What is the general merit scholarship deadline?

The General Merit Scholarship deadline is the first Tuesday in February (or until funds remain available). The application for admission is the application for general merit scholarships.

What is the competitive scholarship deadline?

The Competitive Scholarship application deadline is the first Tuesday in December, with an interview deadline of the first Tuesday in February. Finalists participate in a scholarship event in March.

How large is the largest merit award?

The Brown Scholarship, valued at $45,000 per year, is Southwestern's most prestigious competitive award (top 5% of class or 3.8 unweighted GPA, interview required). General merit awards go up to $36,000 annually.

Southwestern · Texas

Southwestern Merit Aid

Southwestern awards holistic general merit up to $36,000/yr automatically from the admission application, plus interview-gated competitive awards (the $45,000 Brown) and audition-based fine-arts scholarships. (DRAFT)

Verified Jun 2026today· COWORK

Merit tiers7See requirements

Last verifiedJun 2026Analyst COWORK

Common merit-aid mistakes at Southwestern

Assuming the competitive Brown and Garey awards come automatically with admission
Although the admission application also serves as the competitive-scholarship application, an interview is REQUIRED to advance (Brown/Garey candidates must interview by the first Tuesday in February and finalists attend a March event). Miss the interview window and you are out of the competition.
Treating the Garey Scholarship as an annual tuition discount
The Garey is two $5,000 experiential stipends (up to $10,000 total) for high-impact experiences over your Southwestern career — not a recurring reduction in tuition like the general merit award.
Expecting a guaranteed dollar amount from a published GPA/test grid
General merit (up to $36,000) is decided by holistic review; Southwestern publishes the grid only as an image and emphasizes essay, rigor, leadership and service, so the exact award is not guaranteed by stats alone.
Applying for the Pre-Ministerial or Beneficiary award without the religious affiliation
The Beneficiary Grant requires being the dependent child of an ordained United Methodist minister, and the Pre-Ministerial award requires planning full-time ministry and joining the Pre-Ministry Connection — these are gated, not open to all students.
Skipping the audition/portfolio for fine-arts money
Sarofim Fine Arts scholarships and the Music Performance Awards both require an audition or portfolio submission; without it you cannot receive those awards regardless of academic merit.

Who this school is for

Strong all-around applicants who present well holistically (academics, essay, leadership, service); top-5%/3.8-GPA students willing to interview compete for the Brown, and fine-arts students who audition can stack Sarofim awards. (DRAFT)

Tuition / cost of attendance: Approximately $75,933 for 2025-2026. 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.

Up to $36,000

General Merit Scholarships

Application

View requirements

Eligibility

Holistic review of admission application (academic performance, rigor, essay, leadership, extracurricular/volunteer activities; visit, legacy, United Methodist membership, national recognition also considered)

Notes

Awarded automatically via the admission application — no separate form. The published award grid on the page is an image (ADM_ScholarshipGrid_2025); no machine-readable GPA/test grid is provided, so no stat grid is reproduced here.

Source

$45,000

The Brown Scholarship

Application

GPA: 3.8 unweighted (if HS does not rank)

Requirements & details

Eligibility

Rank in top 5% of HS class; interview required by first Tuesday in February; finalists attend March scholarship event

Notes

Southwestern's most prestigious/competitive award. Competitive scholarship application deadline is the first Tuesday in December.

Source

Two $5,000 stipends (up to $10,000)

The Garey Scholarship

ApplicationRenewable

GPA: 3.7 unweighted (if HS does not rank)

Requirements & details

Eligibility

Rank in top 10% of HS class; interview required by first Tuesday in February; finalists attend March event. Stipends fund high-impact experiences (study abroad, internship, research, civic engagement)

Notes

Not an annual tuition discount — two $5,000 stipends for up to two high-impact experiences during the student's Southwestern career.

Source

Up to $10,000

Pre-Ministerial Scholarship

Application

View requirements

Eligibility

Plan to enter full-time ministry; participate in Southwestern Pre-Ministry Connection; speak with University Chaplain before applying

Notes

Separate application (Google form); deadline May 1.

Source

Amounts vary

Sarofim Fine Arts Scholarships

Application

View requirements

Eligibility

Audition or portfolio submission required; major in fine arts (music vocal/instrumental, theatre acting/design, or studio art). Interview/audition deadlines vary by program

Notes

Awarded by April 1. Requirements/deadlines on the Sarofim School of Fine Arts site.

Source

Up to $2,500

Music Performance Awards

Application

View requirements

Eligibility

Audition or evaluation required; for students NOT majoring in music who wish to perform in ensembles; includes a private-lessons fee waiver

Notes

Distinct from Sarofim major awards — for non-music-majors.

Source

Amounts vary

Beneficiary Grant (United Methodist)

Application

View requirements

Eligibility

Dependent child of an ordained United Methodist Church minister who is under appointment, retired, or deceased

Notes

Separate application (United Methodist Beneficiary Grant Application PDF).

Source

Southwestern merit aid FAQ

What is the general merit scholarship deadline?
The General Merit Scholarship deadline is the first Tuesday in February (or until funds remain available). The application for admission is the application for general merit scholarships.
What is the competitive scholarship deadline?
The Competitive Scholarship application deadline is the first Tuesday in December, with an interview deadline of the first Tuesday in February. Finalists participate in a scholarship event in March.
How large is the largest merit award?
The Brown Scholarship, valued at $45,000 per year, is Southwestern's most prestigious competitive award (top 5% of class or 3.8 unweighted GPA, interview required). General merit awards go up to $36,000 annually.

How Southwestern compares across our verified dataset

247 of 272 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Southwestern is one of them. The cohort minority (25 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 Southwestern’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

SMU merit aid — Texas private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
TCU merit aid — Texas private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
Baylor merit aid — Texas private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
UDallas merit aid — Texas private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.