Available Scholarships

Brigham Young University BYU Scholarships for New Freshman

Published on December 6, 2022

BYU scholarships are open to prospective new students starting in the term or semester they are admitted. By the proper time, all prospective students must submit a scholarship application in order to be evaluated.

Financial needs as established by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid will now be taken into account when awarding scholarships to first-year students (FAFSA). For granting reasons, we shall choose the path of caution and assume that students who do not submit this federal need analysis do not have any financial needs. Additionally, ACT/SAT scores will be optional due to difficulties in taking examinations in many regions.

BYU Scholarships for New Freshman

1. Russell M. Nelson Scholarship

The most esteemed scholarship available at Brigham Young University is the Russell M. Nelson Scholarship. The most intellectually talented kids who apply to universities are recipients. The fellowship is not, however, given only based on academic achievement.

Additionally, in order to serve as role models for the principles described in the For the Strength of Youth brochure, recipients must exhibit the greatest levels of character, leadership, integrity, testimony, commitment to the Church, and modesty in word, action, dress, and grooming.

This award, which is worth 150% of Latter-day Saint tuition for eight semesters, is given to 50 freshmen each year who are new to the program. The essay section of the standard scholarship application must be filled out by applicants. For the purpose of selecting the scholarship recipients, the scholarship committee will examine that data along with data from the admissions application.

2. National Merit Scholarship

It is conceivable, but not guaranteed, that you will be awarded a BYU-sponsored National Merit Scholarship, which pays full LDS tuition for eight semesters if you are a National Merit finalist and have designated BYU as your top preference institution.

There are three organizations that sponsor National Merit Scholarships. A university, a company, or National Merit may offer a scholarship. The scholarships that will be sponsored by National Merit and corporations are chosen, and a list of all applicants who identified the university as their top preference is then delivered to each institution. The kids who BYU wants to support are chosen after the list has been evaluated.

A student must first be eligible for a Russell M. Nelson Scholarship or a Heritage Scholarship in order to be chosen as the recipient of a BYU-sponsored National Merit Scholarship. BYU would choose the student as a National Merit Scholar if they are a recipient of one of these two scholarships, a National Merit finalist with BYU as their top choice school, and they are neither sponsored by National Merit nor by a business.

A student would not be qualified to receive a BYU-sponsored National Merit Scholarship if they are being sponsored by National Merit or a business. Following June 1, all National Merit selections will be made public.

The National Merit Scholarship will take the place of the Heritage Scholarship for students who get the former before being chosen to receive the latter as a recipient of the BYU-sponsored National Merit Scholarship. 8 semesters of full tuition are covered by the National Merit. It is included in the whole tuition to get the $500 base National Merit stipend. The cost to the student is not increased.

If a student wins the Russell M. Nelson Scholarship (presidential scholarship) and is a finalist for the National Merit Scholarship, he or she will earn the Nelson Scholarship’s monetary award as well as the distinction of being a National Merit scholar. The merit stipend would be $500, as required by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. To provide the student a total grant of 150% of LDS tuition for eight semesters, the Presidential Scholarship would be added to the yearly National Merit stipend.

3. Sterling Scholarship Competition

Deseret News and KSL jointly fund the Sterling Scholar Award Program. It honors high school seniors in the state of Utah who have demonstrated exceptional academic achievement.

Students can participate in a variety of categories. Each category in high school competitions may have one nominee, and each competitor may only participate in one category. How candidates are chosen is up to each high school. From among the nominations, they choose a semi-finalist who will go on to compete at the regional level.

The five geographical areas are the Wasatch Front, Northeast Utah, Central Utah, Southwest Utah, and Southeast Utah. A full-member tuition scholarship to BYU is available to students who place first in their category at the regional (or final) level for two semesters.

In the event that a student is also eligible for a scholarship from the Financial Aid Office in addition to the Sterling Scholarship, we will award the scholarship with a higher financial value to the student. For instance, we might award the Sterling Scholarship to a student who meets the requirements for a half-tuition scholarship and is a Sterling Scholar winner in their area. If they are selected as a winner and meet the criteria for a full tuition scholarship, they will receive that award rather than the Sterling Scholarship.

If a student plans to serve a mission straight after high school, they must apply for admission to BYU for the Fall semester immediately after high school graduation in order to be eligible for the Sterling Scholarship. While they are on their mission, the scholarship will be postponed. They won’t be allowed to delay it if they fail to claim it promptly after graduating from high school.

Application Process

If you are interested in any of these scholarships, kindly click on the link below

Scholarship Link

Eligibility for the BYU Scholarships

Minimum Hour Requirement

Continue taking the 12 credits per fall/winter semester that your scholarship requires.
Language exam credits, audited classes, and independent study courses are not taken into consideration.
Up until the point at which you register for the necessary number of credit hours, scholarships won’t credit to your account.

Dropping Classes and DIscontinuance

Your scholarship will be canceled and you’ll be charged any remaining tuition and/or discontinuation costs if you ever drop below the minimum required number of credits.
Please see an Enrollment Services Counselor in advance, if at all feasible, if there are unusual or extenuating circumstances that force you to drop or discontinue.

Using Your Scholarship

Awards of scholarships are made during particular semesters. The sum granted for two semesters cannot be combined into one. Additionally, you are not permitted to transfer unclaimed amounts from one semester to another, with the exception of deferring for a full-time church mission or active military service. If you are given a scholarship for two semesters, you may decline it for one semester without forfeiting the other.

Eligibility Limits

The Financial Aid Office places a cap on financial aid at eight fall/winter semesters per student.
Scholarships awarded in the spring or summer do not count toward the required eight semesters.
The Financial Aid Office only offers undergraduate students scholarships. You must get in touch with your department or college to learn about graduate scholarship opportunities.

Leave of Absence

Even though they are not actively enrolled, continuing students who are on a Leave of Absence for reasons other than a missionary deferment must submit an application by the appropriate time in order to be considered for scholarships upon their return.

Taxation

Scholarships, fellowships, benefits, and grants are not counted toward the recipient’s gross income if they are used to pay for necessary supplies, books, fees, and equipment in addition to the compulsory tuition. Any money left over after paying for these things or utilized for other things like lodging, food, research, or travel must be reported as taxable income.
Keep receipts, canceled checks, and other records to show eligible expenses since you are responsible for paying any taxes owed to the government.
Should you have any questions or concerns, speak with your personal tax advisor.

FAQ

Does BYU offer scholarships?

Students are given the bulk of BYU scholarships based on their academic ability and financial need. Following the deadline for scholarship applications, students are rated according to their academic standing and financial need. Scholarships are given out starting at the top of the list and continuing until all monies have been used.

What GPA do you need for the BYU scholarship?

A minimum 3.60 BYU grade point average is required through the end of each winter semester. Unless you are on a Latter-day Saint mission, you must enroll at BYU for the equivalent of two semesters each academic year.

Is BYU a hard school to get into?

At BYU, acceptance rates are 67.5%. i.e 68 out of every 100 applications are accepted. This demonstrates the school’s medium level of selection. The school is more lenient than other colleges, but they still expect you to satisfy their GPA and SAT/ACT criteria.