Does UCLA offer merit scholarships?

Very limited. Only about 4% of freshmen receive non-need institutional merit, averaging $8,557. The Regents Scholarship ($2,000/year for non-need students) goes to ~75 freshmen by invitation. UCLA Alumni Scholarships ($4,000-$20,000) require a separate application. No automatic merit awards based on GPA or test scores exist.

UCLA· Renewal Rules

Keeping UCLA’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 May 20269 days ago· PT

At a glance

Renewable tiers: 1 of 1
One-time tiers: 0
Tiers with published renewal terms: 1
Renewal risk profile: moderate

Renewal risk profile

UCLA's renewal bar is achievable for steady students but isn't generous. Most awards require a cumulative GPA in the 3.0–3.4 band plus full-time enrollment. Audit the strictest tier on this school's list before assuming the four-year value is locked in.

Regents Scholarship: 3.0 GPA

Renewal terms by tier

Regents Scholarship
$2,000/year ($8,000 over four years). If the scholar has additional financial need, UCLA awards university grants to cover the remainder of demonstrated need.
To keep it: Renewable for four years (12 academic quarters). Requires 3.0 cumulative GPA.
Source: https://prospective-ugstudents-ucla.academicworks.com/opportunities/334

How families lose this aid

Expecting automatic merit aid as an out-of-state student at UCLA.
UCLA does not award automatic scholarships based on GPA or test scores. Nearly all undergraduate funding is need-based. Out-of-state families paying ~$85,000/year often assume merit will offset the $39,270 NRST. Only 4% of freshmen receive any non-need merit, averaging $8,557.

Renewal questions families ask

Does UCLA offer merit scholarships?: Very limited. Only about 4% of freshmen receive non-need institutional merit, averaging $8,557. The Regents Scholarship ($2,000/year for non-need students) goes to ~75 freshmen by invitation. UCLA Alumni Scholarships ($4,000-$20,000) require a separate application. No automatic merit awards based on GPA or test scores exist.

How UCLA compares across our verified dataset

70 of 78 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
UCLA is one of them. The cohort minority (8 schools) only awards one-year scholarships — meaning 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 UCLA’s own published materials.