Towson University participates in the following federal and university grant programs. Students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for these grant programs.
These Federal Title IV grants are for first undergraduate bachelor's degree candidates who have exceptional financial need. Grants may range from $400 to $5,550 per year.
The Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program (FSEOG)
This Federal Title IV grant is for exceptionally needy students pursuing a first bachelor's degree. Towson University may offer you up to $4000* to an eligible applicant.
*Annual grant maximums are subject to change.
The Institutional Grant Program
Towson University may offer up to $9,000* from this university grants program to full-time students who are first bachelor's degree candidates and have financial need. Funding is extremely limited in this program and only the earliest and neediest applicants receive grants
*Annual grant maximums are subject to change.
The TEACH Grant Program
Undergraduate and graduate students who plan to teach may wish to consider the TEACH Grant, a federal program that provides annual grants and requires teaching service in return for the grant.
The TEACH Grant Program provides up to $3,716 per year ($14,864 total for an undergraduate program; $7,432 total for graduate studies) to full time students who plan to become highly qualified teachers. Students attending less than full-time will receive reduced amounts: up to $2,787 for three-quarter time enrollment; $1,858 for half-time enrollment, or up to $929 for less-than-half time enrollment).
The general eligibility requirements for receiving a TEACH Grant include the following:
U.S. citizenship or eligible non-citizen status
Completion of a FAFSA, although demonstrated financial need is not required
Graduate program of study or undergraduate first undergraduate degree program of study (students pursuing a second undergraduate degree or those in a non-degree teacher certification program cannot receive a TEACH Grant)
Cumulative GPA of at least 3.25 throughout your academic program, or a score above the 75th percentile on a national standardized college admissions test
Acceptance into an eligible degree program:
Majoring in education and pursuing a certification in a high need subject area, or
Majoring in a high need subject area with the intent of also completing teacher certification
Completion of online TEACH Grant Initial Counseling for the TEACH first grant, and Subsequent Counseling for each TEACH Grant received in the future at (done before signing the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve); see below for more information
Completion of an Agreement to Serve (see below)
Service Requirement
TEACH Grant recipients must agree to teach for at least four full years within eight years of finishing their teacher preparation programs. They must teach in schools that have been identifed by the U.S. Department of Education as serving pupils from low income families. These elementary or secondary schools are listed in the Department of Education’s Annual Directory of Designated Low-Income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits.
TEACH Grant recipients must also teach in high need subject areas. These areas include the following:
Bilingual education and English language acquisition
Foreign language
Mathematics
Reading
Science
Special Education
In addition, there may be other identified teacher shortage areas as of the time you begin teaching in that field. These teacher subject shortage areas (not geographic areas) are listed in the Department of Education’s Annual Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing.
You will have to complete counseling each year that you accept a TEACH Grant. You will also be required to attend Exit Counseling when you graduate or leave school.
Within 120 days of completing or ceasing enrollment in your teacher preparation program, you must confirm to the U.S. Department of Education that you will fulfill the terms and conditions of your service agreement. When you begin your career as a teacher, you must document your teaching service with certification from the chief administrative officer at the school where you teach.
TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve and Promise to Pay
Each year that you receive a TEACH Grant, you must sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve and Promise to Pay (service agreement), available electronically on the U.S. Department of Education Web site. When you sign the service agreement, you agree that if you do not complete the teaching obligation, you will repay the grant as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan, with interest accruing from the date that the grant funds were disbursed. The interest (the same rate as the Federal Direct Student Loan) will accrue from the date that the grant was disbursed to your university account. Once the grant has been converted to a loan, it cannot be converted back to a grant.
Federal regulations require that TEACH Grant recipients complete an exit counseling session upon withdrawing or graduating from Towson University. The counseling session provides information about the terms and conditions of a TEACH Grant service agreement, as well as the rights and responsibilities that apply if your TEACH Grant is converted to a loan.
8000 York Road | Towson, MD 21252 | 410-704-2000
