Financial Aid for AB540 and Undocumented Students
AB540 and undocumented students who qualify under AB540 criteria can apply for financial aid by submitting the California Dream Act Application (CADAA). To be considered for state and institutional aid, including grants, need-based scholarships, loans, and Work-Study, eligible AB540, and undocumented students must complete the following steps:
Submit a California Dream Act Application (CADAA) by the March 2 priority deadline each year (extended to May 2 for 2024-25) for maximum financial aid consideration.
- Incoming students interested in receiving a Cal Grant must submit the GPA Verification Form to the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) by March 2. You can monitor and manage your Cal Grant account on the CSAC website.
- Continuing students who have completed at least 39 units at UC Davis will have their GPA automatically submitted to CSAC by March 2. You can monitor and manage your Cal Grant account on the CSAC website.
- Entering students will automatically be considered for UC Davis scholarships based on the admissions application.
- First-year and continuing students may submit the scholarship application for the following academic year online between October and early January.
- For more information on the scholarship application process, including joining the Scholarship Opportunities Listserv, please visit our undergraduate scholarships section.
- There are many opportunities to receive outside scholarships. For a list of scholarship opportunities, please visit our Outside Scholarships page for AB540 students.
California Dream Act Service Incentive Grant Program
The California Dream Act Service Incentive Grant Program (DSIG) is gift aid awarded by the State of California and provides California Dream Act Applicant (CADAA) students with additional funds for performing a minimum number of community or volunteer service hours.
CADAA students with a Cal Grant B (or a Cal Grant A that met Cal Grant B eligibility) are eligible. The California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) will award up to $4,500 per academic year ($1,500 per quarter) to eligible students. The grant will be available to the student for up to 12 quarters while they have an active Cal Grant A or B. Students must also meet Satisfactory Academic Progress and complete any necessary verification for their Cal Grant award.
Eligible students must:
- Apply annually
- Attend a qualifying institution (UC Davis qualifies)
- Have sufficient unmet financial need
- Complete community or volunteer service hours within the eligible academic year
Students shall perform at least 100 hours per quarter of community or volunteer service. Students can volunteer with any of the organization(s) on the List of Service Organizations or with any organization not on the list if it meets the criteria for a qualifying service organization.
Instructions and Application
For Section 2 of the application: please submit the application to UC Davis Financial Aid and Scholarships via Contact An Expert for staff to complete Section 2. Please allow 7-10 business days for us to return the application to you for completion and submission to CSAC.
For more information, review the DSIG FAQs. Click here for complete instructions and application: California Dream Act Service Incentive Grant Program
Institutional Work-Study
Institutional Work-Study is awarded, based on need, to AB540 students who are eligible to work. For AB540 students who are also undocumented, need is determined by the California Dream Act Application (CADAA). CADAA applicants must also hold a valid work authorization status in the United States to be eligible (e.g., certain individuals with pending asylum cases, Temporary Protected Status recipients, U Visa recipients, etc.).
Because funding is limited, not all students with need receive a Work-Study offer. Work-Study allows a student to earn financial aid through employment. Instead of a financial aid payment, the student's Work-Study funding is paid in the form of a payroll check for time/hours worked. All job listings are available online at Handshake. For more information, visit Undergraduate Work-Study.
California Dream Loan
Loans are a form of financial aid that must be repaid. Educational loans have varying fees, interest rates, repayment terms, and/or borrower protections. The California DREAM Loan Program is provided to students who are Dream Act eligible by the State of California through the university. Students must have financial need and be attending a UC or CSU campus. This state loan program is funded by the state and the campus to provide eligible students with the opportunity to borrow to help pay for their education. Eligible students can borrow a maximum of $4,000 per year and a total maximum of $20,000 at one campus. The interest rate and loan terms match those of the federal subsidized loan each year.
Undocumented Student Resource Center (USRC)
The Undocumented Student Resource Center offers:
- Confidential legal counsel
- Academic advising
- Access to counseling support
- Scholarship information
- Education for AB540 allies
- College outreach
- Financial advising
- Information and assistance on:
- Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
- California Dream Act
- Life after college
- And much more!
Additional Resources
For more information, please visit UC California Dream Act Application tips provided by the University of California. CSAC also provides useful resources about the CADAA. We also have listed a variety of resources available to AB540 and undocumented students, including scholarship opportunities:
Information on AB540
Until the passage of the Dream Act, undocumented students were not eligible for state or university-funded financial aid. Under this law, undocumented students who qualify under AB540 criteria may now be eligible for certain types of financial aid. The CADAA is used to determine a student's eligibility for need-based financial aid. For information on what this means for you at UC Davis, please see the UC's Applying for Financial Aid webpage.
Information on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
On June 15, 2012, the Secretary of Homeland Security announced that certain people who came to the United States as children and meet several key guidelines may request consideration of deferred action for a period of two years, subject to renewal, and would then be eligible for work authorization. Deferred action is a discretionary determination to defer the removal action of an individual as an act of prosecutorial discretion. Deferred action does not provide an individual with lawful status. For more information visit the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals webpage.
For detailed information on the California Dream Act, please visit the CSAC website.