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Liberty Online scholarships and merit aid

The short answer

Liberty Online 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
2 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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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. First Responders Discount25% tuition discountNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    First Responders Discount

    25% tuition discount

    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 First Responders Discount

    Who qualifies

    Currently employed, volunteering within the last five years, or retired from an approved first-responder position (long list incl. police, fire, EMS, TSA, FBI/CIA field agents); U.S. citizen, eligible non-citizen, or Canadian citizen; degree-seeking UG/grad/doctoral; proof of employment/volunteer status required

    How to keep it

    If enrolled beyond the initial approval period, Liberty may request documentation be resent to confirm continued eligibility.

    Worth knowing

    Student still pays books, materials, and the technology fee each term. Administrative/non-field/chaplaincy positions are not eligible. Military-police MOS can take the military discount OR this one for the same service, not both.

  2. Liberty Advantage15% off tuitionNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Liberty Advantage

    15% off 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 Liberty Advantage

    Who qualifies

    Affiliation with an eligible company, event, or organization; LUOA (Liberty University Online Academy) graduates also receive this 15% discount; annual form by July 1; financial aid reviews (e.g., FAFSA verification) must be completed

    How to keep it

    Complete the LUO Advantage Discount Form annually by July 1 in myLU.

    Worth knowing

    NOT stackable with the military tuition discount, 15% promotional discounts, the NFL Players Association 25% discount, or Corporate Partnership discounts. Applies to tuition only; cannot exceed tuition cost; subject to the General Scholarship Rule. Willmington School of the Bible students ineligible since Fall 2019.

  3. LU Parent Discount15% off tuitionNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    LU Parent Discount

    15% off 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 LU Parent Discount

    Who qualifies

    Parent is a new or current online student AND their son or daughter is a new or current residential Liberty student; form submission required

    How to keep it

    Applied once you and your student start classes; conditions tied to the residential student's enrollment.

    Worth knowing

    Cannot be combined with the Small Business Discount, corporate discounts, or military pricing — but CAN be combined with the 25% First Responder discount.

  4. Heroes Fund ScholarshipAll remaining tuition and class fees after financial aid and military aidNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Heroes Fund Scholarship

    All remaining tuition and class fees after financial aid and military aid

    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 Heroes Fund Scholarship

    Who qualifies

    Service members and honorably discharged Gulf War veterans (1990-present incl. Desert Shield/Storm, OEF/OIF); must be a Purple Heart recipient OR rated 100% disabled by the VA OR a spouse was killed in action; documented application required

    How to keep it

    Covers the student's first certificate, associate, bachelor's, or master's degree.

    Worth knowing

    Last-dollar award (applies after other aid). Will not cover School of Aeronautics and School of Law class fees.

  5. SBCV / WVCSB Pastor ScholarshipsFull tuitionNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    SBCV / WVCSB Pastor Scholarships

    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 SBCV / WVCSB Pastor Scholarships

    Who qualifies

    Two pastors per church per year from current SBCV (Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia) or WVCSB (West Virginia Convention of Southern Baptists) member churches with membership established before January 2010; church letter required

    How to keep it

    Awarded annually and expires in the summer of each year; must provide a new church letter each summer semester to re-apply.

    Worth knowing

    Student is responsible for all fees. Excludes Ph.D. in Counseling, Ph.D. in Theology and Apologetics, and D.Min. coursework (doctoral Divinity considered on appeal). Limited to one degree per student.

  6. International Mission Board (IMB) ScholarshipFull tuitionNot automatic
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    International Mission Board (IMB) Scholarship

    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.

    Open award details for International Mission Board (IMB) Scholarship

    Who qualifies

    Liberty University Online graduate students pursuing a Master of Arts in Religion (MAR) with journeyman status with the IMB; verification letter from IMB required

  7. Military Tuition Discount (rate-based)$250/credit hour undergraduate; $310/credit hour graduate; $395/credit hour doctoral (2026-27)Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Military Tuition Discount (rate-based)

    $250/credit hour undergraduate; $310/credit hour graduate; $395/credit hour doctoral (2026-27)

    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 Military Tuition Discount (rate-based)

    Who qualifies

    Military students (service member/veteran/spouse eligibility detailed on the military discount page)

    How to keep it

    Rates published per academic year on the tuition page.

    Worth knowing

    2026-27 military rates from the tuition page: Military Undergraduate $250; Military Graduate $310; military doctoral-track rates $395. Standard 2026-27 rates for comparison: undergraduate full-time $410/hr (part-time $475), graduate $600 ($665 part-time), doctoral $630 ($695).

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What makes Liberty Online different

Liberty Online has no GPA-based merit grid — its 'scholarships' are affiliation-based tuition discounts (first responders 25%, Liberty Advantage/LU Parent 15%, military rates, 100%-tuition pastor and missionary awards), all capped by a General Scholarship Rule that reduces Liberty aid whenever combined grants plus Liberty aid exceed tuition.

Merit tiers7See 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 Liberty Online'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. Liberty Online's published institutional awards are affiliation/status-based (first responder, military, church, employer, parent). No academic stat grid or automatic GPA award appears on the scholarships page.

  2. The page lists explicit non-stacking rules: Liberty Advantage cannot combine with the military discount, 15% promotional discounts, the NFLPA 25% discount, or corporate discounts; LU Parent cannot combine with small-business/corporate/military pricing (First Responder is the stated exception); Word of Life cannot combine with corporate or military discounts.

  3. For online students, federal grants + state grants + Liberty aid cannot exceed the actual cost of tuition — 'Liberty aid will be reduced' to resolve any excess. A Pell-heavy package can silently shrink Liberty discounts.

  4. 'Liberty discounts are applied beginning with the term in which you are approved and cannot be used toward prior terms.'

  5. The LUO Advantage Discount Form must be completed 'annually by July 1' in myLU; pastors using SBCV/WVCSB awards must likewise submit a new church letter each summer to re-apply.

  6. SBCV/WVCSB awards state 'Student is responsible for all fees'; the First Responders Discount leaves books, materials, and the $349/semester technology fee unpaid; Heroes Fund excludes School of Aeronautics and School of Law class fees.

  7. 'You must have a FAFSA on file to receive most Liberty aid and all federal aid,' and FAFSA Verification must be completed before any aid is awarded.

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

Working adults whose job, church, military service, or family ties unlock a discount — not students seeking GPA/test-based merit money. Veterans, first responders, pastors in SBCV/WVCSB churches, and parents of Liberty residential students do best.

Cost and graduation facts

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

Average annual net price by family income at Liberty Online, academic year 2021-22
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$30,667
$30,001–$48,000$27,807
$48,001–$75,000$27,347
$75,001–$110,000$27,142
$110,001+$30,545
All income levels (average)$29,357

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Total cost of attendance (sticker), AY 2021-22
$42,025
Published tuition & fees, AY 2022-23
$22,465
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$29,357

That works out to an average 30% discount off the sticker price above — both figures come from the same federal AY 2021-22 Scorecard report, not a number the school itself published.

Outcomes for students who enrolled here

Graduation rate (150% of normal time), 2016 cohort
65%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
80%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$24,500 (~$260/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$44,813
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
31%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
51%
See other scholarships and cost examples

If your student brings another scholarship

Liberty's General Scholarship Rule (GSR) caps combined federal grants, state grants, and Liberty aid at the cost of tuition for online students; any excess is resolved by reducing Liberty aid first. Many discounts are explicitly non-stackable with each other.

GSR: for online students the calculation includes only tuition (no room/board), so federal grants + state grants + Liberty aid cannot exceed actual tuition; 'Liberty aid will be reduced' if exceeded; all Liberty aid is subject to the GSR. Non-stacking pairs: Liberty Advantage vs. military/promotional/NFLPA/corporate; LU Parent vs. small-business/corporate/military (but stacks with First Responder); Word of Life vs. corporate/military. Discounts apply only from the term approved, never retroactively.

Source

Other Liberty Online scholarships worth checking

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

AmountMaximum Pell Grant for the academic yearEligibilityPell-eligible student whose parent/guardian died in the line of duty as a public safety officer while the student was 24 or younger or enrolled in higher education

Email financialaid@liberty.edu for full documentation and eligibility details.

Source

Amount50% tuition discountEligibilityWord of Life employees; undergraduate and graduate programs only

Student pays the technology fee each term; not stackable with Corporate Affiliate or Military discounts.

Source

AmountDiscounted block tuition rateEligibilityJohn W. Rawlings School of Divinity online seminary students

A discounted full-time block rate rather than a scholarship; see the Tuition and Fees page (2026-27 lists School of Divinity Master's Programs at $410/credit; 2025-26 listed a $2,850 block rate).

Source

Liberty Online merit aid FAQ

  • Is there a merit scholarship deadline?

    There is no academic merit competition. The recurring administrative deadline is the Liberty Advantage form, due annually by July 1 in myLU; SBCV/WVCSB pastors must re-submit church letters each summer. Individual awards note their own documentation requirements.

  • What does Liberty Online tuition cost for 2026-27?

    Per the tuition page: undergraduate full-time $410/credit hour (part-time $475); graduate $600 ($665 part-time); doctoral $630 ($695); military rates $250 (UG), $310 (grad), $395 (doctoral tracks). Technology fee $349/semester; estimated books/online content $716/year.

  • Do I need the FAFSA?

    Yes — 'You must have a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on file to receive most Liberty aid and all federal aid,' and any FAFSA Verification must be completed before aid is awarded.

  • Can outside scholarships be used at Liberty Online?

    Liberty points students to external scholarship databases (Scholarships.com, CollegeNet, etc.). The published GSR addresses federal/state grants plus Liberty aid vs. tuition; how private outside awards interact is not specified on the page — ask Student Financial Services.

  • Who gets 100% tuition covered?

    IMB journeymen in the online MAR program; two pastors per SBCV or WVCSB member church per year (fees not included); and Heroes Fund recipients (Purple Heart, 100% VA-disabled, or spouse KIA) get remaining tuition and class fees covered after other aid.

See sources and other schools

How Liberty Online compares

  • 235 of 749 verified schools in our dataset use cost-of-attendance cap displacement.

    Liberty Online is in a recognizable cluster (235 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.

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

    Liberty Online 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 Liberty Online’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

Keep exploring Liberty Online merit aid

The next chapter

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