Grants
Grants
A grant is free money that you do not have to pay back.
Undergraduate students who have financial need, and are working on their first degree may be eligible for grant funds.
Eligibility is determined by submitting a FAFSA or WASFA each academic year.
Western Washington University participates in all of the following federal and state grant programs:
Federal Grants
Federal Pell Grants are provided to eligible undergraduate students with exceptional financial need, based on the information submitted on the FAFSA.
The amount of Pell Grant that a student is eligible to receive is impacted by the number of financial aid eligible credits for which the student is enrolled and attends each quarter. Pell Grant is enrollment sensitive and is reduced when a student is enrolled less than 12 credits (full-time) per quarter. (Historical reference, the proportion of WWU students who received Federal Pell Grants: 20.5% were Pell Grant recipients for fall 2021, 22.5% for fall 2020 and 23.3% for fall 2019.)
Financial aid eligible credits:
- In general, only credits the student is enrolled in by the locked enrollment date (Pell Grant Recalculation Date), will count toward determining financial aid eligibility.
- Students who are repeating a course for which they previously received a passing grade, may receive funding towards the completion of the course one additional time and have the repeat credits count towards their enrollment status for financial aid eligibility. Additional attempts to repeat the course thereafter will not count towards the fundable enrollment status.
- Only coursework required for degree completion is eligible to be included in Pell Grant fundable enrollment.
- Students must be in a financial aid-eligible academic program – non-matriculated students are not eligible.
- Students who withdraw from courses after the quarterly lock date may be subject to Pell Grant recalculation. A review of their eligibility if their enrollment status changes as a result of this withdrawal.
- Pell Eligibility for Multiple Baccalaureate Degrees: If you are enrolled in more than one baccalaureate degree program (e.g. B.A., B.S., B.F.A.) and are receiving Pell Grant, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, or TEACH Grant, please be aware that once you complete the academic requirements for at least one degree, you will no longer be eligible for federal grant funding. However, you may still be eligible to receive Federal Work Study and Direct Loan, as well as state and institutional funds if eligible, to complete the requirements of your additional degree(s).
Annual & Lifetime Pell Grant Limits
Generally, the federal Pell Grant is offered based on expected full-time enrollment over three quarters of attendance. This is called the ‘scheduled’ Pell Grant. In certain situations, Pell Grant eligible students can receive up to 150% of their scheduled Pell Grant each year. If you are a transfer student, or if you will be enrolling summer quarter at Western, your Pell Grant eligibility may be limited by annual limits. The amount of Pell Grant that may be received over a student’s lifetime is limited by federal law to be equivalent to 6 years of Pell Grant funding.
Based on financial need. Awarded to eligible students who complete the FAFSA by the Priority Filing Date. Funding is limited and availability may change each year.
To be eligible, students must meet the following criteria:
- Eligibility is determined by submitting the FAFSA
- Provided to undergraduate students with the highest need who also receive Federal Pell Grant
- Eligibility requires meeting the FAFSA Priority Filing Date for submitting the FAFSA
- Available to students at any enrollment status
The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant is a federal financial aid program that provides grants of up to $4,000 a year to students who are completing coursework to begin a career in teaching.
- Students must have a complete FAFSA on file for the academic year they are requesting the TEACH Grant and be admitted and enrolled in the Woodring College of Education as a matriculated undergraduate or graduate student with a certification in a high need field. Post baccalaureate students are ineligible at WWU. Students may receive the TEACH Grant for up to the equivalent of 3 full time quarters during any academic year, including summer. To receive TEACH Grant for the summer quarter, a summer financial aid application is required.
- Eligibility requirements regarding the Federal TEACH grant are available at studentaid.gov.
- After students have reviewed the requirements and eligibility, if they believe they meet the criteria and are prepared to fulfill the terms of the grant, they may contact the Financial Aid Department to request the TEACH Grant addendum for the applicable academic year.
- The Federal TEACH Grant Addendum must be completed for each academic year that a student would like to utilize the grant; students are also required to complete the Agreement to Serve and the TEACH Grant Counseling annually.
- The TEACH Grant is enrollment sensitive and is required to be reduced based on enrollment status.
State Grants
- Eligibility is determined by submitting a FAFSA or WASFA
- Provided to undergraduate students with financial need
- Eligibility may be impacted by meeting the Priority Filing Date for submitting a FAFSA or WASFA
- Enrollment of half-time or more (six or more credits) per quarter is generally required to be eligible
- May only be applied to regular Western tuition and fees or State Supported Programs
- Cannot be applied to study abroad or online coursework
- Available to undergraduate or graduate students who are active drilling members in good standing of the WA National Guard
- Have completed a FAFSA or WASFA
- Are committed to serving one year in exchange for each year of funding.
- More information about this state grant program is available on the Washington Student Achievement Council website.
- Eligibility is determined by submitting a FAFSA or WASFA
- This state grant program has been re-authorized by the WA State Legislature for the 2024-2025 aid year. Future eligibility is undetermined at this time.
- Provided to undergraduate students whose Median Family Income (MFI) and Family Size are within allowable state thresholds as determined annually by the Washington State Legislature
- Annual maximum is $500 typically divided evenly between the quarters of attendance
- Students receiving the College Bound Scholarship are ineligible to also receive the Bridge Grant within the same quarter
- Enrollment of 3 credits or more per quarter is required to be eligible for this state grant
- Washington Bridge Grant eligibility is based on the the student's credits as of the quarterly locked enrollment date.
To be eligible, students must meet the following criteria:
- The College Bound Scholarship is available to eligible students who enrolled in middle school and have met the pledge requirements
- Eligibility is determined by submitting a FAFSA or WASFA
- The College Bound Scholarship, combined with the Washington College Grant, covers average tuition at public college rates, some fees, and a small book allowance
- Provided to undergraduate students whose Median Family Income (MFI) and Family Size are within allowable state thresholds as determined annually by the Washington State Legislature
- Beginning with the 2024-2025 aid year, students may receive up to 18 quarters of College Bound Scholarship as long as they enroll in college within one year of high school graduation. Students who previously used all of their quarters of eligibility may again be eligible for funding due to the extension of the lifetime limit.
- Enrollment of 3 credits or more per quarter is required to be eligible for this state grant. The College Bound Scholarship is enrollment sensitive and is reduced when a student is enrolled less than full-time (12 credits) per quarter.
- WA College Bound Scholarship eligibility is based on the the student's credits as of the quarterly locked enrollment date.
- Eligibility is determined by submitting a FAFSA or WASFA
- Provided to undergraduate students whose Median Family Income (MFI) and Family Size are within allowable state thresholds as determined annually by the Washington State Legislature.
- Amounts are determined depending on the institution that a student attends based on annual tuition and fees costs.
- Effective beginning with the 2024-2025 aid year, students may receive up to 18 quarters of Washington College Grant, if eligible, in their lifetime. Students who previously used all of their quarters of eligibility may again be eligible for funding due to the extension of the lifetime limit.
- Enrollment of 3 credits or more per quarter is required to be eligible for this state grant. Washington College Grant is enrollment sensitive and is reduced when a student is enrolled less than full-time (12 credits) per quarter.
- Washington College Grant eligibility is based on the the student's credits as of the quarterly locked enrollment date.
- Students who are receiving one of the three following types of public assistance from the State of Washington may be eligible for Washington College Grant, and would not be required to submit a FAFSA or WASFA. Contact our office if you believe you may be eligible. The eligible types of assistance are:
- Aged, blind, or disabled assistance (ABD) benefits
- Essential needs and housing support program benefits (HEN)
- Pregnant women assistance (PWA) program financial grants
- Economic Security for All (EcSA)
- Students who fail to meet Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements or withdraw from all of their coursework for a given quarter may be required to repay all or a portion of Washington College Grant they receive. If the repayment has been referred the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC), contact WSAC’s contracted billing service, University Accounting Service (UAS), at 844.870.8701.
- A variety of conditional scholarships are available to students who:
- Commit to teach at a WA K-12 public common school for a specified amount of time
- Submit and complete a signed promissory note
- Repay funding received, plus interest and fees but adjusted for any service completed, if the participant fails to fulfill the teaching service obligation
- More information about this state grant program is available on the Washington Student Achievement Council website.
- Current programs available as of August 2024 are as follows:
- Educator Retooling Conditional Scholarship
- Pipeline for Paraeducators Conditional Scholarship
- Teacher Shortage Conditional Scholarship
- Alternative Routes Conditional Scholarship
- Student Teaching Grant