University of Kentucky: merit scholarships by ACT score
University of Kentucky awards automatic merit aid from a published grid crossing ACT score with GPA. Awards start at an ACT of 25 and reach $16,000 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.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — an ACT 29 with a 3.60 GPA
Bluegrass Scholarship
$13,000 / year
About $52,000 over four years, if it renews.
What the next points are worth
1 more point (a 30) moves you to Bluegrass Scholarship — $16,000 a year. That is $3,000 more a year, or $12,000 over four years.
The question isn't whether a point is worth having. It's whether they can move it — which starts with knowing exactly which questions they're missing, 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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Can you get merit aid at Kentucky without an ACT score?
Yes. A score is not required. Every award has a test-optional route, but it asks for a higher GPA — so a score is worth real money to anyone whose GPA sits below the test-optional line.
Read the two columns in the grid below as a trade. The same award is reachable either way — with a score at a lower GPA, or with no score at a higher one. A score is worth real money to a student whose GPA sits under the test-optional line, and worth little to one comfortably above it.
“All eligible students who apply by the Early Action deadline of December 1, 2026*, regardless of applying with or without an ACT/SAT test score, will be considered for academic scholarships.”
The published Kentucky merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from University of Kentucky’s own pages for Fall 2027 entry. Nothing here is estimated: where the school states a benefit rather than a figure, that is what the table says.
Out-of-state (non-residents)
Each band also lists a test-optional route at a higher GPA. Students may receive only one award.
$16,000
Bluegrass Scholarship
ACT 30–36 · 3.50
Without a score: GPA 3.80
$13,000
Bluegrass Scholarship
ACT 25–36 · 3.50
Without a score: GPA 3.60
$10,000
Bluegrass Scholarship
ACT 25–36 · 3.00
Without a score: GPA 3.50
$6,500
Bluegrass Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegrass Scholarship | ACT 30–36 · 3.50 | GPA 3.80 | $16,000 |
| Bluegrass Scholarship | ACT 25–36 · 3.50 | GPA 3.60 | $13,000 |
| Bluegrass Scholarship | ACT 25–36 · 3.00 | GPA 3.50 | $10,000 |
| Bluegrass Scholarship | — | GPA 3.00 | $6,500 |
Competitive awards — not automatic
Meeting these makes you eligible to be reviewed, not to receive the award, so they are kept out of the calculator above.
- Presidential — ACT 31+ with 3.50 & 31 ACT, or GPA 4.00 with no score: Full out-of-state tuition & mandatory fees
- Otis A. Singletary — ACT 33+ with 3.80 & 33 ACT, or GPA 4.00 with no score: Full tuition & fees, plus housing & dining stipend
Source: Incoming Freshmen Scholarships · verified 2026-10-19
In-state (Kentucky residents)
Each band also lists a test-optional route at a higher GPA. Students may receive only one award.
$6,500
James F. Hardymon Scholarship
ACT 28–36 · 3.30
Without a score: GPA 3.75
$3,500
James F. Hardymon Scholarship
ACT 26–36 · 3.30
Without a score: GPA 3.50
$2,500
James F. Hardymon Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.25
$1,500
James F. Hardymon Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| James F. Hardymon Scholarship | ACT 28–36 · 3.30 | GPA 3.75 | $6,500 |
| James F. Hardymon Scholarship | ACT 26–36 · 3.30 | GPA 3.50 | $3,500 |
| James F. Hardymon Scholarship | — | GPA 3.25 | $2,500 |
| James F. Hardymon Scholarship | — | GPA 3.00 | $1,500 |
Competitive awards — not automatic
Meeting these makes you eligible to be reviewed, not to receive the award, so they are kept out of the calculator above.
- Presidential — ACT 31+ with 3.50 & 31 ACT, or GPA 4.00 with no score: Full in-state tuition & mandatory fees
- Otis A. Singletary — ACT 33+ with 3.80 & 33 ACT, or GPA 4.00 with no score: Full tuition & fees, plus housing & dining stipend
Source: Incoming Freshmen Scholarships · verified 2026-10-19
Does Kentucky superscore for scholarships?
No. UK uses a single sitting's composite. A superscore that crosses a band does not qualify.
“Combined test scores (superscore) are not considered.”
This matters more than it sounds. A student whose superscore crosses a band but whose best single sitting does not will be paid on the lower band. Look up your best single sitting in the grid above, then find what is costing you points on one test.
Comparing schools? See which colleges superscore for scholarships — 66 of 501 commit to it, 52 say they do not, and the rest never say.
Kentucky scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Application and all documents | December 1, 2026 |
| Accept scholarship offers by | May 1, 2027 |
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 University of Kentucky’s own published pages, linked below with the date we last confirmed them. We do not estimate a missing band or interpolate a value.
- UK states that funds run out: “In previous years, funds have been exhausted before the December 1* deadline.” These awards are automatic by criteria but not guaranteed by date — applying early matters more here than at most schools.
- Students may receive only one of the awards listed.
- Presidential and Singletary are competitive: meeting the criteria makes you eligible to be reviewed, not to receive the award. They are shown below the grid and are excluded from the calculator.
- GPA figures are unweighted.
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 University of Kentucky.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at Kentucky?
Automatic merit aid at University of Kentucky starts at an ACT composite of 25, alongside the published GPA minimum, and reaches $16,000 a year at the top of the 2 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 Kentucky test-optional?
UK is test-optional for admission, and publishes a parallel test-optional route for scholarships too. For merit aid the answer is different: a score is not required. Every award has a test-optional route, but it asks for a higher GPA — so a score is worth real money to anyone whose GPA sits below the test-optional line. 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 Kentucky?
On Kentucky's published grid for Fall 2027 entry, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Out-of-state (non-residents) — Bluegrass Scholarship at $16,000 a year, about $64,000 over four years if it renews; In-state (Kentucky residents) — James F. Hardymon Scholarship at $6,500 a year, about $26,000 over four years if it renews.
How much is one more ACT point worth at Kentucky?
The most valuable single point on Kentucky's published grid is 24 to 25, at a 3.5 GPA: it moves the award by $6,500 a year, or $26,000 across a four-year degree on the Out-of-state (non-residents) 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 in-state or out-of-state change merit aid at Kentucky?
Yes. Kentucky publishes separate grids: In-state (Kentucky residents) run $1,500 to $6,500 a year, and Out-of-state (non-residents) run $6,500 to $16,000 — a difference of $9,500 a year at the top. Check which grid applies to you before planning around a figure.
Does Kentucky superscore the ACT for scholarships?
No. UK uses a single sitting's composite. A superscore that crosses a band does not qualify. Combined test scores (superscore) are not considered.
When are Kentucky scholarship deadlines?
Application and all documents: December 1, 2026. Accept scholarship offers by: May 1, 2027. 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 Kentucky scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from University of Kentucky's own published pages and last verified on 2026-10-19. 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 Kentucky. 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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