Maryland's public honors college awards holistic, residency-scaled merit (Trustee/Presidents/Excellence/National Honors), with non-Maryland students eligible for up to triple the dollar value — but a hard COA/anti-stacking cap means awards can't exceed billable charges. (DRAFT)
Verified Jul 20262 months ago
The short answer
Is St. Mary's (MD) worth a closer look?
St. Mary's (MD) may be worth checking, but its awards do not follow a simple grades-and-scores chart. Start with the published scholarships below.
Merit tiers4See who qualifies
Research checkedJul 2026By our research team
Free Merit Check
See what St. Mary's (MD)'s published rules mean for your student. Takes 30 seconds.
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.
$2,000-$18,000
Trustee, Presidents, Excellence Scholarships, and National Honors Award
Apply separatelyCan continue
GPA
Typically cumulative unweighted GPA exceeding 3.0
SAT
Typically combined SAT 1100 or higher
See who qualifies and how to keep it+
Who qualifies
Typically rank in top 20% of class; all students considered upon submitting the admission application, no extra steps
How to keep it
Renewable up to four years (8 semesters, fall and spring). Must maintain at least a cumulative 3.0 GPA and be registered full-time (12 graded credits) per semester.
Notes
Holistic award, no published GPA/test grid. Amounts are residency-scaled: $2,000-$6,000 for Maryland & DC residents; $6,000-$18,000 for non-Maryland residents, per academic year. Merit amounts are tied to residency/tuition rate; the College reserves the right to recalculate based on tuition changes.
$2,000-Full tuition and mandatory f…$2,000-Full tuition and mandatory fees
SMCM National Merit Finalist Scholarship (Monument Scholars)
Apply separatelyCan continue
SAT
Submit test scores as part of admission
See who qualifies and how to keep it+
Who qualifies
National Merit Finalist; admitted to SMCM; designate SMCM as college choice to NMSC by May 31; submit enrollment deposit by application-plan due date
How to keep it
Renewable for up to four years / eight consecutive semesters. All recipients must live on campus.
Notes
MD/DC residents: $2,000 up to full tuition and mandatory fees. Outside MD/DC: $4,000 up to full tuition and mandatory fees. Offered by March 15. IMPORTANT: 'may replace any other merit awards and may result in a change to previously awarded need-based funding' (displacement). Recipients designated Monument Scholars.
Transfer Student Scholarships (+ Honors Scholarship)
Apply separatelyCan continue
GPA
Typically cumulative college GPA exceeding 3.0; PTK 3.25+ or college Honors Program 3.5+ for the Honors Scholarship
See who qualifies and how to keep it+
Who qualifies
Competitive; outstanding college grades
How to keep it
Per general SMCM merit renewal: up to 4 years (8 sem), 3.0 cumulative GPA, full-time.
Notes
Residency-scaled: $1,000-$6,000/yr in-state; $5,000-$15,000/yr out-of-state. Phi Theta Kappa members (3.25+) or college honors-program members (3.5+) receive an additional $1,000-$2,000 Honors Scholarship.
Permanent Baltimore City resident 12+ months before matriculating; first-year first-time; FAFSA; AGI under $75,000
How to keep it
Renewable up to 8 semesters; maintain full-time enrollment, cumulative 3.0 GPA, and reside on campus.
Notes
Equivalent of a full-tuition scholarship combining merit and need-based funding (income-gated at AGI <$75,000). Total gift aid (SMCM merit + need + outside) cannot exceed direct tuition, fee, room, and board; aid is adjusted down if exceeded.
These are the rules we would flag for your family. Each comes from St. Mary's (MD)'s published information.
Renewal ruleTrustee, Presidents, Excellence Scholarships, and National Honors Award: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out
Renewable up to four years (8 semesters, fall and spring). Must maintain at least a cumulative 3.0 GPA and be registered full-time (12 graded credits) per semester. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.
Aid capHard $35,396 cost-of-attendance ceiling
Institutional aid at St. Mary's (MD) cannot push the package past $35,396. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.
What families often miss
Tuition waivers + institutional scholarships cannot exceed billable charges; institutional scholarships are reduced when the combination exceeds billable charges, so excess merit does not become a cash stipend.
The National Merit Finalist award 'may replace any other merit awards and may result in a change to previously awarded need-based funding' — it can substitute for, not simply add to, prior offers.
Merit dollar ranges are residency-scaled (MD/DC $2,000-$6,000 vs non-MD $6,000-$18,000), and merit is tied to your tuition rate; the College can recalculate amounts if tuition changes.
All SMCM National Merit recipients must live on campus to receive the award; commuting forfeits it.
National Merit Finalists must designate SMCM as their college choice to NMSC by May 31 (and submit the enrollment deposit) to confirm the award; updated offers go out by March 15.
All SMCM merit scholarships renew for up to 8 semesters only if you keep a cumulative 3.0 GPA and stay full-time (12 graded credits) each semester.
The Baltimore City full-tuition-equivalent award requires AGI under $75,000 and a FAFSA, and total gift aid (including outside scholarships) cannot exceed direct tuition/fee/room/board.
See costs and school data+
Who this school may work for
Strong students (top 20%, 3.0+ unweighted GPA, ~1100+ SAT) win automatic merit; out-of-state applicants get the largest dollar awards, and National Merit Finalists who live on campus and designate SMCM can reach up to full tuition + fees. (DRAFT)
Published yearly cost: Approximately $35,396 for 2025-2026. Source
Cost and graduation facts
Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at St. Mary's (MD), what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.
Average annual net price by family income at St. Mary's (MD), academic year 2021-22 — in-state, Title-IV aid recipients only
Family income
Average net price paid
$0–$30,000
$2,889
$30,001–$48,000
$12,053
$48,001–$75,000
$15,033
$75,001–$110,000
$19,796
$110,001+
$25,173
All income levels (average)
$18,441
Sticker price vs. what students actually pay
Published tuition & fees (in-state), AY 2022-23
$15,298
Published tuition & fees (out-of-state), AY 2022-23
$31,374
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$18,441
That works out to roughly a 42% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $31,865 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).
St. Mary's (MD) is a public school; Scorecard's net price figure covers in-state, Title-IV-aid-recipient payers only — there is no comparable federal figure for out-of-state students.
Outcomes for students who enrolled here
Graduation rate (150% of normal time), 2016 cohort
70%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
86%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$21,000 (~$223/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$60,110
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
22%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
46%
See other scholarships and cost examples+
If your student brings another scholarship
Hard anti-stacking / COA cap: tuition waivers plus institutional scholarships cannot exceed billable charges; institutional scholarships are reduced when the combination exceeds billable charges (no cash stipend from excess merit). For the Baltimore City award, total gift aid including outside funding cannot exceed direct tuition/fee/room/board.
The College also reserves the right to recalculate any scholarship amount based on changes in tuition charged. National Merit awards may replace other merit awards and affect need-based funding.
Amount$7,500 per yearEligibilityOutstanding achievement in CS/math/physics; Tri-County area (preference St. Mary's County); first-year 3.0+ GPA & 1200 SAT/25 ACT or transfer AA/3.0; US citizen
Application required; renewable 3 years at 3.0 GPA.
AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityStudents who did NOT receive an entrance scholarship and completed 32+ credits in year one with strong GPA; competitive
Second-chance merit award after a strong first year.
Do I need a separate application for merit scholarships?
No. All students are considered for merit-based scholarships upon submitting the application for admission — no additional steps are required.
What is the National Merit award and its deadline?
MD/DC residents: $2,000 up to full tuition and mandatory fees; outside MD/DC: $4,000 up to full tuition and fees. Updated offers are made by March 15; Finalists must designate SMCM as their college choice to NMSC by May 31 and submit the enrollment deposit.
Can my scholarship plus other aid exceed my bill?
No. Tuition waivers and institutional scholarships cannot exceed billable charges; institutional scholarships are reduced when the combination exceeds billable charges. For the Baltimore City award, total gift aid (including outside funding) cannot exceed direct tuition/fee/room/board.
How long do merit scholarships last?
Up to four years (8 fall/spring semesters), provided you keep a cumulative 3.0 GPA and remain full-time (12 graded credits) per semester.
See sources and other schools+
How St. Mary's (MD) compares
235 of 749 verified schools in our dataset use cost-of-attendance cap displacement.
St. Mary's (MD) 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.
St. Mary's (MD) 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.
132 of 749 verified schools publish a dedicated National Merit Finalist package.
St. Mary's (MD) 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 St. Mary's (MD)’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
