The University of Alabama at Birmingham · Alabama
UAB's merit aid is a clear automatic ladder - Presidential, Provost, Blazer and Green & Gold scholarships scaled by residency - topped by the competitive Presidential Elite for out-of-state students.
The short answer
UAB is worth checking if your student has strong grades or scores. We found 10 published awards, and 9 are based on those numbers.
Free Merit Check
These amounts and requirements come from the school’s own published pages. Open an award to see who qualifies and how to keep it.
Not on this ladder: Endowed Presidential Regions Ireland Mccallum — application required, holistic, or scored on a different axis.
| Tier | ACT composite | Award |
|---|---|---|
| Presidential Elite Scholarship Oos | 32 | $28,500 |
| Presidential Scholarship Oos | 32 | $22,500 |
| Presidential Scholarship In State | 30 | $12,000 |
| Provost Scholarship In State | 27 | $8,000 |
| Provost Scholarship Oos | 27 | $17,500 |
| Green And Gold Scholarship In State | 24 | $5,000 |
| Green And Gold Scholarship Oos | 24 | $9,500 |
| Blazer Scholarship In State | 22 | $4,000 |
| Blazer Scholarship Oos | 22 | $7,500 |
Official UAB in-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Presidential Scholarship for 30-36 ACT or 1360-1600 SAT, GPA 3.5+, annual amount $12,000.
Official UAB in-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Provost Scholarship rows for 27-29 ACT/1260-1350 SAT with GPA 3.5+ and 30-36 ACT/1360-1600 SAT with GPA 3.0-3.49, each at $8,000 annually.
Official UAB in-state scholarship snapshot states students with 33-36 ACT or 1450-1600 SAT and GPA at least 3.5, plus qualifying test-optional applicants, are invited to compete via BSMART for Regions, Ireland, or McCallum Presidential endowed scholarships, with February 1 deadline.
Official UAB in-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Blazer Scholarship rows for 22-23 ACT/1100-1150 SAT with GPA 3.5+ and 24-26 ACT/1160-1250 SAT with GPA 3.0-3.49, each at $4,000 annually.
Official UAB in-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Green & Gold Scholarship rows for 24-26 ACT/1160-1250 SAT with GPA 3.5+ and 27-29 ACT/1260-1350 SAT with GPA 3.0-3.49, each at $5,000 annually.
Official UAB out-of-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Green & Gold Scholarship rows for 24-26 ACT/1160-1250 SAT with GPA 3.5+ and 27-29 ACT/1260-1350 SAT with GPA 3.0-3.49, each at $9,500 annually.
Official UAB out-of-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Presidential Elite Scholarship for 32-36 ACT or 1420-1600 SAT, GPA 4.0+, annual amount $28,500.
Official UAB out-of-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Presidential Scholarship for 32-36 ACT or 1420-1600 SAT, GPA 3.5-3.99, annual amount $22,500.
Official UAB out-of-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Provost Scholarship rows for 27-31 ACT/1260-1410 SAT with GPA 3.5+ and 30-36 ACT/1360-1600 SAT with GPA 3.0-3.49, each at $17,500 annually.
Official UAB out-of-state freshman scholarships snapshot lists Blazer Scholarship rows for 22-23 ACT/1100-1150 SAT with GPA 3.5+ and 24-26 ACT/1160-1250 SAT with GPA 3.0-3.49, each at $7,500 annually.
These are the rules we would flag for your family. Each comes from UAB's published information.
Institutional aid at UAB cannot push the package past $36,333. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.
In-state and out-of-state applicants who meet UAB's automatic GPA and test thresholds, and high-stat nonresidents targeting the Presidential Elite to offset out-of-state cost.
Published yearly cost: Approximately $36,333 for 2026-2027. Source
Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at UAB, what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.
| Family income | Average net price paid |
|---|---|
| $0–$30,000 | $16,172 |
| $30,001–$48,000 | $15,500 |
| $48,001–$75,000 | $19,161 |
| $75,001–$110,000 | $21,805 |
| $110,001+ | $22,597 |
| All income levels (average) | $18,749 |
That works out to roughly a 33% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $28,145 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).
UAB 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.
the published policy states only that loans may be reduced if the total of all funding sources exceeds cost of attendance; it does not establish that loans or work-study are reduced ahead of institutional grants, and it never mentions institutional grants being reduced or protected. Confirm the actual reduction order with the aid office.
Verified policy language (2026-07-02): All students must report scholarships to UAB Financial Aid on the Resource Information Form. Your loans may require reduction if the total of all funding sources exceeds your cost of attendance. Separately, the school's own award-stacking rules: IB or Cambridge AICE Diploma Holders receive an additional $2,500 per year at UAB, stackable on top of any automatic merit award. Students may receive only one national scholarship award. Official UAB scholarship snapshot says national scholarships are stackable on any merit awards, only one listed award may be received, and IB or Cambridge AICE Diploma Holder is $2,500 per year. (per https://www.uab.edu/admissions/cost/scholarships/in-state-students)
From the UAB Common Data Set 2024-2025 (school-estimated figures):
At UAB, roughly 1 in 3 first-year admits receive institutional merit aid. The average award is $9,765 — about 27% of total cost.
As filed in UAB's CDS Section H2A: of 1,993 first-time, full-time degree-seeking freshmen, 591 had no financial need and received institutional merit (non-need) scholarship or grant aid, averaging $9,765. Across all full-time degree-seeking undergraduates: 2,928 of 9,535, averaging $8,977. Athletic awards are excluded per the CDS definition.
The 2024-2025 column is marked "estimated" in the school's own CDS filing — school-projected figures, not final audited counts.
The BSMART Scholarship Application for departmental and additional UAB scholarships opens August 1, 2025, and the submission deadline is April 1, 2026.
For in-state freshmen, the UAB scholarship deadline is January 15, 2026 (extended to February 23).
For out-of-state freshmen, the UAB scholarship deadline is May 1, 2026.
UAB 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.
UAB 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.
Every claim is checked against UAB’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
