The purpose of federal financial aid is to provide grants, Federal Stafford Loans, and part-time employment to eligible students who need help with paying their college expenses. Paris Junior College does NOT participate in Perkins Loans or Parent Plus Loans.

Because students are the ones who will benefit the most from their college education, the students and their families are considered to have primary responsibility for paying the costs of attendance as determined by the Department of Education. Federal financial aid is intended to supplement, not replace, the student's and their family's responsibility for paying college expenses.

Award Procedures

All federal financial aid is awarded in strict compliance with federal regulations and institutional policies and procedures. Priority is given to students with the greatest documented financial need whose completed applications are received by the priority dates.

Federal financial aid is awarded on the basis of documented individual Financial Need. Need is the difference between the college's estimated cost of attendance for the student and the amount the students and family can reasonably be expected to contribute toward the student's cost of attendance. Need-based aid awards cannot exceed documented financial need.

Grant and Loan program awards may be awarded based on the number of enrolled credit hours for a semester. Please refer to the Grants and Loans pages for more information. 

The State of Texas has many special grant and exemption programs that may be available to eligible Texas residents. See MyTexasFuture.org for available programs.

Eligibility Requirements

Financial aid recipients must meet all federal and institutional eligibility requirements, including the following:

• • • Have a financial need, as established by the FAFSA (StudentAid.gov).
    • Have a high school diploma or GED.
    • Be enrolled as a regular student in an eligible program.
    • Maintain a no-default status on any loan with Paris Junior College, state, or federal government.
    • Be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen.
    • Make satisfactory academic progress in accordance with PJC policy (PJC Catalog & Student Handbook Page).
    • Sign a statement of educational purpose/certification statement on refunds and default.
    • Sign a statement of updated information.
    • Sign a statement of registration.

A federal or state drug conviction can disqualify a student for FSA funds. The student self-certifies in applying for aid that he is eligible; you’re not required to confirm this unless you have conflicting information.

Convictions only count if they were for an offense that occurred during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving Title IV aid. They do not count if the offense was not during such a period. Also, a conviction that was reversed, set aside, or removed from the student’s record does not count, nor does one received when the student was a juvenile, unless they were tried as an adult.

The PJC Financial Aid Office is located on the Paris Campus in the Alford Center. However, we do have Financial Aid Advisors available on each of our campuses:

Hours of Operation and Contact Information