High School Diploma Requirements

To receive Federal Student Aid (FSA) funds, a student must be qualified to study at the postsecondary level. A high school diploma or an equivalent is required. A high school diploma can be from a foreign school if it is officially verified as an equivalent to a U.S. high school diploma. An equivalent of a high diploma, such as a General Educational Development (GED) diploma is acceptable if the diploma is recognized by the department of education of the state from which it was issued. A state certificate is acceptable if received by a student after the student has passed a state-authorized examination that the state recognizes as the equivalent of a high school diploma, in accordance to the Code of Federal Regulation 600.2. Please refer to Dear Colleague Letter GEN-14-06 and Volume 1- Student Eligibility of the FSA Handbook that can be accessed at http://www.ifap.ed.gov/