Federal Pell Grants

federal Pell Grant Eligibility

Federal Pell Grants are available to undergraduate students who:

  • have filed a FAFSA for the relevant academic year,
  • are pursuing their first bachelor’s degree,
  • meet the federal basic eligibility criteria,
  • are enrolled in credit-bearing courses, and
  • have not used more than six full-time years or 12 full-time semesters of Pell (also called Pell Lifetime Eligibility Usage or LEU).

Learn more about the Federal Pell Grant on the Federal Student Aid Portal.

Year-Round Pell (Aid for Fall, Spring, and Summer)

The Federal Pell grant is available for full- or part-time fall, full- or part-time spring, and full- or part-time summer financial assistance (up to 150 percent of the Pell grant per year). There are special requirements to use Pell after two full-time semesters have been used. We therefore recommend that students have a FAFSA on file for the both the coming academic year and the prior academic year. For more information on eligibility requirements for year-round Pell, refer to Year-Round Pell FAQ.

Winter Session and the federal pell grant

Even though the winter session is a separate session, it is considered part of the spring session in terms of eligibility for the Pell grant. Therefore, the spring session and has no additional Pell grant attached to it. However, if you are going to be part time and are Pell-eligible for the spring, the chart below presents a few scenarios that may be to your advantage. Keep in mind that you are entitled to only one full-time Pell award per semester and that winter intersession incurs an additional tuition charge. Your spring Pell award will be valued as your combined enrollment. However, due to winter and spring being billed separately, you will incur additional charges which may exceed the amount of the Federal Pell grant. Therefore, you may have to cover these additional expenses out of pocket or through other financial/financial aid sources. If you are planning to take a winter course and would like to better understand your financial aid options please schedule a financial aid planning session with a financial aid advisor.

Read our Financial Aid Eligibility for Winter Intersession FAQ to learn more about winter intersession costs and financial aid eligibility.

Important: Any winter session course in which you receive a W grade of any kind will not be counted toward your spring financial aid eligibility.

enrollment status Definitions

  • Less than Half-Time—registered between .01 and 5.9 credits total
  • Half-Time—registered between 6 and 8.9 credits total
  • Three-Quarter Time—registered between 9 and 11.9 credits total
  • Full-Time—registered for 12 or more credits total
Winter Enrollment Spring Enrollment Combined Spring Enrollment
Less than Half-Time Not Enrolled Less than Half-Time
Less than Half-Time (under three credits) Less than Half-Time (under three credits) Less than Half-Time
Less than Half-Time (at least three credits) Less than Half-Time (at least three credits) Half-Time
Less than Half-Time Half-Time Three-Quarter Time
Less than Half-Time Three-Quarter Time Full-Time
Less than Half-Time Full-Time Full-Time
Half-Time Not Enrolled Half-Time
Half-Time Less than Half-Time Three-Quarter Time
Half-Time Half-Time Full-Time
Half-Time Three-Quarter Time Full-Time
Half-Time Full-Time Full-Time
Three-Quarter Time Not Enrolled Three-Quarter Time
Three-Quarter Time Less than Half-Time Full-Time
Three-Quarter Time Half-Time Full-Time
Three-Quarter Time Three-Quarter Time Full-Time
Three-Quarter Time Full-Time Full-Time
Full-Time Not Enrolled Full-Time
Full-Time Less than Half-Time Full-Time
Full-Time Half-Time Full-Time
Full-Time Three-Quarter Time Full-Time
Full-Time Full-Time Full-Time

Brooklyn. All in.