Federal Funds

The Federal Pell Grant is available to you if you demonstrate financial need. This is in accordance with federal guidelines established by the Department of Education. The Pell Grant can range from $767 to $7395 for the 2023-2024 award year. This amount may change in future academic years. Grants do not have to be repaid. Pell eligibility is determined by the following factors:

• Financial need
• Cost of attendance
• Status as a full-time or half-time student (see chart below)
• Plans to attend school for a full academic year or less 

Requirements for the Pell Grant include:

• You must be an undergraduate student (you cannot have a baccalaureate degree)
• You must be accepted into an eligible program (some certificates, diploma, or associate degrees)

The amount of Federal Pell Grant funds you can receive is limited by the Department of Education. Students have up to 6 years (or 12 full-time semesters) to receive the Pell Grant. This includes all semesters Pell Grant was received at prior institutions.

To review your Pell Lifetime Eligibility Usage, visit StudentAid.gov.

Pell Grant Census Date Policy:

Gwinnett Technical College utilizes a Census Date to determine Pell Grant Eligibility. This date will refer to the point in which your enrollment at Gwinnett Technical College is locked for the semester. This enrollment lock does not apply to any other types of Financial Aid. Student enrollment as of 11:59 on the Census Date will determine Pell Grant Eligibility. If you have a schedule that includes a class in Mini-Mester Term C, your PELL Grant Census Date will defer to the Mini-Mester Term C Census Date. Any withdrawals prior to that can be subject to your Pell Grant being reduced.

If a student has a schedule that initially includes a Mini-Mester Term C class, and they decide to drop that class, the applicable census date will automatically revert back to the Pell Census Date for terms A/B.

New students who are registering during Term C registration will default to the Mini-Mester Term C Census Date only.

2023 – 2024 GTC Pell Grant Census Dates

(The Pell Grant Census Date is scheduled the day after add/drop each semester and Mini-Mester as of 11:59 PM EST)

• Fall 2023 Terms A/B         August 20
• Fall 2023 Mini-Term C             October 12
• Spring 2024 Terms A/B           January 14
• Spring 2024 Mini-Term C       March 7
• Summer 2024                         May 15

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Year-Round Pell Grant

Year-Round Pell (YRP) allows students to receive up to 150% of a regular grant award over the course of the academic year so students may continue taking classes in the summer and finish a degree faster. Therefore, even if students attended college full-time during the Fall and Spring semesters, they may still be eligible to receive awards during the summer term.

There are two ways that students will be eligible to receive Federal Pell Grants for the summer semester at Gwinnett Technical College:

1. In the event a Federal Pell grant recipient does not use the full award by attending full-time for fall and spring semesters, any remaining funds can be used in the summer session for as little as one credit hour.
2. Pell grant rules allow students who have already received 100% of their initial Pell Grant award by going full-time in the fall and spring terms to receive additional Pell Grant funds if the following criteria are met:
   • A current 17-18 FAFSA must be on file and complete.
   • Enroll in Summer 2018 courses applicable to your degree program.
   • Must be enrolled for a minimum of 6 credits hours to use YRP.

Summer awards are calculated after a student registers for the summer semester.  Below are scenarios describing how Year Round Pell for the Summer works.

Scenario 1

Enrollment	12 credit hours Full Time	12 credit hours Full Time	12 credit hours Full Time	Total
EFC	0	0	0
Pell Awarded	$3448 (50%)	$3447 (50%)	$3448 (50%)	$10343 (150%)

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Scenario 2

Enrollment	12 credit hours Full Time	12 credit hours Full Time	6 credit hours Half Time	Total
EFC	0	0	0
Pell Awarded	$3448 (50%)	$3447 (50%)	$1724 (25%)	$8619 (125%)

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Scenario 3

Enrollment	12 credit hours Full Time	9 credit hours 3/4 Time	12 credit hours Full Time	Total
EFC	0	0	0
Pell Awarded	$3448 (50%)	$2586 (37.5%)	$3448 (50%)	$9482 (137.5%)

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Scenario 4

Enrollment	12 credit hours Full Time	12 credit hours Full Time	5 (or less) credit hours Less than 1/2 Time	Total
EFC	0	0	0
Pell Awarded	$3448 (50%)	$3447 (50%)	$0	$6895 (100%)

For more information on the Federal Pell Grant, visit StudentAid.Gov.

You may be eligible for a Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) in the amount of $250-$1000 each academic year. The SEOG funds are extremely limited; students are strongly encouraged to complete their FAFSA early each year. This award does not have to be repaid. Requirements for the SEOG include:

• You must be an undergraduate student (you cannot have a baccalaureate degree)
• You must be accepted into an eligible program (some certificates, diplomas, or associate degrees)

For more information on the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG), visit StudentAid.gov.

Federal Work Study (FWS) provides part-time jobs with flexible hours revolving around your class schedule. Students are limited to working 20 hours per week – leaving ample time for their studies. You may receive an initial award of $5,500 per academic year if you demonstrate financial need. FWS Awards are paid as monthly paychecks, and this award does not have to be repaid. The funds for FWS are very limited, so complete your FAFSA early! Be sure to indicate you are interested in Federal Work Study when asked on the FAFSA.

ELIGIBILITY
In order to be eligible for an FWS award, students must:

• Be an enrolled student in an eligible program of study
• Register for at least three credit hours in the fall, spring, or summer terms.
• Maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) or be on an approved Education Plan as defined by the Office of Financial Aid
• Be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States
• Must have financial need as determined by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
• The student’s financial aid file is complete and verified by the Office of Financial Aid
• Received confirmation of an approved FWS award
• Student must not be in default or owe a repayment to any federal aid program

To apply for a Federal Work Study position, visit GwinnettTech.edu and click on the “GTC Careers” link at the bottom of the main page.

Federal Direct Loans are offered by the Department of Education and have to be repaid, with interest. Students must submit their FAFSA to be considered for this program. First-time borrowers must complete the Entrance Counseling session and sign their Master Promissory Note at StudentAid.gov before funds will be released.

Never borrow more than you need.  Student Loans are accepted each term and are divided into two disbursements. If you want a student loan, you will have to accept it each term in Banner.

Students who complete their program, cease attendance or have a less than half-time enrollment status are required to complete the Exit Counseling session. For more information on Federal Direct Loans, visit StudentAid.gov.

For any student who enters into a loan agreement, the loan information will be submitted to NSLDS and accessible by authorized agencies, lenders, and institutions.

Gwinnett Technical College’s official cohort default is 8.1% as of 10/4/2023.

Gwinnett Tech students who received loans is 18.7%.

The 2023 national average cohort default rate for public institutions is 2.3%.

Source: https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/topics/default-management/official-cohort-default-rates-schools

This program offers low-interest loans to students who demonstrate financial need. The federal government pays the interest while students are in school and have a half-time enrollment status. If you would like to use both types of Federal Loan funds, you must accept the Subsidized loan first.

Students who receive this loan are given a six-month grace period after completing their program, ceasing attendance, or if they are below half-time enrollment status (5 credit hours or less). Once the grace period has expired, repayment and interest on the loan begin.

There are annual limits to the amount of loan funds that students can receive. The annual loan limits vary; they are based on your year in college (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior/Senior) and your dependency status.

There are also limits to how much a student can borrow for their undergraduate and graduate studies. These are called aggregate loan limits. Keep track of your student loan debt and usage by logging into the StudentAid.Gov  website and viewing the loan information on your dashboard.

Subsidized Usage Limit Applies(SULA) Update

As of July 1, 2021, no matter the aid year related to the loan, the secretary of the Department of Education removes and amends regulations to follow changes made by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. The Secretary removes the Subsidized Usage Loan Limit restriction also known as SULA for any borrower that receives loans on or after July 1, 2021, and for all award years since the 2013-2014 award years since the 2013-2014 award year.

The Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans are similar. However, this loan accrues interest 14 days after it is disbursed to your Student Banner account. In addition, students do not have to demonstrate financial need to receive this loan.

Students have the same grace period after completing their program, ceasing attendance, or if they are below half-time enrollment status (5 credit hours or less). Interest accrues (or is added) to the loan each semester.  The Unsubsidized loan’s principal balance and the interest must be repaid. Students may choose to pay their interest each semester. 

There are limits on the amount in Unsubsidized loans that you may be eligible to receive each academic year (annual loan limits) and the total amounts that you may borrow for undergraduate and graduate study (aggregate loan limits). The annual loan limits vary; they are based on your year in college (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior/Senior) and your dependency status.

Keep track of your student loan debt and usage by logging into the StudentAid.Gov  website and viewing the loan information on your dashboard.

Once you are no longer enrolled in and attending at least six credit hours, repayment of your Federal Student Loans begins after a six-month grace period. During the grace period, you will receive repayment information from the loan servicer, including the first payment due date (interest accrues on both loans but payments are not enforced).

Information on the servicer assigned to your student loans can be found at StudentAid.Gov.

The Federal Direct loan program offers several repayment plans that are designed to meet the different needs of individual borrowers. Generally, students have 10 to 25 years to repay their loan, depending on the repayment plan that they choose.

Detailed information on repayment options is provided on the mandatory online Entrance Loan Counseling and Exit Loan Counseling sessions.

Sample Loan Repayment Schedules

Repayment Options: Standard

Initial debt when you enter payment	Per Month	# of Months	Total Repaid
$3,500	$50	90	$4,478
$5,500	$63	120	$7,595
$10,500	$121	120	$14,500
$17,000	$196	120	$23,476
$25,000	$288	120	$34,524
$40,000	$460	120	$55,239
$57,500	$662	120	$79,405

Repayment Options: Extended

Initial debt when you enter payment	Per Month	# of Months	Total Repaid
$3,500	Not available for this amount
$5,500	Not available for this amount
$10,500	Not available for this amount
$17,000	Not available for this amount
$25,000	Not available for this amount
$40,000	$278	300	$83,289
$57,500	$399	300	$119,727

Repayment Options: Graduated

Initial debt when you enter payment	Per Month	# of Months	Total Repaid
$3,500	$23-$70	120	$5,201
$5,500	$37-$110	120	$8,173
$10,500	$70-$209	120	$15,603
$17,000	$113-$339	120	$25,262
$25,000	$166-$498	120	$37,150
$40,000	$266-$797	120	$59,440
$57,500	$382-$1,145	120	$85,445

Repayment Options: Income Contingent – Single*

Initial debt when you enter payment	Per Month	# of Months	Total Repaid
$3,500	$26-$33	209	$6,098
$5,500	$41-$51	209	$9,583
$10,500	$78-$98	209	$18,295
$17,000	$127-$158	209	$29,621
$25,000	$186-$232	209	$43,561
$40,000	$298-$372	209	$69,707
$57,500	$298-$560	209	$114,608

Repayment Options: Income Contingent – Married*

Initial debt when you enter payment	Per Month	# of Months	Total Repaid
$3,500	$25-$33	225	$6,380
$5,500	$39-$51	225	$10,025
$10,500	$75-$98	225	$19,139
$17,000	$121-$159	225	$30,987
$25,000	$154-$423	231	$46,576
$40,000	$154-$423	274	$88,667
$57,500	$154-$644	300	$127,891

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Edamerica Provides Loan Repayment Assistance

The Office of Financial Aid here at Gwinnett Technical College understands that you may have trouble when repaying back loans. Gwinnett Technical College has collaborated with Edamerica, to provide you with FREE assistance on your federal student loan obligations to ensure successful, and comfortable, loan repayment. The Edamerica counselors will help explain the student loan repayment process so you understand all of your options. If you have trouble making your payments, they will offer helpful alternatives so you will not fall behind. Edamerica is not a collection agency. We have collaborated with them to help you explore a wide variety of possibilities such as alternative repayment plans, deferment, consolidation, discharge, forgiveness, and forbearance options. Edamerica will stay in touch with you via phone calls, letters, and/or emails to help you find answers to your questions and solutions to your issues. Please VISIT our website for any financial questions you may have.

Gwinnett Technical College has teamed up with Edamerica, formerly Higher Education Solutions (HES) to provide a money management website. The website is here to help explain the student loan repayment process so you understand all of your options. You can also learn money basics with articles about understanding your paycheck, checking and savings accounts, or understanding your credit score.