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Federal TEACH Grant

Am I eligible for the Federal TEACH Grant?
The Federal Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant program was created to fill the teacher shortages in high-need fields.  The TEACH Grant is the first federal grant program that requires a service agreement and has the potential of converting to a loan. To review the basic eligibility criteria, please read the following information below.
 
Potential Funds available through the Federal TEACH Grant
The Federal TEACH Grant allows up to $4,000 per year available for full-time students on both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Students who also enroll in the summer term may also be eligible for up to $2,000 in additional aid. Amounts are prorated according to enrollment levels per term.
 
  • Maximum award for undergraduate: $16,000
  • Maximum award for graduate: $8,000 
These funds can only be used for the student’s first bachelor's or graduate degree, and is not available for students in doctoral programs.
 
In exchange for receiving a Federal TEACH Grant, you must agree to serve as a full-time teacher in a high-need field in a school that serves low-income students (see below for more information on high-need fields and schools serving low-income students). A recipient of a Federal TEACH Grant must teach for at least four of eight years of completing the program of study for which the Federal TEACH Grant was received.
 
IMPORTANT: If you fail to complete this service obligation, the U.S. Department of Education will convert all Federal TEACH Grants funds that you received to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan. You must then repay this loan to the U.S. Department of Education. You will be charged interest from the date the grant(s) disbursed.
 
Student Eligibility Requirements for Federal TEACH Grant
  • Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), although you do not have to demonstrate financial need
  • Be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen
  • Be enrolled in an eligible program
  • Be enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student in a post-secondary educational institution that has chosen to participate in the Federal TEACH Grant Program
  • Be enrolled in coursework that is necessary to begin a career in teaching or plan to complete such coursework
  • Meet certain academic achievement requirements (generally, scoring above the 75th percentile on a college admissions test or maintaining a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25)
  • Sign a Federal TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve (ATS)
  • High Needs Fields
    • Career and Technical Education
    • Elementary Education
    • English as a Second Language
    • Foreign Language
    • Health and Physical Education
    • Mathematics
    • Middle Education
    • School Counselor
    • Science
    • Special Education
Bachelor's Degree Programs
  • BITC-Biology (TC)
  • BIET-Biology: Environmental Science (TC)
  • EEEN-Elementary Education Integrated Studies: English
  • EEMT-Elementary Education Integrated Studies: Math
  • EESC-Elementary Education Integrated Studies: Science
  • EESP-Elementary Education Integrated Studies: Spanish
  • EESS-Elementary Education Integrated Studies: Social Sciences
  • ENSS-Elementary Education Integrated Studies: English and Social Sciences
  • ENTC-English (TC)
  • ESLT-Teaching English as a Second Language (TC)
  • ISSE-Special Education Integrated Studies
  • KITC-Kinesiology (TC) 
  • MATC-Mathematics (TC)
  • SPAT-Spanish (TC)

*Note: All undergraduate programs must lead to licensure in order to qualify.  Undergraduate Liberty University Online education programs are currently non-licensure. 

Grandfathered Undergraduate Programs
Newly enrolled students are ineligible for TEACH in this program

  • EMSC-Integrated Studies-Elementary Education: Math and Science
  • SEEN-Integrated Studies in Special Education: English
  • SEMA-Integrated Studies in Special Education: Math
  • SESC-Integrated Studies in Special Education: Science
  • SESS-Integrated Studies in Special Education: Social Sciences
  • SOST-Social Sciences (TC)
Master's Degree Programs
  • MPRS-M.Ed.: Program Specialist-Reading
  • MPSP-M.Ed.: Program Specialist
  • MTEE-MAT: Elementary Education
  • MTSE-MAT: Secondary Education  
  • MTSP-MAT: Special Education
What to do if you believe you qualify and are interested in the Federal TEACH Grant
Email the Financial Aid Office and ask for a review of your academic record and the minimum requirements listed above. If you meet these requirements, you will receive an invitation to participate in required grant counseling which will explain the commitment you are entering by accepting this grant. You will then be required to sign an "Agreement to Serve" contract with the federal government before the funds are disbursed to your account.
 
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