Is OBU's academic scholarship automatic?

Yes. The four academic tiers (Academic Grant $15,000, President's $16,000, Trustee's $17,000, Founder's $20,000 per year) are awarded automatically on your GPA, ACT, SAT, or CLT — no separate application beyond admission. The full-tuition awards (University Scholar, Allen, Martin) are competitive and require an application.

What do I need to keep my scholarship?

Academic scholarships and grants are renewable provided you maintain a 2.0 College GPA.

Oklahoma Baptist· Renewal Rules

Keeping Oklahoma Baptist’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 20268 days ago· CC

At a glance

Renewable tiers: 11 of 11
One-time tiers: 0
Tiers with published renewal terms: 11
Renewal risk profile: low

Renewal risk profile

Oklahoma Baptist's published renewal rules cluster around a 3.0 floor with no major-GPA gating, which is survivable for the typical freshman with steady study habits. The risk is non-renewal due to enrollment status (dropping below full-time), not GPA.

Academic Grant: See notes
President's Academic: See notes
Trustee's Academic: See notes
Founder's Academic: See notes
University Scholar (Full-Tuition): See notes
Allen Academic Scholar (Full-Tuition, Western Oklahoma): See notes
Martin Academic Scholar (Full-Tuition, Choctaw Nation): See notes
Fine Arts Scholarships (Talent: voice, keyboard, instrument, music composition, art, theatre): See notes
Band Award (non-music majors): See notes
OBU Engineering Scholarship: See notes
Oklahoma Regents Rising Scholars Program (Academic Scholars): See notes

Renewal terms by tier

Academic Grant
$15,000 per year ($60,000 over four years)
Entry requirements: 3.24 or below GPA · 999 or below SAT · 18 or below ACT
To keep it: Renewable provided the student maintains a 2.0 College GPA.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/freshmen-scholarships
President's Academic
$16,000 per year ($64,000 over four years)
Entry requirements: 3.25-3.49 GPA · 1000-1099 SAT · 19-21 ACT
To keep it: Renewable provided the student maintains a 2.0 College GPA.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/freshmen-scholarships
Trustee's Academic
$17,000 per year ($68,000 over four years)
Entry requirements: 3.5-3.74 GPA · 1100-1199 SAT · 22-24 ACT
To keep it: Renewable provided the student maintains a 2.0 College GPA.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/freshmen-scholarships
Founder's Academic
$20,000 per year ($80,000 over four years)
Entry requirements: 3.75-4.0 GPA · 1200+ SAT · 25+ ACT
To keep it: Renewable provided the student maintains a 2.0 College GPA.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/freshmen-scholarships
University Scholar (Full-Tuition)
Full tuition
Entry requirements: High school GPA of at least 3.5 GPA · At least 1330 SAT · At least 29 ACT
To keep it: Applies to up to 16 hours per semester for eight semesters or until completion of degree; not applicable to summer-term tuition.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/university-scholar
Allen Academic Scholar (Full-Tuition, Western Oklahoma)
Full tuition
Entry requirements: At least 3.5 GPA · At least 1260 SAT · At least 27 ACT
To keep it: Renewal terms not stated on the full-tuition scholarships page.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/full-tuition-scholarships
Martin Academic Scholar (Full-Tuition, Choctaw Nation)
Full tuition
Entry requirements: At least 3.0 GPA · At least 1190 SAT · At least 25 ACT
To keep it: Renewal terms not stated on the full-tuition scholarships page.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/full-tuition-scholarships
Fine Arts Scholarships (Talent: voice, keyboard, instrument, music composition, art, theatre)
$500-$4,000
To keep it: Recipient must major in the scholarship area and exhibit continued excellence in their area; specific renewal GPA not stated.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/talent-and-athletic-scholarships
Band Award (non-music majors)
$250-$1,000
To keep it: Described as 'Renewable and competitive-based.'
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/talent-and-athletic-scholarships
OBU Engineering Scholarship
$3,000
To keep it: Renewal terms not stated.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/freshmen-scholarships
Oklahoma Regents Rising Scholars Program (Academic Scholars)
$5,700
To keep it: Available for up to eight semesters.
Source: https://www.okbu.edu/financial-aid/freshmen-scholarships

How families lose this aid

Assuming the full-tuition University Scholar award is automatic on a 29 ACT.
Meeting the 3.5 GPA + 29 ACT/1330 SAT/89 CLT cutoff only lets you APPLY. It is a competition: you must submit a recommendation, resume, and a 500-1,000 word essay, then compete at Scholars Day (Feb 6, 2026). The automatic tiers top out at Founder's Academic ($20,000/year).
Assuming a low high-school GPA means no merit money.
Even at 'GPA: 3.24 or below / ACT: 18 or below,' OBU's Academic Grant guarantees $15,000/year ($60,000 over four years) automatically — there is a guaranteed freshman floor.

Renewal questions families ask

Is OBU's academic scholarship automatic?: Yes. The four academic tiers (Academic Grant $15,000, President's $16,000, Trustee's $17,000, Founder's $20,000 per year) are awarded automatically on your GPA, ACT, SAT, or CLT — no separate application beyond admission. The full-tuition awards (University Scholar, Allen, Martin) are competitive and require an application.
What do I need to keep my scholarship?: Academic scholarships and grants are renewable provided you maintain a 2.0 College GPA.

How Oklahoma Baptist compares across our verified dataset

669 of 751 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Oklahoma Baptist 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 Oklahoma Baptist’s own published materials.