Fund Your Teacher Training

Eligibility is the basic criteria you must meet to be able to apply for an opportunity, such as a scholarship, grant, internship or loan forgiveness program. 

Eligibility criteria can include many things, including your GPA, work experience, age or racial or gender identity. Scholarships, grants, internships, loan forgiveness programs and teaching programs all have their own eligibility requirements.

Grants are another type of financial aid that you don’t need to pay back. Grants generally come from the federal or state government, or from local organizations or universities.

Grants are often awarded based on income or family size, but some grant providers have other specific eligibility requirements.

A loan is a sum of money that you can use to help pay for your education. You will need to pay back your loan with interest after you graduate.  

Many students first take loans from the federal government, because the interest rates tend to be lower. Students might take out private loans from a bank or another provider if they have maxed out on federal loans and still need additional funds.

When looking at loan options, make sure you know whether your loans will be subsidized or unsubsidized. Subsidized loans will not accrue interest while you are still in school. Most federal loans are subsidized loans.

Loan forgiveness means that you won’t have to pay back some or all of your student loans. In exchange for forgiven loans, you’ll commit to teaching for a set period of time—often in a certain geographic or subject area.

Loan forgiveness can cover substantial amounts of money, so it’s among the highest value financing opportunities for your education costs.

Loan forgiveness programs vary, so make sure you understand the specific types of loans and amounts that can be forgiven, as well as any teaching commitments you’ll need to fulfill.

A scholarship is free money that you don’t need to repay. Scholarships often come from the federal or state government, your college or university or outside organizations.

Scholarships are generally awarded to students who meet certain qualifications, such as financial need, academic success or achievements in a certain area of interest.

It depends on your program, but you have a ton of options available! You may be eligible for grants, scholarships, student loans or loan forgiveness options.

What exactly your financial aid covers will depend on the specific award. Some funding will cover any education-related cost, including tuition, student housing, textbooks and school fees. Other awards only cover tuition, so check to find out what you can pay for with your funds.

​​​​​​Yes! With our national financial aid database, you can select specific criteria unique to you, such as your location, identity educational background, teaching subject and more.

For most teaching programs, you'll start by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA. Many colleges and universities use the information from your FAFSA to determine your financial aid award — so you don't have to fill out a separate financial aid application for every school!

Most other scholarship, grant and internship opportunities offer application instructions on their websites.

After you've applied, reach out to the financial aid offices at your prospective programs. They can give you information about what to expect from your financial aid award. 

If your program is through a college or university, you’ll want to complete the FAFSA as soon as possible to meet deadlines for scholarship and grant opportunities. The 2024-25 FAFSA will become available in December of 2023 for the upcoming school year. So, if you wanted to enroll in the spring of 2024, you could submit your application after December 2023.

Many states also have their own priority deadlines for the FAFSA. Meeting these deadlines gives you the best chance of receiving state funding for your education. Find your state's priority deadline.

Most scholarship, grant and internship opportunities have specific deadlines that are available on their website. Your teaching program might have a list of additional aid options with deadlines.

If you are awarded a scholarship or grant, how you receive that money will depend on the terms of the award. Some programs will send the money to you directly. Others will distribute it to your college or university on your behalf. 

Other financial aid, such as loan forgiveness, might go directly to your loan provider to deduct from the remaining balance of your loans. 

You can usually find additional details about fund distribution on your funding program’s website.

It depends on the program! Some teaching programs allow you to teach while completing your requirements. Others have flexible schedules or work-study options.

Check with your program to learn about what kind of flexibility and opportunities they offer.

TEACH.org currently only provides support and information for those seeking teaching opportunities within the United States.