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VCU scholarships and merit aid

Two prices: the posted one, and yours.

Posted price$44,368per year · 2025-26 · ResidentNon-resident $69,108
Yours?depends on the rules below

The short answer

VCU awards automatic merit on admission. VCU does not publish a GPA or test chart, so you cannot self-calculate the dollars.

Where does your student land?

Verified Jul 2026
4 school sources to explore

Published rules, with the school sources close at hand. Confirm the details before you count on an award.

The award collection

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.

Where does your student land?

  1. Presidential Scholarship (Virginia resident)Up to $16,000/year tuition and fees ($8,000 per semester) + room and board (Honors College residence room + 250 Block + $225 Dining Dollars meal plan)Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Presidential Scholarship (Virginia resident)

    Up to $16,000/year tuition and fees ($8,000 per semester) + room and board (Honors College residence room + 250 Block + $225 Dining Dollars meal plan)

    Variable or qualified amountNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Presidential Scholarship (Virginia resident)

    Who qualifies

    Auto-considered for all first-year applicants who apply by the November 1 priority deadline. Selection based on academic merit, with leadership, community service, and artistic talent (when applicable) also considered. Merit scholarships cover in-state costs only. National Merit Finalists who designate VCU as first-choice by May 31 are eligible for a VCU Presidential Scholarship.

    How to keep it

    Renewable for up to three consecutive additional years (4 total) with at least 28 credit hours full-time over fall and spring semesters per year and a cumulative GPA of 3.3 or better.

    Worth knowing

    Estimated 4-year total value is approximately $114,356. The room-and-board component is keyed to the Honors College residence allowance — non-Honors students may receive a reduced room allowance.

  2. Provost Scholarship (Virginia resident)Up to $16,000/year tuition and fees ($8,000 per semester); estimated 4-year total value $64,000Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Provost Scholarship (Virginia resident)

    Up to $16,000/year tuition and fees ($8,000 per semester); estimated 4-year total value $64,000

    Variable or qualified amountNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Provost Scholarship (Virginia resident)

    Who qualifies

    Auto-considered for all first-year applicants who apply by the November 1 priority deadline. Merit-based; covers in-state costs only. No separate application.

    How to keep it

    Renewable for up to three consecutive additional years (4 total) with at least 28 credit hours full-time over fall and spring per year and a cumulative GPA of 3.3 or better.

    Worth knowing

    The second-tier in-state tuition-and-fees award. Does not include room and board like Presidential does.

  3. Out-of-State Scholarship — 3.3+ GPA TierAt least $12,000 per yearAutomaticRenewable
    Published awardAcademic thresholds

    Out-of-State Scholarship — 3.3+ GPA Tier

    At least $12,000 per year

    Published award termsAll published eligibility conditions still apply. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    GPA
    Minimum 3.3 high school GPA
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Out-of-State Scholarship — 3.3+ GPA Tier

    Who qualifies

    Non-Virginia residents (out-of-state or international). Apply by January 15 (encouraged earlier). No separate scholarship application — auto-considered through the admission application. Note: 2025 amounts published; 2026 amounts publish in October.

    How to keep it

    Four-year award renewable with cumulative 3.3 GPA and 28 credit hours full-time per year (fall+spring).

    Worth knowing

    Designed to offset VCU's out-of-state tuition supplement. Stackable with VCU departmental awards.

  4. Out-of-State Scholarship — 3.0-3.29 GPA TierAt least $10,000 per yearAutomaticRenewable
    Published awardAcademic thresholds

    Out-of-State Scholarship — 3.0-3.29 GPA Tier

    At least $10,000 per year

    Published award termsAll published eligibility conditions still apply. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    GPA
    Minimum 3.0 high school GPA
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Out-of-State Scholarship — 3.0-3.29 GPA Tier

    Who qualifies

    Non-Virginia residents (out-of-state or international). Apply by January 15. Auto-considered through admission application.

    How to keep it

    Four-year award renewable with cumulative 3.3 GPA and 28 credit hours full-time per year. Note: 3.0+ GPA is the entry threshold but 3.3+ is the renewal floor — students entering at 3.0-3.29 must lift their college GPA to 3.3 to renew.

    Worth knowing

    Floor tier for OOS automatic merit. Recipients enter at a lower stat band but face the same 3.3 renewal as the higher tier.

Lights up against VCU's published cutoffs. Not an award offer; confirm with the financial aid office.

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The fine print

Renewal rulePresidential Scholarship (Virginia resident): renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out

Renewable for up to three consecutive additional years (4 total) with at least 28 credit hours full-time over fall and spring semesters per year and a cumulative GPA of 3.3 or better. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

What makes VCU different

Richmond-based Virginia public with two parallel scholarship tracks: in-state Presidential and Provost awards (up to $16,000/year covering in-state tuition and fees, with Presidential adding room+board for an estimated $114k 4-year value) and a separate non-resident scholarship at $10,000-$12,000/year keyed to high school GPA.

Merit tiers42 based on grades or scores
Research checkedJul 2026By our research team

More than one award path

Separate the two paths.

Some awards use published academic thresholds. Others have different selection criteria. A score chart does not describe every award at this school.

  1. Match the published criteria

    Use all requirements together, including residency and the entering class.

  2. Check the application dates

    Confirm the current admission and scholarship deadlines directly with the school.

  3. Know what happens next year

    Check renewal, credit requirements and how other aid affects the award.

The fine print / Three questions to carry forward

Before you count on it.

Does it apply to us? Confirm the entering year, residency and every eligibility condition.

Can we keep it? Check renewal GPA, credits and how long the award lasts.

Can we combine it? Ask how outside scholarships and other school awards change the offer.

Take VCU's decision sheet

A printable research summary, source links and room for your questions.

See what could change an award

Straight from the aid office

What VCU's aid office says

Per the Student Financial Management Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, August 2026. How we verify

Who handles merit-based scholarships

Does the Student Financial Management Center handle merit-based scholarships like the ones from Admissions?

The SFMC does not handle merit-based aid such as scholarships offered by VCU Admissions; questions should be directed to the Admissions Scholarship Coordinator.

“The SFMC doesn't handle merit-based aid, such as the scholarships offered by VCU Admissions.”
Combining merit and departmental scholarships

Can merit scholarships from Admissions be combined with departmental or honors scholarships?

Scholarships offered through VCU Admissions can typically be combined with awards from departments such as Humanities & Sciences or Engineering.

“typically, anything offered through VCU Admissions can be combined with awards through departments such as Humanities & Sciences, Engineering, etc.”
Cap on combined scholarships

Is there a ceiling on how much scholarship money can add up?

The only required cap on combined scholarships is the student's total Cost of Attendance (Budget).

“The only "cap" we're required to impose is a student's total Cost of Attendance, also known as their Budget.”
Meaning of Cost of Attendance

What is the Cost of Attendance/Budget figure used for?

The Cost of Attendance is not a bill or what a student will pay, but a generalized estimate of billable and non-billable items used for other purposes.

“This amount is not a bill, nor is it what a student will pay to attend VCU. It's a generalized estimate of both billable and non-billable items we use for other purposes.”

What families often miss

  1. November 1 is the cliff for VCU's top university-level scholarships (Presidential, Provost, National Merit pathway). Applications received after November 1 are not eligible for these awards even if the student would have qualified on stats. The general admission deadline is January 15, but waiting until then forfeits Presidential/Provost consideration entirely.

  2. Presidential and Provost are alternative awards on the same in-state merit ladder — Presidential is the higher award (adds room+board on top of the $16k/year tuition+fees). Students get one or the other, not both. Plan around Provost's $64k total value as a conservative baseline for any Virginia resident applying by Nov 1, then upgrade if Presidential lands.

  3. The $10,000 OOS tier opens at 3.0 high school GPA, but renewal across all four years requires a cumulative 3.3 college GPA plus 28 credit hours full-time per year. A student admitted at 3.1 high school GPA can lose the $40,000 four-year value mid-college by failing to push their college GPA above the 3.3 floor.

  4. The NMF-to-Presidential pathway requires two coordinated actions: apply to VCU by November 1, AND separately notify the National Merit Scholarship Corporation by May 31 that VCU is the finalist's first-choice institution. Missing the NMSC deadline forfeits the pathway even if VCU admission and the November 1 deadline are met.

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

Strong Virginia residents with November 1 application timing — Presidential Scholarship is materially close to a full ride for in-state Honors students; out-of-state students with 3.3+ GPA get an automatic $12,000 award that softens the OOS supplemental tuition. November 1 deadline is non-negotiable for the top awards.

Cost of attendance$44,368–$69,108 for 2025-26Each bar is the full published cost for that scenario, sized against the highest figure so totals compare at a glance.
Out-of-state, on-campus$69,108
In-state, on-campus$44,368
  • Tuition & fees
  • Housing & food
  • Books
  • Personal
  • Travel
  • Loan fees

Undergraduate living on campus. Transportation differs by residency per VCU COA chart.

VCU cost-of-attendance source

Cost and graduation facts

Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at VCU, what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.

Average annual net price by family income at VCU, academic year 2021-22 — in-state, Title-IV aid recipients only
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$17,512
$30,001–$48,000$17,777
$48,001–$75,000$20,925
$75,001–$110,000$24,691
$110,001+$32,739
All income levels (average)$23,433

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Published tuition & fees (in-state), AY 2022-23
$16,945
Published tuition & fees (out-of-state), AY 2022-23
$40,109
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$23,433

That works out to roughly a 40% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $38,954 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).

VCU 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
63%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
85%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$21,500 (~$228/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$58,128
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
35%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
41%
See other scholarships and cost examples

Other VCU scholarships worth checking

These awards can be harder to find. Each one has its own rules.

AmountSame value as the in-state Presidential ScholarshipEligibilityNational Merit Finalists who apply to VCU by November 1 AND notify the National Merit Scholarship Corporation by May 31 that VCU is their first-choice institution.

Source

AmountLimited number of awards; amounts not publicly disclosed in a single tableEligibilityTransfer applicants from the Virginia Community College System with a minimum of 45 semester credit hours earned.

Source

AmountVaries by school and departmentEligibilityAwarded directly by VCU schools and departments to incoming first-year, transfer, and current students. Each school manages its own pool and timeline.

Source

VCU merit aid FAQ

  • How much merit aid does VCU give?

    VCU runs two parallel tracks. Virginia residents: Presidential Scholarship up to $16,000/year tuition+fees plus room and board (estimated $114,356 over 4 years) or Provost Scholarship up to $16,000/year tuition+fees only (~$64,000 over 4 years). Out-of-state: $12,000/year at 3.3+ HS GPA or $10,000/year at 3.0-3.29 HS GPA, both renewable for four years. National Merit Finalists who designate VCU as first choice receive the Presidential.

  • Do I need to apply separately for VCU scholarships?

    No. All first-year applicants who submit the Common Application plus an official high school transcript by November 1 are automatically considered for university-level scholarships. Out-of-state students apply by January 15. Scholarship notifications are sent by the beginning of April.

  • Are VCU merit scholarships renewable for four years?

    Yes, with a contract: maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.3 or better and complete at least 28 credit hours full-time over fall and spring semesters each year. The Presidential and Provost scholarships are explicitly four-year awards renewable for three consecutive additional years past the first.

  • Can out-of-state students get VCU merit scholarships?

    Yes. VCU has a dedicated out-of-state scholarship track separate from the in-state Presidential/Provost. Non-resident applicants with at least 3.0 high school GPA receive at least $10,000/year; 3.3+ GPA receives at least $12,000/year. These are four-year renewable awards keyed to the same 3.3 college GPA renewal contract.

  • Does VCU require the FAFSA for merit consideration?

    No, but FAFSA is encouraged. Merit scholarships are awarded based on academic credentials regardless of FAFSA status. The FAFSA opens additional need-based options. Non-U.S. citizens are not required to complete the FAFSA.

See sources and other schools

How VCU compares

  • 665 of 749 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.

    VCU 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.

Sources used on this page

Every claim is checked against VCU’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

Keep exploring VCU merit aid

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