Worcester State University: merit scholarships by GPA
Worcester State University awards automatic merit aid from a published grid keyed to GPA — the ACT is not used. Awards start at a 2.5 GPA and reach $4,000 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
These GPA floors are ELIGIBILITY minimums rather than entitlements — Worcester State says a limited number of merit scholarships are available and that meeting the minimum does not guarantee one. Nursing applicants are capped at the Achievement Scholarship regardless of GPA, and the Massachusetts awards are fall-entry only.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — a 3.60 GPA
Achievement Merit Scholarship
$3,000 annually / year
About $12,000 over four years, if it renews.
Worcester State 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 Worcester State merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from Worcester State University’s own pages for the current cycle. Nothing here is estimated: where the school states a benefit rather than a figure, that is what the table says.
Massachusetts residents
Considered automatically as part of the admissions process. The floors are minimums to be considered rather than guaranteed cutoffs.
$4,000 annually
Tiffany Gates Merit Scholarship
No score needed
$3,000 annually
Achievement Merit Scholarship
No score needed
$2,000 annually
Lancer Merit Scholarship
No score needed
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Tiffany Gates Merit Scholarship | — | $4,000 annually |
| Achievement Merit Scholarship | — | $3,000 annually |
| Lancer Merit Scholarship | — | $2,000 annually |
Source: Merit scholarships · verified 2026-10-24
Non-residents
One award, published as "up to", reaching the same ceiling a resident needs a 4.0 for — from a 2.5.
Up to $4,000 annually
Excellence Out-of-State Scholarship
No score needed
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Excellence Out-of-State Scholarship | — | Up to $4,000 annually |
Source: Merit scholarships · verified 2026-10-24
Does Worcester State superscore for scholarships?
Not stated. The only score threshold on the page is the Tsongas Scholarship's 26 ACT, and Worcester State does not say whether it combines sections across sittings to reach it.
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 Worcester 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.
Worcester State scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Priority deadline for first-year applicants | March 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 Worcester 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.
- Merit scholarshipsverified 2026-10-24
- Catalog — merit scholarships for entering studentsverified 2026-10-24
- Test-optional policyverified 2026-10-24
- A score opens exactly one award here — the Tsongas Scholarship at a 26 ACT. Every other award is explicitly score-free.
- The GPA floors are minimums to be considered, not guaranteed cutoffs, and the awards are limited in number.
- Nursing applicants are capped at the Achievement Scholarship, so a 4.0 in nursing cannot reach the $4,000 Tiffany Gates award.
- A non-resident reaches up to $4,000 from a 2.50 — the same ceiling a Massachusetts resident needs a 4.0 for.
- The out-of-state award is published as "up to", so it is a ceiling.
- The Massachusetts awards are for fall entry only.
- Renewal needs a 3.0 cumulative college GPA across three additional years.
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 Worcester State University.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at Worcester State?
Worcester State University publishes a merit aid grid keyed to ACT score and GPA. See the tables on this page for the current bands.
Is Worcester State test-optional?
Worcester State no longer requires SAT or ACT scores as part of the application. For merit aid the answer is different: worcester State states that test scores are not required for merit scholarship consideration, and none of the GPA awards names one. The single exception is the Tsongas Scholarship, which needs a 26 ACT — so a score here opens one specific award rather than moving a student up a ladder. 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 Worcester State?
On Worcester State's published grid for the current cycle, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Massachusetts residents — Achievement Merit Scholarship at $3,000 a year, about $12,000 over four years if it renews; Non-residents — Excellence Out-of-State Scholarship at $4,000 a year, about $16,000 over four years if it renews.
Does in-state or out-of-state change merit aid at Worcester State?
Yes. Worcester State publishes separate grids: Massachusetts residents run $2,000 to $4,000 a year, and Non-residents run $4,000 to $4,000. Check which grid applies to you before planning around a figure.
Does Worcester State superscore the ACT for scholarships?
Not stated. The only score threshold on the page is the Tsongas Scholarship's 26 ACT, and Worcester State does not say whether it combines sections across sittings to reach it.
When are Worcester State scholarship deadlines?
Priority deadline for first-year applicants: March 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 Worcester State scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from Worcester State University's own published pages and last verified on 2026-10-24. 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
Worcester State awards on GPA — but the ACT still decides what you're worth elsewhere.
Most schools in this comparison are score-keyed even though Worcester State is not, so the same test still moves the money everywhere else on the list.
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