Renewal Criteria for Admissions Merit Scholarships

Merit Scholarship Renewal Criteria (Updated for 2025-2026 Aid Year)

Freshman awards may be received for a maximum of 8 consecutive fall and spring semesters. Associate Degree Scholarships may be received for no more than 4 consecutive fall and spring semesters.  The number of consecutive renewable semesters for a Transfer Scholarship may vary depending on the recipient’s number incoming approved credits.  Students should reference the original Admissions offer communication for further details.  Students must also continue to follow Satisfactory Academic Progress procedures to remain eligible.  

1. Recipients must enroll full-time (at least 12 credits) for every consecutive fall and spring semester.
2. Recipients must earn a minimum of 24 units during the academic year.  FSU’s academic year begins with summer and ends with spring. *** To complete an undergrad degree in four years, a student needs to earn at least 30 units per academic year. *
3. Earned units are defined by FSU’s academic policies to include courses with passing grades (A, B, C, D, P, AP, CE, CL, IB, PT, and all FSU approved transfer credits). Excluded are failed, incomplete, audited, dropped, or withdrawn courses.   For repeated courses, FSU includes the units earned on the FSU transcript/record as of the date of evaluation.
4.  Recipients must maintain the cumulative FSU GPAs and other requirements listed above.

*Spring admits are only required to earn 12 units in the first academic year for which they attend.

Renewal Evaluation

The FSU Financial Aid Office reviews renewal conditions twice per year after grades are finalized.  Reviews typically begin in January and June based on the academic record at that time. If a student fails to meet any of the renewal conditions above, the award will be canceled unless the situation falls into the automatic probation criteria outlined below.

The Financial Aid Office also reserves the right to waive cancellation or probation based on unique circumstances.

Students are eligible for an automatic one-time only merit scholarship GPA probation without an appeal, if the criteria below are met.

Merit Scholarship GPA – Automatic One-Time Only Probation Criteria

At the end of the fall term, FSU will grant automatic spring probation to first semester fall freshman who violated their fall GPA requirements.

Merit Scholarship GPA – One-Time Probation Stipulations

If an award is placed on spring GPA probation, the recipient of that award must meet the advertised GPA requirement by the end of that spring semester and all the remaining fall and spring semesters.  Failing to do so will result in the permanent loss of the scholarship for all future semesters.

Merit Scholarship Cancellation Appeals

If an Admissions Merit Scholarship is canceled for any reason, a student may appeal one time only if documented extenuating circumstances exist (ex. death in the immediate family, major/unexpected medical obstacles, etc.).  A student may also appeal if the GPA and earned unit requirements are met due to a grade change that occurred after the renewal evaluation.  Appeals (including academic plan and supporting documentation) should be received by the FSU Financial Aid Office within 15 business days of the date on the original cancellation notice. Cancellation notices will come in the form of an email sent to the FSU student email account.  Navigate may also be utilized as an additional cancellation communication tool.

To appeal, a student can send an email from the FSU student email account (with Merit Scholarship Appeal as the subject) to the Scholarship Appeals Committee at fsufinaid@frostburg.edu requesting a scholarship appeal form.  The student should include with the appeal, a description of the extenuating circumstance that prevented the criteria from being met and attach all supporting documentation.  Submission of an academic plan as an electronic document on the FSU Financial Aid Office forms list is also required. (www.frostburg.edu > FSU Financial Aid Forms > “Other Forms” > “Academic Plan Worksheet”) If a student cannot complete the electronically submittable version, an approved hard copy can be submitted.  Students must contact the Financial Aid Office for assistance.  

All appeal decisions are final.