Higher education in the United States is very expensive and students have to apply for different types of student`s financial aid to cover all educational expenses. There are many of studying expenses: tuition fee, book fee, insurance, living expenses, accommodation, transportation, etc. The main types of student`s financial aid are: student`s loans, student`s grants and student`s scholarships. The most widespread and popular among the students type of student financial aid is student grant, as they must not be repaid after graduation in contrast to the loans. Full and part time students can apply for the student’s grants. One of the most popular grant programs for students is Pell Grant Program. According to the statistic approximately 5.3 millions of students receive each year Pell Grant to pay studying expenses.
Those students who have a desire to receive the Pell Grant have to pay attention on the peculiarities of the application process. First of all the candidates have to fill in the free application form for student`s financial aid (FASFA). Candidates can receive the FASFA application form at colleges, universities, high schools, libraries or download on the official FASFA website. After filling of the FASFA form the candidate will receive the notice that he is accepted as a candidate for the Pell Grant.
There are several requirements for the candidates who have a desire to receive the Pell Grant for studying. Those students, whose family income is less than $ 45 000, can apply for the receiving of the Grant. But in fact majority of the candidates who apply for the grant are the students with total family income about $ 20 000 per year. Besides, the candidates must have US citizenship, must be registered in Selective Services and must be undergraduate students.
In the case of success the students can receive from $ 400 to $ 4 000 per semester from a Pell Grant program, but usually the sum of grant amounts about $ 2 200. The sum of grant awarded to the particular student depends on the school, major, financial situation of the student, size of family and other factors.