State Scholarship Information

LIFE (Legislative Incentives for Future Excellence) Scholarship Program

There is no application form for the LIFE Scholarship. The South Carolina colleges and universities will review the final high school transcripts of students to determine who will receive the scholarship, based on final GPAs, final class rank, and SAT/ACT scores. Students must be residents of SC to receive a SC scholarship.

Four Year Colleges

Students must meet two of the following three criteria:

Score at least 1100 (critical reading and math combined) on the SAT or at least a 24 composite score on the ACT
Graduate with at least a 3.0 GPA on the SC Uniform Grading Scale
Graduate in the top 30% of the class

Students must attend an eligible South Carolina public or private college. The amount of the scholarship at four-year colleges will cover the cost of tuition, not to exceed $4,700.00, plus a $300.00 book allowance. Upperclassmen who are in approved math or science majors may receive $7,500 per year. Scholarship is limited to eight consecutive terms for the first bachelor’s degree.

Two Year and Technical Colleges

Students must meet the following criteria

Graduate with at least a 3.0 GPA on the SC Uniform Grading Scale

Students must attend an eligible South Carolina public or private college. The amount of the scholarship at two-year colleges will cover the cost of tuition plus a $300.00 book allowance. Scholarship is limited to four consecutive terms for the first associate’s degree.

Palmetto Fellows Scholarship Program

Students must meet the following initial criteria:

Critical reading and math combined score of 1200 or higher on the SAT or a 27 or higher composite score on the ACT
GPA of at least 3.5 at the end of the junior year
Ranking in the top 6% at the end of the sophomore, or junior year, or senior year

Critical reading and math combined score of 1400 or higher on the SAT or a 32 or higher composite score on the ACT
GPA of at least 4.0 on the SC Scale at the end of the sophomore, junior, or senior year

Students must be eligible to attend a four-year OR a two-year public or private college in South Carolina. The amount of the scholarship is a maximum of $6,700.00 for freshmen. Upperclassmen may receive $7,500 per year, or if they are in approved math or science majors, they may receive $10,000 per year. Scholarship is limited to eight consecutive terms for the first bachelor’s degree.
There is an application for Palmetto Fellows. Ask your counselor for instructions on how to apply during your senior year IGP meeting.

Hope Scholarship

The SC Hope Scholarship is for students who have been accepted to a SC four-year college and do not meet the criteria for the LIFE or the Palmetto Scholarship.

Students must meet the following criteria:

Graduate with at least a 3.0 GPA on the SC Uniform Grading Scale

The HOPE is a one-year scholarship for up to $2,800 plus a $300 book allowance for the first year of college only. Those students who earn a 3.0 GPA during their first year may be eligible for the LIFE scholarship beginning their second year of college.

There is no application for the HOPE scholarship.

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