Metadata
Title
Grants for Undergraduates
Category
scholarships
UUID
1167e7b2bbde4cddbabc4c1c74fa3233
Source URL
https://fas.ucsd.edu/types/grants/grants-for-undergraduates.html
Parent URL
https://fas.ucsd.edu/types/grants/index.html
Crawl Time
2026-03-16T04:25:06+00:00
Rendered Raw Markdown

Grants for Undergraduates

Source: https://fas.ucsd.edu/types/grants/grants-for-undergraduates.html Parent: https://fas.ucsd.edu/types/grants/index.html

The grants listed on this page are available to undergraduate students. The grant amounts shown here are estimates and depend on available funding.

How to Apply

Please note: the university is unable to provide a university grant or scholarship support to non-California residents.

Cal Grant A

Grant Amount: Pays systemwide registration fees at varying amounts per cohort year.

Funded by: State of California (California Student Aid Commission)

Note: Amounts are set by the State government and are subject to change at any time. You must be enrolled full-time (12 or more units) by the freeze date each term to receive the full amount of the grant.

If you are enrolled in fewer than 12 units, you'll receive a reduced amount of the Cal Grant fee award:

Additional Application Requirements

Cal Grant B

Grant Amount: Pays systemwide tuition and fees at varying amounts per cohort year and a stipend. For the first year, you receive only the subsistence stipend.

Funded by: State of California (California Student Aid Commission)

Note: Amounts are set by the State government and are subject to change at any time. You must be enrolled full-time (12 or more units) to receive the full amount of the grant.

If you're enrolled in fewer than 12 units, you'll receive a reduced amount of the Cal Grant fee and stipend awards:

Additional Application Requirements

More Information

Cal Grant B recipients will automatically have their full Access award applied to their student account to pay any outstanding balances. Alternatively, students may elect to receive the full disbursement of their Access award directly prior to disbursement to be used towards educational expenses not directly charged by UC San Diego. If you would like to choose this alternative method, please submit a request to Student Financial Solutions through the student support portal. Please note: requests can be submitted at any time and applied to future quarters, but cannot be processed retroactively.

Federal Pell Grant

2025-26 Annual Grant Amount

Funded by: U.S. Department of Education (Federal Student Aid)

Note: Amounts are set by the State government and are subject to change at any time. You must be enrolled full-time (12 or more units) by the freeze date each term to receive the full grant for each term.

For more Information, visit Federal Pell Grants | Federal Student Aid

Annual Amounts Based on Enrollment Intensity

Enrollment intensity is a percentage that represents how many units you are taking compared to a full-time course load. Your Pell Grant is calculated based on this percentage. Please keep in mind that the chart below is only for the Federal Pell Grant:

Units Enrolled Enrollment Intensity - % of Pell
12 or more 100%
11 92%
10 83%
9 75%
8 67%
7 58%
6 50%
5 42%
4 33%
3 25%
2 17%
1 8%

The Maximum Pell Grant for 2025/2026 is $7,395 for the academic year (If enrolled in 12 or more units for Fall, Winter, and Spring AND Student Aid Index (SAI) is between –1500 and 0). Adjustments will be made based on actual enrollment and SAI. 

Lifetime Limit for Receiving the Federal Pell Grant

Students can receive a Pell Grant for up to six years (equivalent to 18 full-time quarters). This includes semesters/quarters at other colleges and/or during summer terms. As indicated in the enrollment intensity chart above, the highest amount of a scheduled Pell Grant you can receive each award year is equal to 100% for full-time enrollment; therefore, the six-year equivalent is 600%. You can read more about Pell Lifetime Eligibility online.

Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant for Children of Fallen Heroes

As part of the FAFSA Simplification Act implemented for the 2024-25 cycle, the Special Rule for Pell Grants replaces the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant (IASG) and the Children of Fallen Heroes (CFH) Scholarship with new or modified eligibility criteria for a student who is less than 33 years of age (as of the first of January of the FAFSA award year) and who indicates on the FAFSA that their parent or guardian died in the line of duty while:

  1. Serving on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces on or after September 11, 2001 (i.e., IASG); OR
  2. Actively serving as and performing the duties of a public safety officer (i.e., CFH).

If you did indicate this information on the FAFSA, the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office will request documentation in the Financial Aid Tool. Eligible students will receive a maximum Pell Grant regardless of their Student Aid Index (adjusted for enrollment intensity).

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)

Grant-In-Aid (GIA)

University Grant: Native American Opportunity (NAOP) Grant

To be eligible for the Native American Opportunity Grant, you must be:

  1. A current or newly admitted University of California undergraduate, graduate, or professional school student.
  2. A California Resident.
  3. An enrolled member of a federally recognized Native American, American Indian, and/or Alaska Native tribe.
  4. Enrolled in a qualifying, state-funded  UC degree program.

A FAFSA or California Dream Act Application is required for entering students or new applicants. Existing recipients at UC San Diego will have their awards automatically renewed during their undergraduate years.

NAOP applies only to the academic year (Fall, Winter, and Spring). It does not cover Summer Session charges.

For more information, visit the UC Native American Opportunity Plan.

Summer Session Grants

For details on UC San Diego summer grants, visit our Summer Aid webpage.

Pell Grants are also available for those who qualify.

Grants