Grants - Financial Aid Guide

Bridgewater State College participates in a wide variety of federal, state, institutional, and private financial aid programs. These programs can be grouped into three categories: grant, work and loan. The following is a description of the grant programs.

For financial aid purposes, the term “undergraduate” in the following paragraphs refers to students who are pursuing their first undergraduate degree. Enrollment levels are as follows: full time: 12 or more credits; three quarter time: 9 to 11 credits, half time: 6 to 8 credits; less than half time: 1 to 5 credits.

Grants and Waivers:

Federal Pell Grant

• a federally funded program administered by the U.S. Department of Education
• eligibility is based directly on demonstrated financial need
• the amount of the grant is based on eligibility determined by the federal government
• available to undergraduate students pursuing their first bachelor’s degree
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid

Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)

• a federal grant awarded by the Financial Aid Office at BSC
• eligibility is based directly on demonstrated financial need
• available to undergraduate students enrolled at least half-time in their first undergraduate degree program; priority given to full time students
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid

Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG1 & ACG2)

• U.S. Citizen
• must be eligible for a Pell Grant
• full time enrollment is required
• students must have completed a rigorous high school program
• ACG1: available to freshman only
• ACG2: available to sophomores only (must have a 3.0 minimum GPA)

SMART Grant

• U.S. Citizen
• must be eligible for a Pell Grant
• full time enrollment is required
• available to Juniors and Seniors only
• must be a Math, Science or designated Foreign Language major
• maintain a minimum of a 3.0 GPA each semester

Tuition Waiver

• a state funded program awarded by the Financial Aid Office at BSC
• eligibility is based directly on demonstrated financial need
• available to undergraduate students enrolled at least half-time who are Massachusetts residents; priority given to full time students.
• applies to state funded-undergraduate degree courses only
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid

Tuition Grant

• a state-funded program awarded by the Financial Aid Office at BSC
• eligibility is based directly on demonstrated financial need
• available to undergraduate students enrolled at lease half-time who are Massachusetts residents
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid
• priority is given to full-time students

MASSGrant Program

• a state-funded program administered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
• eligibility is based directly on demonstrated financial need
• available to undergraduate students enrolled full-time who are Massachusetts residents
• must file FAFSA prior to May 1
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid

MASS Part-Time Grant

• a state-funded program administered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts available to students enrolled at least half-time but less than full-time (6–11 credits) who are Massachusetts residents
• eligibility is based on demonstrated financial need
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid

Other State Grant Programs

• Bridgewater State College works with a number of individual state scholarship offices. Please call your state scholarship office to determine if an award is transferable to BSC and what you must do to apply.

Fee Grant

• an institutional grant awarded by the Financial Aid Office at BSC
• eligibility is based directly on demonstrated financial need
• available to undergraduate students enrolled at least half-time; priority given to full time students
• known as gift aid and does not need to be repaid

MSCBA Housing Grant

• This housing grant, made possible by the Massachusetts State Colleges Building Authority, is given to a select number of BSC students living in the residence halls who have demonstrated financial need according to the FAFSA. If eligible, this grant will be included on your financial aid award notice. 

New England Regional Waiver

• Out of state residents may be eligible for a tuition reduction for certain programs if their home states do not offer similar programs. Contact the Office of Admissions to determine if your program of study is an eligible program.

Graduate Assistant Tuition Waiver

• This waiver is for students chosen as graduate assistants by the Graduate School.

Resident Assistant Stipend

• This stipend is for students chosen as resident assistants by the residence life and housing office.

Other Scholarship Programs at Bridgewater State College

• If you wish to apply for other scholarship programs at BSC, there are in excess of seventy (70) different grants, waivers and scholarships available for students. To review the criteria used to determine eligibility, please see the Bridgewater State College Handbook. Applications for the scholarships are available at the Office of Student Affairs, located in Boyden Hall, and also at the Financial Aid Office during each spring semester.

Last Modified: July 23, 2008