Wichita State University · Kansas
Wichita State runs a transparent automatic merit grid keyed to GPA and ACT for both Kansas residents and out-of-state students, layered with University Academic awards and an Honors College scholarship.
The short answer
Wichita State is worth checking if your student has strong grades or scores. We found 17 published awards, and 16 are based on those numbers.
These amounts and requirements come from the school’s own published pages. Open an award to see who qualifies and how to keep it.
Official WSU snapshot Freshmen Merit Kansas Residents table lists ACT 26-27/SAT 1230-1290 and GPA 3.5-3.74 as $4,000 per year ($16,000 four-year total).
Official WSU Freshmen University Academic Scholarships table is GPA-only/no test score required and lists Kansas residents with GPA 3.5-3.89 at $1,500 per year ($6,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot Freshmen Merit Kansas Residents table lists ACT 30 or above/SAT 1360 or above and GPA 3.9 or above as $6,000 per year ($24,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot Freshmen Merit Kansas Residents table lists ACT 26-27/SAT 1230-1290 and GPA 3.9 or above as $5,500 per year ($22,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot includes the out-of-state Freshmen Merit amounts table; ACT 21-23/SAT 1060-1150 and GPA 3.0-3.24 is $1,500 per year ($6,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot includes the out-of-state Freshmen Merit amounts table; ACT 30+/SAT 1360+ and GPA 3.5-3.74 is $3,000 per year ($12,000 four-year total).
Official WSU Freshmen University Academic Scholarships table is GPA-only/no test score required and lists Kansas residents with GPA 3.9+ at $2,000 per year ($8,000 four-year total).
Official WSU Freshmen University Academic Scholarships table is GPA-only/no test score required and lists out-of-state students with GPA 3.5-3.89 at $2,500 per year ($10,000 four-year total).
Official WSU Freshmen University Academic Scholarships table is GPA-only/no test score required and lists out-of-state students with GPA 3.9+ at $3,000 per year ($12,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot includes the out-of-state Freshmen Merit amounts table; ACT 30+/SAT 1360+ and GPA 3.75-3.89 is $3,500 per year ($14,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot includes the out-of-state Freshmen Merit amounts table; ACT 26-27/SAT 1230-1290 and GPA 3.9+ is $3,500 per year ($14,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot includes the out-of-state Freshmen Merit amounts table; ACT 28-29/SAT 1300-1350 and GPA 3.9+ is $3,500 per year ($14,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot includes the out-of-state Freshmen Merit amounts table; ACT 30+/SAT 1360+ and GPA 3.9+ is $4,000 per year ($16,000 four-year total), with automatic consideration by priority admission deadline stated above the chart.
Official WSU Freshmen University Academic Scholarships table is GPA-only/no test score required and lists Kansas residents with GPA 3.0-3.49 at $1,000 per year ($4,000 four-year total).
Official WSU Freshmen University Academic Scholarships table is GPA-only/no test score required and lists out-of-state students with GPA 3.0-3.49 at $1,500 per year ($6,000 four-year total).
Official WSU snapshot Freshmen Merit Kansas Residents table lists ACT 21-23/SAT 1060-1150 and GPA 3.0-3.24 as $2,500 per year ($10,000 four-year total).
Official WSU Honors College Merit Scholarship snapshot says incoming freshmen and transfers admitted to WSU and accepted into Cohen Honors College are eligible; award covers up to $1,000 over two years ($500/year) and only tuition/student fees.
These are the rules we would flag for your family. Each comes from Wichita State's published information.
Institutional aid at Wichita State cannot push the package past $29,970. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.
In-state and out-of-state applicants who can read their award straight off the GPA/ACT grid, and honors candidates seeking the Honors College scholarship.
Published yearly cost: Approximately $29,970 for 2026-2027. Source
Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at Wichita State, what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.
| Family income | Average net price paid |
|---|---|
| $0–$30,000 | $9,734 |
| $30,001–$48,000 | $9,696 |
| $48,001–$75,000 | $13,564 |
| $75,001–$110,000 | $16,893 |
| $110,001+ | $19,184 |
| All income levels (average) | $13,194 |
That works out to roughly a 39% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $21,780 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).
Wichita State 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.
Outside scholarships only trigger an aid adjustment if total aid would exceed the cost of attendance (or the student's aid eligibility cap); below that ceiling, awards are not displaced.
Verified policy language (2026-07-02): Federal and state regulations require the OFA to adjust or cancel your federal and/or state aid if additional resources or other financial assistance cause your awards to exceed the Cost of Attendance or financial need criteria, even if your aid has already disbursed. These resources may include, but are not limited to: tuition rate waivers/reductions; graduate assistantships; outside scholarships; and third-party payments, such as employers or vocational rehabilitation. Separately, the school's own award-stacking rules: The Honors College Merit Scholarship may be combined with the Freshmen Merit Scholarship or the Transfer Merit Scholarship if the student qualifies for both. (per https://www.wichita.edu/administration/financial_aid/scholarships/merit/Honors_merit.php)
Honors College Merit Scholarship priority dates: November 1 for incoming freshmen; February 1 for transfer students.
Scholarships will not pay without official graduation transcripts and official ACT/SAT test scores on file at Wichita State by July 1.
Wichita State 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.
Every claim is checked against Wichita State’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.
