Announcement: New Merit Award!
November 15, 2024—We are excited to announce that we have added a new merit scholarship to our robust merit aid offerings. The transformational Helen Izzi Schilling ’54 and Francis Schilling Scholars Program for STEM applicants (over 40 academic programs) will increase individual merit awards by as much as $20,000 annually! Learn more about the Schilling Award and our other Top Scholarships for Big Thinkers!
Merit Scholarships
Merit Scholarships are four-year awards*, renewable each semester as long as the recipient maintains continuous, full-time, undergraduate enrollment (12 credits per semester) and a minimum GPA of 2.8. None of our merit scholarships requires a separate application.
All first-year applicants for fall whose applications are complete by December 1 will be given priority consideration for the full range of URI scholarship awards, including our Presidential Scholarships, University Scholarships, and our Top Scholarships (including the new Schilling Scholars Award and our full-ride Ryan Scholars and Verrecchia Business Scholars awards). Applicants who complete their applications after December 1 will be considered for scholarships as availability permits.
*Students enrolled in the six-year Doctorate of Pharmacy program retain their scholarships for six years.
University and Presidential Merit Scholarships
Overview
Four-year renewable scholarships.
- Annual award range: $3,000-$17,000
- Total renewable value: $12,000-$68,000
Eligibility
- Eligibility is based on academic performance in high school, including GPA* and course selection. Applicants with a minimum GPA of 3.2 will be considered for merit scholarships.
- Standardized test scores are not required and are not considered as part of the scholarship review process.
- No separate application is required for scholarship consideration. Please note that meeting the GPA requirement for scholarships does not guarantee that applicants will receive a scholarship.
- We highly recommend that students pursue a challenging curriculum throughout high school to enhance their opportunities for merit scholarships. Letters of recommendation and involvement/leadership in school and community, as well as special academic achievements (such as earning the “Seal of Biliteracy”**) are also considered in the scholarship review process.
- Transfer applicants can learn more about their scholarship opportunities on our transfer admission page.
* We recalculate GPA’s to a 4-point scale using academic courses from grades 9-11, giving extra weight to honors, AP, IB, and dual enrollment courses.
**The Seal of Biliteracy celebrates students who have multilingual competence. To earn the Seal of Biliteracy, students must demonstrate proficiency in at least two languages, including English. This recognition will appear on the high school transcript.
