Can You Get a Pell Grant if Your Parents Pay for School?
Pell Grants provide undergraduate students with up to $5,550 per year to help pay for tuition, room, board and other educational expenses. The federal government awards Pell Grants based on the student and family's financial circumstances as evidenced in their responses to the questions on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid submitted before each school year.
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Pell Grant Requirements
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The federal government uses an applicant's Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) to determine whether he receives a Pell Grant, and if so, what amount. For the 2011 to 2012 school year, full-time students with an EFC of $5,273 or less were eligible to receive a Pell Grant. The maximum grant amount is $5,550 per year for students with an EFC of $0. The minimum amount of $555 per year is for students with an EFC of $5,001 to $5,273. Students with an EFC between $1 and $5,000 can calculate their expected Pell Grant by subtracting the EFC from $5,550 and rounding the result to the nearest hundred dollars. Students attending less than full-time have their awards adjusted proportionally to the number of credits in which they are enrolled.
Calculating EFC
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For most undergraduate students, the FAFSA considers parent and student income and assets when determining the EFC. The EFC formula adds together a percent of the student's income, a percent of the student's assets, and a percent of the parents' income and assets above the living allowance the government estimates they need for the household, given its size. If more than one child is in college, the government divides the parent contribution between the EFCs of the children. If a student is independent, which occurs if she is 24 years or older, married, has children or is or has been in active duty military, the parents finances do not appear on the FAFSA at all. In this case, the EFC is based on the income of the student (and spouses, if applicable).
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Parent vs. Student Payment
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The Pell Grant does not differentiate between students who pay for school themselves and students whose parents pay. The federal government only differentiates between independent students, who are assumed to pay for school themselves, and dependent students, who are assumed to have parent help. However, unique circumstances can lead to actual payments that do not follow the assumed norms. The federal government does not consider these circumstances when awarding financial aid, but instead bases the Pell Grant and other awards on the information submitted on the FAFSA.
Will You Get a Pell Grant?
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The only way to know for sure whether you will get a Pell Grant is to fill out the FAFSA. You should submit it soon after Jan. 1 of the year in which the school year starts. Most schools require that you submit the FAFSA by late spring or early summer. If your parents make a lot of money and pay for school, you are unlikely to get a Pell Grant because your EFC will be too high. However, if your parents don't make much money and still manage to help you pay a little bit of your school costs, you are likely to receive many types of financial aid, including a Pell Grant.
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