The Cal Grant B Entitlement Award has a lifetime limit of 4 academic years, or 8 semesters. Due to this limit, California Community College students are advised to use no more than two academic years, or 4 semester, of the Cal Grant at the community college.
Students who are at or past the 2 year recommended limit at the community college level are able to put the Cal Grant award on hold for up to 4 semesters in order to maintain 2 years of Cal Grant eligibility at a 4-year college or university.
Additionally, in order to graduate with an undergraduate degree within 4 years, CSAC recommends that Cal Grant recipients take 15 semester units, or 30 semester units per academic year. Doing so will allow students to not exceed the Cal Grant lifetime eligibility before graduation.