USA Scholarships
Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship 2027
The Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship is the best-funded award the university hands an incoming first-year student, and the one people search for as the Miami University Presidential Scholarship. It pays tuition and mandatory fees for eight fall and spring semesters, covers a room in the Honors Residential College and a Diplomat Standard meal plan, and adds a one-time academic enrichment fund of up to $5,000 that fellows spend on research, study abroad, internships or public service. Miami describes the cohort as fifteen top students in the Honors College each year, and it is worth knowing the Class of 2030 came in at 22. Mechanically the award sits inside admission rather than beside it. You tick your interest in the Honors College and the Presidential Fellows Scholarship on your Miami application, and the whole file, transcript and recommendation included, has to land by 11:59 p.m. on 1 December 2026 for Fall 2027 entry. Miami calls that date firm, not priority, which is a real distinction: the rest of its merit money runs on a 1 December priority date, this one closes. New for fall 2027, you also have to submit self-reported ACT or SAT scores to be considered, a requirement that applies to this scholarship alone while Miami remains test optional for first-year admission and for the Honors College itself. Semi-finalists get an extra application step in December and January, finalists are notified in January, and the interviews happen on campus in February by invitation only.
What is the Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship?
The Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship is the largest award Miami gives an incoming first-year student, and the one most people mean when they search for the Miami University Presidential Scholarship. It pays tuition and mandatory fees for eight fall and spring semesters, puts you in a room in the Honors Residential College, covers a Diplomat Standard meal plan, and adds an academic enrichment fund of up to $5,000 that you draw on across four years for research, study abroad, internships or public service work. Worth saying early, because the two get mixed up constantly: this is Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, a public university that calls itself one of the eight original Public Ivies. It is not the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida.
The mechanics are simpler than the prize suggests, and the date is where people lose it. There is no separate scholarship form. You tick your interest in the Honors College and the Presidential Fellows Scholarship inside the ordinary Miami admission application, and your file has to be complete, transcript and recommendation included, by 11:59 p.m. on 1 December 2026 for Fall 2027 entry. Miami uses two different words on the same page and means them: 1 December is the priority deadline for most of its merit scholarships, and the firm deadline for this one. A transcript that turns up on 2 December still counts for admission and no longer counts for the Presidential Fellows competition. After the deadline, Miami picks semi-finalists and asks them for one extra application step, finalists hear in January, and the interviews happen during an invitation-only on-campus experience in February, with selection finalised in the fortnight after.
One rule changed for this cycle and it catches people who researched the award a year ago. Miami does not require ACT or SAT scores from first-year applicants, and it does not require them for the Honors College either, but from fall 2027 you must submit self-reported scores to be considered for Presidential Fellows. It is the single test-required route into an otherwise test-optional university. Miami has said it will contact applicants who opt in without scores so they can add them through the online application status page before the deadline, so if that is you, watch your inbox rather than assuming the application is finished. On value, Miami describes the coverage instead of pricing it, so here is the arithmetic from its own published 2026-27 estimates: $18,890 tuition and fees plus $17,668 housing and food is $36,558 a year for an Ohio or reciprocal resident, and $42,882 plus $17,668 is $60,550 for a non-resident. Across four years that is roughly $146,000 or roughly $242,000, plus the $5,000 fund. Those four-year figures are steadier than they would be elsewhere, since the Miami Tuition Promise freezes tuition, housing, food and course fees for up to four years, which is also why renewable awards hold their value here.
Two more things shape whether this is worth your autumn. The cohort size is published as fifteen students a year, stated that way on the Presidential Fellows page, the Honors College pages and the scholarships page, but Miami announced 22 Class of 2030 Fellows in July 2026, drawn from 12 states and two countries. Read fifteen as the commitment and 22 as evidence that a strong pool can stretch it. And citizenship is not a gate: Miami lists the Presidential Fellows Program among its scholarships for international students on the same terms, and the current cohort includes a fellow from Mongolia, which is rare for a US full-ride merit award. If you are not selected, the same 1 December application keeps you in line for Miami's automatic merit table, which runs from $4,000 to $22,000 a year on weighted GPA and residency, for the $1,000 to $2,000 Prodesse Scholarship given to top Honors College admits who are not Fellows, and, if you are an Ohio resident, for the Ohio Governor's Scholarship covering full tuition and general fees for one student from each of Ohio's 88 counties. For comparison while you plan, the Boston University Presidential Scholarship 2027 guide covers another award decided inside admission on the same 1 December date, the Richmond Scholars Program 2027 guide covers a full-tuition award with a similar interview round, and the Tulane University Merit Scholarships 2027 guide covers an automatic-consideration merit ladder. The official terms live on Miami's own Presidential Fellows Scholarship page.
Eligibility
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✓Incoming first-year student starting in the fallThe Presidential Fellows Scholarship is decided inside first-year admission to the Oxford campus, and Miami states plainly that it is not available to spring applicants. Transfer students are not considered for it either, though they can still apply to the Honors College by its separate 1 June date. There is no route to the award once you are already enrolled.
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✓Complete application by the firm 1 December 2026 deadlineYour application counts as complete only when every required piece has arrived, which for Miami means the application itself plus your transcript and a recommendation. Miami lists 1 December as a priority deadline for most of its merit scholarships and as a firm deadline for this one. The One Stop page puts a clock on it: 11:59 p.m. on 1 December.
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✓Opt in to the Honors College and Presidential Fellows on the applicationThere is no separate scholarship form to fill in. You indicate your interest in the Honors College and the Presidential Fellows Scholarship when you apply for admission, and that single tick is what puts you in the pool. Miss it and nothing else you send will place you in the competition.
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✓Self-reported ACT or SAT scores, new for fall 2027Miami does not require test scores from first-year applicants, and it does not require them for the Honors College. Presidential Fellows is the one exception from fall 2027 onwards. If you opt in without scores, Miami says it will contact you directly so you can add them through your online application status page before the 1 December deadline, so an oversight is recoverable if you act on the email.
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✓Academic record at the top of the applicant poolMiami publishes no GPA floor, class rank or test-score cutoff for this award, and anyone quoting you one is guessing. For scale, its ordinary merit table starts at a weighted 3.50 GPA and its top band is 4.30 and above, and Presidential Fellows are chosen from the strongest slice of the Honors College admits rather than by any published threshold.
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✓Open to international applicantsMiami lists the Presidential Fellows Program on the One Stop page of scholarships for international students, on the same terms as everyone else, and the Class of 2030 cohort includes a student from Bayankhongor in Mongolia alongside fellows from 12 US states. Citizenship is not a filter here, which is unusual for a full-ride US merit award.
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✓Hold a 3.50 GPA and full-time Oxford enrolment to renew itThe scholarship runs four years and renews annually rather than automatically. You need to keep a 3.50 cumulative grade point average each year and stay enrolled full time on the Oxford campus. Drop below either and the renewal is at risk, which matters more than usual when the award is carrying your housing and food as well as your tuition.
Benefits
- Tuition and mandatory fees Covered for eight fall and spring semesters
- Non-resident surcharge Included in the covered fees, so an out-of-state fellow gets more value
- Housing Up to a traditional double room, with a guaranteed place in the Honors Residential College
- Food Diplomat Standard plan: 16 buffet meals a week, $500 Dining Dollars and five guest meals a semester
- Academic enrichment fund One-time fund of up to $5,000 across the four years, released by committee application
- Estimated value, Ohio resident About $36,558 a year at published 2026-27 rates
- Estimated value, non-resident About $60,550 a year at published 2026-27 rates
- Study abroad One fall or spring semester on Miami-billed programmes, billed tuition, fees, housing and food only
- Cohort programming Presidential Fellows programming, faculty mentorship and the U-Lead Conference
- Open to international students Yes, Miami lists the programme among its international student scholarships
- Winter and summer terms Not covered
- Books, computers and supplies Not covered
- Health insurance, health centre fees and pharmacy charges Not covered
- Study abroad programme fees and orientation fees Not covered
- Parking permits, fines, library fines and MUlaa accounts Not covered
- Weighted GPA 4.30 and above $9,000 a year Ohio or reciprocal, $22,000 non-resident
- Weighted GPA 3.95 to 4.29 $6,000 a year Ohio or reciprocal, $15,000 non-resident
- Weighted GPA 3.75 to 3.94 $5,000 a year Ohio or reciprocal, $14,000 non-resident
- Weighted GPA 3.50 to 3.74 $4,000 a year Ohio or reciprocal, $8,000 non-resident
- Average merit award Ohio $6,865, non-resident $16,729
- International Merit Scholarship Up to 50 per cent of tuition at US-equivalent GPA 3.25 and above or IB 36 and above
- Prodesse Scholarship $1,000 to $2,000 for top Honors College admits who are not Presidential Fellows
- Ohio Governor's Scholarship Full tuition and general fees for a top student from each of Ohio's 88 counties, course fees excluded
- #YouAreWelcomeHere Scholarship Two annual renewable awards for international students, separate application by 1 January
- Merit scholarships for spring entry Presidential Fellows is closed to spring applicants
Document checklist
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✓Miami admission applicationThe standard undergraduate application for the Oxford campus, submitted by 11:59 p.m. on 1 December 2026. The Honors College and Presidential Fellows interest questions are inside it, so answer them at the time rather than trying to add them later.
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✓Official high school transcriptSent by your school. Miami reads weighted GPA on a 4.0 scale from the transcript as provided at the time of application, and it recalculates a weighted GPA itself, adding weight for course difficulty, when your school does not produce one.
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✓Letter of recommendationMiami counts your application as complete only once the transcript and a recommendation are both in, so this is not optional padding. Ask in October, because a recommendation that arrives on 2 December is a recommendation that arrived too late for this award.
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✓Self-reported ACT or SAT scoresRequired for Presidential Fellows consideration from fall 2027. You can enter them on the application or add them through your online application status page before 1 December if Miami reaches out to you about missing scores.
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✓Semi-finalist supplemental materialsInvitation only. After the 1 December deadline, Miami selects semi-finalists and asks them to complete a final Presidential Fellows application step. Watch the email address you used on the application through December and January, since this step is time-limited.
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✓Finalist interview slotFinalists are notified in January and invited to an on-campus finalist experience in February, where the interview with the selection committee takes place. Budget for the trip to Oxford, Ohio in advance, because the invitation window is short.
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✓FAFSA, only if you also want need-based aidNothing about the Presidential Fellows Scholarship requires the FAFSA, since it is a merit award. File it if you want federal or need-based aid as well. Miami gives two different dates for it, 1 February on its deadlines page and 15 February on its cost of attendance page, so confirm the current one with One Stop before you rely on either.
How to apply
Deadline and timeline
FAQ
What is the Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship?
It is Miami University's most selective merit scholarship, awarded through the Honors College to incoming first-year students on the Oxford campus. The award is a full ride: tuition and mandatory fees for eight fall and spring semesters, a room in the Honors Residential College, a Diplomat Standard meal plan, and a one-time academic enrichment fund of up to $5,000. Fellows also get cohort programming and faculty mentorship aimed at national and international fellowship competitions later on. People often search for it as the Miami University Presidential Scholarship, but Presidential Fellows is the name Miami actually uses.
How much is the Miami University Presidential Scholarship worth?
Miami describes what the award covers rather than printing a single figure, so the value depends on your residency. Its published 2026-27 annual cost estimates for the Oxford campus are $18,890 tuition and fees plus $17,668 housing and food for an Ohio or reciprocal resident, a total of $36,558, and $42,882 plus $17,668 for a non-Ohio resident, a total of $60,550. Covering those lines for four years works out at roughly $146,000 for an in-state fellow and roughly $242,000 for an out-of-state one, before the $5,000 enrichment fund. That arithmetic holds up better at Miami than at most universities because its Tuition Promise freezes tuition, housing, food and course fees for up to four years.
When is the Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship 2027 deadline?
11:59 p.m. on 1 December 2026, for students entering in Fall 2027. Miami is careful with its wording here: 1 December is the priority deadline for most of its merit scholarships and the firm deadline for the Presidential Fellows Scholarship. Your application only counts as complete when the transcript and recommendation are in as well, so the real work finishes in November. Semi-finalists are picked after the deadline, finalists are notified in January, and interviews run in February.
Do you need ACT or SAT scores for Miami University scholarships?
Not for most of them. Miami does not require test scores from first-year applicants and its merit table is driven by weighted high school GPA. The Presidential Fellows Scholarship is the exception from fall 2027: applicants have to provide self-reported ACT or SAT scores to be considered. The Honors College itself still does not require them. If you opt in to Presidential Fellows without scores, Miami says it will reach out so you can supply them through your online application status page before 1 December.
Can international students get the Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship?
Yes. Miami lists the Presidential Fellows Program on the One Stop page covering scholarships for international students, with the same 1 December application date and the same 3.5 GPA renewal condition. The Class of 2030 cohort includes a student from Bayankhongor in Mongolia. International applicants who do not win it are automatically considered for the International Merit Scholarship, which pays up to 50 per cent of tuition at a US-equivalent GPA of 3.25 and above or IB 36 and above, and there is also the #YouAreWelcomeHere Scholarship, two renewable awards with a separate application due 1 January.
How many Presidential Fellows does Miami University select each year?
Miami puts the number at fifteen, and repeats it across the Presidential Fellows page, the Honors College pages and its scholarships page. The most recent cohort was bigger: Miami announced in July 2026 that 22 students had been selected as Class of 2030 Presidential Fellows, coming from 12 states and two countries. Treat fifteen as the number Miami publishes and commits to, and the recent cohort as a sign it can go higher in a strong year. If cohort size matters to your planning, ask the Office of Admission directly at the Presidential Fellows address.
What GPA do you need for Miami University merit scholarships?
For the automatic merit awards, a weighted 3.50 on a 4.0 scale gets you onto the table at $4,000 a year for Ohio and reciprocal residents or $8,000 for non-residents, rising through three bands to $9,000 and $22,000 at a weighted 4.30 and above. Miami reads weighted GPA from your transcript as submitted, and recalculates one itself with weight for course difficulty if your school does not provide it. For Presidential Fellows specifically there is no published GPA cutoff at all, because selection happens by committee out of the strongest Honors College admits.
What happens if you do not win the Presidential Fellows Scholarship?
You stay in line for everything else, which is the practical reason to apply by 1 December even if the full ride feels like a long shot. Miami's automatic merit scholarships need no separate application and run from $4,000 to $22,000 a year depending on weighted GPA and residency, renewable for up to four years. Top Honors College admits who are not selected as Fellows can receive the Prodesse Scholarship, worth $1,000 to $2,000. Ohio residents who apply by 1 December are automatically considered for the Ohio Governor's Scholarship, which covers full tuition and general fees for one top student from each of Ohio's 88 counties.
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