Federal grant programs / Department of Education

Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (84.334)

Also known as (GEAR-UP)

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$1.8 billion
• Grant awards247
• Typical award$5.6 million
• Awarded in FY 2025$367 million
• Size rank184 of 1,823
• Type of assistanceProject grants

Key findings

• Annual funding was roughly flat, $353 million in fiscal 2021 and $367 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 184th largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 39% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 46 states and territories.

What the program funds

Provides 6-or 7-year grants to States and Partnerships to provide support, and maintain a commitment, to eligible students from low-income backgrounds, including students with disabilities, to assist the students in obtaining a secondary school diploma (or its recognized equivalent) and to prepare for, and succeed in, postsecondary education. GEAR UP has two major service components. All projects provide a comprehensive set of early intervention services including mentoring, tutoring, academic and career counseling, services to increase parental involvement, and other college preparation activities like exposure to college campuses and financial aid information and assistance. Some projects provide college scholarships to participating students.

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

A State, or a partnership consisting of one or more local educational agencies and one or more degree granting institutions of higher education.

What the money can and cannot pay for

(GEAR UP offers state and partnership grants. State grants are competitive six-year matching grants that must include both an early intervention component designed to increase college attendance and success and raise the expectations of low-income students and a scholarship component. Partnership grants are competitive six-year matching grants that must support an early intervention component and may support a scholarship component designed to increase college attendance and success and raise the expectations of low-income students. To meet the matching requirement, States and Partnerships must cover at least 50 percent of the total project costs with cash or in-kind contributions from non-Federal sources (as in, a dollar-for-dollar match). This program is subject to non-supplanting requirements and must use a restricted indirect cost rate, which is referenced under 34 CFR 76.564-76.569. For assistance call the Office of the Chief Financial Officer/Indirect Cost Group at (202) 708-7770.

Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. The statute requires a cash or in-kind match from non-Federal sources for 50% of the total project costs.MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Award range and average, in the agency's words

Varies by competition.

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

Colleges and universities received 50% of the money, state and local governments 47% and nonprofits 2.9%.

By state

Each state below has its own page for this program, with its recipients and yearly totals.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.