Fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). List your income and assets, and the income and assets of your immediate family. This will go into a calculation of your "expected family contribution," or the amount of financial assistance you are expected to receive from your family.
List the family size and give the number of members of the family who are attending college or some other postsecondary institution. Decide your enrollment status, either full-time or part-time. Also decide whether you will be attending the institution for a full academic year, or less than a full academic year.
After you file the FAFSA, the expected family contribution will be calculated using a percentage of your net income (minus living expenses) added to a percentage of your assets. The calculation also takes into account the cost of tuition at the institution you are attending. The percentages are different for dependent students, independent students and independent students with dependents. The maximum amount of a Pell Grant for the 2008-09 academic year was $4,731.
You will receive a Student Aid Report, which will notify you of the decision. If your application for a Pell Grant is approved, a calculation of the expected family contribution will also be sent to you. The grant money will be issued via the institution where you are using it, as a credit on your tuition account or paid directly to you with a check. You may apply for a Pell Grant through more than 5,400 approved postsecondary schools.
Pell Grants can be combined with other sources of money--from federal, state, and private scholarship--for tuition and expenses, as long as you qualify and have not yet earned your first bachelor's degree (exceptions are made for those enrolling in a teacher's certification program). If you withdraw from school before earning your bachelor's degree, however, the grant will have to be repaid.