What is a Pell Grant?

The Pell Grant program provides grants to low-income undergraduates to help them pay for college. In 2002-03, this program provided $11.6 billion in grants to 4.8 million undergraduate students at 5,900 postsecondary education institutions. Individual grants ranged from $400 to $4,000; the average grant was $2,411. The average family income of Pell Grant recipients who were dependent on their parents for financial support in 2000-01 was $21,599. The average income for financially independent students was $13,658.