How much does HOPE actually cover at UGA?

HOPE pays a state-set percentage of in-state tuition that cannot exceed total tuition charges for the semester. Zell Miller Scholarship recipients receive the full standard undergraduate tuition rate (effectively in-state tuition coverage). The exact dollar amount changes year-to-year — check OSFA for the current aid year.

What's the difference between HOPE and Zell Miller?

Zell Miller is the richer state scholarship: full standard tuition coverage with a 3.30 maintained UGA GPA, while HOPE is a slightly lower percentage of tuition with a 3.00 maintained GPA. Initial eligibility for Zell Miller requires a higher high school GPA (typically 3.70 weighted) plus ACT/SAT thresholds set by the Georgia Student Finance Commission. A Zell Miller recipient who falls below 3.30 but stays above 3.00 demotes to HOPE rather than losing the award entirely.

How does UGA treat outside (private) scholarships?

Outside scholarships must be reported via Athena. Per OSFA practice, self-help aid (loans and Federal Work Study) is reduced BEFORE federal or institutional gift aid when an outside scholarship arrives. External scholarships of $1,000 or greater are split evenly across fall and spring semesters unless the donor directs otherwise. Students may request alternative disbursement schedules by emailing OSFA.

Are HOPE and Zell Miller capped on total years or hours?

Both are capped at 127 attempted or paid hours, whichever comes first. After earning a first Bachelor's degree, students are no longer eligible. GPA is checked at 30, 60, and 90 attempted-credit-hour benchmarks and every Spring semester — students who lose eligibility can only regain it at one of those benchmarks, and losing eligibility twice means permanent ineligibility.

UGA· Renewal Rules

Keeping UGA’s Merit Aid for Four Years

What the financial-aid office actually requires after freshman year — minimum GPA, credit-hour pace, and the cliffs that quietly downgrade families mid-degree.

Verified May 20265 days ago· PT

At a glance

Renewable tiers: 5 of 5
One-time tiers: 0
Tiers with published renewal terms: 5
Renewal risk profile: moderate

Renewal risk profile

UGA's renewal bar is achievable for steady students but isn't generous. Most awards require a cumulative GPA in the 3.0–3.4 band plus full-time enrollment. Audit the strictest tier on this school's list before assuming the four-year value is locked in.

Georgia HOPE Scholarship: See notes
Georgia Zell Miller Scholarship: See notes
Foundation Fellowship — In-State Package: See notes
Foundation Fellowship — Out-of-State Package: 3.40 GPA
Foundation Fellowship — International Package: See notes

Renewal terms by tier

Georgia HOPE Scholarship
Standard percentage of in-state tuition (state-set rate; cannot exceed total tuition charges for the semester)
Entry requirements: Initial eligibility set by the Georgia Student Finance Commission per the HOPE program rules (typically 3.00 weighted HS GPA on core curriculum) GPA
To keep it: Maintain a 3.00 HOPE GPA. GPA is checked at 30, 60, and 90 attempted-credit-hour benchmarks plus every Spring semester. Eligibility through 127 HOPE Attempted or Paid hours, whichever comes first. Students can only regain eligibility at the 30/60/90 benchmarks; lose eligibility at two checkpoints and you cannot regain it. UGA's +/- grades do not count in HOPE GPA; STEM courses get a 0.5 weight bonus on B/C/D grades. Award decreases below 15-credit-hour enrollment and cannot increase above 15 hours.
Source: https://osfa.uga.edu/types-of-aid/undergraduate/scholarships/hope-and-zell-miller-scholarships/
Georgia Zell Miller Scholarship
Standard undergraduate tuition rate (full in-state tuition); cannot exceed total tuition charges for the semester
Entry requirements: Higher initial-eligibility threshold than HOPE — set by Georgia Student Finance Commission (typically 3.70 weighted HS GPA + ACT/SAT minimums) GPA
To keep it: Maintain a 3.30 Zell Miller Scholarship GPA. Same 30/60/90 attempted-hour checkpoints, 127-hour cap, two-loss permanent ineligibility, and STEM weight rules as HOPE. Falling below 3.30 but above 3.00 demotes the student to HOPE.
Source: https://osfa.uga.edu/types-of-aid/undergraduate/scholarships/hope-and-zell-miller-scholarships/
Foundation Fellowship — In-State Package
$15,050/yr stipend + Zell Miller Scholarship (~$10,034/yr) ≈ $25,084/yr total + travel/research grants
To keep it: Maintain a minimum 3.40 cumulative UGA undergraduate GPA. Take a minimum of 12 hours of classes per semester (except summer). Remain in good standing in the Morehead Honors College. Live in Myers Hall (the Honors magnet housing) during the first year.
Source: https://honors.uga.edu/scholarships/prospective-students/foundation-fellowship/
Foundation Fellowship — Out-of-State Package
$25,900/yr stipend + Presidential waiver ($19,040/yr) ≈ $44,940/yr total + travel/research grants
To keep it: Same 3.40 GPA, 12 hours/semester, Honors good standing, and first-year Myers Hall housing requirements as the in-state package.
Source: https://honors.uga.edu/scholarships/prospective-students/foundation-fellowship/
Foundation Fellowship — International Package
$28,800/yr stipend + Presidential waiver ($19,040/yr) ≈ $47,840/yr total + travel/research grants
To keep it: Same renewal requirements as in-state and OOS Fellows.
Source: https://honors.uga.edu/scholarships/prospective-students/foundation-fellowship/

How families lose this aid

Treating HOPE and Zell Miller as automatic-renewal awards
Renewal requires 3.00 (HOPE) or 3.30 (Zell Miller) GPA at 30, 60, and 90 attempted-credit-hour checkpoints AND every Spring semester. Lose eligibility at two checkpoints and you cannot regain it for the rest of your undergraduate career. Plan course schedules and grade-recovery strategy accordingly.
Forgetting that +/- grades don't count in HOPE/Zell GPA
UGA grades on a +/- scale, but HOPE and Zell Miller GPA calculations IGNORE the +/- modifiers. A 3.0 cumulative UGA GPA and a 3.0 HOPE GPA can differ — students should confirm both via Athena before assuming renewal eligibility.
Dropping below 15 credit hours and losing HOPE per-hour value
HOPE award decreases when you enroll in fewer than 15 hours per semester and CANNOT increase if you enroll in more than 15. Plan to take 15+ hours per semester to capture the full HOPE benefit; dropping a course mid-semester after the deadline can also trigger repayment requirements.
Missing the November 1 Foundation Fellowship deadline
The Foundation Fellowship application closes November 1 each year — separate from regular UGA admission deadlines. Students who plan to apply Regular Decision and miss November 1 cannot retroactively apply for the Fellowship in their senior year.

Renewal questions families ask

How much does HOPE actually cover at UGA?: HOPE pays a state-set percentage of in-state tuition that cannot exceed total tuition charges for the semester. Zell Miller Scholarship recipients receive the full standard undergraduate tuition rate (effectively in-state tuition coverage). The exact dollar amount changes year-to-year — check OSFA for the current aid year.
What's the difference between HOPE and Zell Miller?: Zell Miller is the richer state scholarship: full standard tuition coverage with a 3.30 maintained UGA GPA, while HOPE is a slightly lower percentage of tuition with a 3.00 maintained GPA. Initial eligibility for Zell Miller requires a higher high school GPA (typically 3.70 weighted) plus ACT/SAT thresholds set by the Georgia Student Finance Commission. A Zell Miller recipient who falls below 3.30 but stays above 3.00 demotes to HOPE rather than losing the award entirely.
How does UGA treat outside (private) scholarships?: Outside scholarships must be reported via Athena. Per OSFA practice, self-help aid (loans and Federal Work Study) is reduced BEFORE federal or institutional gift aid when an outside scholarship arrives. External scholarships of $1,000 or greater are split evenly across fall and spring semesters unless the donor directs otherwise. Students may request alternative disbursement schedules by emailing OSFA.
Are HOPE and Zell Miller capped on total years or hours?: Both are capped at 127 attempted or paid hours, whichever comes first. After earning a first Bachelor's degree, students are no longer eligible. GPA is checked at 30, 60, and 90 attempted-credit-hour benchmarks and every Spring semester — students who lose eligibility can only regain it at one of those benchmarks, and losing eligibility twice means permanent ineligibility.

Rules that bite at UGA

The renewal trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook — derived from UGA's own tier rules, not generic advice.

renewalGeorgia HOPE Scholarship: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out
Maintain a 3.00 HOPE GPA. GPA is checked at 30, 60, and 90 attempted-credit-hour benchmarks plus every Spring semester. Eligibility through 127 HOPE Attempted or Paid hours, whichever comes first. Students can only regain eligibility at the 30/60/90 benchmarks; lose eligibility at two checkpoints and you cannot regain it. UGA's +/- grades do not count in HOPE GPA; STEM courses get a 0.5 weight bonus on B/C/D grades. Award decreases below 15-credit-hour enrollment and cannot increase above 15 hours. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

How UGA compares across our verified dataset

70 of 78 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
UGA is one of them. The cohort minority (8 schools) only awards one-year scholarships — meaning 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 UGA’s own published materials.

policyUGA stacking policy
cdsUGA Common Data Set
coaUGA cost-of-attendance worksheet
tierGeorgia HOPE Scholarship
tierFoundation Fellowship — In-State Package
scholarshipMid-Term Foundation Fellowship