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Ferrum scholarships and merit aid

Two prices: the posted one, and yours.

Posted price$45,887per year · 2026-2027 · cost of attendance
Yours?depends on the rules below

The short answer

Ferrum may be worth checking, but its awards do not follow a simple grades-and-scores chart. Start with the published scholarships below.

Where does your student land?

Verified Jul 2026
3 school sources to explore

Published rules, with the school sources close at hand. Confirm the details before you count on an award.

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Checking merit aid at Ferrum

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The award collection

Published scholarships

These amounts and requirements come from the school’s own published pages. Open an award to see who qualifies and how to keep it.

Where does your student land?

  1. Merit-Based GrantAmount not publishedNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Merit-Based Grant

    Amount not published

    Published award termsNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    GPA
    Based on cumulative GPA (no cutoffs published)
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Merit-Based Grant

    Who qualifies

    Undergraduate students; transfer students' merit is based on their previous school cumulative GPA. The financial-aid page notes that 'In order to receive your final merit award, an official transcript must be submitted.'

    Worth knowing

    Ferrum publishes no amounts, GPA bands, or renewal terms for this grant on the grants page. The aid process page indicates merit is awarded through the aid package after acceptance. Do not assume a grid exists.

  2. The Panther Promise (Free Tuition for In-State Students)Full tuitionNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    The Panther Promise (Free Tuition for In-State Students)

    Full tuition

    Published coverage or packageNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for The Panther Promise (Free Tuition for In-State Students)

    Who qualifies

    Qualifying students are recipients of the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (VTAG) who have an estimated family contribution of $1,000 or less and choose to live on campus. FAFSA required.

    Worth knowing

    Need- and residency-gated, not merit-based — included here because it is Ferrum's headline full-tuition award. Three gates: VTAG receipt (Virginia residency), EFC ≤ $1,000, and on-campus living. Renewal terms are not stated on the page.

  3. Visit GrantAmount not publishedNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Visit Grant

    Amount not published

    Published award termsNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Visit Grant

    Who qualifies

    New and transfer students; award based on the date they visit campus.

    How to keep it

    May be renewed for an additional seven semesters, provided the student remains full-time and degree-seeking.

    Worth knowing

    An unusual award: granted for visiting campus, with award size tied to visit date — visiting earlier appears to matter, though amounts are not published.

  4. Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (VTAG)$5,000 (2025-2026 estimate)Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (VTAG)

    $5,000 (2025-2026 estimate)

    Published award termsNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (VTAG)

    Who qualifies

    Virginia residents attending Ferrum; not need-based. Completed application due to the Office of Financial Aid by September 15, 2025 (for 2025-2026); late awards contingent on remaining funds. Amounts are estimated and not guaranteed (set by the General Assembly).

    How to keep it

    Renewability is based on Virginia residency each academic year and full-time enrollment; maximum of eight undergraduate semesters.

    Worth knowing

    State-funded award administered through Ferrum; it is also the gateway requirement for the Panther Promise. The published $5,000 figure and September 15, 2025 deadline are for 2025-2026 — a year behind the 2026-2027 target; flagged in Section C.

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The fine print

Renewal ruleVisit Grant: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out

May be renewed for an additional seven semesters, provided the student remains full-time and degree-seeking. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

What makes Ferrum different

DRAFT: Ferrum publishes no merit grid at all — its GPA-based Merit Grant amounts are unpublished — but headlines the Panther Promise (free tuition for Virginia VTAG recipients with an EFC of $1,000 or less who live on campus) and even pays a renewable Visit Grant just for touring campus.

Merit tiers4See who qualifies
Research checkedJul 2026By our research team

Selection beyond grades and scores

Start with the selection process.

These awards are not recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read each award's selection rules, application steps and dates. Meeting a minimum is not an award offer.

  1. Read the selection rules

    Look for the school's stated criteria and whether an additional application is needed.

  2. Check the application dates

    Confirm the current admission and scholarship deadlines directly with the school.

  3. Know what happens next year

    Check renewal, credit requirements and how other aid affects the award.

The fine print / Three questions to carry forward

Before you count on it.

Does it apply to us? Confirm the entering year, residency and every eligibility condition.

Can we keep it? Check renewal GPA, credits and how long the award lasts.

Can we combine it? Ask how outside scholarships and other school awards change the offer.

Take Ferrum's decision sheet

A printable research summary, source links and room for your questions.

See what could change an award

What families often miss

  1. Ferrum publishes no merit amounts or GPA bands — the grants page says only that the Merit-Based Grant 'is awarded to an undergraduate student based on their Cumulative GPA.' Families must use the net price calculator or wait for the acceptance-time award letter, and the final merit award requires an official transcript.

  2. The Panther Promise is triple-gated: it requires receiving the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (Virginia residents only), an estimated family contribution of $1,000 or less, AND living on campus. Commuters and out-of-state students do not qualify.

  3. VTAG is not automatic — a separate application was due to the Financial Aid Office by September 15, 2025 (for 2025-2026), and 'awards for late applicants are contingent on available funds.' Missing VTAG also forfeits Panther Promise eligibility. Amounts 'are estimated and not guaranteed' since the General Assembly sets funding.

  4. Ferrum's Visit Grant pays new and transfer students 'based on the date they visit campus,' renewable for seven additional semesters — a tour is literally worth money here, and the date of the visit matters.

  5. Ferrum's own scholarships page instructs: 'If you win a scholarship, inform the Financial Aid Office, and it may adjust your financial aid award.' The adjustment method (loan vs grant reduction) is not published — ask before accepting.

  6. Panther Promise covers tuition only; a resident student still faces roughly $16,253 in published 2026-2027 non-tuition charges (housing $7,716, meals $7,112, comprehensive fee $1,340, new student fee $85).

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

DRAFT: Lower-income Virginia residents are the headline winners (Panther Promise free tuition via VTAG + EFC test + on-campus living); out-of-state families get unpublished GPA-based merit and should use the net price calculator and ask admissions for exact figures.

Published yearly cost: Approximately $45,887 for 2026-2027. Source

Cost and graduation facts

Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at Ferrum, what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.

Average annual net price by family income at Ferrum, academic year 2021-22
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$16,940
$30,001–$48,000$16,493
$48,001–$75,000$19,967
$75,001–$110,000$22,505
$110,001+$24,346
All income levels (average)$20,082

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Published tuition & fees, AY 2022-23
$28,520
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$20,082

That works out to roughly a 63% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $54,526 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).

Outcomes for students who enrolled here

Graduation rate (150% of normal time), 2016 cohort
32%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
64%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$27,000 (~$286/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$44,296
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
59%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
97%
See other scholarships and cost examples

Other Ferrum scholarships worth checking

These awards can be harder to find. Each one has its own rules.

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityFAFSA required; renewability based on full-time enrollment and continued financial need each year.

Need-based, not merit.

Source

AmountAmount not published (varies)EligibilityUndergraduates, based on professional judgment and extenuating circumstances; full-time and degree-seeking.

One year only — explicitly not renewable.

Source

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityActive members of the United Methodist Church (Ferrum is UMC-affiliated); administered through the United Methodist Higher Education Foundation.

External/affiliated funds, linked from Ferrum's financial-aid page.

Source

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityLinked from Ferrum's financial-aid 'Tools & Resources'; eligibility requirements on the Earn to Learn partner page.

Matched-savings program; details hosted off-site.

Source

Ferrum merit aid FAQ

  • What is the FAFSA deadline for Ferrum?

    The priority deadline to file the FAFSA (school code 003711) is October 1 — the financial-aid page states 'a deadline of October 1, 2026' for the 2026-27 cycle.

  • How do I get a merit scholarship at Ferrum?

    Merit is awarded as a Merit-Based Grant based on cumulative GPA (high school or, for transfers, prior college). No amounts or GPA bands are published; awards appear in the aid package after acceptance, and an official transcript must be submitted to receive the final merit award.

  • Who qualifies for free tuition (the Panther Promise)?

    Virginia students who receive the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant (VTAG), have an estimated family contribution of $1,000 or less, and choose to live on campus.

  • What does Ferrum cost for 2026-2027?

    The published resident total is $45,887 (tuition $29,634, housing $7,716, estimated meals $7,112, comprehensive fee $1,340, one-time new student fee $85); commuter total $31,659. International students pay a $1,300 fee.

  • Is the VTAG automatic for Virginians?

    No — it requires a separate application (due September 15 for the prior cycle; late applications are funds-permitting), and the amount ($5,000 estimated for 2025-2026) is set by the General Assembly and not guaranteed.

See sources and other schools

How Ferrum compares

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

    Ferrum 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 claim is checked against Ferrum’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

Keep exploring Ferrum merit aid

The next chapter

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