Postsecondary Education Opportunities

Postsecondary education in federal prison covers the range of learning available to people in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) above the high school level. The Bureau runs literacy and GED instruction at every institution. It also funds vocational training. College-level coursework is a different matter. For most of the past three decades, federal inmates who wanted a degree had to pay for correspondence courses out of their own pockets. That changed on July 1, 2023, when Pell Grant eligibility returned for incarcerated students after a ban that had stood since 1994.

Overview

Education inside the BOP is organized in tiers. At the bottom is mandatory literacy work. Federal policy requires inmates who lack a high school credential to enroll in the GED program, and an inmate generally must stay in it for a set period before any waiver applies. The Bureau provides this instruction directly. It costs the inmate nothing.

Vocational training sits in the middle tier. The Bureau describes its postsecondary offerings as vocational and occupational in focus. Trade certifications, apprenticeships, and skills programs are run through individual institutions and vary from one prison to the next.

College sits at the top, and until recently it sat mostly outside the Bureau's budget. The BOP's own policy statement is blunt about it. Some traditional college courses are available, the agency says, but inmates are responsible for funding that coursework themselves. Families often cover the bill. The return of Pell Grant money has begun to shift this, though slowly and at a small number of facilities.

Education Levels (GED, Vocational, College)

GED and literacy

The GED is the foundation. An inmate without a high school diploma is required to participate in adult literacy instruction working toward the credential. The Bureau staffs these classes at every institution and treats completion as a baseline goal of incarceration. There is no charge. Inmates who already hold a diploma or equivalency are exempt.

Vocational and occupational training

Vocational programs teach a trade. The specific courses depend on the prison. A given facility might run training in carpentry, welding, electrical work, HVAC, culinary arts, or commercial driving, often tied to an industry certification an inmate can carry into the job market after release. The Bureau frames these programs as occupational preparation rather than general education. Research has repeatedly tied them to better employment outcomes after release. A 2013 RAND analysis found vocational training was associated with a 28 percent higher likelihood of employment once an inmate got out.

College and correspondence programs

College has long been the hardest tier to reach. Internet access is barred at most federal facilities, which rules out online coursework. That leaves print. A handful of accredited schools build their programs around the mail, shipping coursework and texts to inmates and proctoring exams through facility staff.

Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado runs one of the larger print-based programs. It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and offers certificates, associate degrees, bachelor's degrees, and a Master of Business Administration entirely through the mail. Students get extended completion windows, up to twelve months for a single course. Ohio University has offered correspondence education to incarcerated students since 1974, providing associate and bachelor's options through printed courses. Other schools, including several California community colleges, enroll incarcerated students from facilities across the country.

Where there is no Pell-approved program, the student or the student's family pays. Federal student loans are not available to incarcerated borrowers under any program type. Some schools let an inmate pay course by course rather than all at once.

Pell Grant Restoration

For nearly three decades, federal financial aid was off the table for anyone in prison. The story of how that happened, and how it was undone, runs from 1994 to 2023.

The 1994 ban

Incarcerated students could receive Pell Grants from the program's start in the 1960s through the early 1990s. That aid built a wide network of college programs behind bars. By the early 1990s, hundreds of college-in-prison programs operated across the country.

The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, often called the Crime Bill, cut that off. It made every person held in a state or federal prison ineligible for a Pell Grant. The cut went through during a tough-on-crime stretch in national politics, even though aid to incarcerated students had been a small slice of the overall program.

The effect was fast. Programs that had relied on Pell money to operate folded almost at once. Within a few years the number of college-in-prison programs across the country had collapsed to a small fraction of what it had been. Several states pulled their own tuition aid for inmates soon after. What survived ran on private donations, volunteer teachers, and money from inmates and their families.

Second Chance Pell

The first crack in the ban came in 2015. The Obama administration launched the Second Chance Pell Experimental Sites Initiative, a pilot that let a limited set of approved colleges award Pell Grants inside prisons. It started with dozens of schools and grew over the next several years to more than 160 colleges operating across most states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the federal system. The pilot served as proof of concept for full restoration.

Full restoration in 2023

Congress lifted the ban for good in the FAFSA Simplification Act, which was folded into the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, and signed into law in December 2020. The repeal did not take effect immediately. It was set to begin on July 1, 2023, the start of the next award year, which is the date Pell Grants again became available to incarcerated students after the 1994 cutoff.

Restoration came with a condition. An inmate cannot simply enroll anywhere and draw Pell funds. The coursework has to be part of a Prison Education Program, a PEP, approved by the Department of Education and run by a public or nonprofit school. The approval process involves the school, its accreditor, the corrections agency that runs the facility, and the Department.

The first approved PEP inside the federal system came in 2024. Illinois Central College received Department of Education approval to run a program at FCI Pekin in Illinois, the first such approval at a federal facility. More programs have followed at a measured pace.

How to Enroll

The path depends on what kind of program an inmate is after.

For the GED, there is little to arrange. An inmate without a high school credential is placed in literacy instruction as a matter of policy. Staff in the institution's Education Department handle placement.

For vocational training, an inmate signs up through the same Education Department. Availability differs by prison, and popular trade courses can carry a waitlist. Staff can explain which programs a given facility runs.

For a Pell-funded college program, the inmate has to be at a facility where an approved PEP operates. Where one exists, the institution's education staff manage enrollment and the financial aid paperwork, including the FAFSA. Coverage is still limited. Most federal facilities do not yet host an approved program.

For a self-funded correspondence degree, the inmate works through the facility's Education Department, often a designated College Coordinator, to get authorization. The school is paid directly by the student or the family. All contact runs by mail, since internet coursework is not allowed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can federal inmates get a college degree in prison?

Yes. Federal inmates can earn certificates and degrees through accredited correspondence programs delivered by mail, and, at a growing number of facilities, through Department of Education-approved Prison Education Programs funded by Pell Grants. Internet-based coursework is barred at most federal facilities, so college study generally happens through print.

Q: When were Pell Grants restored for incarcerated students?

Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated students took effect on July 1, 2023. Congress repealed the 1994 ban through the FAFSA Simplification Act, which was signed into law in December 2020 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, with the change set to begin in the 2023 award year.

Q: Why were Pell Grants banned for prisoners in the first place?

The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, known as the Crime Bill, made people in state and federal prisons ineligible for Pell Grants. The cut came during a tough-on-crime period in national politics and caused most college-in-prison programs to shut down within a few years.

Q: Does the GED program cost anything in federal prison?

No. The Bureau of Prisons provides GED and adult literacy instruction at every institution at no cost to the inmate. Inmates who lack a high school credential are required to participate in the program.

Q: What is a Prison Education Program (PEP)?

A Prison Education Program is a college program inside a prison that the U.S. Department of Education has approved to award Pell Grants. It must be run by a public or nonprofit school and cleared by the school's accreditor, the corrections agency, and the Department before students can receive federal aid.

Q: How does an inmate enroll in college in federal prison?

The inmate works through the institution's Education Department. For a Pell-funded program, the facility must host an approved PEP, and staff handle enrollment and the FAFSA. For a self-funded correspondence degree, the inmate gets authorization from the Education Department and the school is paid directly by the student or family.

Q: Are vocational programs available in federal prison?

Yes. The Bureau of Prisons runs vocational and occupational training that varies by facility, often tied to industry certifications in trades such as welding, carpentry, HVAC, and culinary work. Research has linked this training to higher employment rates after release.