*Please note that scholarship offers will only be made until funds are exhausted
Important Dates and Deadlines
- March 1st – Last day for students to be admitted to be considered for Merit Scholarships, Out of State Discount, and Scholar awards
- March 1st – Rodney Gross Diversity Scholarship Deadline
- March 1st – Trailblazer First Generation Scholarship Application Deadline
- March 1st – Foundation Scholarship Application deadline
- June 1st – Last day to accept Merit Scholarships & Out of State Discount, Rodney Gross Scholarship, and New Horizon Scholarship
- June 1st – Last day to be admitted to be considered for Madison County Promise
- June 30th – Deadline for EKU to have received high school transcripts and ACT scores for merit upgrades
Transfer Scholarships Transcript Deadlines:
- April 15 for summer session
- June 15 for fall semester
- November 15 for spring semester
Out of State Spring transfers:
- Out of State Discount acceptance deadline: November 22
Transfers with less than 24 transfer hours earned will be considered for new Freshman Scholarships:
- Deadline to be admitted for Fall: June 15th
- Deadline to accept for Fall: June 22nd
- Deadline to be admitted for Spring: November 15th
- Deadline to accept for Spring: November 22nd
Merit Scholarship Terms and Conditions:
-
- To assist as many students as possible, EKU does not make multiple institutional scholarship awards. If you have already qualified for an academic award through a different category of eligibility (merit scholarships, EKU staff scholarships, tuition discounts, etc.), you will receive the award with the greater monetary value. All academic-based scholarships and outside agency scholarships are required to be reported as part of your financial aid package. You may not exceed the cost of attendance as determined by Big E Central. If your total financial aid package exceeds the cost of attendance, the university reserves the right to adjust/reduce the amount of your aid or your scholarship accordingly.
- If you receive a tuition waiver, your merit scholarship will be canceled.
- If you change your program to a 100% online program at any time in your academic career, your scholarship will be cancelled for the remainder of your eligibility.
- If you decide to leave EKU for any reason, please note your scholarship will be considered declined and it will cancelled for the remainder of semesters of eligibility.
- If you are awarded a new freshmen merit and EKU receives a transcript with >24 credit hours earned at another school, your scholarship will be canceled.
- To maintain eligibility for the scholarship, you are required to be a full time student enrolled in 12 or more semester hours each term and maintain a minimum EKU cumulative grade point average (GPA) of the following:
23-24 Starts
| Scholarship Name | Eligibility Requirements | Annual Award | Semester Award | Renewal EKU GPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merit Tier 1 | 3.8 – 4.0 GPA and ACT 28+ | In-State Tuition** | In-State Tuition** | 3.0 |
| Merit Tier 2 | 3.8 – 4.0 GPA | $6,000 | $3,000 | 3.0 |
| Merit Tier 3 | 3.3 – 3.79 GPA | $4,000 | $2,000 |
2.8 (0-59 SCH) 3.0 (60+ SCH) |
| Merit Tier 4 | 3.0 – 3.29 GPA | $3,000 | $1,500 |
2.8 (0-59 SCH) 3.0 (60+ SCH) |
| Madison County Promise |
2.5-2.9 GPA (Must be from Madison County) |
$1,000 | $500 |
2.8 (0-59 SCH) 3.0 (60+ SCH) |
(SCH- student credit hours)
24-25 Starts
| Scholarship Name | Eligibility Requirements | Annual Award | Semester Award | Renewal EKU GPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merit Tier 1 | 3.8 – 4.0 GPA and ACT 28+ | In-State Tuition** | In-State Tuition** | 3.2 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Merit Tier 2 | 3.8 – 4.0 GPA | $6,000 | $3,000 | 3.2 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Merit Tier 3 | 3.3 – 3.79 GPA | $4,000 | $2,000 | 3.0 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Merit Tier 4 | 3.0 – 3.29 GPA | $3,000 | $1,500 | 3.0 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Madison County Promise |
2.5-2.9 GPA (Must be from Madison County) |
$1,000 | $500 | 3.0 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
(SCH- student credit hours)
25-26 Starts
| Scholarship Name | Eligibility Requirements | Annual Award | Semester Award | Renewal EKU GPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merit Tier 1 | 3.8 – 4.0 GPA and ACT 28+ | $8,000 | $4,000 | 3.2 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Merit Tier 2 | 3.8 – 4.0 GPA and ACT 24+ | $5,000 | $2,500 | 3.2 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Merit Tier 3 | 3.4+ GPA | $1,500 | $750 | 3.0 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Merit Tier 4 | 3.0 – 3.39 GPA | $1,000 | $500 | 3.0 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
| Madison County Promise |
2.5-2.9 GPA (Must be from Madison County) |
$1,000 | $500 | 3.0 GPA, 24 earned EKU credit hours |
(SCH- student credit hours)
Out-of-State Discount and Scholar Awards GPA Requirements:
23-24 Starts
For the Scholar I – V Awards students must enroll full-time (at least 12 credit hours) and maintain a 3.0.
For the Out-of-State Discount students must enroll full-time (at least 12 credit hours) and maintain a 2.8.
24-25 and 25-26 Starts
For the Scholar I – V Awards students must enroll full-time (at least 12 credit hours), maintain a 3.0 EKU GPA, and have 24 earned EKU credit hours
For the Out-of-State Discount students must enroll full-time (at least 12 credit hours) and maintain a 3.2 EKU GPA, and have 24 earned EKU credit hours
Additional Scholarship Policies
- Scholarship offers will be made until funds are exhausted.
- Awards are based unweighted high school GPA and composite ACT scores. EKU does not accept ACT superscores.
- Merit scholarships are only offered to students being admitted to the Fall semester. Exceptions include early high school graduates who are enrolling in the Spring term following their high school graduation.
- Transfer students who have earned less than 24 transfer hours may be considered for new freshman merit scholarships. These will be awarded following the transfer merit admit deadlines:
- June 15th for Fall Semester (acceptance deadline June 22nd)
- November 15th for Spring semester (acceptance deadline November 22nd)
- Students need to apply for admission to be considered for listed scholarships. For more information, visit the EKU Admissions website. Qualified students will receive their official scholarship award letter and acceptance form after being admitted to the university.
- Students may not have previously received a Bachelor’s degree.
- Merit Scholarships are awarded for 8 continuous semesters. Transfer Scholarships are awarded for 6 continuous semesters.
- If a student withdraws from their courses, EKU reserves the right to reduce scholarships to prevent a refund to the student.
- For out-of-state students, if his/her residency changes to Kentucky (in-state status) at any point in the future, this may change his/her scholarship eligibility or award amount.
- Students must remain in good Satisfactory Academic Progress.
- If a student is participating in the Academic Common Market program, he/she will NOT be eligible for merit scholarships since he/she is already receiving a tuition waiver which reduces the tuition cost to the in-state level.
Overaward Policy (All Students)
An overaward is financial aid that exceeds a student’s financial need and/or cost of attendance. When a student receives aid, EKU is required to adhere to all associated regulations. All aid, including scholarships, grants, loans, tuition remission, awards and prizes must be counted as estimated financial assistance in a student’s total aid package.
It is the student’s responsibility to report all sources of estimated financial assistance including departmental scholarships, employee tuition remission, outside scholarships and third party assistance to Big E Central. To report estimated financial assistance not already included in your aid package, complete the Scholarship/Other Aid Resources Form (docx, 15.3 Kb) or contact Big E Central. Reporting this information early will help prevent changes in eligibility that can result in reductions to financial aid.
When Big E Central identifies an overaward, adjustments must be made to the student’s financial aid package to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations. When allowable, self-help aid, such as loans and work-study awards, are adjusted before grant or scholarship aid is affected. If an overaward occurs after aid has been disbursed, the student may be required to repay all or a portion of their financial aid to the university. You may check with Big E Central before applying for additional aid to see if the maximum financial aid has already been awarded.
Retention Scholarships (Current Students)
The Retention Scholarship is to help current and continuing full-time undergraduate EKU students in good standing remain in school and make progress toward graduation. Retention Scholarship awards are grants based on students’ need and will be primarily used to help pay down outstanding balances so students can register for classes. Retention Scholarship grants are conditional upon registering for and remaining in classes for the following semester. Retention Scholarship grants cannot be used to pay down balances without registering for courses. Students who are graduating in the current term are not eligible for Retention Scholarships. Because Retention Scholarship funds are limited, not all students who apply can receive an award.
Transfer Student Scholarships
Information on transfer student scholarships is available here.