Jacksonville State University: merit scholarships by ACT score
Jacksonville State University awards automatic merit aid from a published grid crossing ACT score with GPA. Awards start at an ACT of 20 and reach $10,500 a year. Because the bands are steps rather than a slope, one point is worth nothing inside a band and the whole step at the edge of one.
Enter a score and a GPA below to see which band it actually lands in, what that band pays, and exactly how many points the next one needs.
Read this first
Jax State guarantees the ACT cannot hurt you: 'Test scores will not have the ability to lower your scholarship amount, only improve it.' Two things to know anyway. The score grid publishes only ONE row for a 20-25 ACT (a 2.00-2.49 GPA), so above a 2.49 a score in that range adds nothing. And the renewal GPA is not published anywhere — Jax State defers it to the individual scholarship contract, while publishing the 24-hours-a-year requirement.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — an ACT 29 with a 3.60 GPA
Gamecock Excellence
$10,500 a year ($42,000 over four years) / year
About $42,000 over four years, if it renews.
There is no higher band to reach at this GPA — more points would not change the award here. They may still matter for admission, for honours programmes, or at other schools on the list.
Knowing where a score sits is the easy part. Moving it starts with knowing exactly which questions they're being missed, and why.
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Want to know what one more point would change? The Merit Plan prices the next point at every school.
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This page is one school. We have read the published grids at 501, and the email sends the ten that pay you most — five public, five private — with what each one awards. No account.
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The published Jax State merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from Jacksonville State University’s own pages for 2027-28 entry. Nothing here is estimated: where the school states a benefit rather than a figure, that is what the table says.
Merit scholarships with a test score
Layered on top of the GPA grid, never under it — Jax State evaluates both and pays the better. Out-of-state recipients of ANY merit award also pay their remaining tuition at the in-state rate.
$10,500 a year ($42,000 over four years)
Gamecock Prestige
ACT 31–36 · 3.00 - 4.00+
$5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years)
Gamecock Prestige
ACT 31–36 · 2.00 - 2.99
$10,500 a year ($42,000 over four years)
Gamecock Excellence
ACT 29–30 · 3.50 - 4.00
$10,000 a year ($40,000 over four years)
Gamecock Excellence
ACT 29–30 · 3.25 - 3.49
$9,000 a year ($36,000 over four years)
Gamecock Excellence
ACT 29–30 · 3.00 - 3.24
$4,000 a year ($16,000 over four years)
Gamecock Excellence
ACT 29–30 · 2.00 - 2.99
$9,000 a year ($36,000 over four years)
Gamecock Tradition
ACT 26–28 · 3.75 - 4.00
$8,000 a year ($32,000 over four years)
Gamecock Tradition
ACT 26–28 · 3.50 - 3.74
$7,000 a year ($28,000 over four years)
Gamecock Tradition
ACT 26–28 · 3.25 - 3.49
$5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years)
Gamecock Tradition
ACT 26–28 · 3.00 - 3.24
$3,000 a year ($12,000 over four years)
Gamecock Tradition
ACT 26–28 · 2.00 - 2.99
$2,000 a year ($8,000 over four years)
Gamecock Advantage
ACT 20–25 · 2.00 - 2.49
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Gamecock Prestige | ACT 31–36 · 3.00 - 4.00+ | $10,500 a year ($42,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Prestige | ACT 31–36 · 2.00 - 2.99 | $5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Excellence | ACT 29–30 · 3.50 - 4.00 | $10,500 a year ($42,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Excellence | ACT 29–30 · 3.25 - 3.49 | $10,000 a year ($40,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Excellence | ACT 29–30 · 3.00 - 3.24 | $9,000 a year ($36,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Excellence | ACT 29–30 · 2.00 - 2.99 | $4,000 a year ($16,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Tradition | ACT 26–28 · 3.75 - 4.00 | $9,000 a year ($36,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Tradition | ACT 26–28 · 3.50 - 3.74 | $8,000 a year ($32,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Tradition | ACT 26–28 · 3.25 - 3.49 | $7,000 a year ($28,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Tradition | ACT 26–28 · 3.00 - 3.24 | $5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Tradition | ACT 26–28 · 2.00 - 2.99 | $3,000 a year ($12,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Advantage | ACT 20–25 · 2.00 - 2.49 | $2,000 a year ($8,000 over four years) |
Source: 2027-2028 First-Time Freshman Merit-Based Scholarships · verified 2026-10-21
Merit scholarships with no test score
Jax State publishes a full GPA ladder reaching down to a 2.00, so a student who never tests still has a stated award. This is the floor the score grid improves on.
$8,000 a year ($32,000 over four years)
Gamecock Achievement
No score needed · GPA 4.00
$6,000 a year ($24,000 over four years)
Gamecock Achievement
No score needed · GPA 3.75
$5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years)
Gamecock Success
No score needed · GPA 3.50
$4,000 a year ($16,000 over four years)
Gamecock Success
No score needed · GPA 3.00
$3,000 a year ($12,000 over four years)
Gamecock Opportunity
No score needed · GPA 2.75
$2,000 a year ($8,000 over four years)
Gamecock Opportunity
No score needed · GPA 2.50
$1,000 a year ($4,000 over four years)
Gamecock Opportunity
No score needed · GPA 2.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gamecock Achievement | — | GPA 4.00 | $8,000 a year ($32,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Achievement | — | GPA 3.75 | $6,000 a year ($24,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Success | — | GPA 3.50 | $5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Success | — | GPA 3.00 | $4,000 a year ($16,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Opportunity | — | GPA 2.75 | $3,000 a year ($12,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Opportunity | — | GPA 2.50 | $2,000 a year ($8,000 over four years) |
| Gamecock Opportunity | — | GPA 2.00 | $1,000 a year ($4,000 over four years) |
Source: 2027-2028 First-Time Freshman Merit-Based Scholarships · verified 2026-10-21
International freshmen
A single flat award for every admitted international freshman, with no score or GPA band attached.
$5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years)
International Merit Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 0.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Merit Scholarship | — | GPA 0.00 | $5,000 a year ($20,000 over four years) |
Source: 2027-2028 First-Time Freshman Merit-Based Scholarships · verified 2026-10-21
Does Jax State superscore for scholarships?
Not stated. Jax State's merit page refers only to a 'composite test score (ACT/SAT)' and never uses the word, so no position is recorded.
With nothing published, plan for the stricter reading: look up your best single sitting in the grid above, work out your superscore as well, and ask Jax State’s financial aid office which one they read before you count on the higher band.
Comparing schools? See which colleges superscore for scholarships — 66 of 501 commit to it, 52 say they do not, and the rest never say.
Jax State scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Scores received for a scholarship upgrade (fall admits) | May 1 |
| Scores received for a scholarship upgrade (spring admits) | December 1 |
| Competitive and Honors scholarship applications due | February 1 |
Scores take roughly two to four weeks to arrive, and official reports sent to schools can take longer, so the last useful test date is several weeks before the printed deadline. Check which test dates still make it.
Where these numbers came from
Every figure on this page was read from Jacksonville State University’s own published pages, linked below with the date we last confirmed them. We do not estimate a missing band or interpolate a value.
- 2027-2028 First-Time Freshman Merit-Based Scholarshipsverified 2026-10-21
- Freshman admissions — test-optional policyverified 2026-10-21
- Out-of-state students receiving any merit award or grant pay their remaining tuition at the in-state rate. For a non-resident this is worth considerably more than the award itself.
- At a 3.00-3.24 GPA the score ladder runs $4,000 with no test, $5,000 at a 26, $9,000 at a 29 and $10,500 at a 31 — $26,000 over four years for reaching 31.
- Students who do not qualify for any merit award may still receive the Gamecock Grant at $1,000 a year, though it may not apply to students receiving athletic aid.
- Merit scholarships do not stack with the Leadership or Honors awards, but do stack with competitive and talent-based ones.
- Spring starters receive seven semesters rather than eight, and unused semesters can carry into a Jax State graduate degree if the student enrols within a year of graduating.
- The award is set on the highest cumulative GPA on the transcript at the point of admission.
- Fall and spring only — no summer awards. First-year students are required to live on campus.
- Jax State is silent on the Enhanced ACT.
Check before you rely on it. Grids change by entry year and schools update them without notice. This page is a reproduction with a date on it, not a guarantee, and it is not financial aid advice. ClutchACT is not affiliated with Jacksonville State University.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at Jax State?
Automatic merit aid at Jacksonville State University starts at an ACT composite of 20, alongside the published GPA minimum, and reaches $10,500 a year at the top of the 3 grids it publishes. The bands are steps rather than a slope, so the only score that matters is the next threshold above where you are now.
Is Jax State test-optional?
Test-optional. Admission runs on the high school GPA, and Jax State evaluates scores only where they help. For merit aid the answer is different: considered and strictly upside — a score can raise the award and is guaranteed not to lower it. Scores received by May 1 for a fall start are evaluated for an increase. Being admitted without a score and qualifying for money without a score are two separate questions.
How much is a 30 on the ACT worth at Jax State?
On Jax State's published grid for 2027-28 entry, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Merit scholarships with a test score — Gamecock Excellence at $10,500 a year, about $42,000 over four years if it renews; Merit scholarships with no test score — Gamecock Success at $5,000 a year, about $20,000 over four years if it renews; International freshmen — International Merit Scholarship at $5,000 a year, about $20,000 over four years if it renews.
How much is one more ACT point worth at Jax State?
The most valuable single point on Jax State's published grid is 28 to 29, at a 3.0 GPA: it moves the award by $4,000 a year, or $16,000 across a four-year degree on the Merit scholarships with a test score grid. The same point is worth less at other GPAs, and most points move nothing at all — the grid steps rather than slopes, which is why the only score worth aiming at is the next threshold.
Does Jax State superscore the ACT for scholarships?
Not stated. Jax State's merit page refers only to a 'composite test score (ACT/SAT)' and never uses the word, so no position is recorded.
When are Jax State scholarship deadlines?
Scores received for a scholarship upgrade (fall admits): May 1. Scores received for a scholarship upgrade (spring admits): December 1. Competitive and Honors scholarship applications due: February 1. The application and the official score report are both due by that date, and ACT scores take roughly two to four weeks to arrive — so the last useful test date is several weeks earlier than the deadline suggests.
Is this Jax State scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from Jacksonville State University's own published pages and last verified on 2026-10-21. The sources are linked at the bottom of the page with that date. Grids change by entry year, so check the source before relying on a figure for a decision.
Other schools to check
What to do next
You know what a score is worth at Jax State. The question is whether you can move it.
A grid tells you the target. It does not tell you which questions are costing the points between here and there. That takes about three minutes to find out.
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