TEACH Grant

The federal TEACH Grant Program provides up to $4,000 per year ($16,000 total for an undergraduate program) to students who plan to teach full time in teacher shortage areas at schools that serve low-income families. Actual annual award amounts are dependent on federal appropriations. Part-time students receive reduced amounts.

To receive a TEACH Grant, a student must be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen, and must take the following steps:

  • You must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), but financial need is not required.
  • Complete the TEACH Grant Application and submit it to the Financial Aid Office Scholarship Unit.
  • Enroll as an undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, or graduate student in a TEACH Grant eligible program (a major that will prepare the student to become a highly-qualified teacher in a high need field as described below).
  • Enroll in course work necessary to begin a career in teaching, including subject area courses (e.g., math courses for a student who intends to be a math teacher).
  • Meet certain academic achievement requirements such as an SAT score above the 75th percentile or a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25 (unless the grant applicant is currently a teacher or retiring from teaching and has expertise in a high need field (math, science, Special Education, English as a Second Language, or another high-need subject as defined by the U.S. Department of Education).
  • Visit the Federal TEACH Grant web site, and complete the Initial and Subsequent Counseling and the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve or Repay.

TEACH Grant recipients must agree to teach for at least four full years within eight years of finishing their teacher preparation program. They must teach in elementary or secondary schools that have been identified by the U.S. Department of Education as serving pupils from low-income families. These schools are listed in the U.S. Department of Education’s Teacher Cancellation Low-Income Annual Directory.

TEACH Grant recipients must also teach in high-need subject areas, including bilingual education and English language acquisition, foreign language, mathematics, reading, science or special education. There may be additional teacher shortage areas identified at the time a student begins teaching. These teacher subject shortage areas (not geographic areas) are listed in the U.S. Department of Education’s Teacher Cancellation Low-Income Annual Directory.

Annually, TEACH Grant recipients must sign a service agreement to acknowledge that failure to complete the teaching obligation will mean repaying the grant as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan, with interest accruing from the date that the grant funds were disbursed.

TEACH Grant recipients must complete counseling online each year and must complete Exit Counseling when graduating or leaving school. In addition, within 120 days of completing or ceasing enrollment in a teacher preparation program, the TEACH Grant recipient must confirm to the U.S. Department of Education that they will fulfill the terms and conditions of the service agreement.