Federal TEACH Grant

The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant is for students studying to be educators in a high-needs field. As long as certain criteria are met after graduation, this money does not need to be paid back, unlike a student loan.

A student who, after reviewing the initial eligibility criteria below, believes they meet criteria may submit an application to the Office of Student Financial Aid, at which point their eligibility will be confirmed or refuted by the grant administrator. Find out more about the Federal TEACH Grant.

Lifetime eligibility cannot exceed 4 full years of grant funds for undergraduates and 2 full years for graduate students.

Eligibility

To qualify for the TEACH Grant, students must:

1. Complete a 2021-2022 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
2. Be pursuing an eligible degree. An eligible degree is generally a BSEd, MSEd, MAT, MATL, or SETL
3. Be pursuing a degree in a high‐need field. A complete list of high‐need fields can be found on the 2021-2022 Teacher Shortage Area Registry.
4. If enrolled in the Master  of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program, the student must also be enrolled in coursework necessary to  complete a teacher certification in a high‐need field
5. If enrolled in an MATL or SETL, the student's program must be intended to assist the student in obtaining a leadership role in teaching, not administration​​​​​​​
6. Meet one of the following academic criteria:
   1. A score above the 75th percentile on any battery from a nationally-normed undergraduate or graduate admissions test (ACT, SAT, etc). This percentile corresponds to all scores achieved during the same test period (placement tests are not considered)
   2. A cumulative (MSU) GPA of 3.25 on a 4.0 scale
      1. A student’s undergraduate MSU GPA may be used to meet this requirement for the first semester if the student graduated with their undergraduate degree in the prior semester.
      2. Students in the Pathways for Paraprofessionals program may use their transfer GPA to meet this requirement for the first semester of eligibility
      3. High school and transfer GPA will not be considered (except for Pathways for Paraprofessionals)
   3. Be a current, former or retired teacher in a 2021-2022 high-needs field
7. Be meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements
8. If applying as an undergraduate, must not have a prior bachelor’s degree

Steps for receiving the TEACH Grant

1. Complete a 2021-2022FAFSA
2. Review the grant application and eligibility criteria above.
3. Complete Entrance Counseling online. This must be done every year a student wishes to receive the grant.
4. Submit the two-page application for the grant, complete with your academic advisor’s signature, to the Office of Student Financial Aid. Applications must be submitted annually, and students may submit an application as early as July 1st for the upcoming academic year. The last day to submit an application is two weeks prior to your final day of enrollment for the academic year.
5. If eligibility is confirmed, accept your grant offer through your My Missouri State account. Students will receive email instructions if approved.
6. Once you have accepted your offer and completed entrance counseling you must sign your Agreement To Serve or Repay (ATS) online. You will receive email when it is available.
7. Shortly after your ATS is signed, your grant will be disbursed to your university account. You will be notified of the amount disbursed and your right to cancel the grant.

2021-2022 High-needs fields

Your major must prepare you to teach in a high-needs field, and the subject you teach must be on the nationwide list for the state you're teaching in during your first year of service. Because the nationwide list changes annually, please verify that your subject is listed that year before you begin teaching.

High-needs fields listed by the Department of Education

• Bilingual Education and English Language Acquisition
• Foreign Language
• Mathematics
• Reading Specialist
• Science
• Special Education

U.S Department of Education: Teacher Shortage Areas