Do I need to apply separately for academic scholarships?

No — academic scholarships are automatically awarded to qualifying students upon admission, and eligibility is noted within your offer of admission. The Augustinian Scholarship is invitation-only and tied to applying Early Action I & II. Talent awards require contacting the department/coach.

Can scholarships stack?

Yes — need-based aid (FAFSA) and talent-based awards (athletics, music, art, theatre) can stack on top of your academic scholarship, up to the total cost of attendance.

What is the 2026-27 cost of attendance?

On-campus financial-aid cost of attendance is $79,300 (tuition $56,630; health fee $628; activity fee $362; technology fee $340; housing $10,830; meal plan $7,510; books $1,600; personal $1,400). Direct (billed) costs are $76,300; off-campus COA is $75,585.

Westmont· Scholarship Stacking

Stacking Outside Scholarships at Westmont

How Westmont treats outside scholarships when they arrive on top of institutional merit aid.

Verified Jun 2026today· COWORK

The verdict

No displacement

At Westmont, an outside scholarship stacks cleanly on top of institutional aid. The strategy follows from that: apply broadly, because every outside dollar lowers the family bill.

westmont.edu publishes the $79,300 cost-of-attendance worksheet the math is run against.

Stacking policy at Westmont

Unusually stacking-friendly: need-based aid (from the FAFSA) and talent-based awards (athletics, music, art, theatre) can stack ON TOP of the academic scholarships. Total aid is still limited to the cost of attendance.

The scholarships page states the academic amounts do not include need-based or talent-based aid, and that 'Need- and talent-based awards can stack on top of academic scholarships.' The COA page notes total financial aid is limited to the cost of attendance.

Source: https://www.westmont.edu/scholarships

Common stacking mistakes

Planning to live off campus to save money
Westmont is residential and expects most students to live on campus; off-campus approval is limited and not guaranteed, and the off-campus COA uses allowances, not actual costs.

Stacking questions families ask

Do I need to apply separately for academic scholarships?: No — academic scholarships are automatically awarded to qualifying students upon admission, and eligibility is noted within your offer of admission. The Augustinian Scholarship is invitation-only and tied to applying Early Action I & II. Talent awards require contacting the department/coach.
Can scholarships stack?: Yes — need-based aid (FAFSA) and talent-based awards (athletics, music, art, theatre) can stack on top of your academic scholarship, up to the total cost of attendance.
What is the 2026-27 cost of attendance?: On-campus financial-aid cost of attendance is $79,300 (tuition $56,630; health fee $628; activity fee $362; technology fee $340; housing $10,830; meal plan $7,510; books $1,600; personal $1,400). Direct (billed) costs are $76,300; off-campus COA is $75,585.

Rules that bite at Westmont

The trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook. Each is derived from Westmont's own published policy, not generic advice.

renewalTransfer Scholarships (President's / Ruth Kerr / Founder's): renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out
President's $20,000 (3.75 college GPA, renew 3.25/3.0 honors); Ruth Kerr $15,000 (3.35 college GPA, renew 3.0); Founder's $12,000 (3.0 college GPA, renew 2.75). A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

Aid-office script (copy & send)

A binding written answer beats a verbal hallway promise. This script is keyed to Westmont's published displacement type. Paste it, fill in your name, and send it before you accept an outside award.

Subject: Outside-scholarship treatment question, fall applicant

Dear Westmont Financial Aid Office,

I'm a fall applicant reviewing how outside scholarships interact with my institutional aid package. I've read the public policy at https://www.westmont.edu/scholarships and the $79,300 cost-of-attendance worksheet.

Can you confirm that a $5,000 private outside scholarship, added after my package is built, stacks on top of institutional merit and need-based aid up to COA, without reducing any institutional grant dollars?

Is there a specific reporting form I need to file when the outside award is confirmed?

A written answer (email is fine) is important because the outside-scholarship awarding bodies want confirmation before disbursing. Thank you for the time.

— [Student name], [Application ID if available]

How Westmont compares across our verified dataset

8 of 272 verified schools in our dataset use no-displacement displacement.
Westmont is in the small minority (8 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.
247 of 272 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Westmont is one of them. The cohort minority (25 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 Westmont’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.