Academic Scholarship FAQs

Students may receive only one academic-based scholarship through the Office of Academic Scholarships.

Students may receive only one academic-based scholarship through the Academic Scholarship Program. A higher-level scholarship offer would automatically replace a lower-level award.

Therefore, a competitive academic scholarship offer, such as a Presidential or Singletary Scholarship, would replace a lower value academic award.

Students may, however, receive a William C. Parker Scholarship, as well as, Legacy Tuition funding in addition to an academic-based scholarship.

Yes, students may receive Legacy Tuition funding in addition to an academic-based scholarship, such as the Bluegrass Spirit Scholarship. However, students awarded a tuition scholarship (such as the Singletary or Presidential Scholarship) or granted in-state residency through the undergraduate admission, residency application, or Academic Common Market process are not eligible for the Legacy Tuition Program.

Yes, students may receive a William C. Parker Scholarship in addition to an academic-based scholarship.

Yes, international students may be considered for academic and competitive academic scholarships at the University of Kentucky. International students must meet the minimum academic requirements to be considered, including minimum high school GPA requirements and optional ACT or SAT test scores.

A TOEFL score cannot be substituted for an ACT or SAT score. To find out where ACT or SAT tests are offered in your country, please visit the testing center websites at www.act.org and www.collegeboard.org. The University of Kentucky does not offer testing on site.

International students may also be eligible to apply for the UK William C. Parker Scholarship. More information can be found online at www.uky.edu/financialaid/scholarship-incoming-freshmen.

The terms of the scholarship agreement state that students must enroll at UK beginning in the fall semester following high school graduation. In unique situations, however, students may appeal to have their scholarship offer deferred. For more information, please contact the Office of Academic Scholarships at AcademicScholarships@uky.edu. 

A scholarship deferral decision is independent of an admission deferral. The granting of one does not guarantee the granting of the other. Please contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission with questions regarding admission decisions at 859-257-2000.

No, financial need is not a factor in the academic-based scholarship process. When applying for other scholarships at UK, please check scholarship requirements to see if completion of the FAFSA is required for consideration.

Information regarding the FAFSA and need-based aid at UK can be found at www.uky.edu/FinancialAid. Students must complete a FAFSA to receive a financial aid award notification.

While academic-based scholarships are open to all majors, several departments on campus do offer scholarships specific to certain majors. A link to the various areas can be found online at www.uky.edu/financialaid/college-departmental.

These awards are made independently of the academic-based scholarships and may require additional paperwork with varying deadlines. Departmental scholarships may be received in additional to academic-based scholarships.

There are three main areas to look for funding at UK, one being the Office of Academic Scholarships. In addition, students are encouraged to complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) to be considered for need-based aid through the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships. (All students are encouraged to complete the FAFSA, and students must complete the FAFSA to receive a financial aid offer from UK.)

Departmental scholarships are also offered for some majors at UK. A link to the various areas can be found online at www.uky.edu/financialaid/college-departmental. These awards are made independently of the academic-based scholarships and may require additional paperwork with varying deadlines. Departmental scholarships and need-based aid may be received in additional to academic-based scholarships. 

Students are also encouraged to check ScholarshipUniverse for additional external and internal scholarship opportunities at uky.scholarshipuniverse.com. Students must be admitted to UK and have a linkblue email and password to log in. Each external scholarship opportunity a student sees on SU has gone through an extensive vetting process to ensure the scholarship is offered through a reliable and authentic source.

Unfortunately, we are not able to re-award past scholarship offers. Once a student attends another university following high school graduation, they are considered a transfer student for academic scholarship purposes and are not eligible to receive new freshman scholarship offers.

As academic scholarships are awarded on a yearly basis, in order to apply for transfer scholarships, students must be enrolled full-time in the spring semester at their current institution and plan to transfer to UK in the fall semester. We do not offer spring only scholarships. Information regarding transfer academic scholarships can be found at www.uky.edu/financialaid/scholarship-transfer-students.

On-campus scholarship interviews are only required for those chosen from the Competitive Scholarship applicant pool.

Unfortunately, we are not able to re-award past scholarship offers. Kentucky Governor's Scholar Scholarships are institutionally funded (not awarded through the state) and, therefore, are non-transferable between institutions.

Additionally, once a student attends another university following high school graduation, they are considered a transfer student for academic scholarship purposes and are not eligible to receive new freshman scholarship offers. For information regarding transfer academic scholarships, please visit www.uky.edu/financialaid/scholarship-transfer-students.

Eligibility for academic scholarship consideration is based on the highest ACT composite or SAT total score from one test date. Combined scores, also known as a superscore, from two or more tests will not be considered for scholarship awards.

Test scores and unweighted GPA may be updated through December 1 for competitive and academic scholarship consideration. All updates should be sent directly to the Office of Undergraduate Admission.

Students applying for academic and competitive scholarships must have qualifying ACT or SAT scores on file in the Office of Admission by December 1, therefore December test scores may not be used for academic or competitive scholarship consideration. To verify if a score has been received by UK, please contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission at 859-257-2000.

The approach to scholarship decisions is to use the information that the students provide which benefits the student the most. Students are not penalized or rewarded by applying with or without test scores.

For academic and competitive scholarship consideration, an unweighted GPA on a 4.0 scale is used to determine eligibility for awards. Due to our geographically diverse scholarship applicant pool, only an unweighted GPA will be considered.

Unweighted GPA and test scores may be updated through December 1 for academic and competitive scholarship consideration. Transcripts reflecting six semesters, through the junior year of high school, are accepted. All updates should be sent directly to the Office of Undergraduate Admission.

Students must meet both the minimum ACT/SAT score and unweighted GPA requirement to be considered for that level of scholarship if applying with traditional criteria. Freshman applicants for 2025-26 may choose to apply for academic-based scholarships as test optional, where a higher unweighted high school GPA can be submitted for scholarship consideration without a test score.

Students must meet both the minimum ACT/SAT score and unweighted GPA requirements to be considered for that level of scholarship if applying with traditional criteria. Freshman applicants for 2024-25 may choose to apply for academic-based scholarships as test optional, where a higher unweighted high school GPA can be submitted for scholarship consideration without a test score. There is no flexibility in meeting the minimum requirements.

The University of Kentucky administers a scholarship program for transfer students, which provides academic and competitive awards. Scholarship opportunities for transfer students will be announced online at www.uky.edu/financialaid/scholarship-transfer-students.

Unfortunately, no. All academic-based scholarships are awarded on a yearly basis and are not offered to students who enter the university mid-year. We do not offer spring only scholarships.

Yes, students must be admitted to UK through the Office of Undergraduate Admission to be eligible to receive an academic scholarship offer.

For academic and competitive scholarship consideration, students must be admitted and have all supporting documents on file, including high school transcript, by December 1. Students must provide a high school transcript reflecting a qualifying unweighted GPA if applying test optional, or a high school transcript reflecting a qualifying unweighted GPA as well as qualifying ACT/SAT scores if applying under traditional criteria on file by December 1.

Students with a minimum test score of 31 ACT or 1390 SAT and a minimum unweighted GPA of 3.50 are encouraged to apply for the University of Kentucky's competitive academic scholarships. Test-optional applicants must have a minimum unweighted high school GPA of 4.0. To apply, students must complete the competitive academic scholarship section of the undergraduate admission application by December 1. Students must also have a qualifying test score (optional) and high school transcript with qualifying unweighted GPA on file with the Office of Undergraduate Admission by the December 1 Early Action deadline.

Students that have previously submitted the Undergraduate Admission application without completing the competitive academic scholarship section, may still apply by completing a Lewis Honors College and Competitive Academic Scholarship supplement. This document is only available upon request from the Office of Undergraduate Admission. Please be aware that this document must be on file with the Office of Undergraduate Admission by December 1 for competitive scholarship consideration and should only be completed if the admission application has already been submitted.

Prior to December 1, students that have previously submitted the Undergraduate Admission application without completing the competitive academic scholarship section may still apply by completing a Lewis Honors College and Competitive Academic Scholarship supplement. This document is only available upon request from the Office of Undergraduate Admission.

Please be aware that this document must be on file with the Office of Undergraduate Admission by December 1 for competitive scholarship consideration and should only be completed if the admission application has already been submitted.

No, students must complete and submit the competitive academic scholarship section of the undergraduate admission application by the December 1* Early Action deadline. In addition, students must have a qualifying test score and high school transcript with qualifying unweighted GPA on file with the Office of Undergraduate Admission by December 1*.

*If a deadline falls on a weekend, the application will remain open until 11:59pm (Eastern Time) on the following Monday. 

To verify if a high school transcript has been received by UK, please contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission at 859-257-2000.

No, letters of recommendation are not needed nor considered in the academic scholarship review process. This is to ensure that a scholarship award is not based on the writing ability of another individual.

Scholarship recipients are notified by mail to the address listed on their admission application. Academic scholarship offers are expected to be mailed by March 1. Competitive academic scholarship offers are mailed by March 15.

Academic scholarship offers are made on a rolling basis beginning in late October until funds are exhausted. Competitive academic scholarship offers are mailed by March 1.

Competitive academic scholarship applicant information is reviewed on a rolling basis; therefore, we encourage students to apply as early as possible. Interviews will begin in late January and continue through mid-February. 

Students will be notified by telephone, to the phone number listed on their admission application, if chosen for an on-campus competitive scholarship interview by mid-February.

All students will be notified of their academic scholarship status by March 15. 

Selection of competitive scholarship recipients is highly competitive. The University of Kentucky received over 2,600 competitive scholarship applications for the 2023-24 freshman class and awarded 50 Presidential scholarships and 25 Otis A. Singletary scholarships. The number of competitive interviews and recipients vary each year depending on the applicant pool and available funding. 

Please complete the following steps to accept or decline your scholarship offer on your myUK portal:

Do not use the back arrow button while on the myUK site; please use the tabs to navigate through the screens.

1. If you agree to these terms and conditions, you may accept the Scholarship offer online by logging into your myUK portal at myuk.uky.edu. Your student ID number and temporary passcode were included with your acceptance letter from the UK Office of Admission. The following browsers are recommended for the myUK portal: Chrome and Firefox. If you need assistance logging into your myUK portal, please contact the UK ITS HelpDesk at 859-218-4357.
2. After logging in to the myUK portal please go to Student Services > Financials > Financial Aid > Academic Year.
3. On the Home Page, make certain the Academic Year is correct.
4. Select the ‘View and Accept Awards” tab at the top of the page. Accept the terms and conditions of your scholarship by clicking the ‘I have read and agree to the Terms and Conditions for Scholarships’ box, then click ‘Submit'.
5. To accept the scholarship, click on ‘Review Amount and Accept’ for the scholarship. Be sure to confirm your acceptance by clicking on the ‘Accept’ box that appears.

Students who are eligible to receive additional state, federal, or institutional funding will receive official notification from the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships. The Financial Aid Notification will list all need-based and non-need-based aid a student is eligible to receive at UK. This notification may include such aid as KEES, PELL, loan eligibility, grants, departmental scholarships, and academic-based scholarships. Students must file the FAFSA to receive a financial aid notification.

Students are also encouraged to check ScholarshipUniverse for additional external and internal scholarship opportunities at uky.scholarshipuniverse.com. Students must be admitted to UK and have a linkblue email and password to log in. Each external scholarship opportunity a student sees on SU has gone through an extensive vetting process to ensure the scholarship is offered through a reliable and authentic source.

For questions regarding your Financial Aid Notification, please contact the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships at 859-257-3172. Students may be required by the office to accept their financial aid package via their online myUK portal. 

The Office of Academic Scholarships does administer a scholarship program for currently enrolled UK students. Applications are taken each May from students who meet the cumulative grade point average of 3.50 or better at UK.

Academic and competitive scholarship criteria are evaluated every year to best reflect the academic strengths of each incoming class. It is possible that criteria have changed in the time since your older student/sibling applied for scholarships at UK. Scholarships are awarded as funds are available, so application date is also an important factor in what a student was awarded.

No, we do not re-award academic scholarships that are not accepted by their original recipient. We anticipate this occurrence and award academic scholarships to a larger number of students than we expect to enroll, based on past enrollment data and analysis.

All students are awarded based on their application status, academic performance, leadership credentials, and other assessment criteria established by the university. Scholarship awards are made with respect to a student's standings within UK's scholarship applicant pool and within our financial budgets.

Unfortunately, we are not able to match offers from other institutions. We encourage you to take into consideration the costs (tuition and other expenses) of the different schools when comparing scholarship offers, as a higher scholarship dollar value does not guarantee a lower net cost of attendance. You should also consider which institution's program will more adequately meet your academic objectives and the renewal criteria of all scholarships offered. All the above will help you determine which award package is best for you.

The Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships must calculate a cost of attendance budget for each student. The value listed for tuition on the Financial Aid Notification calculation is only an estimate of tuition charges and is not a bill. The tuition scholarship amount listed is determined by what is expected to be a student's actual tuition charge and mandatory fees.

Additionally, some University of Kentucky classes have additional course or programming charges that are not covered under the tuition and mandatory fees. It is the student's responsibility during registration to be aware of those additional charges that are not covered.

Some University of Kentucky classes have additional course or programming charges that are not covered under the tuition and mandatory fees. It is the student's responsibility during registration to be aware of those additional charges that are not covered and to make timely payments to avoid additional late payment penalties.

The Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships is required to monitor and adjust students’ financial aid awards, including institutional scholarships, to eliminate over awards and/or overpayments in compliance with federal and state regulations and institutional policy. The monetary value of this scholarship may be adjusted if, in combination with any federal, state, or private need-based or non-need-based awards, this scholarship creates an over award. Learn more about the University’s Financial Aid Over-Award Policy. Additionally, the combination of tuition-based scholarships from all sources may not exceed the total cost of tuition. Students who qualify for a tuition-specific scholarship or grant and Family Education Program (FEP) funds shall only be awarded these up to the cost of tuition.

For questions regarding your student cost of attendance budget, please contact the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships at 859-257-3172.

According to University Financial Aid Over-Award Policy a student cannot receive tuition-based scholarships, grants, or waivers from multiple sources that exceed the student’s actual tuition assessment. The terms of payment of the UK Family Education Program (FEP) further clarify University Financial Aid Over-Award Policy as it states that, “If there are other tuition-eligible awards credited for the student, then the FEP discount will apply and the remaining awards will be adjusted (reduced). For this purpose, it must be included in the student’s financial aid package and may result in adjustments of other student financial aid. FEP discounts can only be applied for, even if submitting late, the term for which the discount is requested.”

Students who qualify for a tuition-specific scholarship or grant and FEP funds shall only be awarded these up to the cost of tuition. Other University Financial Aid Over-Award Cost-of-Attendance rules also apply. Controls and procedures have been put in place to ensure compliance with the University Financial Aid Over-Award Policy and terms of payment of UK FEP.

The number of each competitive academic scholarship offered varies each year depending on the qualified applicant pool and available funding.

For four-year renewable academic scholarships, such as the Presidential, Bluegrass Spirit Scholarship, and Provost Scholarships, students are required to maintain full-time status (minimum 12 hours each semester) and achieve a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Singletary Scholarship recipients are required to achieve a 3.40 cumulative GPA. Scholarship eligibility is checked at the end of the spring terms.

Please keep a copy of and review your scholarship terms and conditions form for any specifics regarding renewal requirements.

Scholarship eligibility is checked at the end of each spring term. Any courses taken during the summer intersession will not count toward your cumulative GPA for scholarship purposes until the close of the following spring term. This means that summer grades will be factored into your cumulative GPA at the close of the next spring term.

Scholarship eligibility is checked at the end of each spring term. Any courses taken during the winter intersession will count toward your cumulative GPA and credit hour enrollment requirement for scholarship purposes at the close of the spring term. 

Students receiving renewable academic-based scholarships are granted one semester of scholarship probation. Scholarship funds will not be provided during the probationary semester. A scholarship recipient whose cumulative grade point average falls below 3.0, but not lower than 2.000, at the May grade review, will be placed on scholarship probation for the following term. A scholarship will be reinstated for a student on probation only if the student completes twelve (12) semester hours and earns a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher by the end of the probationary semester. There is no probationary semester for students who drop below full-time status or cumulative GPA drops below 2.0.

Yes, students receiving academic scholarships must be enrolled full-time (minimum 12 hours) at the beginning of each semester. Students who drop a course may be liable for the expenses incurred. Scholarship money credited to the payment of dropped courses may be removed and the student may be billed for any costs incurred.

Students who fail to complete and pass 24 hours per academic year (August-May) will lose the remainder of their scholarship.  A scholarship student that fails to complete nine (9) hours during any fall or spring term will automatically forfeit the remainder of the scholarship with no probationary period allowed.

Renewable academic scholarships are available to students for a total of eight semesters, fall and spring, of undergraduate study. Funds may not be used for graduate school. Students who plan to graduate early (in less than eight semesters), may appeal to receive scholarship funding for a winter or summer session. Please contact the Office of Academic Scholarships at AcademicScholarships@uky.edu to request the appeal form for winter or summer funding.

No, students may not receive two scholarship disbursements in one semester. Students who plan to graduate early (in less than eight semesters), may appeal to receive scholarship funding for a winter or summer session prior to graduation. Please contact the Academic Scholarship Office at AcademicScholarships@uky.edu to request the appeal form for winter or summer funding.

Students participating in a UK approved co-op, study abroad, or internship experience may choose to receive academic scholarship funds as usual during that term or defer academic scholarship funds to a later semester.

Students must enroll in the appropriate UK approved course to maintain continuous enrollment and be eligible to receive funding. Please check with your academic advisor or study abroad advisor for assistance in enrolling in the appropriate course.

Please notify the Office of Academic Scholarships of your intent to complete a semester of experiential education by contacting our office to complete the appropriate paperwork prior to the beginning of your semester away. You may stop by our office in 217 Funkhouser or email us at AcademicScholarships@uky.edu

Renewable academic scholarships are available to students for a total of eight semesters, fall and spring, of undergraduate study. Funds may not be used for graduate school. Students who plan to graduate early (in less than eight semesters), may appeal to receive scholarship funding for a winter or summer session. Please contact the Academic Scholarship Office at AcademicScholarships@uky.edu to request the appeal form for winter or summer funding.

Yes, you may still receive the fourth year of the scholarship since you will be taking undergraduate and graduate level courses at the same time.

Once a student is classified as a graduate or professional student for tuition assessment purposes, they no longer qualify for an undergraduate scholarship.  Exception: for students who enroll in the UK Blue program as a freshman in the Fall 2023 cohort or earlier, through the College of Arts & Sciences and the College of Law, shall be “grandfathered” through their fourth year being 2026-2027 for institutional undergraduate aid, as those students were accepted into the UK Blue Program as an incoming freshman and were informed that they would be eligible to receive undergraduate scholarships during their first year in the combined program. 

No, once a student is classified as a graduate or professional student for tuition assessment purposes, they no longer qualify to receive an undergraduate scholarship. 

No, academic scholarship recipients must be enrolled full-time in a minimum of 12 credit hours at UK to receive academic scholarship funding each semester.