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BYU-Idaho award rules

Will the scholarship last four years at BYU-Idaho?

We pulled the school’s grade, credit, and time limits into one place so you can see what it takes to keep the award.

Verified Jul 20262 months ago

The short answer

4 of 5 published awards are listed as renewable.

The exact rule can change by award. Check the award your student may receive before you count on the same amount every year.

What to do

Find the award name in the full research below. Save its grade, credit, and deadline rules with your college plan.

See every award rule, common mistake, and source

At a glance

Renewable tiers
4 of 5
One-time tiers
1
Tiers with published renewal terms
4
Renewal risk profile
high

Renewal risk profile

BYU-Idaho's top merit tiers carry renewal floors at or above 3.5 cumulative GPA, which is above the median freshman college GPA at most US flagships. A single rough semester can knock a four-year award out without a published reinstatement path. Plan year-one course load with renewal in mind, not just first-year survival.

  • 4-Year Academic Scholarship — New Freshman: See notes
  • 4-Year Academic Scholarship — Transfer Students: See notes
  • Academic Scholarship — Current BYU-Idaho Students (1-Year): See notes
  • Talent Scholarships (Art, Dance, Journalism, Theater, Music): See notes

Renewal terms by tier

  • 4-Year Academic Scholarship — New Freshman

    Quarter tuition ($618/semester) to Full tuition ($2,472/semester) (2025-2026 amounts)

    To keep it: Duration 4 years; Annual Renewal 'BYUI GPA 3.75–4.0'. Per page FAQ, if BYU-Idaho cumulative GPA stays 3.75+ the scholarship will not drop below the original award; below 3.75 the 4-Year Scholarship is lost.

    Source: https://www.byui.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/academic

  • 4-Year Academic Scholarship — Transfer Students

    Quarter tuition ($618/semester) to Full tuition ($2,472/semester) (2025-2026 amounts)

    Entry requirements: Cumulative transferred GPA 3.95-4.0 = Full Tuition; 3.90-3.949 = Half Tuition; 3.75-3.899 = Quarter Tuition GPA

    To keep it: Duration 4 years; Annual Renewal 'BYUI GPA 3.75-4.0' per the main table (one card on the same page shows 'BYUI GPA 3.95–4.0' for the Full Tuition transfer tier — see Section C conflict note).

    Source: https://www.byui.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/academic

  • Academic Scholarship — Current BYU-Idaho Students (1-Year)

    Quarter tuition ($618/semester) to Full tuition ($2,472/semester) (2025-2026 amounts)

    Entry requirements: BYU-Idaho cumulative GPA 3.95-4.0 = Full Tuition; 3.90-3.949 = Half Tuition; 3.75-3.899 = Quarter Tuition (checked after Winter semester) GPA

    To keep it: Duration 1 year per the main table; renews annually at the tier matching BYU-Idaho cumulative GPA after Winter semester (Full 3.95-4.0; Half 3.90-3.949; Quarter 3.75-3.899).

    Source: https://www.byui.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/academic

  • Talent Scholarships (Art, Dance, Journalism, Theater, Music)

    Quarter tuition ($618/semester) up to Full tuition ($2,472/semester)

    To keep it: Must reapply for the scholarship each year; meet any additional requirements set by the specific department; enroll in at least 6 credits.

    Source: https://www.byui.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/talent

How families lose this aid

  • Assuming 'full tuition' means a full ride — or even most of the bill.

    Full tuition is $2,472/semester for Church members, but the university's own per-semester cost-of-attendance tables run roughly $7,219-$11,699 once housing, food, transportation, books, and personal expenses are added. Housing, food, and fees are not covered by any tuition-denominated scholarship.

  • Non-member families budgeting from the member tuition rate.

    Tuition differs by religious affiliation: campus tuition is $2,472/semester for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints vs $4,944/semester for non-members (12+ credits, Summer 2025-Spring 2026 rates). Scholarship caps are also expressed against the 'full LDS tuition rate,' so a full-tuition-capped stack covers only half of a non-member's tuition.

  • Letting the BYU-Idaho GPA slip below 3.75 and expecting to keep the 4-Year Scholarship.

    The renewal cliff is explicit: 'You will lose your 4-Year Scholarship' if you don't maintain at least a 3.75 BYU-Idaho cumulative GPA. (A future Continuing Student Academic Scholarship is possible, but only at 3.75+ again.)

  • Missing the transcript/test-score window for the automatic freshman award.

    Freshmen must submit high school transcripts and ACT/SAT scores by the transcript deadline of their first semester (Sept 8, 2026 for Fall 2026); updates must be received and processed at least one week before the first semester begins. There is no application to fall back on — the award is computed from what is on file.

  • Expecting to shift a scholarship to a different semester.

    'BYU-Idaho scholarships may not be moved or transferred to different semesters. There are no exceptions to this policy.'

  • Assuming a strong first year upgrades the award permanently.

    Upgrades are recalculated annually after Winter semester: a student who qualifies for Full Tuition in year two but drops back to 3.75 reverts to the original award amount ('Your 4-Year Academic Scholarship will return to the original amount, but as long as you maintain at least a 3.75 BYUI GPA it will not drop below your original award.').

Renewal questions families ask

What GPA do I need to keep the 4-Year Academic Scholarship?
A 3.75 BYU-Idaho cumulative GPA, checked annually after Winter semester. Below 3.75 the 4-Year Scholarship is lost; at 3.75+ it never drops below the original award amount.

Rules that bite at BYU-Idaho

The renewal trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook, derived from BYU-Idaho's own tier rules and not generic advice.

  • Renewal rule4-Year Academic Scholarship — New Freshman: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out

    Duration 4 years; Annual Renewal 'BYUI GPA 3.75–4.0'. Per page FAQ, if BYU-Idaho cumulative GPA stays 3.75+ the scholarship will not drop below the original award; below 3.75 the 4-Year Scholarship is lost. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

How BYU-Idaho compares across our verified dataset

  • 69 of 749 verified schools publish a top renewal tier requiring 3.5+ GPA or major-GPA gating.

    BYU-Idaho is one of them. Calibrate year-one academic load against the renewal floor, not just freshman survival.

  • 665 of 749 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.

    BYU-Idaho is one of them. The cohort minority (84 schools) only awards one-year scholarships, which means the four-year value families assume on a brochure quote isn't guaranteed at every school.

Sources used on this page

Every renewal claim is checked against BYU-Idaho’s own published materials.

More on BYU-Idaho merit aid