USA Scholarships
Undergraduate Scholarship Guides
Undergraduate Scholarships
Guides for funded bachelor's degree programmes for international students. Each guide covers eligibility, documents, benefits, and the full application process so you know exactly what to do.
Eastern Michigan Presidential Scholarship 2027 - Full Ride
The Eastern Michigan Presidential Scholarship is the most prestigious award Eastern Michigan University gives an incoming first-year student. It covers full tuition plus room and board for four years, which EMU values at roughly $100,000, and every Presidential Scholar joins The Honors College. Applications for the class entering Fall 2027 close on 15 December 2026, and EMU says no exceptions will be made. You qualify on a 3.85 high school GPA with no test score, or on a 3.5 to 3.84 GPA paired with a 25 composite ACT or a 1200 SAT. A campus visit during the 2026 calendar year is part of the application, and a virtual honors session counts.
SMART Scholarship 2027 - Full Tuition, $30k-$46k
The SMART Scholarship is the Department of War Scholarship-for-Service Program for STEM students in the USA. It pays full tuition with no monetary cap, an annual stipend of $30,000 to $46,000 depending on degree level, a health insurance allowance up to $2,500 a year and a miscellaneous allowance up to $1,000 a year, then places you in a civilian job at the sponsoring facility that picked you. Every funded year carries one year of service in return. The cycle closing at 5 p.m. EST on 4 December 2026 funds study from Fall 2027, and it is open to citizens of the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Miami University Presidential Fellows Scholarship 2027
The Presidential Fellows Scholarship is Miami University's top merit award, and it is a genuine full ride: tuition, mandatory fees, housing and food for four years, plus a one-time academic enrichment fund of up to $5,000. Miami publishes the cohort size as fifteen students a year, all of them inside the Honors College, though the most recent incoming class came in at 22. There is no separate scholarship form. You indicate your interest on the Miami admission application, and your complete file has to be in by the firm 1 December 2026 deadline for Fall 2027 entry. One thing changed this cycle: self-reported ACT or SAT scores are now required for Presidential Fellows consideration, even though Miami stays test optional for everyone else. International applicants are eligible, and the Class of 2030 cohort includes a student from Mongolia.
Undergraduate International Merit Scholarship 2027
The Undergraduate International Merit Scholarship is the University of Memphis merit award for newly admitted international students on an F-1 or J-1 visa who are starting a bachelor's degree on campus. It is an admissions-based award, so the UofM admission application is the scholarship application and there is no separate form. The Scholarship Office sets 1 December as the priority date for scholarship consideration, and advises applying before 1 November of the year before you enrol. The university does not publish a dollar figure for this award, so the amount is confirmed with your admission decision. Dual citizens, permanent residents, continuing students and anyone already holding an assistantship or other UofM funding are not eligible.
Simmons Distinguished Scholar Award 2027
The Simmons Distinguished Scholar Award is the largest merit award Simmons University offers its incoming first-year class, and the only one that asks for a separate application. It covers full tuition, mandatory fees other than health insurance, and housing and meals for four years, and it replaces any other merit scholarship Simmons has already offered you. Simmons publishes no dollar figure for the award, but measured against its own published 2026-2027 rates the package is worth about $68,600 a year for a non-nursing resident student. You apply by sending a 300 to 500 word essay on your leadership style alongside your admission application by 1 December 2026, for entry in Fall 2027. First-year applicants entering in the fall are eligible, international students included, and transfer, Dix Scholar and spring applicants are not.
Boston University Presidential Scholarship 2027
The Boston University Presidential Scholarship is BU's headline merit award for incoming first-year students, given by the Board of Admissions to applicants with exceptional academic records who also lead in their schools and communities. It pays half tuition and renews for up to four years of undergraduate study. There is no scholarship form, no extra essay and no interview round: the one thing you have to do is get your complete admission application in by 1 December 2026 for Fall 2027 entry, a full month before BU's regular application date of 5 January. US citizens, permanent residents and international students are all eligible, which matters because BU's need-based aid is closed to international students.
UofL Kentucky & Southern Indiana Scholarship 2027
The University of Louisville runs a separate scholarship ladder for first-time freshmen entering in Fall 2027 who live in Kentucky or the seven Southern Indiana reciprocity counties. Trustees Scholarships pay $2,500 to $8,000 a year automatically on admission, the GSA, GSP, GSE, Gatton Academy, Craft Academy and Rogers Scholars awards pay $5,000 to $10,000, and National Merit finalists and semifinalists get full in-state tuition. Above those sit four awards that need a separate application by 1 December 2026: the Henry Vogt Scholarship at $16,000 a year to roughly 150 scholars, Trustees Competitive top-ups of $1,000 to $5,000, the Grawemeyer Scholarship at $22,000 a year for in-state students, and the Martin Luther King and McConnell Scholarships, which both pay full in-state tuition plus around $10,000 more. In-state tuition and fees are $13,614 for 2026-27.
UofL Out-of-State Scholarship 2027 - $5,000-$30,000
The University of Louisville runs a tiered set of admissions scholarships for first-time freshmen entering in Fall 2027 who live outside Kentucky and the seven Southern Indiana reciprocity counties. Where you live decides which ladder you land on: the Border Benefit Award drops out-of-state tuition to the Kentucky in-state rate, worth roughly $16,000 a year and rising to about $21,000 with academic top-ups; the Regional Scholars Program pays $12,000 to $16,000; and the National Scholars Program pays $5,000 to $15,000. National Merit finalists and semifinalists get $20,000, and ten Grawemeyer Competitive Scholarships of $30,000 a year go to out-of-state students who apply by 1 December 2026. Every award except the Grawemeyer is automatic on admission, with no scholarship form to fill in.
Richmond Scholars 2027 - Full Tuition, Housing & Food
The Richmond Scholars Program is the University of Richmond's most prestigious merit award, given to about 25 incoming students each year and worth full tuition plus on-campus housing and food, renewable for up to eight consecutive semesters. Scholars also get a one-time enrichment grant of up to $5,500, priority course registration, guaranteed on-campus housing and a faculty mentor. There is no separate scholarship application: every first-year admission application on file by 1 December 2026 is considered automatically, whichever plan you apply under. Finalists hear through the Spider Portal by 1 February 2027, interview with a faculty committee over Zoom in mid-February, and final selections are made by 1 March 2027.
Education Matters Scholarship 2026 - $5,000 Unigo Award
The Education Matters Scholarship is Unigo's $5,000 award for a 250-word answer to one question: what would you say to someone who thinks education does not matter, or that college is a waste of time and money? It is the largest of the scholarships Unigo runs under its own name, and the application asks for no transcript, no GPA figure, no recommendation letters and no financial paperwork. Anyone aged 14 or older who is a legal US resident of the 50 states or the District of Columbia can enter, as long as they already attend an accredited college, university or trade school or will enrol no later than the fall of 2031. The current cycle opened on 30 November 2025 and closes on 30 November 2026 at 11:59pm Pacific Time. A panel picks one winner on or about 28 February 2027, and the $5,000 goes to the winner's school as a check rather than to the student in cash.
Editing Services Scholarship 2026 - $1,000 Essay Award
The Editing Services Scholarship 2026 is a $1,000 award from editing.services, the writing and editing marketplace run by ServiceScape Incorporated. One winner is chosen on the quality of a 300-word essay answering a single question: how does writing impact today's world? There is no transcript, no GPA floor, no recommendation letter and no fee. You need to be at least 18 and attending, or about to attend, an accredited college, university or trade school in 2026. Entries opened on 1 December 2025 and close on 30 November 2026 UTC, with the winner notified by email in December 2026 and the $1,000 mailed as a check within four weeks.
University of Detroit Mercy Scholarships 2027
University of Detroit Mercy Scholarships are awarded from your admission file, so applying for admission puts you in the running for every university award automatically. Detroit Mercy does not publish freshman merit tiers, but the figures it does publish are concrete: transfer grants of $6,000 to $14,000 a year by GPA, a $2,000 Catholic Education grant, a $1,000 Visit Grant, and international awards up to $10,000 a year. Above those sit four routes to full tuition, the Titan Edge for Michigan students, the Jesuit Founders and Phi Theta Kappa scholarships for transfers, and the MPLCC award. The date that decides how much is in play is 1 December 2026, the Scholarship Priority deadline for Fall 2027 entry.