Indiana University Bloomington is a school most families think they understand before they look closely, and then the money rules turn out to be nothing like the big Southern publics everyone compares it to. There is no automatic merit chart here. No ACT cutoff that unlocks a set dollar amount. IU reviews the whole in-state and out-of-state applicant pool and hands out scholarships based on grades, the courses a student actually took, and how they did in AP, IB, and honors work. Test scores play no role in that decision at all.
Admission itself is not the hard part for most students. IU admits roughly 78% of applicants, and the middle half of admitted students land between a 3.73 and a 4.00 GPA, 29 to 33 on the ACT, or 1250 to 1450 on the SAT. Nearly half of the students IU admitted for fall 2025 applied without submitting test scores at all. The real competition is for money, and the entire schedule for that runs through a single date in the fall.
🚨 Easy-to-Miss “Gotchas” at Indiana University Bloomington (Read This First)
November 1 is a scholarship deadline, not just an early action date. IU says it plainly: to be considered for IU academic scholarships, you must submit a complete application for admission by November 1. Apply on November 2, get admitted, and the automatic merit door is already shut for that cycle.
Test scores do not drive the automatic money. IU’s Excellence Scholarships are awarded on GPA, grades in required coursework, and rigor in advanced classes. IU states directly that test scores are not considered. If you have been telling your student to retake the ACT for scholarship dollars, that advice does not apply here.
But do not skip January 15. Some other IU scholarships do require scores. Students who met the November 1 deadline have until January 15 to confirm their preference and self-report new or updated scores. Two different rules living side by side is exactly how families get burned.
There are two doors, and most families only walk through one. The admission application by November 1 gets you the automatic award. The separate IU Scholarships Application inside One.IU, due March 1, is where the departmental, donor, and program money lives. Skipping it costs real dollars.
IU never publishes automatic award amounts. You will not find a chart. The number shows up in your student’s Financial Aid Summary. IU’s scholarship pages say notifications go out by April 1, while the official Dates to Know page says all incoming-student awards are made by April 15, so do not panic on April 2.
Jacobs School of Music applicants are excluded from the automatic merit program entirely. Music money runs through the audition instead. Jacobs students are still eligible for Hutton and Hudson and Holland, as long as the IU application is in by November 1.
There is no out-of-state discount lever. IU Bloomington does not participate in the Midwest Student Exchange Program and has no general nonresident tuition waiver. Non-residents pay the full rate, and merit is the only thing that moves it.
FAQ
Is this college test-optional? Yes, for admission. Indiana University Bloomington is test-optional for admission.
What is the middle 50% ACT/SAT? ACT: 29-33; SAT: 1250-1450.
Average net price? About $16,264/year after aid.
Does this school use waivers/reciprocity?
No broad regional reciprocity path.
💰 Cost of Attendance at Indiana University Bloomington: 2026–2027 Rates
Figures verified against official sources in September 2026.
📅 Planning for 2027–2028? These are the 2026–2027 rates, the newest Indiana University Bloomington has published. Colleges usually release next year's costs in the spring, and we update this page when they do.
Budgeting tip: costs typically rise 2% to 5% a year. For 2027–2028, plan on roughly
$500 to $1,300 more than the in-state total below.$1,100 to $2,900 more than the out-of-state total below.
In-State: billed cost per year
$26,540
Tuition, fees, housing, and meals for two semesters
Tuition & mandatory fees
$12,142
Housing & meals (typical)
$14,398
Total billed cost
$26,540
Out-of-State: billed cost per year
$57,100
Tuition, fees, housing, and meals for two semesters
Tuition & mandatory fees
$42,702
Housing & meals (typical)
$14,398
Total billed cost
$57,100
That is $30,560 more per year than Indiana residents pay, before any waivers or scholarships.
Average federal net price: $16,264 per year.
This is what first-time, full-time students who received grant aid paid after grants and scholarships, for in-state students only, based on the most recent federal data. It counts books and living costs, so it can run higher than the billed total above. Families who got no grants are not in this average, so many middle-income families pay more. New to Net Price & SAI? Read our guide.
Out-of-state families: this average does not include you. Run the college's own net price calculator for a number based on your situation.
What “Flat-Rate Tuition” Actually Means for Your Budget
IU charges one flat tuition price that covers up to 40 credit hours across fall, spring, and both intersessions. Most students need about 15 credits a semester to finish in four years, which means a motivated student can pick up extra credits during the August or winter intersession without paying more tuition. That is a real path to graduating a semester early, and a semester saved is roughly $13,000 in-state or $28,000 out-of-state. Summer classes are billed per credit hour and are not included.
FAQ — Cost of Attendance at Indiana University Bloomington
Why is out-of-state tuition at IU more than three times the in-state rate?
Indiana taxpayers subsidize the in-state rate, and non-residents do not receive that subsidy. In-state tuition and mandatory fees run $12,142 for 2026 to 2027 while non-residents pay $42,702. Housing and food are the same $14,398 for everyone, so the entire gap is tuition. That brings direct costs to $26,540 in-state and $57,100 out-of-state before any aid.
Does IU Bloomington participate in the Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP)?
No. This trips up a lot of Midwest families. Some other IU campuses, including IU Indianapolis, do offer an MSEP award, but the Bloomington campus does not participate and does not offer a general out-of-state tuition waiver. If you are coming from Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, or anywhere else, the only thing that reduces that $42,702 is the National Excellence Scholarship and the competitive programs on this page.
Is the $16,264 average net price a real number for my family?
It is the federal College Scorecard figure, which averages what students actually paid after grants and scholarships across all income levels. It is useful as a sanity check and useless as a personal estimate. A lower-income Indiana family with a 21st Century Scholarship will pay dramatically less. An out-of-state family with no need and no merit will pay close to the full $57,100. Run IU’s Net Price Calculator before you draw any conclusions.
What Indiana state aid can in-state families stack on top of IU money?
Two programs matter most. The 21st Century Scholars program covers tuition and regularly assessed fees for income-eligible students who enroll in seventh or eighth grade and complete the Scholar Success Program. The Frank O’Bannon Grant is Indiana’s main need-based grant. Both require a FAFSA filed by April 15, which is a different deadline from every IU date on this page. Indiana law also now requires every high school senior in the state to file the FAFSA or formally opt out by that same April 15 date.
Why aren’t books and transportation in the direct cost total?
Because IU does not bill you for them. The university invoices tuition, mandatory fees, housing, and meal plans. IU estimates another $4,034 in indirect costs for in-state students and $5,856 for non-residents, covering books, travel, and personal expenses. Those are real dollars leaving your bank account, they just do not show up on the bursar bill. Total cost of attendance is $30,574 in-state and $62,956 out-of-state.
Are housing and meal costs the same for every student?
No. The $14,398 figure is IU’s standard estimate. IU Housing and IU Dining offer several price points, so an Honors Residential Community room or an apartment-style unit can cost more, and a traditional double with a smaller meal plan can cost less. Budget the standard figure and adjust once your student picks a building.
Will the price go up each year?
Plan on it. IU notes that the 2026 to 2027 figures are estimates and that finalized numbers arrive in the summer. Large public universities typically raise tuition, fees, and housing modestly each year. Scholarship amounts, on the other hand, generally stay fixed at the awarded level as long as renewal requirements are met, which means the gap quietly widens by a few hundred dollars every year.
August 1: Applications open. Common App or Apply IU.
November 1: The one that matters. Complete admission application due for all IU academic scholarship consideration.
January 15: Last day to self-report new or updated test scores for the scholarships that do use them.
February 1: Hutton Honors College application due. Also the close of the General Application for several school-level awards.
February 15: Cox Scholarship application due.
March 1: IU Scholarships Application due for everything else, and the date IU wants your FAFSA data in hand for need-based awards.
April 1 to April 15: Awards land in the Financial Aid Summary.
May 1: $100 enrollment deposit due.
Parent rule of thumb: treat November 1 as the real application deadline for IU, full stop. Everything downstream depends on hitting it.
Automatic Merit Scholarships — Indiana University Bloomington
IU calls these OEM Excellence Scholarships, awarded by the Office of Enrollment Management. There is no separate application. Every eligible freshman who applies by November 1 is reviewed automatically. The award is based on high school GPA, grades in the coursework IU requires, and performance in AP, IB, and honors classes. Test scores are not considered. IU does not publish dollar amounts for these awards anywhere.
Find your student's tier
Enter the numbers you have. We'll highlight the automatic award your student would actually get and tuck the rest out of the way. Leave it blank to browse everything.
Residency
Based on published cutoffs for entering freshmen. Always verify with the college before finalizing plans.
One award, not a pile. Colleges apply your student's single best automatic award. Automatic scholarships almost never stack with each other, though some stack with housing, departmental, or outside money. The stacking notes on each card tell you which.
Automatic
Indiana Excellence Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Nov. 1 · 📢 Results: By April 1 ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
A student receives one OEM Excellence Scholarship, but it stacks on top of other IU money: the $1,000 per year National Merit stipend, Hutton Honors College scholarships, Hudson and Holland, Cox, and departmental awards. The Herbert Presidential Scholarship is a match against this award, so the two move together.
💡
Strategic Detail
IU's automatic merit scholarship for in-state freshmen, formerly the Provost's Scholarship. IU does not publish award amounts anywhere. Students see the figure in their Financial Aid Summary. IU's Office of Scholarships pages say recipients are notified by April 1, while the Dates to Know page says all incoming-student scholarships are awarded by April 15, so do not panic on April 2. Jacobs School of Music applicants are not eligible for this award.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Indiana residents with strong academic records and rigorous course loads. IU does not publish specific GPA cutoffs for this award. The entire pool of in-state applicants who apply by Nov. 1 is reviewed holistically.
Automatic
National Excellence Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Nov. 1 · 📢 Results: By April 1 ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
A student receives one OEM Excellence Scholarship, but it stacks with the $1,000 per year National Merit stipend, Hutton Honors College scholarships, Hudson and Holland, and departmental awards. This is the only merit lever IU offers non-residents, since there is no MSEP participation and no general out-of-state waiver.
💡
Strategic Detail
IU's automatic merit scholarship for out-of-state freshmen. IU does not publish award amounts. Students see the figure in their Financial Aid Summary. Notification lands by April 1 per the Office of Scholarships, with all awards finalized by April 15. Jacobs School of Music applicants are not eligible. Test scores play no part in this award.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Out-of-state students with strong academic records and rigorous course loads. IU does not publish specific GPA cutoffs. The full pool of non-resident applicants who apply by Nov. 1 is reviewed holistically based on coursework performance.
Automatic
Global Excellence Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Feb. 1 · 📢 Results: By April 1 ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with Hutton Honors College scholarships and departmental awards. International students are also eligible for the Wells Scholars Program through the Office of International Services nomination route.
💡
Strategic Detail
IU's automatic merit scholarship for international freshmen. Award amounts are not published; students see the figure in their Financial Aid Summary. Jacobs School of Music applicants are not eligible. The February 1 date reflects IU's regular decision deadline for international applicants; applying by November 1 still gives the strongest scholarship consideration.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: International freshmen with strong academic records reviewed holistically by IU's Office of Enrollment Management. There's no published GPA cutoff. The entire eligible pool of international applicants is considered.
Data last verified Jun 5, 2026.* GPA/test bands are estimates based on official selectivity and prior cohort profiles. "Who Actually Wins" insights are pulled from external peer-sourced data where students and parents have reported real-world award results. Because colleges can change funding thresholds and deadlines at any time, always verify these details with the institution before finalizing your application strategy.
Note: A student receives one Excellence Scholarship based on residency. Indiana residents are reviewed for the Indiana Excellence Scholarship, out-of-state students for the National Excellence Scholarship, and international students for the Global Excellence Scholarship. You do not get more than one, but the award does stack with National Merit, Hutton, Hudson and Holland, Cox, and departmental money.
🎯 What Actually Moves the Needle at IU
At most big publics, the lever is the test score. At IU, it is the transcript. IU explicitly weighs rigor and performance in advanced coursework, which means a student who took four AP classes and earned B pluses may be read differently than a student who took two and earned A’s. If your student is a sophomore or junior reading this, the highest-value thing they can do for IU money is take the harder schedule and do well in it. There is no shortcut version of that.
Automatic Merit — FAQs (Indiana University Bloomington)
Does IU use ACT or SAT scores for automatic merit?
No. IU states that Excellence Scholarships are awarded on academic coursework and that test scores are not considered. IU also confirms that every student who applies by November 1 receives the highest scholarship consideration regardless of whether they submit scores.
Then why is there a January 15 test score deadline?
Because some other IU scholarships do require scores to be eligible. Students who met the November 1 deadline have until January 15 to confirm their preference and self-report new or updated results. The automatic Excellence award does not need it. Other programs might. Meet the date and you keep both options open.
How much are these scholarships worth?
IU does not publish award amounts, ranges, or a qualifying chart. This is unusual and frustrating, and it is the single biggest difference between IU and schools like Alabama or Arkansas. Your student sees the actual number in their Financial Aid Summary in the spring.
When will we know?
IU’s Office of Scholarships says recipients are notified by email by April 1. The official Dates to Know page says all incoming-student scholarships are awarded by April 15. Give it until mid-April before you assume anything, and make your enrollment decision off the Financial Aid Summary rather than the notification email.
Is a separate scholarship application required?
Not for these. Apply for admission by November 1 and you are automatically reviewed. You absolutely do need a separate application for nearly everything else at IU, which is covered in the sections below.
Are these renewable?
Yes. Excellence Scholarships are four-year awards with a 3.0 cumulative GPA renewal requirement and full-time enrollment.
Can automatic merit stack with other awards?
Yes, and this is where IU gets more generous than it looks. The Excellence Scholarship stacks with the $1,000 per year National Merit stipend, Hutton Honors College scholarships, Hudson and Holland, Cox, Jacobs music awards, and departmental money. The one exception is the Herbert Presidential Scholarship, which matches the Excellence award rather than adding to it independently.
What if my student is applying to the Jacobs School of Music?
Jacobs applicants are not eligible for Excellence Scholarships. Jacobs administers those funds itself and awards them off the audition instead, combining musical accomplishment with academic record. Jacobs students remain eligible for Hutton and Hudson and Holland if the IU application is in by November 1.
This is where IU gets genuinely interesting. Because the automatic awards are unpublished and modest, the headline money at IU lives in named programs, and two of them cover the full cost of attendance. Wells and Cox both do it, from completely different directions: Wells is a national-caliber merit competition, and Cox is a need-plus-work-ethic program that almost nobody outside Indiana has heard of.
💡 The Cox Scholars Program Deserves Its Own Paragraph
Funded by a $92 million gift, the largest in IU history, the Cox Scholars Program is built so that a scholarship plus an on-campus wage package, combined with any other gift aid, totals IU Bloomington’s official cost of attendance. Indiana residents only, U.S. citizens, demonstrated financial need, a 3.0 GPA, and a willingness to work 10 to 12 hours a week every semester. Six different Cox scholarships exist, differing by who is eligible and what the work assignment is. If you are an Indiana family where the student already holds a part-time job and still keeps their grades up, this is the most valuable thing on this entire page.
Legacy: work in an IU department or office. Open to incoming, current, and transfer students.
Civic: placement in a Bloomington nonprofit or city department.
Engagement: Advocate for Community Engagement role coordinating student service programs.
Exploratory: serve as an IU Peer Coach for exploratory students.
Research: faculty research work, administered alongside the Hutton Honors College.
Access: non-traditional students returning to finish a degree.
One application covers Civic, Engagement, Exploratory, and Legacy. NCAA athletes are not eligible. All new scholars attend Camp Cox, a five-day leadership program at Bradford Woods in late July.
✅ Can You Stack Scholarships at IU?
Aid Type
Stacks with Excellence Merit?
IU Parent Translation
Excellence Scholarship
N/A
One award per student, based on residency. This is the base everything else builds on.
National Merit stipend
Yes
$1,000 a year sits directly on top. Small, but free, and you must list IU as first choice with NMSC to get it.
Herbert Presidential
Matches, not adds
Herbert matches the Excellence award. The two are interdependent, so losing one means losing both.
Wells / Cox
Capped at cost of attendance
Both are built to reach full cost of attendance. Other awards do not add on top, they reduce what Wells or Cox has to cover.
Hutton, Hudson & Holland, departmental
Yes
These are the real gap fillers. This is the money the March 1 application unlocks.
Indiana state aid
Yes
21st Century Scholars and Frank O’Bannon layer in for in-state families. FAFSA by April 15.
⚠ Highly selective merit program that guarantees full cost of attendance at IU Bloomington for four years plus extra academic and study‑abroad support.
👥 ~Around 14 to 18 first-year scholars per year, plus 1 to 2 current IU Bloomington students winners/yr
✚
Stacking & Combining
Other campus awards can be combined with Wells, but the student's total award package cannot exceed IU's official cost of attendance. WSP and Student Financial Assistance staff work together to structure each individual package within that cap.
📄
How to Apply
High schools nominate up to two seniors each through an online portal. Completed nominations, including student essays and letters of recommendation, are due November 2, and incomplete files are cancelled without notice on November 3. If your school does not nominate you, follow the self-nomination instructions on the Wells domestic high school senior page. Apply to IU Bloomington by November 1 regardless. About 40 finalists are named in mid-January and invited to an in-person Interview Weekend in February. Scholars accept or decline by May 1.
Selection criteria: Holistic review: academic excellence, quality of essays, letters of recommendation, leadership, and in-person interview performance.
✎ Essays🎤 Interview💌 Letters of Rec🌟 Finalist Event
💡
Strategic Detail
The Wells Scholars Program guarantees full cost of attendance for eight semesters: tuition, mandatory and course-related fees for 12 to 18 credits, and a living stipend sized to a standard double room and meal plan. Students get the same stipend whether they live on or off campus. IU's own pages give two different headcounts, with the program About page saying around 18 incoming freshmen and the deadlines page saying around 14 are selected from the finalist group, so plan for roughly 14 to 18. Scholars are automatically members of the Hutton Honors College and can apply for Hutton research, internship, and thesis grants on top. The program also funds study abroad and summer experiences.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Roughly 14 students per year from a field of nominated finalists. This is one of the most selective scholarships at any public university in the country. Winners tend to be students with near-perfect academics, compelling essays, meaningful leadership, and the intellectual curiosity that comes through clearly in an in-person interview. Both domestic and international students are eligible.
Full RideApp Requiredgeographicneed based
Cox Scholars Program
📅 Deadline: Feb 15 ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
Full Ride
scholarship + campus wage package totaling full cost of attendance
✔ Stackable
⚠ Indiana residents who are U.S. citizens or naturalized citizens, with demonstrated financial need and a willingness to work 10 to 12 hours a week on campus every semester. NCAA athletes are not eligible.
🏫 3.0+ GPA👥 ~Six named scholarships across the program; class sizes are not published winners/yr
✚
Stacking & Combining
Cox is a cap, not a stack. A Cox award is reduced so that total gift aid does not exceed cost of attendance. That means a student with a large OEM Excellence award plus state aid will see a smaller Cox scholarship, not a bigger total. The value is that Cox fills whatever gap is left.
📄
How to Apply
Apply to IU Bloomington by November 1 (transfers by June 1). The Cox application opens in October. Create your IU computing account using the 10-digit university ID from your admission email, log into One.IU, open the IU Scholarships task, complete the General Application first, then select Other Recommended Opportunities, search Cox, and apply to the IUB-Cox Scholarship Application. One application covers Civic, Engagement, Exploratory, and Legacy. File the FAFSA so IU has your data by the deadline. Finalists are invited to interview in March and all applicants are notified by early April.
Selection criteria: Academic performance, demonstrated financial need, sustained part-time work or deep extracurricular engagement, and a required online interview.
🎤 Interview
💡
Strategic Detail
Funded by a $92 million gift, the largest in IU history. This is the most valuable thing on this page for a working Indiana family, and almost nobody outside Indiana has heard of it. The scholarship and wage package, combined with any other gift aid, is built to total IU Bloomington's official cost of attendance. Six scholarships carry the Cox name and differ by student population and work assignment: Legacy (work in an IU department or office), Civic (placement in a Bloomington nonprofit or city department), Engagement (Advocate for Community Engagement role), Exploratory (IU Peer Coach for exploratory students), Research (faculty research, administered alongside the Hutton Honors College), and Access (non-traditional students returning to finish a degree). All new scholars attend Camp Cox, a five-day leadership program at Bradford Woods in late July. IU's own pages currently list two different deadlines, February 15 on the Civic and Engagement pages and March 1 on the Legacy page, so work to the February 15 date.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Indiana students who have held a real part-time job or carried serious extracurricular commitments while keeping grades up, with a 3.0 or better and documented financial need. Cox is explicitly looking for resourcefulness and work ethic rather than raw test scores. Finalists complete a 30-minute online interview.
Full TuitionApp Requiredgeographicmajor specific
Kelley Scholars Program
📅 Deadline: Nov. 1 ✓ Renews (3.5 GPA, 4 yrs)
Full Tuition
tuition + fees + living stipend + study abroad
✘ Not stackable
⚠ Indiana residents only, and only students offered direct admission to the Kelley School of Business. Out-of-state students are not eligible for this program.
🏫 3.9+ GPA✎ ~33 ACT✎ ~1450 SAT👥 ~Approximately 10 scholars per year winners/yr
✚
Stacking & Combining
Kelley Scholars receive this program award in addition to any OEM Excellence Scholarship already awarded at admission. Students must remain business majors at IU Bloomington — switching out of Kelley forfeits the scholarship.
📄
How to Apply
Apply to IU Bloomington by Nov. 1 and indicate a business major on your application. Eligible Indiana residents who receive Kelley direct admission will be invited in mid-to-late January to complete the Kelley Conditional Application through the General Scholarship Application portal. Finalists are invited to an on-campus interview during the last full weekend of February.
Selection criteria: Academic record (3.9+ GPA), standardized test scores, outstanding high school achievements, demonstrated leadership skills, and in-person interview performance.
✎ Essays🎤 Interview🌟 Finalist Event
💡
Strategic Detail
Established with a $23 million gift from the E.W. Kelley family, this program provides about 10 incoming Indiana residents per year with tuition, fees, a generous living stipend, and a study abroad opportunity — all four years. Scholars are required to participate in the Business Honors Program and all co-curricular Kelley Scholars activities. The program is test-optional for admission to IU, but competitive Kelley Scholar candidates historically present very strong scores alongside their GPA.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
About 10 outstanding in-state freshman each year who are already admitted to Kelley direct admission and bring a 3.9+ GPA, typically 1450 SAT or 33 ACT, and a strong record of leadership and achievement. This is one of the most competitive business undergraduate scholarships at any public university.
⚠ Indiana residents only. The award matches the student's OEM Excellence Scholarship rather than replacing it, and IU does not publish a dollar figure on the current program site, so the value depends on the underlying OEM award. Also includes a one-time stipend for educational technology and $1,000 for study abroad or professional development.
👥 ~Minimum 30 students per year across all IU campuses winners/yr
✚
Stacking & Combining
The Herbert scholarship and its matching OEM scholarship are interdependent — losing one means losing both. Total package cannot be separated or transferred to another campus except in rare, case-by-case circumstances.
💡
Strategic Detail
Funded by a $10 million Lilly Endowment grant. At least 30 incoming IU freshmen are named each year across all IU campuses, so the Bloomington share is smaller than that. There is no separate application: each campus nominates from its own admission applicant pool, with preference given to early applicants. Notifications go out in May. The Herbert award and its matching OEM scholarship are interdependent, so losing one means losing both. A 3+2 option may extend funding into the first year of a master's degree.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Indiana's top high school seniors with outstanding academic records and demonstrated leadership in school and community activities. Preference goes to National Merit Scholars. IU nominates a minimum of 30 students across all campuses each year, a very small and selective group.
App Required
Hudson & Holland Scholars Program
📅 Deadline: Feb. 1 · 📢 Results: By April 1 ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
HHSP stacks with other IU financial aid. Partnership awards from individual schools and departments can supplement the base $7,000/year. Students should check their Financial Aid Summary for their full package.
📄
How to Apply
There is no separate HHSP application portal anymore. Apply to IU Bloomington by November 1, then complete the General Application inside the IU Scholarships task in One.IU. Invitations go out on a rolling basis and the General Application closes February 1. Decisions are sent on a rolling basis between February 1 and March 15; if you have heard nothing by May 1, you were not selected.
Selection criteria: Holistic review: academic achievement, leadership, community engagement, and alignment with HHSP's core values of leadership, engagement, and academic excellence.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
HHSP is IU's largest merit-based scholarship program, with roughly 2,400 enrolled scholars and $14.9 million awarded in 2023. IU does not publish a per-student award amount on the current program site, and outside sources disagree, so treat any specific figure you see elsewhere with caution. Many scholars access additional funding through school and department partnership awards layered on top of the base award. The program serves high-achieving students from underrepresented communities, including limited-income students, first-generation students, and rural students.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
High-achieving students from underrepresented communities, including first-generation college students, limited-income students, rural students, and students from African American, Hispanic, and Native American backgrounds. With over 2,000 enrolled scholars, this is IU's largest merit-based scholarship program, so competition is real but the pool is meaningfully broader than most flagship programs.
Automaticnational merit
National Merit / National Hispanic Recognition Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Per NMSC/College Board timeline ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
$1,000/yr
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
This IU stipend stacks with and supplements the student's automatic OEM Excellence Scholarship — qualifying students receive both. The $1,000/year IU award is separate from any NMSC corporate-sponsored scholarship the student may also receive.
💡
Strategic Detail
IU pays $1,000 per year for four years, $4,000 total, to National Merit Finalists who list IU Bloomington as their first choice through the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The same $1,000 per year applies to National Hispanic Recognition designees. It is a modest add-on by itself, but it stacks on top of the student's OEM Excellence Scholarship. The first-choice listing is the step families forget, and missing it costs the whole award.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Students who have already achieved National Merit Finalist designation or National Hispanic Scholar recognition from College Board and who choose IU Bloomington as their enrolled institution.
Data last verified Jun 5, 2026.* GPA/test bands are estimates based on official selectivity and prior cohort profiles. "Who Actually Wins" insights are pulled from external peer-sourced data where students and parents have reported real-world award results. Because colleges can change funding thresholds and deadlines at any time, always verify these details with the institution before finalizing your application strategy.
❓ Flagship / Competitive Scholarship FAQs
What is the single largest scholarship at IU Bloomington?
The Wells Scholars Program. It guarantees full cost of attendance for eight semesters, including tuition, mandatory and course-related fees, and a living stipend sized to a standard double room and meal plan. Scholars get the same stipend whether they live on or off campus, plus funding for study abroad and summer work. Wells Scholars are automatically Hutton Honors College members.
How selective is Wells?
Brutally. High schools nominate up to two seniors each, roughly 40 finalists are invited to an in-person Interview Weekend in February, and somewhere between 14 and 18 first-year scholars are named. IU’s own pages cite both figures, so plan for that range. If your school does not nominate your student, there is a self-nomination path on the Wells domestic high school senior page.
Is Cox really a full ride?
Functionally, yes, with a catch worth understanding. The scholarship plus campus wage package is built to total cost of attendance, but Cox is a cap rather than a stack. If your student already has a large Excellence award and state aid, the Cox scholarship is reduced so the total does not exceed cost of attendance. The value is that Cox fills whatever gap remains, and the student works 10 to 12 hours a week to hold it.
Can out-of-state students get Cox, Kelley Scholars, or Herbert?
No. All three are restricted to Indiana residents. This is the hardest truth on this page for out-of-state families: the biggest IU programs other than Wells are closed to you. Your realistic path is the National Excellence Scholarship plus Hutton, Hudson and Holland, and departmental awards.
What does Kelley Scholars actually include?
Standard tuition, fees, a generous living stipend, and a study abroad opportunity for four years. About 10 incoming Indiana residents a year, all of whom must already have direct admission to Kelley. Candidates historically bring a 3.9 GPA and around a 1450 SAT or 33 ACT, though IU is test-optional. Kelley encourages the Selective Scholarship Application by January 16, and finalists interview on campus the last full weekend of February.
How does the Herbert Presidential Scholarship work?
It is a matching award funded by a $10 million Lilly Endowment grant, aimed at keeping Indiana’s top students in Indiana. There is no separate application. Each IU campus nominates from its own admitted pool, with preference given to early applicants and to National Merit Scholars. At least 30 scholars are named across all IU campuses each year, so the Bloomington share is smaller than that number suggests. Notifications go out in May. The award also includes a one-time technology stipend and $1,000 for study abroad or professional development, and a 3+2 option may extend funding into a master’s year.
What is Hudson and Holland?
IU’s largest merit-based scholarship program, with roughly 2,400 enrolled scholars and $14.9 million awarded in 2023. It serves high-achieving students from underrepresented communities, including limited-income, first-generation, and rural students. There is no separate HHSP portal anymore. You apply through the General Application inside the IU Scholarships task in One.IU, which closes February 1, with decisions rolling out between February 1 and March 15. IU does not publish a per-student amount, so be skeptical of specific figures you see on third-party scholarship sites.
Does IU have a National Merit package?
A modest one. IU pays $1,000 a year for four years, $4,000 total, to National Merit Finalists who list IU Bloomington as their first choice through the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. Same amount for National Hispanic Recognition designees. It stacks on top of the Excellence award. The step families forget is the first-choice listing, and missing it costs the entire award.
At IU, getting admitted and getting your automatic award does not mean you applied for money. Most of the school, departmental, alumni, and donor funding sits behind a completely separate application your student has to go find.
Once admitted, create the IU computing account using the 10-digit university ID from the admission email.
Log into One.IU, search “scholarships,” and open the IU Scholarships task.
Complete the General Application first and answer every question thoroughly. This is what matches your student to opportunities.
Then open Other Recommended Opportunities and apply to each one individually. The General Application alone does not apply you to everything.
File the FAFSA early enough that IU has the data by March 1. Many of these awards require it.
Screenshot every confirmation.
Parent translation: the March 1 IU Scholarships Application is where the gap-filling money lives. Families who skip it are leaving thousands on the table and never know it happened.
💎 Hidden Gem Scholarships
These awards are not automatic, but most of them stack right on top of the Excellence Scholarship and fill the gaps that merit alone leaves behind. Some require an audition, some a portfolio, some just a well-written General Application submitted before everyone else remembers to.
Automatic⚠ All Undergrad Onlymajor specific
Jacobs School of Music Merit Scholarships
📅 Deadline: Nov. 1 ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Music applicants only. Jacobs applicants are excluded from the OEM Excellence Scholarships, but they remain eligible for Hutton Honors College and Hudson and Holland if the IU application is in by November 1.
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Jacobs money replaces the OEM Excellence Scholarship rather than stacking with it, because Jacobs administers those funds itself for music applicants. It does stack with Hutton Honors College scholarships, Hudson and Holland, Cox, and Indiana state aid.
💡
Strategic Detail
Jacobs awards more than $5 million a year in merit funds. Named undergraduate awards include the Dean's Scholarship, the Premier Young Artist Award, the Jacobs Scholar Award, and the Presidential Scholars Awards. Every admitted Jacobs student is automatically considered based on the audition, portfolio, or interview, with no separate scholarship application. Award levels are set by the studio and department in consultation with faculty. Decisions arrive by email by April 1. A small number of packages reach full tuition; most are partial.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Top auditionees in Jacobs; awards vary by talent, need, and faculty rating.
App Requiredgeographicmajor specific
Thomasson Fellows Program (Kelley)
📅 Deadline: Nov 1 ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Indiana residents only, and only students offered direct admission to the Kelley School of Business at Bloomington.
🏫 3.0+ GPA👥 ~Roughly 5 fellows named per class winners/yr
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with the Indiana Excellence Scholarship and other Kelley and IU awards.
📄
How to Apply
Apply to IU Bloomington by November 1 and indicate a business major. Once offered Kelley direct admission, complete the IU General Scholarship Application by February 1. Returning students must resubmit the general scholarship application between September 1 and February 1 each year.
💡
Strategic Detail
Established in 2022 by Jeffrey and Benita Thomasson. Fellows receive an annual scholarship for all four years at Kelley in exchange for sustained involvement with the Kelley Institute for Social Impact. Five fellows were named in March 2026 in the program's fourth year. This is a small, quiet award that in-state Kelley direct admits with a real service record should absolutely apply for, and most never hear about it.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Indiana students admitted directly to Kelley who already have a documented high school record of community service or social impact work, not a one-off service project.
App Requiredmajor specific
Hamilton Lugar School Scholarships (Global & International Studies)
📅 Deadline: Nov 1 ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Students admitted to IU Bloomington who listed a Hamilton Lugar School major on their application.
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with the OEM Excellence Scholarship and other IU awards.
📄
How to Apply
Apply to IU Bloomington by November 1 and list a Hamilton Lugar School major as your intended program. After admission you will be invited to complete the General Application, which must be submitted by February 1.
💡
Strategic Detail
The Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies is one of a small number of freestanding international studies schools in the country, with deep language and area studies funding behind it. Invitations to the General Application go out on a rolling basis after admission, and the application closes February 1. Decisions are sent on a rolling basis between February 1 and March 15. Only recipients are contacted, so if you have heard nothing by May 1 you were not selected.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Admitted students who named an HLS major on the IU application and applied by November 1 for the strongest consideration.
Stacks with merit; may replace if full tuition covered.
📄
How to Apply
Departmental application; portfolio, interview or major-based application may be required.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Students submitting strong work; majors may get preference, but open to many.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Marching Band & Ensembles (Marching Hundred; concert/jazz/wind)
📅 Deadline: Program-set; varies ✓ Renews
$500–$10,000/yr
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
May stack with merit, may be replaced if full tuition covered.
📄
How to Apply
Program/ensemble audition; leadership or section leader roles may increase amount.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Committed performers, especially section and leadership roles.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Kenneth R. R. Gros Louis Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Feb 1 ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Can often stack with merit awards unless awarded full tuition.
📄
How to Apply
Apply via IU Scholarships portal; references and leadership/service résumé recommended.
💌 Letters of Rec
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Student leaders with sustained impact and strong service record.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
C & C First-Generation Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Feb 1 ✓ Renews
$1,000–$3,000/yr
✔ Stackable
🏫 3.0+ GPA🎓 All Undergrad
📄
How to Apply
Complete IU Scholarships portal general app; priority to FAFSA filers and first-gen students.
✎ Essays
🕵
Who Actually Wins
First-gen, Pell-eligible students with ≥3.0 GPA who meet deadlines.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
IU Foundation / Donor-Funded Awards
📅 Deadline: Feb 1 ✓ Renews
$1,000–$2,000/yr
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Multiple awards possible; see IU Scholarships for details.
📄
How to Apply
Apply via IU Scholarships portal; match to targeted donor criteria.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Applicants who complete the portal early and match to donor criteria.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Onlymajor specific
Kelley Changemaker & Alternative Break Scholarships
📅 Deadline: Varies by award; check KISI Non-Renewable
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Kelley School of Business students involved with the Kelley Institute for Social Impact.
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with the OEM Excellence Scholarship and any Kelley or IU merit award.
📄
How to Apply
Get involved with the Kelley Institute for Social Impact early, then apply through KISI for the specific internship or Alternative Break trip. Deadlines are set per program, so check the KISI page each semester.
💡
Strategic Detail
Three awards most Kelley families never find. The Kelley Changemaker Internship Scholarship supports students taking unpaid or underpaid social-impact internships, which is real money for a summer that would otherwise be unaffordable. The Samuel L. Westerman Scholarship and the Kelley School of Business Community Service Scholarship both help fund Alternative Break Program service trips. Open to out-of-state Kelley students as well as Indiana residents.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Kelley students already active in KISI programming who apply for a specific internship or Alternative Break trip.
Apply via IUAA or IU Scholarships portal; show financial need and, if possible, IUAA life member connection.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Students who document need, complete FAFSA, and demonstrate achievement; preference for IUAA family.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Neal-Marshall Alumni Club Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Varies by unit ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
📄
How to Apply
Apply via Alumni unit; for African American students with need or achievement.
✎ Essays
🕵
Who Actually Wins
African American students with leadership, engagement, and academic strength.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Latino Alumni Association Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Varies by unit ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
📄
How to Apply
Apply through IUAA/unit; preference to involvement in Latino student orgs or service.
✎ Essays
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Latino students with leadership, org involvement, and/or academic achievement.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Asian Alumni Association Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Varies by unit ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
📄
How to Apply
Apply via Alumni unit; leadership/service in Asian/Asian-American communities recommended.
✎ Essays
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Asian heritage students with leadership/service or organization involvement.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
LGBTQ+ Alumni Association Academic Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Varies by unit ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
📄
How to Apply
IUAA or unit application; community involvement or advocacy recommended.
✎ Essays
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Applicants with academic achievement and clear LGBTQ+ leadership or campus involvement.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Charles & Jo Ann Linsmith Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Varies; IUAA schedule ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
May stack with university, alumni, or need-based funds.
📄
How to Apply
IUAA application; for IUAA staff children/grandchildren, student employees, and organization leaders.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Students with direct IUAA affiliation, leadership, or service.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Jerry Foster Memorial Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Chapter-set; varies Non-Renewable
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
📄
How to Apply
Apply via IUAA or eligible chapter; must have financial need and alumni chapter leadership connection.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Students with connection to IUAA chapter, financial need, and academic achievement.
Data last verified Nov 20, 2025.* GPA/test bands are estimates based on official selectivity and prior cohort profiles. "Who Actually Wins" insights are pulled from external peer-sourced data where students and parents have reported real-world award results. Because colleges can change funding thresholds and deadlines at any time, always verify these details with the institution before finalizing your application strategy.
🎵 A Note on Jacobs Money
The Jacobs School of Music awards more than $5 million a year in merit funds through named awards like the Dean’s Scholarship, the Premier Young Artist Award, the Jacobs Scholar Award, and the Presidential Scholars Awards. Every admitted Jacobs student is automatically considered based on the audition, portfolio, or interview, with no separate scholarship application. Award levels are set by the studio and department. A small number of packages reach full tuition and most are partial. Decisions arrive by email by April 1, and the undergraduate enrollment deadline is May 1.
❓ Hidden Gems FAQ
Where do all of these actually live?
Almost all of them run through the IU Scholarships task in One.IU, due March 1 for incoming students. A few, including Hutton and the Hamilton Lugar School awards, close earlier on February 1. Departmental awards set their own dates. When in doubt, work to February 1 and you have covered nearly everything.
Do we have to file the FAFSA for these?
For many of them, yes. IU says it needs your FAFSA information by March 1 to consider you for need-based scholarships. Filing it is free and costs you nothing even if you expect no need-based aid, and several donor awards use it as a screening step.
What if my student is out-of-state?
This section is the best news on the page for you. Hudson and Holland, Hutton, the Hamilton Lugar awards, Jacobs music money, the Kelley social impact scholarships, departmental awards, and most alumni association scholarships are all open to non-residents. Cox, Kelley Scholars, Herbert, and Thomasson are the Indiana-only ones.
Can current IU students apply, or is this freshman-only?
Most of these are open to continuing students, and several are designed for them. IU recommends completing the IU Scholarships Application every single year, since new opportunities are added throughout the academic year. The application opens to enrolled students in September.
Do these stack with the Excellence Scholarship?
Generally yes. The main exceptions are Jacobs awards, which replace the Excellence Scholarship because Jacobs administers those funds itself, and any situation where total gift aid would exceed cost of attendance. Always read the award letter for replacement language.
How do we find out if we won?
Notifications come by IU email and appear in the Financial Aid Summary in One.IU. Some departmental and program awards require an acceptance step after the announcement, so check the student email account regularly in March and April rather than waiting for a letter.
The Hutton Honors College has been running since 1966 and is one of the more established honors programs at a public university. Admission is by application only and is not automatic. What separates Hutton from a lot of honors colleges is not the seminars, though those are small and discussion-driven. It is the funding infrastructure behind it: a freshman scholarship, a second-chance award for juniors, an employer-specific endowed scholarship, an international experiences program, and a grants program students can tap over and over for four years.
The Two-Date Trap. To be considered for Hutton and a Hutton scholarship, your student must complete the IU application by November 1 and the separate Hutton Honors College application by midnight EST on February 1. To be considered for Hutton with no scholarship consideration, the IU application by February 1 is enough. Miss the November 1 date and you can still get into Hutton, just without the money.
Common App users, read this. If your student applies through the Common Application, they must check the box saying they want to apply to the Hutton Honors College. Only then does the Hutton application appear in their status portal. Students applying through Apply IU get it automatically. This one unchecked box has cost families real scholarship dollars.
Hutton Scholarships, Grants & Fellowships
App Required
Hutton Honors College Scholarship (Primary)
📅 Deadline: Nov 1 ✓ Renews
$1,000–$4,000/yr
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with OEM Excellence, Hudson and Holland, Cox, Jacobs, and departmental awards. Important caveat: if a student is already receiving need-based aid, IU's Office of Student Financial Assistance may apply a Hutton award to reduce loans or offset a federal or state grant rather than paying it out as cash to the bursar account.
📄
How to Apply
Apply to IU Bloomington by November 1. Students using the Common Application must check the box saying they want to apply to the Hutton Honors College; Apply IU users get the Hutton application automatically in their status portal. The Hutton application is due by midnight EST on February 1. Admitted Hutton students are automatically considered for merit-based HHC scholarships, and may also apply for need-based Hutton awards through the IU Scholarships Application. File the FAFSA by February 1 for maximum consideration.
💡
Strategic Detail
Hutton freshman scholarships range from $1,000 to $4,000 per year and are conditionally renewable for three additional years. Recipients are notified by IU email no later than April 1. Renewal requires staying enrolled as an IU Bloomington undergraduate, taking at least 12 credit hours a semester, and remaining in good standing in the Hutton Honors College. Some awards also require annual confirmation of FAFSA need to renew, so read the notification email carefully.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Admitted Hutton students with excellent grades and involvement.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
Hutton International Experiences Program (HIEP)
📅 Deadline: Oct 15 (Fall) / Mar 15 (Spring) Non-Renewable
$3,000
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
One-time support; can stack with other merit or travel awards.
📄
How to Apply
Apply for HIEP funding; open to Hutton students in approved study abroad/global experiences.
💡
Strategic Detail
Travel and research abroad for Hutton students only.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Students who prepare a strong plan for global study and apply early.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Onlyhonors only
Hutton Grants & Awards Program
📅 Deadline: Rolling application cycles each semester Non-Renewable
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Full-time IU Bloomington undergraduates who are members of the Hutton Honors College.
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with every other IU award. The same OSFA caveat applies: if a student is receiving need-based aid, a Hutton grant may reduce loans or offset a federal or state grant rather than arriving as cash.
📄
How to Apply
Join the Hutton Honors College, then apply through the Grants and Awards pages each semester. For summer activities between sophomore and junior year, apply under the junior grant category; between junior and senior year, apply under the senior category. Submit a one-page evaluation after each funded activity or you become ineligible for further HHC funding.
💡
Strategic Detail
This is the part of Hutton that pays off repeatedly over four years, and it is invisible from the outside. Separate grants cover internships, research, creative activity, teaching internships, faculty research partnerships, honors thesis work, Individualized Major and BFA capstones, conference and activity travel, and alternative break trips. There is also a nonstandard application cycle for opportunities that surface after a deadline, and a Financial Emergency Fund. Students can apply repeatedly across their undergraduate career as long as they file the one-page evaluation after each funded activity.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Hutton students who treat the grant program as an annual habit rather than a one-time thing. Applications need a faculty letter and a clear plan for the experience.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Onlyhonors only
Hutton Junior Scholars Award
📅 Deadline: Nov 15 Non-Renewable
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Full-time Hutton Honors College undergraduates entering their third year at IU who did not receive a Hutton freshman scholarship or a full-ride award such as Cox, Wells, or Kelley Scholars.
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
One-time award that stacks with other IU aid, subject to the usual OSFA treatment for students already receiving need-based aid.
📄
How to Apply
Apply through the IU Scholarships portal by November 15 of your third year. Include a one to two page essay describing your academic and non-academic accomplishments over the past two years. Have a current-year FAFSA on file.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
Formerly the Burnett Masters Junior Scholars Award. This one is deliberately aimed at the students who got passed over as freshmen, which makes it one of the better second chances in the IU system. Preference goes to applicants with high financial need. Applications close at midnight on November 15 and recipients are notified by IU email no later than December 15.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Third-year Hutton students with a current FAFSA on file showing federal need above zero, who can write a strong one to two page essay on what they have accomplished in their first two years.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Onlyemployer affiliation
Ford Endowed Scholarship (Hutton)
📅 Deadline: Applications accepted year round ✓ Renews
$1,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Ford Motor Company employees, their spouses, and their children.
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Renewable and stacks with other IU aid, subject to the standard OSFA treatment for students already on need-based aid.
📄
How to Apply
Email the Hutton Honors College scholarship coordinator to request the application. Submit the personal statement, the analytical scholarship essay, a letter of recommendation, a list of jobs held, and written verification of Ford Motor Company affiliation. Applications are accepted year round.
Selection criteria: Academic performance, quality of thinking in the personal statement and scholarship essay, unusual circumstances or hardships described in the essays, the recommendation letter, and financial need as shown in the IU aid package.
✎ Essays💌 Letters of Rec
💡
Strategic Detail
If anyone in the family works for Ford, read this twice. The Hutton Honors College administers a renewable scholarship specifically for Ford Motor Company employees, spouses, and children, averaging $1,000, with applications accepted all year rather than on a single deadline. There is no public application form; you email the Hutton scholarship coordinator to request one. Written verification of the Ford affiliation is required.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Hutton students with a documented Ford Motor Company family connection who write a strong personal statement and analytical essay. The review committee weighs the essays heavily.
Data last verified Nov 20, 2025.* GPA/test bands are estimates based on official selectivity and prior cohort profiles. "Who Actually Wins" insights are pulled from external peer-sourced data where students and parents have reported real-world award results. Because colleges can change funding thresholds and deadlines at any time, always verify these details with the institution before finalizing your application strategy.
*Hutton freshman scholarships range from $1,000 to $4,000 per year and are conditionally renewable for three additional years. Selection as a Hutton Honors Scholar is described by IU as extremely selective and highly competitive.*
The Caveat Nobody Explains at the Info Session
If your student is already receiving need-based aid, including Direct Loans, Pell grants, or the 21st Century Scholars Covenant, a Hutton scholarship or grant may not arrive as cash in the bursar account. IU’s Office of Student Financial Assistance may instead apply it to reduce the student or parent loan burden, or offset a federal or state grant by the same amount. That is not a scam, and reducing a loan is real value, but it is very different from a check. If this matters to your budget, contact OSFA before you count the money.
The Grants Program Is the Underrated Part
Internship and research grants: funding for unpaid or underpaid experiences, applied for each semester.
Creative activity and thesis awards: support for studio work, performance, and honors thesis research.
Travel and alternative break grants: conference travel and service trips.
Hutton International Experiences Program: a dedicated study abroad grant, separate from the general grants pool.
Nonstandard cycle: if an opportunity appears after a deadline, there is a process for that rather than a flat no.
Students can keep applying across four years as long as they submit the required one-page evaluation after each funded activity. Skip the evaluation and you become ineligible for further Hutton funding.
Honors College — FAQs (Indiana University Bloomington)
Is Hutton admission automatic for strong students?
No. Admission is by application only, and eligibility to apply does not guarantee admission. Evaluators weigh grades in academic courses most heavily, then performance in honors, dual-credit, IB, and AP work, then extracurriculars and other achievements. IU is looking for demonstrated aptitude for interdisciplinary learning, not just a high GPA.
How much is the Hutton freshman scholarship worth?
IU publishes a range of $1,000 to $4,000 per year, conditionally renewable. Recipients are notified by IU email no later than April 1. Renewal requires staying enrolled as an IU Bloomington undergraduate, taking at least 12 credit hours a semester, and remaining in good standing in Hutton. Some awards also require annual confirmation of FAFSA need to renew, so read the notification email closely.
Should we file the FAFSA even if we do not expect need-based aid?
Yes. Hutton specifically tells students to file by February 1 for maximum consideration, and admitted freshmen can apply for need-based Hutton opportunities through the IU Scholarships Application. That is a different and earlier date than IU’s general March 1 guidance.
My student got into Hutton but no scholarship. Is that it?
No, and this is one of the better second chances in the IU system. The Hutton Junior Scholars Award, formerly the Burnett Masters award, is a one-time scholarship aimed specifically at third-year Hutton students who did not receive a freshman Hutton scholarship or a full-ride award like Cox, Wells, or Kelley. Preference goes to applicants with high financial need. Applications close at midnight on November 15 and recipients are notified by December 15.
Does anyone in your family work for Ford?
Then read this twice. Hutton administers the Ford Endowed Scholarship specifically for Ford Motor Company employees, their spouses, and their children. It averages $1,000, is renewable, and applications are accepted year round rather than on a single deadline. There is no public form. You email the Hutton scholarship coordinator to request one and provide written verification of the Ford affiliation. It is the kind of award that goes unclaimed simply because nobody thinks to look.
Can out-of-state and international students join Hutton?
Yes. Hutton explicitly welcomes students from across campus and around the world, and Hutton scholarships are one of the few meaningful funding levers available to out-of-state families at IU.
Are Honors courses just more work?
They are structured differently rather than piled higher. Hutton seminars run roughly 12 to 25 students and map onto general education requirements, so they replace large lecture courses rather than adding to the load. Students pursue the Hutton Honors Notation, which appears on the transcript and diploma, and many pair it with departmental honors.
Indiana University Bloomington is a big, old, research-heavy campus where the reputation is not spread evenly. IU sits around 73rd nationally and 34th among public universities in the latest U.S. News rankings, which is respectable but does not tell you much. What matters for a family choosing a major is that a handful of IU schools are genuinely near the top of the country, and a few of them are the kind of program you cannot find at most state flagships at all.
Nationally Known Program: Kelley School of Business is ranked No. 8 nationally for undergraduate business by U.S. News for 2026, and it is IU’s highest-ranked undergraduate program. The thing to understand before applying is the direct admit structure: students admitted straight into Kelley have a guaranteed seat, while everyone else enters as pre-business or Business Pathways and has to compete for entry after year one. The Kelley Personal Inventory is due November 15 for direct admission priority, two weeks after IU’s own deadline. Kelley also landed a $100 million gift in September 2026 from Jeffrey and Benita Thomasson, the same family behind the undergraduate Thomasson Fellows scholarship.
O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs: the Master of Public Affairs is ranked No. 1 in the nation for 2026 to 2027, and four O’Neill specialties hold the top spot outright: environmental policy and management, health policy and management, nonprofit management, and public finance and budgeting. It is the largest school of public administration and public policy in the country. For an undergraduate interested in policy, government, or environmental work, that faculty depth is unusual.
Jacobs School of Music: one of the most significant music schools anywhere, with more than 1,000 performances a year and its own opera theater. Admission runs through an audition and a separate JSOM supplemental application, and it operates on its own scholarship system entirely separate from the rest of IU.
Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies: a freestanding school for international and area studies, which very few universities have. Deep language offerings and federally designated area studies centers sit behind it. If your student is serious about languages, diplomacy, or regional expertise, this is a differentiator most state schools cannot match.
The Media School: IU’s journalism tradition runs through Ernie Pyle Hall, and the school now houses journalism, media production, game design, and communication science under one roof.
Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering: IU created one of the country’s first informatics schools, and the library and information studies program ranks in the national top ten. Luddy is the home for students who want computing without a pure computer science track.
School of Optometry: one of roughly two dozen optometry schools in the United States, which makes IU a natural fit for a student aiming at that career from day one.
Psychological and Brain Sciences, and the School of Education: both are long-established programs with strong graduate placement, and both feed IU’s research pipeline for undergraduates who want lab experience early.
Practical takeaway for parents: IU rewards students who know roughly what they want. Kelley, Jacobs, and Hamilton Lugar all have their own admission or application steps that run parallel to the IU application, and naming your intended school on the application affects which scholarship pools you land in. A student who applies undeclared is not shut out, but they do miss the school-specific funding that closes on February 1.
Every link below was checked and confirmed live. Use IU’s own pages to verify deadlines, award terms, and cost figures before you make any decision. Scholarship dates in particular move from year to year.
Federally Required Consumer Information (institutional data):
https://iuia.iu.edu/compliance-reports/federally-required/index.html
Note: IU’s Common Data Set now sits behind a One.IU login portal rather than a public page, so this consumer information page is the accessible substitute.
Indiana University is not the school you play the test-score game with. IU reads the transcript, rewards the harder schedule, and does not publish a single merit chart to game. That makes it frustrating to compare against a school like Alabama, and it makes the November 1 deadline the most important date in the whole process. Everything at IU flows from it.
For Indiana families, this is one of the better values in the country, and the reason is Cox. A $92 million endowment built so that a scholarship plus a campus job covers full cost of attendance, available to students who work hard and file a FAFSA, is something most flagships simply do not have. Add 21st Century Scholars or the Frank O’Bannon Grant on top and the number a middle-income Hoosier family actually pays can get genuinely small. Wells sits above all of it for the handful of students who win it.
For out-of-state families, be honest with yourself about the math. Fifty-seven thousand dollars a year in direct costs is a real number, there is no MSEP discount, no tuition waiver, and the three biggest IU programs after Wells are closed to you. The National Excellence Scholarship plus Hutton plus a departmental award is a solid package, but it is not going to close a thirty thousand dollar gap by itself. Compare it against your own state flagship after merit, not before.
Either way, the playbook is the same: apply by November 1, take the harder classes and do well in them, check the Hutton box on the Common App, file the FAFSA early, and then go back into One.IU and actually complete the second application in February. That last step is the one most families never hear about, and it is where the gap-filling money lives.
Your kid did everything right. That does not mean the money follows.
Most families build a college list first and think about scholarships second, which is backwards. This free four-part series shows you where the money actually comes from, and how to build a list around it.
After the series, about once a month, sometimes twice during application season. No drip funnels, no affiliate pitches, and we never sell your information. Unsubscribe anytime.
Was this helpful? Share it with another parent who’s comparing college costs!
Written by Leo Dimilo
I started CollegeReadyParent while working through college costs for my own kid, and quickly figured out that the number a school advertises and the number a family actually pays are two very different things. Since then I’ve gone school by school pulling apart award letters, scholarship pages, and cost sheets to find what families are supposed to just know. This site is the version of that research I wish someone had handed me. More about Leo →
Contains information related to marketing campaigns of the user. These are shared with Google AdWords / Google Ads when the Google Ads and Google Analytics accounts are linked together.
90 days
__utma
ID used to identify users and sessions
2 years after last activity
__utmt
Used to monitor number of Google Analytics server requests
10 minutes
__utmb
Used to distinguish new sessions and visits. This cookie is set when the GA.js javascript library is loaded and there is no existing __utmb cookie. The cookie is updated every time data is sent to the Google Analytics server.
30 minutes after last activity
__utmc
Used only with old Urchin versions of Google Analytics and not with GA.js. Was used to distinguish between new sessions and visits at the end of a session.
End of session (browser)
__utmz
Contains information about the traffic source or campaign that directed user to the website. The cookie is set when the GA.js javascript is loaded and updated when data is sent to the Google Anaytics server
6 months after last activity
__utmv
Contains custom information set by the web developer via the _setCustomVar method in Google Analytics. This cookie is updated every time new data is sent to the Google Analytics server.
2 years after last activity
__utmx
Used to determine whether a user is included in an A / B or Multivariate test.
18 months
_ga
ID used to identify users
2 years
_gali
Used by Google Analytics to determine which links on a page are being clicked
30 seconds
_ga_
ID used to identify users
2 years
_gid
ID used to identify users for 24 hours after last activity
24 hours
_gat
Used to monitor number of Google Analytics server requests when using Google Tag Manager
