The majority of merit-based scholarships are awarded to students during their recruitment period prior to enrolling. These awards are contingent on the student enrolling full-time and may not be transferred to any other institution.

Requirements to Maintain the Scholarship

Scholarships are renewed annually, provided the student:

1. Remains enrolled on a full-time basis and in good standing with the University.
2. Maintains the appropriate cumulative grade point average (either 3.0 GPA, 2.75 GPA, or 2.5 GPA depending on the level of the scholarship).

See below for more-detailed explanations.

Enrollment Status
Students who drop below full-time status will have their scholarship cancelled unless they attain a special exemption from the Scholarship Committee, at which time the scholarship would be pro-rated.

Students who temporarily withdraw or take a leave of absence from the University need to make prior arrangements with the Scholarship Committee to have the scholarship re-instated upon their return. Students who transfer to another institution and then transfer back to Mount St. Mary's will not have their scholarships re-instated. They may, however, be eligible to receive a Transfer Scholarship upon their re-entry.

Failure to Maintain GPA
Cumulative GPA's for all academic scholarship recipients are reviewed at the conclusion of the sophmore and junior years. For those whose cumulative grade point average is below the minimum requirement, their scholarship will be reduced. The amount of the reduction depends on how far below the minimum requirement the student is and can range anywhere from 10% to 50% of the scholarship. Students who wish to appeal a loss of scholarship money based on unusual circumstances (health/medical issues; extenuating family problems; etc.) must do so in writing to the Chair of the Scholarship Committee.

Re-Instating the Original Scholarship Amount
Students who have had their scholarships reduced for failure to maintain the proper cumulative grade point average may have their original award amount re-instated by either:

1. Raising their cumulative grade point average above the minimum required for the award (this increase will be done automatically at the end of the semester).
2. Achieving the minimum grade point average in each of two successive semesters (these students need to appeal in writing to the Chair of the Scholarship Committee).

These increases will take affect for the subsequent semesters and are not retroactive.