Hardin-Simmons awards a published, automatic GPA/test-score merit grid of $14,000-$25,000 per year set at admission, plus an automatic $44,000 ($11,000/yr) Texas Scholarship floor for Texas residents — but it does NOT stack academic awards (highest dollar-value only) and every award is capped at tuition.
Verified Jun 20268 days ago· CC
Merit tiers1110 automatic on stats
Last verifiedJun 2026Analyst CC
Rules that bite at Hardin-Simmons
The trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook. Each is derived from Hardin-Simmons's own published policy, not generic advice.
capHard $35,800 cost-of-attendance ceiling
Institutional aid at Hardin-Simmons cannot push the package past $35,800. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.
Common merit-aid mistakes at Hardin-Simmons
They do not. 'If you qualify for more than one Academic Scholarship, HSU will offer you the highest dollar-value scholarship only.' Qualifying for the Texas Scholarship AND a higher grid award does not add them together — you get the larger one.
'Each scholarship amount is locked in and cannot be raised once the semester starts.' The only window to increase it is BEFORE the very first semester, by submitting updated GPA/SAT/ACT to Admissions.
Every HSU-funded award is 'capped at tuition' and 'cannot exceed the cost of tuition.' Housing (~$3,100/semester for Lange) and meals (~$3,080/semester for Unlimited) are on top of tuition and are NOT covered by the academic scholarship.
It is the floor, not an add-on. Texas residents get it 'unless a student qualifies for a higher academic scholarship' — so a 3.9+ GPA Presidents ($20,000/yr) replaces, not supplements, the $11,000/yr Texas Scholarship.
Renewal requires 12+ hours, a 2.0 GPA or higher, and passing Satisfactory Academic Progress each semester; awards run a maximum of four years / eight long terms. Dropping below full-time or below a 2.0 jeopardizes the award.
The published grid annotates the $14,000 Opportunity Grant as requiring on-campus living — moving off campus can affect this award. Confirm with the aid office before changing housing.
Who this school is for
Texas (and out-of-state) students who want a fully automatic, GPA-or-test-driven merit award locked in at admission with no separate application — especially Texas residents who get a guaranteed $11,000/year floor — who understand the awards never stack and cannot exceed tuition.
Tuition / cost of attendance: Approximately $35,800 for 2026-2027. Source
Institutional merit aid tiers
Every tier below is sourced to the school’s own published financial aid pages. Renewal terms apply only if the student maintains the stated GPA.
Where you landAutomatic merit aid by ACT compositeEach bar marks the ACT score range that qualifies for the tier.
Trustee Scholarship$22,000
ACT 25SAT 1200
2024283236
Not on this ladder:Honors Scholarship, Presidents Scholarship, Deans Scholarship, University Scholarship, Opportunity Grant, Texas Scholarship, Transfer Presidents Scholarship, Transfer Deans Scholarship, Transfer University Scholarship, Transfer Scholarship — application required, holistic, or scored on a different axis.
View as table
Tier
ACT composite
Award
Trustee Scholarship
25
$22,000 per year
$25,000 per year
Honors Scholarship
ApplicationRenewable
View requirements+
Eligibility
Requires application and admission into the Julius Olsen Honors Program (JOHP) — not automatic on stats alone
Renewal terms
Renewable for a maximum of four years / eight long terms; maintain 12+ hours, 2.0 GPA or higher, and Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) each semester. Capped at tuition.
Notes
Highest tier on the freshman grid. Because it requires JOHP admission, it is not awarded purely on a GPA/test cutoff. HSU does not stack academic scholarships — if you qualify for more than one, only the highest dollar-value award is offered.
CLT = 78. Test-score-based tier on the automatic admission grid.
Renewal terms
Renewable for a maximum of four years / eight long terms; maintain 12+ hours, 2.0 GPA or higher, and SAP each semester. Capped at tuition.
Notes
Awarded automatically on test scores (SAT 1200 / ACT 25 / CLT 78) during admission review. Does not stack with other academic scholarships — highest dollar-value only.
CLT = 66 (alternate qualifying path); on-campus living required
Renewal terms
Renewable for a maximum of four years / eight long terms; maintain 12+ hours, 2.0 GPA or higher, and SAP each semester. Capped at tuition. On-campus living required (per the grid annotation).
Notes
Lowest freshman grid tier, awarded automatically for a 3.0-3.1 GPA (or CLT 66). The published grid annotates this award as requiring on-campus living. Does not stack — highest dollar-value award only.
$44,000 total…$44,000 total (up to $11,000 per year for four years)
Texas Scholarship
AutomaticRenewable
View requirements+
Eligibility
Graduating high school student from Texas granted general admission to HSU; available to public, private, and home-school Texas residents. Awarded automatically unless the student qualifies for a higher academic scholarship.
Renewal terms
Up to $11,000 per year for four years; renewable for a maximum of four years / eight long terms with 12+ hours, 2.0 GPA or higher, and SAP each semester. Capped at tuition.
Notes
Automatic merit floor for Texas residents: every admitted Texas high-school graduate gets the Texas Scholarship UNLESS they qualify for a higher-dollar academic scholarship from the grid (no stacking). Effectively guarantees Texas residents at least $11,000/year.
HSU does NOT stack its own academic scholarships — a student who qualifies for more than one is offered only the single highest dollar-value award. Every HSU-funded award is tuition-specific and cannot exceed the cost of tuition. Outside (third-party) scholarships may fund any cost-of-attendance area, but total aid cannot exceed COA, and a large amount of outside money can reduce federal aid if a FAFSA was filed.
Two distinct rules. (1) Internal: academic scholarships do not stack on each other — highest dollar-value only — and are capped at tuition. (2) Outside awards: subject to the federal COA cap; if outside funds are high, they can lower other federal aid (not the institutional merit award itself). No published rule reduces the HSU academic scholarship specifically because of an outside award; the displacement that occurs is need-based/federal aid hitting the COA ceiling.
Do I have to apply separately for HSU's academic scholarships?
No. 'Academic scholarships are automatically determined during your admission application review.' The grid awards ($14,000-$25,000/yr for freshmen) and the $44,000 Texas Scholarship are automatic — except the $25,000 Honors Scholarship, which requires admission to the Julius Olsen Honors Program, and competitive programs like the Cynthia Ann Parker Scholars (Dec 1-Mar 1 window).
Can I combine (stack) more than one HSU academic scholarship?
No. HSU does not stack academic scholarships — 'if you qualify for more than one Academic Scholarship, HSU will offer you the highest dollar-value scholarship only.' All HSU-funded awards are also capped at tuition.
Can I raise my scholarship after I enroll?
No. 'Each scholarship amount is locked in and cannot be raised once the semester starts.' You can only increase it before your very first semester by submitting updated GPA, SAT, or ACT scores to Admissions.
What do I have to do to keep my scholarship?
Maintain 12+ hours, a 2.0 GPA or higher, and pass Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) each semester. Awards are renewable for a maximum of four years / eight long terms of undergraduate study.
What happens if I win an outside scholarship?
Outside scholarships can fund any cost area, but your total aid cannot exceed your Cost of Attendance. A large amount of outside money 'could result in the lowering of other federal aid if you filed a FAFSA.' HSU requires reporting outside awards via a mandatory form.
How Hardin-Simmons compares across our verified dataset
160 of 751 verified schools in our dataset use cost-of-attendance cap displacement.
Hardin-Simmons is in a recognizable cluster (160 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.
669 of 751 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Hardin-Simmons is one of them. The cohort minority (82 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 Hardin-Simmons’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
