Do I need a test score to get merit aid?

No test scores appear in the published grid — academic scholarships 'are determined based on unweighted cumulative high school GPA,' ranging from $12,000 (below 3.0) to $24,000 (3.9+) for first-year students.

Do transfer students get merit scholarships?

Yes — the same award names at the same dollar values with lower GPA bands: $12,000 at 2.0-2.49 up to $24,000 at 3.5+.

What do I need to keep my scholarship?

Full-time enrollment (12+ credit hours per semester) and a minimum college cumulative GPA of 3.5 for Honors/Trustee, 3.0 for Presidential, and 2.0 plus satisfactory academic progress for other scholarships. Awards are renewable for up to four years.

Manchester· Renewal Rules

Keeping Manchester’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 Jun 20264 days ago· COWORK

At a glance

Renewable tiers: 4 of 4
One-time tiers: 0
Tiers with published renewal terms: 4
Renewal risk profile: high

Renewal risk profile

Manchester's top merit tiers carry renewal floors at or above 3.5 cumulative GPA, which is above the median freshman college GPA at most US flagships. A single rough semester can knock a four-year award out without a published reinstatement path. Plan year-one course load with renewal in mind, not just first-year survival.

Academic Scholarships — First-Year Students (Director's Award through Presidential Scholarship): Full-time enrollment
Academic Scholarships — Transfer Students (Director's Award through Presidential Scholarship): Full-time enrollment
Honors Scholarship: See notes
Trustee Scholarship: See notes

Renewal terms by tier

Academic Scholarships — First-Year Students (Director's Award through Presidential Scholarship)
$12,000-$24,000
Entry requirements: Determined by unweighted cumulative high school GPA: under 3.0 = $12,000; 3.0-3.24 = $15,000; 3.25-3.49 = $18,000; 3.5-3.89 = $21,000; 3.9+ = $24,000 GPA
To keep it: Awards are renewable for up to four years; requires full-time enrollment (minimum of 12 credit hours per semester); minimum college cumulative GPA of 3.0 for Presidential Scholarships and 2.0 plus satisfactory academic progress for other scholarships.
Source: https://www.manchester.edu/admissions-aid/financial-aid/scholarships-grants/
Academic Scholarships — Transfer Students (Director's Award through Presidential Scholarship)
$12,000-$24,000
Entry requirements: Transfer grid: 2.0-2.49 = $12,000; 2.5-2.99 = $15,000; 3.00-3.24 = $18,000; 3.25-3.49 = $21,000; 3.5+ = $24,000 GPA
To keep it: Awards are renewable for up to four years; minimum college cumulative GPA of 3.0 for Presidential Scholarships and 2.0 plus satisfactory academic progress for other scholarships; full-time enrollment required.
Source: https://www.manchester.edu/admissions-aid/financial-aid/scholarships-grants/
Honors Scholarship
Full tuition + fees + room & board
Entry requirements: Must first earn the Presidential Scholarship (3.9+ unweighted HS GPA on the freshman grid) GPA
To keep it: Honors Scholars must maintain a 3.5 CGPA, maintain active status in the Honors Program, and graduate with Honors & Achievement from the Honors Program. Awarded for up to four years.
Source: https://www.manchester.edu/admissions-aid/financial-aid/scholarships-grants/
Trustee Scholarship
Up to $2,000/year more than the Presidential Scholarship (a Jan 2026 news page says $28,000/year)
Entry requirements: Must first earn the Presidential Scholarship (3.9+ unweighted HS GPA on the freshman grid) GPA
To keep it: Trustee Scholars must maintain a 3.5 CGPA, maintain active status in the Honors Program, and graduate with Honors from the Honors Program. Awarded for up to four years.
Source: https://www.manchester.edu/admissions-aid/financial-aid/scholarships-grants/

How families lose this aid

Missing the early-December window for the top awards.
Although the Honors Program application technically closes May 1, only 'Presidential Scholarship recipients who apply by Sunday, Dec 1, are in the pool of candidates' for the Honors and Trustee Scholarships awarded at Scholarship Day (Saturday, Dec. 6).
Forgetting the renewal-GPA cliff on the top awards.
Honors and Trustee Scholars must maintain a 3.5 college cumulative GPA (and active Honors Program status); Presidential Scholars need 3.0; other scholarships need 2.0 plus satisfactory academic progress and full-time enrollment (12+ credit hours per semester). Falling below these risks losing the award.
Skipping the campus visit.
A visit during spring of junior year or anytime senior year earns a $500-per-year Visit Incentive (up to $2,000 over four years) — free money lost by applying without visiting.

Renewal questions families ask

Do I need a test score to get merit aid?: No test scores appear in the published grid — academic scholarships 'are determined based on unweighted cumulative high school GPA,' ranging from $12,000 (below 3.0) to $24,000 (3.9+) for first-year students.
Do transfer students get merit scholarships?: Yes — the same award names at the same dollar values with lower GPA bands: $12,000 at 2.0-2.49 up to $24,000 at 3.5+.
What do I need to keep my scholarship?: Full-time enrollment (12+ credit hours per semester) and a minimum college cumulative GPA of 3.5 for Honors/Trustee, 3.0 for Presidential, and 2.0 plus satisfactory academic progress for other scholarships. Awards are renewable for up to four years.

Rules that bite at Manchester

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

renewalAcademic Scholarships — First-Year Students (Director's Award through Presidential Scholarship): renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out
Awards are renewable for up to four years; requires full-time enrollment (minimum of 12 credit hours per semester); minimum college cumulative GPA of 3.0 for Presidential Scholarships and 2.0 plus satisfactory academic progress for other scholarships. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

How Manchester compares across our verified dataset

69 of 751 verified schools publish a top renewal tier requiring 3.5+ GPA or major-GPA gating.
Manchester is one of them. Calibrate year-one academic load against the renewal floor, not just freshman survival.
669 of 751 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Manchester 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 Manchester’s own published materials.

policyManchester stacking policy
scholarshipOut of State Grant