I am correct I can use it to pay off or part off a Microsoft Surface pro 4 (or 3)right? I am going to purchase one to actually use to write notes and do all my papers on it since I felt last semester I didn’t like doing it with my iPad with a keyboard.
Books for next semester will be around $150 used based off the classes I registered for so I have some from my Pell grant ($100 or so)to pay towards a laptop. I know there is cheaper ones but I would find the touchscreen and pen to be valuable for class.
I know you can use the Aid to buy the books you need.
It is up to the granter of the scholarship. Some are strictly for tuition. Some are for books (and you submit your book receipts or charge to an account at the school bookstore). Many forms of financial aid overages are paid to the student and the student can do anything he wants with the money - save it, drink it, go to Tahiti. What you most likely can’t do is claim the surface pro is a Qualified Educational Expense since it is not required, so you may need to pay taxes on that amount (which you’d also have to do if you used it for r&b or that trip to Tahiti).
My school just deposits the money into my banking account a few weeks after class starts or mails out a check. As far as the qualified educational expense or not I didn’t think it would for tax purposes.
Note that grant/scholarship used on non-qualified expenses (defined by IRS) are considered taxable income. I think next year, computer would be considered qualified expense. As of now, there are certain criteria you need to meet to determine if it is a qualified expense.
If your grants cover tuition, fees and books then they are not taxable, but if they cover room and board or other non qualified education expenses, they are taxable income to you.
I think only the 529 accounts’ qualified education expenses have been expanded to include computer technology and equipment. This expanded education expenses are effective after 12/31/2014