Virginia Commonwealth University: merit scholarships by GPA
Virginia Commonwealth University awards automatic merit aid from a published grid keyed to GPA — the ACT is not used. Awards start at a 3.0 GPA and reach $15,000 a year. Because the bands are steps rather than a slope, a hundredth of a GPA point is worth nothing inside a band and the whole step at the edge of one.
Enter a GPA below to see which band it actually lands in, what that band pays, and what the next band needs.
Read this first
This grid is for out-of-state and international students only — Virginia residents have no published ladder, and their Provost and Deans' awards are competitive, worded "up to", and cover in-state costs only. Residency is determined at the time of admission. The award requires a fall start as a full-time first-year student, with the application and transcript received by November 1. Each GPA row is printed as a minimum and is read here as a floor; whether the GPA is weighted is not stated. VCU publishes no renewal GPA for the out-of-state award.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — a 3.60 GPA
Out-of-State Scholarship
$12,000 / year
About $48,000 over four years, if it renews.
VCU awards this on GPA alone, so an ACT score does not change it. A higher score can still matter for admission, for honours programmes, and at other schools on the list — but not for this award.
The ACT doesn't move the money here — but it still decides admission, honours eligibility, and what they is worth at the other schools on the list, where most awards are score-keyed.
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The published VCU merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from Virginia Commonwealth 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.
Out-of-state and international students
Automatic with no separate application, for full-time first-year students starting in the fall. Amounts are annual.
$15,000
Out-of-State Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 4.00
$14,000
Out-of-State Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.75
$12,000
Out-of-State Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.50
$11,000
Out-of-State Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.25
$10,000
Out-of-State Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Out-of-State Scholarship | — | GPA 4.00 | $15,000 |
| Out-of-State Scholarship | — | GPA 3.75 | $14,000 |
| Out-of-State Scholarship | — | GPA 3.50 | $12,000 |
| Out-of-State Scholarship | — | GPA 3.25 | $11,000 |
| Out-of-State Scholarship | — | GPA 3.00 | $10,000 |
Source: Out-of-state scholarships · verified 2026-10-25
Does VCU superscore for scholarships?
Not stated, and no score is read for the published grid.
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 VCU’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.
VCU scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Scholarship consideration — application and official transcript received | November 1 |
| Fall Regular Decision | January 15 |
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 Virginia Commonwealth 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.
- Out-of-state scholarshipsverified 2026-10-25
- First-year scholarshipsverified 2026-10-25
- First-year requirementsverified 2026-10-25
- First-year deadlinesverified 2026-10-25
- The published ladder is for out-of-state and international students only.
- Virginia residents have no published grid; their awards are competitive and worded "up to".
- Five rungs, from $10,000 a year at a 3.00 to $15,000 at a 4.00.
- The 3.50-to-3.75 step is worth $2,000 a year, twice any other step.
- Consideration is automatic with no separate scholarship application.
- November 1 is the scholarship deadline, six weeks before Regular Decision on January 15.
- No score is read for the money; VCU states that applicants are considered even without one.
- The Honors College guaranteed-admission programmes do require a score — a 3.5 with a 29.
- Residency is determined at the time of admission.
- Fall start and full-time enrolment are required.
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 Virginia Commonwealth University.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at VCU?
Virginia Commonwealth University publishes a merit aid grid keyed to ACT score and GPA. See the tables on this page for the current bands.
Is VCU test-optional?
Optional for admission and for scholarships alike. The exception is the Honors College guaranteed-admission programmes, which ask for a 3.5 with a 29. For merit aid the answer is different: the out-of-state grid reads the GPA alone. 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 VCU?
On VCU's published grid for 2027-28 entry, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Out-of-State Scholarship at $12,000 a year, about $48,000 over four years if it renews.
Does VCU superscore the ACT for scholarships?
Not stated, and no score is read for the published grid.
When are VCU scholarship deadlines?
Scholarship consideration — application and official transcript received: November 1. Fall Regular Decision: January 15. 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 VCU scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from Virginia Commonwealth University's own published pages and last verified on 2026-10-25. 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
VCU awards on GPA — but the ACT still decides what you're worth elsewhere.
Most schools in this comparison are score-keyed even though VCU is not, so the same test still moves the money everywhere else on the list.
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