JBU posts a fully automatic Assured Merit Award grid ($6,000-$13,000/yr on GPA + superscored ACT/SAT/CLT) that renews for up to eight semesters at a 3.0 GPA; top stats (3.9 GPA / 29 ACT / 1330 SAT / 95 CLT) instead earn an invitation to a Scholarship Competition for the $15,000 Chancellor's and up to $15,000 more in Presidential money.
Verified Jun 20268 days ago· CC
Merit tiers83 automatic on stats
Last verifiedJun 2026Analyst CC
Rules that bite at John Brown University
The trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook. Each is derived from John Brown University's own published policy, not generic advice.
capHard $44,748 cost-of-attendance ceiling
Institutional aid at John Brown University cannot push the package past $44,748. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.
Common merit-aid mistakes at John Brown University
The top row of the grid is NOT a dollar amount — it is 'Invited to Scholarship Competition.' Those students must actually attend and interview at the on-campus Scholarship Competition to earn the $15,000 Chancellor's (and only then are considered for the Presidential). Strong stats earn an invitation, not a guaranteed check.
If you are awarded the Chancellor's Scholarship, it REPLACES any previously awarded Assured Merit Award — it does not add to it. The Presidential, by contrast, is the award that stacks (on top of the Chancellor's).
JBU academic scholarships renew for up to eight semesters only so long as you maintain a 3.0 GPA. Drop below it and the merit award is at risk — a different cliff than the (lower) state Academic Challenge 2.5 GPA renewal.
To be invited to compete you must be admitted by the cutoff: Fall admission deadline October 24 (competition Nov 2-3); Spring admission deadline January 16 (competition Jan 25-26). The competition is the only path to the Chancellor's/Presidential.
That 2026-2027 figure is full-time tuition + general fee ($33,692) + residence-hall room ($5,212) + average board ($5,844). Books (Regal Ready ~$27/credit hour), personal expenses, and any health insurance are on top; exact board varies by meal plan.
The JBU Family Christian Service Award (up to $1,000) is NEED-BASED — it requires the FAFSA and a parent in full-time Christian service, and you must reapply every year.
Who this school is for
Christian-college applicants with a 3.0+ GPA who want a published, automatic merit award they can predict from a chart; very strong students (3.9+/29 ACT) who will compete in the on-campus Scholarship Competition for the stackable Chancellor's + Presidential; National Merit Finalists/Semi-Finalists; arts, music/theatre, and athletics talent; and JBU legacies.
Tuition / cost of attendance: Approximately $44,748 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.
$6,000-$13,000 per year
Assured Merit Award (first-time students)
AutomaticRenewable
GPA
3.0+ HS GPA grid (3.0-3.19 = $6,000 up to 3.8-3.89 = $13,000); 3.9+ is instead invited to the Scholarship Competition
SAT
1020-1320 (superscored)
ACT
20-28 (superscored); higher of GPA/test used
Requirements & details+
Eligibility
CLT 63-94; JBU uses whichever of GPA/ACT/SAT/CLT gives the highest scholarship; writing portion of ACT/SAT not evaluated
Renewal terms
Academic scholarships are renewable for up to eight semesters so long as you maintain a 3.0 GPA.
Notes
Fully automatic. You may receive only one Assured Merit Award and JBU automatically awards the highest amount for which you qualify. The published grid: 3.8-3.89 GPA / 28 ACT / 1300-1320 SAT / 93-94 CLT = $13,000; 3.7-3.79 / 27 / 1260-1290 / 89-91 = $12,000; 3.6-3.69 / 26 / 1230-1250 / 86-88 = $10,000; 3.4-3.59 / 24-25 / 1160-1220 / 79-85 = $8,000; 3.2-3.39 / 21-23 / 1090-1150 / 67-78 = $7,000; 3.0-3.19 / 20 / 1020-1080 / 63-66 = $6,000. The 3.9+ / 29+ / 1330+ / 95+ row is 'Invited to Scholarship Competition' rather than a dollar amount (see Chancellor's/Presidential tiers).
First-time college student who is a National Merit Finalist or Semi-Finalist
Renewal terms
Renewal not separately stated for this award; JBU academic scholarships generally renew for up to eight semesters at a 3.0 GPA. National Merit Finalists/Semi-Finalists retain this award unless they receive the Presidential Scholarship.
Notes
Automatic for qualifying National Merit Finalists/Semi-Finalists. National Merit Finalists and Semi-Finalists retain the JBU National Merit Award unless they are selected to receive the Presidential Scholarship, in which case they receive both the Chancellor's and Presidential Scholarships instead.
Top academic criteria (automatic invitation at 3.9 GPA) OR demonstrated exceptional leadership
SAT
1330 SAT superscore (automatic invitation)
ACT
29 ACT superscore (automatic invitation)
Requirements & details+
Eligibility
Must be a high school senior applying for the fall semester; invited to and interviews at the Scholarship Competition; CLT 89 superscore also triggers an automatic invitation
Renewal terms
JBU academic scholarships are renewable for up to eight semesters so long as you maintain a 3.0 GPA. The Chancellor's Scholarship replaces any previously awarded Assured Merit Award.
Notes
Competitive, not automatic-by-stats: requires an invitation to the Scholarship Competition and an interview. If you are awarded the Chancellor's Scholarship, it will replace any previously awarded Assured Merit Award. Automatic invitations to compete are extended to students with at least a 3.9 GPA or a 29 ACT, 1330 SAT or 89 CLT superscore.
Awarded only to students who first receive the Chancellor's Scholarship at the Scholarship Competition; JBU's most prestigious scholarship
Renewal terms
JBU academic scholarships are renewable for up to eight semesters so long as you maintain a 3.0 GPA.
Notes
Stacks on top of the Chancellor's Scholarship (page labels it 'up to $15,000 (stackable)' and 'worth up to an additional $15,000'). Students who receive the Chancellor's Scholarship are also considered for the Presidential. A student selected for the Presidential receives both the Chancellor's and Presidential, for up to $30,000 combined.
New first-year student majoring in Art & Illustration, Digital Cinema, Graphic Design, Photography or Visual FX; awarded on portfolio review, faculty recommendation, academic standing and personal character
Renewal terms
Renewable for up to four years provided you remain an art major.
Notes
Departmental award decided by portfolio review. Requires staying an art major to renew.
New student majoring in music education, integrated music studies or performing arts; enrolled full-time (at least 12 hours); awarded on a completed audition
Renewal terms
Scholarships are renewable up to four years; major scholarships increase by $1,000/year for every year the student stays in the degree program.
Notes
Awarded on audition; amount based on demonstrated talent. Max award for incoming students is typically $7,000/year. Increases $1,000/year while the student stays in the degree program. Music and theatre scholarships do not stack with each other (you cannot receive both a major scholarship and an ensemble scholarship in the same semester). Minors start at $1,000/year (fixed); non-major ensemble performers get $500/semester (max $500).
JBU's published stacking/displacement rules differ by award. For ATHLETES, total aid from ALL sources (including academic scholarships, need-based aid, federal/state grants, loans, work-study and any outside scholarships) is capped at full-time tuition + room and board + general fee + up to $600 in course fees, and the athletic scholarship is reduced dollar-for-dollar by other sources — a COA-cap. For non-athletes, no general outside-scholarship displacement rule is published on the scholarships page; recipients of an outside scholarship are only told to complete the Outside Scholarship Notification Form. Within named awards, the Presidential explicitly stacks on the Chancellor's, but Music & Theatre awards do NOT stack with each other and the Chancellor's REPLACES any prior Assured Merit Award.
Athletic Policy 1 is an explicit total-aid cap with outside-scholarship displacement (athletic scholarship 'may be reduced by the amount received from any other source'). The general (non-athlete) page does not state how an outside scholarship reduces JBU institutional merit aid; it only requires notification. displacementType is set to 'coa-cap' to reflect the one published cap (athletics); confirm the non-athlete treatment with the aid office (see Section C).
Yes for the Assured Merit Award. JBU considers your high school GPA and superscored ACT/SAT/CLT and automatically awards the highest amount you qualify for ($6,000-$13,000/yr). The Chancellor's ($15,000) and Presidential (up to $15,000 more) are NOT automatic — they require an invitation to and interview at the on-campus Scholarship Competition.
What GPA do I need to keep my scholarship?
Academic scholarships are renewable for up to eight semesters so long as you maintain a 3.0 GPA.
When is the scholarship deadline?
To be invited to the Scholarship Competition you must be admitted by the deadline: Fall admission October 24 (competition November 2-3); Spring admission January 16 (competition January 25-26).
Can I combine JBU scholarships?
Some, not all. The Presidential stacks on top of the Chancellor's. But the Chancellor's REPLACES any prior Assured Merit Award, and Music & Theatre awards do not stack with each other. Athletes face an overall cap: total aid from all sources can't exceed tuition + room and board + general fee + up to $600 in course fees, and the athletic scholarship is reduced by other awards (including outside scholarships).
Do I get money for being a National Merit Finalist?
Yes. First-time students who are National Merit Finalists or Semi-Finalists receive the JBU National Merit Award ($17,000), retained unless you're selected for the Presidential (in which case you receive both the Chancellor's and Presidential instead).
How John Brown University compares across our verified dataset
160 of 751 verified schools in our dataset use cost-of-attendance cap displacement.
John Brown University 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.
John Brown University 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.
133 of 751 verified schools publish a dedicated National Merit Finalist package.
John Brown University is one of them. NMF packages typically carry their own stacking and renewal carve-outs separate from the standard automatic merit ladder; confirm those before assuming the headline NMF value is final.
Sources used on this page
Every claim is checked against John Brown University’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
