2007-2008 Free Grants for College Stats
In 2007-2008, the federal government awarded over $14 billion in Pell Grants- Free Grants For College to more than 5.4 million undergraduate students. A July 2009 NCES report profiled Pell Grant recipients who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1999-2000. Among the report’s findings were these financial aid statistics:
36% of students had received at least one Pell Grant during their undergraduate education Pell Grants recipients were typically very low-income students at a greater socioeconomic disadvantage than non-recipients 31% were 23-24 years old (23% were 22 or younger; 27% were 25-29; and almost 19% were 30 or older) 34% of Pell Grant recipients delayed their enrollment in college after high school 60% were considered financially independent for financial aid purposes 24% had dependents of their own 11% were single parents 58% left college or career school for 4 or more months and later returned to complete a degree at either the same school or a different one.
A larger proportion of Pell Grant recipients than non-recipients had characteristics that put them at risk for dropping out When all the many factors differentiating Pell Grant recipients from non-recipients were filtered out, Pell Grant recipients actually graduated in less time than non-recipients did
