pell. |