Texas flagship public university with effectively no automatic stat-based merit ladder for out-of-state applicants. The Forty Acres Scholars Program (full ride) and Texas Exes Entering Freshman scholarships are the real merit pathways — both require additional applications or interest-form completion by separate deadlines.
Verified May 20268 days ago· CA-1
Merit tiers3See requirements
Last verifiedMay 2026Analyst CA-1
Quick verdict
If you're chasing automatic merit dollars, UT Austin is not the school. If you're chasing the Forty Acres Scholars Program full ride, it has to be on your November-1 list.
UT Austin does not publish a stat-banded out-of-state automatic merit ladder. The school admits high-stat applicants from across the country and expects most non-Texas families to pay close to out-of-state sticker. The two genuine merit paths are (1) the Forty Acres Scholars Program (full ride, ~15 scholars per year, considered automatically but tied to the Nov 1 preferred / Dec 1 final UT application deadline) and (2) the Texas Exes Entering Freshman Scholarships portal (300+ named and chapter scholarships, $500-$20,000, separate Feb 15 application). For Texas residents, in-state tuition + Top 10% / Pell aid is the real value proposition — out-of-state families should model UT Austin at close to sticker for budgeting purposes and look at Texas A&M, SMU, or TCU for matched merit scenarios.
Common merit-aid mistakes at UT Austin
UT does not run an Alabama-style stat-banded ladder for out-of-state students. The school's posture is that strong applicants compete for limited Forty Acres and Texas Exes funds rather than receiving a guaranteed dollar amount based on GPA/test scores. Out-of-state families budgeting against an imagined automatic merit award typically overestimate their UT aid by $15,000-$30,000 per year.
Forty Acres applicants no longer fill out a standalone form, but the eligibility window is still tied to the UT application date: November 1 preferred, December 1 final. Regular Decision applicants who submit later are technically still admissible to UT but typically miss the Forty Acres selection window.
These are the two practical levers that move UT aid for most applicants. The Scholarship Interest Form (in MyStatus, due January 15) opens you to OSFA awards and partner foundations like Terry and Finis Welch. The Texas Exes Entering Freshman application (due February 15) is THE entry point into the 300+ named and chapter scholarships. Skipping either means leaving real money on the table.
Forty Acres Scholars Program — UT's only full-ride merit pathway
The Forty Acres Scholars Program is administered by the Texas Exes alumni association and is the only published full-ride merit scholarship at UT Austin. Roughly fifteen scholars enter per year. The selection process now runs automatically through the standard UT application (Common App or ApplyTexas) — there is no separate Forty Acres standalone application. To be in the running, students must submit their UT application by the preferred deadline of November 1 (final deadline December 1). The program offers academic, leadership, professional, and cultural enrichment in a cohort model, and is open to in-state and out-of-state U.S. citizens and permanent residents — but NOT to transfer or international applicants.
Texas residents with HOPE/Top 10% admission and a strong scholarship-application game; out-of-state and international applicants who understand UT Austin will not give them an automatic merit tier and are still willing to pay closer to sticker. If your goal is a published $20k-$30k automatic merit award, UT Austin is not the right list-builder — Alabama, SLU, or Trinity TX are.
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.
Full-ride merit scholarship — covers cost of attendance plus enrichment opportunities
Forty Acres Scholars Program
ApplicationRenewable
View requirements+
Eligibility
U.S. citizen or permanent resident. In-state and out-of-state students eligible. High school seniors applying to UT Austin. Transfer and international students are NOT eligible. Auto-considered upon Common App / ApplyTexas submission, but practical deadlines apply: Nov 1 preferred, Dec 1 final.
Renewal terms
Renewable for four years contingent on program participation and academic standing.
Notes
Administered by Texas Exes alumni association. UT Austin's only published full-ride merit program. Replaces the historical standalone Forty Acres application — students are now considered automatically through the UT application, but the November 1 / December 1 dates are firm.
Application required at texasexes.academicworks.com by February 15. Open to admitted UT Austin first-year students (in-state and out-of-state). Most named scholarships and chapter scholarships are awarded automatically based on the Entering Freshman application; some have additional criteria.
Notes
Texas Exes awards roughly $4 million per year to 650+ students across 300+ scholarships. The application is THE secondary action UT applicants should take if they want any meaningful merit consideration beyond Forty Acres.
Variable; mostly need-based with some merit component for in-state applicants
UT Austin Office of Scholarships & Financial Aid (OSFA) general scholarships
ApplicationRenewable
View requirements+
Eligibility
Requires completion of the Scholarship Interest Form in MyStatus by January 15. Most awards are need-aware. Includes partnerships with the Terry Foundation and Finis Welch Foundation that offer full cost-of-attendance awards for students with demonstrated financial need.
UT Austin applies a federal/state COA cap with a loan-first reduction ordering. Outside scholarships first fill unmet need; once total aid hits cost of attendance or financial need, UT reduces loans before any other aid type. Outside scholarship displacement is documented on the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid policy page.
UT publishes the policy directly: federal and state regulations do not allow a student's aid to exceed cost of attendance, or in some cases financial need. When outside scholarships push the package over the cap, UT reduces loans first, then other aid types if necessary. Students must report scholarships received directly. Late-arriving outside scholarships can trigger displacement adjustments even after disbursement — UT recommends sending checks before the 10-day-before-semester window. A small carve-out exists: an aid package containing only Pell, UT departmental or athletic scholarships, outside scholarships, and laptop/textbook credits can exceed COA.
Named awards that don’t always surface on the main financial aid page. Each one has its own eligibility rules.
AmountFull cost of attendance for students with demonstrated financial needEligibilityThrough partnership with UT Austin — need-based with merit component. Indicate interest through the Scholarship Interest Form in MyStatus.
One of UT's most generous partner-foundation awards. Requires completion of the Scholarship Interest Form by January 15.
AmountFull cost of attendance for students with demonstrated financial needEligibilityPartner foundation working with UT Austin OSFA. Indicate interest via the Scholarship Interest Form.
AmountFoundation-administered scholarship distributed through UT AustinEligibilityAwards announced alongside other foundation scholarships during the spring notification cycle.
Does UT Austin have automatic merit scholarships for out-of-state students?
No. UT Austin does not publish a stat-banded automatic merit ladder. The two genuine merit pathways are the Forty Acres Scholars Program (full ride, ~15 awards/year, considered automatically based on the UT application but tied to a Nov 1/Dec 1 deadline) and the Texas Exes Entering Freshman scholarships ($500-$20,000, separate Feb 15 application).
How do I apply to the Forty Acres Scholars Program?
You don't apply separately. Forty Acres now considers applicants automatically based on the UT Austin application via Common App or ApplyTexas. To be in the selection pool, submit the UT application by the preferred deadline of November 1 (final December 1). Open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents, in-state or out-of-state, NOT transfer or international.
What's the Scholarship Interest Form?
A form in MyStatus, available after you submit your UT application, that signals you'd like to be considered for institutional scholarships and partner-foundation awards (Terry, Finis Welch, Haraldson). Due January 15. Skipping it removes you from the OSFA awarding pool — UT does not auto-include students who haven't completed the form.
Will an outside scholarship reduce my UT aid?
It can, when total aid pushes past cost of attendance or financial need. UT's published rule: 'Federal and state requirements do not allow a student's financial aid to exceed the Cost of Attendance (COA) or in some cases, financial need. ... In most cases, loans will be reduced before any other type of aid.' Below the cap, outside scholarships fill unmet need without displacing grant/scholarship aid.
When are scholarship decisions announced?
OSFA awards: February-April. Texas Exes scholarships including Forty Acres: spring notification cycle. Partner-foundation awards (Terry, Finis Welch, Haraldson): announced from the foundations directly through the awarded school or department.
How UT Austin compares across our verified dataset
42 of 150 verified schools in our dataset use loan-first displacement.
UT Austin is in a recognizable cluster (42 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.
133 of 150 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
UT Austin is one of them. The cohort minority (17 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 UT Austin’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
