Hardin-Simmons· Renewal Rules
Keeping Hardin-Simmons’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.
At a glance
- Renewable tiers
- 11 of 11
- One-time tiers
- 0
- Tiers with published renewal terms
- 11
- Renewal risk profile
- moderate
Renewal risk profile
Hardin-Simmons'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.
- Honors Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Trustee Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Presidents Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Deans Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- University Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Opportunity Grant: 2.0 GPA
- Texas Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Transfer Presidents Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Transfer Deans Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Transfer University Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
- Transfer Scholarship: 2.0 GPA
Renewal terms by tier
Honors Scholarship
$25,000 per yearTo keep it: 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.
Trustee Scholarship
$22,000 per yearEntry requirements: 1200 SAT · 25 ACT
To keep it: 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.
Presidents Scholarship
$20,000 per yearEntry requirements: 3.9+ GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
Deans Scholarship
$18,000 per yearEntry requirements: 3.5 – 3.8 GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
University Scholarship
$16,000 per yearEntry requirements: 3.2 – 3.4 GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
Opportunity Grant
$14,000 per yearEntry requirements: 3.0 – 3.1 GPA GPA
To keep it: 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).
Texas Scholarship
$44,000 total (up to $11,000 per year for four years)To keep it: 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.
Transfer Presidents Scholarship
$16,000 per yearEntry requirements: 3.5+ GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
Transfer Deans Scholarship
$14,000 per yearEntry requirements: 3.0 – 3.4 GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
Transfer University Scholarship
$12,000 per yearEntry requirements: 2.5 – 2.9 GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
Transfer Scholarship
$10,000 per yearEntry requirements: 2.0 – 2.4 GPA GPA
To keep it: 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.
How families lose this aid
- Thinking a scholarship can be raised after enrollment by improving college grades.
'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.
- Budgeting as if the merit award covers room, board, and fees.
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.
- Treating the $44,000 Texas Scholarship as a top-up to a higher grid award.
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.
- Ignoring the renewal floor.
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.
Renewal questions families ask
- 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.
How Hardin-Simmons compares across our verified dataset
- 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 renewal claim is checked against Hardin-Simmons’s own published materials.
More on Hardin-Simmons merit aid
- Hardin-Simmons merit aid overviewFull tier ladder, named scholarships, departmental awards, and how families decide.
- Hardin-Simmons scholarship stackingWhether outside awards land as upside or quietly displace institutional aid.
- Does Hardin-Simmons displace outside scholarships?The dollar math on a $5,000 outside award, plus peer schools that handle it differently.