The Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) is one of the school grants that can be used as a supplemental aid for those who have a Pell Grant or just need special financial aid. The FSEOG provides assistance for low income students who are undergraduates. This type of grant is used to help promote accessibility to post secondary education. Students are able to receive this type of school grant at any of the 4,000 post secondary institutions that will allow for it.
For the disbursement of these school grants, priority is granted to students who have “exceptional need” (those with the least expected family contributions). Financial need is decided by the U.S. Department of Education. They use a formula that is standard and created by Congress to determine the financial need of each applicant. The basic formula calculates either the student’s income and assets (as long as the student doesn’t live with parents) or the parents’ assets and income, in the case that the student lives with parents. Other factors that are taken into consideration include the family size of household as well as the number of family members attending post secondary schools. The school grant need is then determined by the sum of a percentage of net income plus a percentage of their net assets.
Students who have already been awarded the Pell Grant will be the first to be considered for these school grants. The student who is awarded this school grant will receive anywhere from $100 to $4,000 a year. This all depends upon when they apply, their financial needs, the funding at the school they are attending and the rules of the financial aid office at the school the student attends.
If the student is found to be eligible for this particular type of school grant, the school will credit their account, pay the student directly through a check, or offer a combination of these methods. The student’s school must give the student funds a minimum of once per term. Schools that don’t utilize semesters, quarters or trimesters have to give the student their funds minimally twice per academic year. Remember, to be eligible for most school grants, you must be found to have the financial need. You also cannot have an overpayment from the Pell Grant, and you must be a U.S. citizen. You cannot have a BA degree and you cannot be found in default from any type of student loan. If you qualify, you should be able to gain a lot of assistance via this school grant.
