Michigan is one of the best public universities in the country, and it is also one of the most confusing to pay for. There is no chart here where a certain ACT score gets you a certain scholarship. Michigan reads applications holistically and awards money the same way, which means two students with identical numbers can get very different answers.
The short version: if you live in Michigan and your family earns $125,000 or less, tuition is free and you should stop worrying about merit scholarships. If you live anywhere else, Michigan is an expensive school that will probably not discount itself much for you, and the money that does exist is hiding in specific colleges and specific zip codes rather than in a central scholarship office.
🏆 Full tuition for in-state families earning $125,000 or less (Go Blue Guarantee)
Average Net Price
$19,005/year (in-state estimate)
Average paid for residents.
Automatic Merit
None based on GPA or test scores
No separate application.
Scholarships Tracked
17 opportunities
2 automatic · 6 competitive · 9 hidden gem
Merit Evaluation
Holistic Review / Varies
Merit depends on profile rigor.
Testing Policy
Test-optional
Superscores ACT/SAT.
Key Deadlines
Priority: Nov 1 • FAFSA: Mar 1
Full-Tuition / Full-Ride
Go Blue Guarantee (Michigan residents only)
Honors College
Honors Program Available
Financial Aid Forms
FAFSA & CSS Profile
🚨 Easy-to-Miss “Gotchas” at Michigan (Read This First)
The CSS Profile is required, not optional. Michigan needs the FAFSA and the CSS Profile from every domestic first-year aid applicant. Families who file only the FAFSA lose the Go Blue Guarantee and most LSA scholarship money without ever being told why.
There is no automatic merit based on stats. A 36 ACT and a 4.0 do not trigger an award here. The closest thing is the Engineering Scholarship of Honor, and even that is automatic consideration, not an automatic check.
Getting into LSA does not put you in the scholarship pool. After admission, your student has to log into the LSA Scholarships portal and submit a separate application by April 9. Awards are reviewed as they arrive, so applying the week the acceptance lands beats applying the week it closes.
Early Decision costs you a scholarship. Michigan added binding ED this cycle. Early Decision applicants are not eligible for the Alumni Association’s Future Alumni of Michigan scholarship, which is $5,000 a year for four years. ED also means committing before you can compare aid offers.
Out-of-state families should plan on close to sticker. Michigan commits to meeting full demonstrated need for Michigan residents. Nonresidents get a thinner deal, and the average institutional award to a first-year student with no financial need was $4,587 against an $88,394 out-of-state cost of attendance.
March 1 is the wall. That is the financial aid deadline for Early Action and Regular Decision. It is November 15 if you apply Early Decision. Late means no institutional aid consideration, full stop.
FAQ
Is this college test-optional? Yes, for admission. University of Michigan–Ann Arbor is test-optional for admission.
What is the middle 50% ACT/SAT? ACT: 32-34; SAT: 1370-1530.
Average net price? About $19,005/year after aid.
Does this school use waivers/reciprocity?
No broad regional reciprocity path.
💰 Cost of Attendance at University of Michigan–Ann Arbor: 2026–2027 Rates
Figures verified against official sources in September 2026.
📅 Planning for 2027–2028? These are the 2026–2027 rates, the newest University of Michigan–Ann Arbor 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
$700 to $1,800 more than the in-state total below.$1,700 to $4,200 more than the out-of-state total below.
In-State: billed cost per year
$36,116
Tuition, fees, housing, and meals for two semesters
Tuition & mandatory fees
$18,896
Housing & meals (typical)
$17,220
Total billed cost
$36,116
Out-of-State: billed cost per year
$84,316
Tuition, fees, housing, and meals for two semesters
Tuition & mandatory fees
$67,096
Housing & meals (typical)
$17,220
Total billed cost
$84,316
That is $48,200 more per year than Michigan residents pay, before any waivers or scholarships.
Average federal net price: $19,005 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.
Out-of-State Costs: No Shortcuts Here
Michigan does not participate in any regional tuition reciprocity program and does not offer nonresident tuition waivers. There is no Midwest Student Exchange path into Ann Arbor, no Academic Common Market equivalent, and no residency workaround for students who came to Michigan to attend school. The nonresident premium is about $48,200 a year, which works out to roughly $192,800 over four years. If your student is out of state, the realistic levers are the College of Engineering awards, the geographically restricted trusts covered in Hidden Gems, and outside scholarships.
FAQ — Cost of Attendance at the University of Michigan
Why is out-of-state more than double in-state?
Because the state of Michigan subsidizes resident tuition and does not subsidize anyone else. Resident tuition and fees run $18,896 for lower division. Nonresident is $67,096. That gap is the largest of any public university in Michigan, and unlike a lot of flagships, Ann Arbor does not close it with big out-of-state merit awards.
Does tuition go up after sophomore year?
Yes, and families forget this one. Michigan charges lower division rates for your first 54 credits and upper division rates after that. In state, that is $18,896 rising to $21,268. Out of state, $67,096 rising to $71,798. Budget for the step up in year three. Engineering, Ross, Kinesiology, and Music, Theatre & Dance all charge more than the base rate at both levels, and about 37% of full-time undergraduates pay more than the published figure.
Is the average net price really around $19,000?
Yes, and it is a little misleading. That federal figure blends in-state students whose tuition is covered entirely by the Go Blue Guarantee with out-of-state students paying close to $88,000. It is a true average of two very different experiences. Run the net price calculator with your own numbers instead of leaning on the average.
What does the Go Blue Guarantee actually cover?
Tuition and mandatory university fees, for up to four years, for Michigan residents with family income of $125,000 or less and assets under $125,000. It does not cover housing, food, books, or personal expenses, which still add up to about $21,300 a year. The exception: students in Nursing, the Marsal teacher preparation programs, or the School of Music, Theatre & Dance who qualify now get their full cost of attendance covered, housing included.
Can an out-of-state student establish Michigan residency and pay in-state rates?
Practically speaking, no. Michigan’s residency rules are written to exclude students who moved to the state primarily to attend school, and the Office of the Registrar makes that determination. Do not build a four-year budget around reclassifying after freshman year.
Does Michigan meet full financial need?
For Michigan residents, yes. Michigan states in its Common Data Set that it is committed to meeting the full demonstrated need of resident students and provides some aid to out-of-state students. Worth noting for anyone comparing schools on paper: on a separate line of that same document, Michigan checks the box indicating institutional scholarship and grant aid is not available to nonresident undergraduates, which conflicts with its own narrative answer and with the existence of awards that clearly go to out-of-state students. We are flagging the discrepancy rather than smoothing it over. The practical read is that resident need gets met and nonresident need mostly does not.
Do I really have to file the CSS Profile?
Yes. Michigan requires the FAFSA and the CSS Profile from domestic first-year aid applicants. The CSS Profile opens October 1 and has a fee unless you qualify for a waiver. Skipping it is the most expensive mistake a Michigan family makes, because the Go Blue Guarantee and most need-based LSA scholarships both run off it. Michigan does not use the College Board IDOC service, so do not upload documents there.
October 1: FAFSA and CSS Profile open. Start the CSS Profile now, not in February.
November 1: Early Action and Early Decision application deadline. Also the only way into Shipman consideration.
November 15: Financial aid deadline if you applied Early Decision.
December 1: Separate application deadline for the School of Music, Theatre & Dance.
December 15: Suggested aid filing date. File by here and admitted students get a preliminary package sooner.
February 1: Regular Decision deadline, and the last day to self-report test scores.
March 1: Hard financial aid deadline for Early Action and Regular Decision. Miss it and institutional aid is off the table.
April 9: LSA Scholarship application deadline for admitted students. Notices by April 16.
Parent rule of thumb: at Michigan the aid calendar and the admissions calendar are two different calendars, and the aid one is the expensive one to miss.
Automatic Scholarships — University of Michigan
Read this before you read the cards. At most big public universities, “automatic” means a published chart where a GPA and a test score guarantee a dollar amount. Michigan does not have that and never has. Here, automatic means no separate application is required. It does not mean guaranteed, and it does not mean stats-driven. Your student’s admissions application is the scholarship application, and a committee decides.
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.
Full TuitionAutomaticresidencyincome
Go Blue Guarantee
📅 Deadline: December 15 suggested filing date. File by then and an admitted student gets a preliminary aid package sooner. · 📢 Results: Aid notices go out on a rolling basis starting January 1. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
Full Tuition
full tuition and mandatory university fees
✔ Stackable
⚠ Michigan residents only. Covers tuition and fees, not housing or food, except for Nursing, Marsal teacher prep, and SMTD students.
Michigan residents pursuing a first bachelor's degree, enrolled full time, with family income of $125,000 or less and assets under $125,000. Assets counted include home equity, savings, checking, investments, real estate, and business net worth. Retirement accounts are not counted. Income and assets are re-verified every single year.
✚
Stacking & Combining
This is a last-dollar guarantee. U-M totals every tuition-directed resource you have, including Pell, SEOG, the Michigan Achievement Scholarship, and outside tuition scholarships, then covers the gap with a Go Blue Grant. That is why your award letter may show a smaller Go Blue Grant than full tuition. It is not a reduction, it is arithmetic.
💡
Strategic Detail
If your family lives in Michigan and earns $125,000 or less, this covers tuition and mandatory university fees for up to four years. Full stop. It is not a competition and there is no separate application, but you do have to apply for financial aid by the deadline every year to get it. What it does not cover: housing, food, books, or personal expenses. Those still run about $21,300 a year. One exception worth knowing: starting in 2026, students in the School of Nursing, the Marsal teacher preparation programs, and the School of Music, Theatre & Dance who qualify get the full cost of attendance covered, housing included. Fall and winter terms only, not spring or summer.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Any Michigan resident under the income and asset thresholds who files both forms on time. In 2025-26, U-M awarded an estimated $54.9 million across all three campuses, up from $26.3 million the year before. If you live in Michigan and earn under $125,000, this is not a long shot. It is the plan.
Automatic
Engineering Scholarship of Honor
📅 Deadline: Apply as early as you can. The committee reviews on a rolling basis starting in early February, and being admitted earlier means being in front of them sooner. · 📢 Results: Rolling committee review from early February through the end of March. Selected students are notified no later than mid-April, by email and on the financial aid account in Wolverine Access. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
All admitted College of Engineering students who are US citizens or permanent residents are reviewed automatically. Transfer students are also reviewed automatically, though CoE says transfer awards are limited and highly competitive.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Combines with other U-M aid and outside scholarships, subject to the total cost-of-attendance cap managed by the central Office of Financial Aid.
💡
Strategic Detail
This is the closest thing Michigan has to automatic merit, and it is the one place an out-of-state family has a real shot at institutional money without filling out anything extra. Every admitted domestic engineering student is pulled for review. The committee works from the admissions application, essays, and teacher and counselor letters, so the application your student already wrote is the scholarship application. Renewable up to four years or eight terms. CoE does not publish award amounts, and not everyone gets one.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Admitted Michigan Engineering students with strong academics and real substance in their essays and recommendation letters. Because the committee reads the admissions file itself, the recommendation letters matter more here than families usually expect. A teacher who writes something specific is worth money.
Data last verified Sep 24, 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.
💡 The One Free Thing Everybody Skips
Once your student has a U-M account, they should complete My Scholarship Profile in Wolverine Access. It takes a few minutes, it costs nothing, and the Office of Financial Aid uses it to match students to scholarships across the whole university. Ross explicitly tells BBA students to keep it current by March 15 each year. Departments and colleges pull from it. A blank profile means your student is invisible to funds they might already qualify for.
Automatic Scholarships — FAQs (University of Michigan)
What GPA and test score do I need for automatic merit at Michigan?
There is no such number, and anyone who gives you one is guessing. Michigan does not publish stat-based scholarship thresholds because it does not use them. For context on the academic profile: the middle 50% of enrolled first-year students scored 32 to 34 on the ACT or 1370 to 1530 on the SAT, and the average high school GPA was 3.9. Those describe who gets admitted, not who gets money.
Does Michigan superscore?
Yes. Michigan uses your highest superscore, combining your best subscores across multiple test dates. You can submit a superscore yourself or send all your scores and let them calculate it. This is the opposite of schools like Alabama that use a single sitting for scholarships.
Is Michigan still test-optional?
Yes, continuing for the 2027 application cycle, and the university says it reviews the policy on an ongoing basis. Worth knowing before you decide: Michigan’s Common Data Set lists test scores as recommended rather than simply “not required,” and 73% of enrolled first-year students submitted a score. Test-optional is real, but the enrolled class is largely a tested class.
My student is applying to Engineering. Is that different?
It is, and it is the best news on this page for out-of-state families. Every admitted domestic College of Engineering student is automatically reviewed for the Engineering Scholarship of Honor with no separate application. The committee reads the admissions file, including essays and teacher and counselor letters, which is a good reason to make sure those recommendations say something specific.
If we qualify for the Go Blue Guarantee, do we still chase scholarships?
Yes, for two reasons. The Guarantee covers tuition and fees but leaves about $21,300 a year in housing, food, books, and personal costs. And the Guarantee is calculated after other tuition-directed aid is counted, so outside scholarships that are not tuition-restricted can go toward the rest of your bill.
Do these renew?
The Go Blue Guarantee is re-evaluated every year against that year’s income and assets, for up to four years, and you must reapply for aid annually. The Engineering Scholarship of Honor renews for up to four years or eight terms.
Michigan has no centralized flagship scholarship competition. There is no application portal where a student competes for one big named award against the whole applicant pool. What Michigan has instead is a scattered set of college-level and donor-funded awards, most of them run by LSA or Engineering, a few of them nomination-only, and one marquee award that you cannot apply for at all.
That structure has a real consequence for planning. At a school like Alabama, the scholarship strategy is to hit a number by a date. At Michigan, the strategy is to apply early, get admitted to the right college, and then chase the two or three awards that match your student’s specific college, major, and home address. The biggest single decision a family makes here is the application plan, not the essay.
✅ Can You Stack Scholarships at Michigan?
Aid Type
Stacks?
Michigan Parent Translation
Go Blue Guarantee
Last dollar
It fills the gap to full tuition after Pell, state aid, and tuition-restricted scholarships are counted. Winning another tuition scholarship shrinks the Go Blue Grant rather than adding to it.
LSA scholarships
Usually yes
Coordinated by LSA with the central aid office. But they are tied to LSA. Transfer into Ross, Stamps, or Engineering later and the award does not follow.
Engineering awards
Yes
Combine with other U-M aid and outside money, capped at total cost of attendance.
Alumni Association awards
Yes, by design
The FAM scholarship targets unmet need specifically, so it sits on top of your U-M package instead of replacing it.
Outside scholarships
Depends
Tuition-restricted outside money can reduce your Go Blue Grant. Unrestricted money is more useful because it can go toward housing.
ROTC
Usually
Army, Navy, Marine, and Air Force ROTC all run on campus. Check the award letter for replacement language.
Automatic
Shipman Scholarship
📅 Deadline: November 1 — Early Action is required for consideration. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
$15,000–$30,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Invitation only. Roughly 32 students invited per year out of the entire Early Action pool.
👥 ~32 winners/yr
✚
Stacking & Combining
Shipman awards coordinate with LSA and central U-M financial aid packaging. May be combined with other LSA or need-based awards depending on individual packaging; exact stacking is determined by the Office of Financial Aid.
💡
Strategic Detail
There is no application. Every Early Action admitted LSA student is considered automatically, which makes applying EA the only lever a family actually controls here. Each year about 32 students are invited to campus for a visit and interview. Amounts reported by the Shipman Society run $20,000 a year for Michigan residents and $30,000 for out-of-state full scholars, with invited nominees who are not selected still receiving a meaningful annual award. LSA itself does not publish these figures, so treat them as reported rather than guaranteed.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
A very small, elite cohort of incoming LSA students (roughly 32 invited nominees out of the entire EA applicant pool) selected for exceptional academics, leadership, and talent in the arts and sciences. Even nominees who aren't selected as full scholars still receive a meaningful annual award ($15K in-state or $25K OOS) and membership in the Shipman Society.
App Required
LSA Four-Year Renewable Scholarships
📅 Deadline: Apply as soon as your LSA admission letter arrives. Rolling review means early applications get matched to more funds. · 📢 Results: All scholarship notices sent by April 16. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
👥 ~300 winners/yrMust be a US citizen or permanent resident, admitted to LSA, and planning to enroll full time. Most of these funds weigh financial need as shown by the FAFSA and CSS Profile. A limited number are merit-only, and students considered only for those do not need either form on file.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Coordinated with central Office of Financial Aid packaging and can combine with other LSA and outside awards.
📄
How to Apply
This one catches people. Being admitted to LSA does not put your student in the scholarship pool. They have to log in to the LSA Scholarships portal and submit the application once the admission letter arrives, by April 9. Login runs on the Friend Account they created when applying to U-M, and account verification can take 24 to 48 hours, so do not start this the night before. One application covers every fund they qualify for. If the initial application flags them for a fund with extra criteria, a supplemental form appears afterward. For anything need-based, the FAFSA and CSS Profile have to be on file with the Office of Financial Aid first.
Selection criteria: Holistic review by the LSA Scholarships Office using the admissions application, the LSA scholarship application, academic record, and for most funds, demonstrated financial need.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
LSA hands out roughly 300 of these each year to incoming first-year students. Award amounts vary by fund and LSA does not publish a range. The big thing to understand: if your student later transfers into Ross, Stamps, or Engineering, the LSA scholarship does not go with them. It is tied to staying in LSA.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Incoming LSA students, about 300 a year, chosen on some mix of demonstrated need, merit, or both. The single biggest lever a family controls is timing. Applications are read as they come in, so a student who applies the week their admission letter lands is competing for a fuller pot than one who waits until April 8.
Automaticresidencycareer focus
Alvin M. and Arvella D. Bentley Scholarship
📅 Deadline: No separate deadline. Candidates are drawn from the pool of admitted first-year LSA students, so the November 1 or February 1 admission deadlines are what matter. · 📢 Results: Only nominated students are contacted. Everyone else is still considered for the other Four-Year Renewable Scholarships. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
$15,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Michigan residents only. Nomination only. Two awarded per year.
👥 ~2 winners/yrIncoming first-year LSA students who are Michigan residents, with strong high school academics and leadership, and a stated interest in a career in public service.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Coordinated through LSA Scholarships and the central Office of Financial Aid alongside other institutional aid.
💡
Strategic Detail
$15,000 a year for four straight years, and it is one of the few Michigan awards where the number is actually published. Established in 1983 by the Bentley Foundation to push Michigan students toward public service careers. Six to eight incoming LSA students are invited to campus each year to interview, and two of them get it. Long odds, but the interview invitation alone is a signal, and students who are not selected stay in the running for every other Four-Year Renewable Scholarship.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Michigan residents headed into LSA with a genuine, visible record in public service, government, or community work. Not a student who mentions public service in passing, but one whose whole application points that direction.
Automatic
Ross BBA Scholarships
📅 Deadline: March 15 — My Scholarship Profile in Wolverine Access. ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
Ross BBA scholarships can stack with central U-M aid and external scholarships, subject to your total cost-of-attendance limit as managed by the University's main Financial Aid Office.
💡
Strategic Detail
Every enrolled BBA student is automatically considered for Ross departmental scholarships, funded by corporate and private donors. Most require no separate application. Ross itself tells students to make their enrollment decision without assuming scholarship support, which is worth taking at face value. Most Ross funds are need-based, so file the FAFSA every year even if you are confident you will not qualify.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
BBA students with strong academic records, real leadership experience, and community or professional impact. Most Ross funds also look for documented financial need. Having a polished iMpact resume and a completed FAFSA on file keeps you in the running for need-based funds even if your family isn't expecting to qualify.
App Required
LSA Scholarships (General College-Level)
📅 Deadline: Varies by fund; key dates for four-year renewable and returning-student awards are posted each cycle by the LSA Scholarships Office — check the portal early. ✓ Renews
$2,500–$10,000/yr
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
LSA scholarships can stack with certain central U-M awards and outside scholarships. The LSA Scholarships Office coordinates directly with the Office of Financial Aid to make sure packaging is handled correctly.
📄
How to Apply
Admitted or currently enrolled LSA students apply through the LSA Scholarships Office portal. If you're applying for any need-based funds, make sure your FAFSA and CSS Profile are on file with the Office of Financial Aid before submitting.
Selection criteria: Holistic review by the LSA Scholarships Office covering academic achievement, essay quality, and for many funds, demonstrated financial need.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
LSA houses dozens of endowed, merit, and need-based scholarship funds for incoming and continuing undergraduates. Some are merit-only; many layer in financial need as a key criterion. Award amounts typically range from $2,500 to $10,000 per year.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
LSA students who combine genuine academic achievement with a compelling story and, for many of the endowed funds, demonstrated financial need. Strong essays matter here.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
College of Engineering Need- and Merit-Based Scholarships
📅 Deadline: Application window opens in early May and closes in early June for the following academic year. One application covers both the CoE Need- and Merit-Based Scholarships and the CoE Industry-Sponsored Scholarships. ✓ Renews
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Engineering merit awards can generally be combined with other U-M aid and outside scholarships, subject to your total cost-of-attendance cap as managed by the central Office of Financial Aid.
📄
How to Apply
Current Michigan Engineering undergraduates apply through the CoE scholarship portal during the May to June window. You must declare your major before applying. One form covers both programs.
Selection criteria: Merit-based review considering GPA, academic rigor, activities, and statement quality; financial need factored in for select funds. Departmental committee review.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
This is the pool for students already enrolled in Michigan Engineering, not incoming first-years. Incoming students are handled automatically through the Engineering Scholarship of Honor. One combined application covers both the need- and merit-based program and the industry-sponsored program, and you pick one or both on the form. Industry-sponsored awards are funded as companies send money, so notification can run from mid-August into November.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Enrolled engineering students with a declared major, solid academics, and real involvement. Some funds weigh financial need, so keep the FAFSA current.
Data last verified Sep 24, 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 biggest merit scholarship at Michigan?
The Shipman Scholarship, and you cannot apply for it. Every Early Action admitted LSA student is considered automatically. Roughly 32 students a year are invited to campus for a visit and interview, and LSA nominates about 16 of them. The Shipman Society reports full scholars receive $20,000 a year in state and $30,000 out of state, with nominees who are not selected still receiving a smaller annual award. LSA itself does not publish those figures.
So applying Early Action actually matters for money?
For Shipman specifically, yes, it is the only requirement. More broadly, applying early helps because scholarship committees at both LSA and Engineering review on a rolling basis starting in February. Being in the pile earlier means competing for a fuller pot.
Should we apply Early Decision to improve our odds?
Think hard about it. Michigan’s binding ED is brand new, the university has said demonstrated interest has not historically driven its decisions, and no ED admit rate data exists yet. The costs are concrete: you commit before seeing aid offers from anywhere else, your aid deadline moves up to November 15, and your student becomes ineligible for the Alumni Association’s $5,000 a year FAM scholarship. Early Action gets you a January decision, keeps May 1 flexibility, and keeps every scholarship on the table.
Are there any competitive scholarships we can actually apply for?
Three worth your time. The LSA Four-Year Renewable Scholarship application, due April 9 after admission. The Joseph M. Geisinger Scholarship for out-of-state engineering students from 33 states. And the Bell Scholarship for STEM students from Virginia, Chicago-area schools, or certain Michigan counties. The last two are covered in Hidden Gems because almost nobody finds them.
Does Michigan offer a National Merit package?
No. Michigan does not sponsor National Merit awards. Finalists may still receive corporate-sponsored or NMSC-funded awards, but nothing comes from the university for the designation itself.
Is Michigan a Stamps Scholarship school?
Not anymore, and this trips up a lot of families because Michigan was one of the two original Stamps schools in 2006. The four-year Stamps Scholarship for incoming freshmen ran through 2020 and has been closed since. The separate Stamps Leadership Scholars program for current undergraduate researchers is in its final cycle and sunsets in 2026 with no 2026-27 applications. Any list still showing Michigan as a Stamps partner is out of date.
🧠 Parent Strategy: At Michigan, Money Follows Your Address and Your Major
Here is the pattern once you look at enough Michigan awards. The university has very little general-purpose merit money, but it sits on a pile of donor trusts written decades ago with oddly specific conditions attached. Virginia residents. Nineteen named Michigan counties. Thirty-three states, but only for engineering. Rural counties, but only for five majors. The Upper Peninsula. Chicago parochial schools.
Nobody at Michigan is going to look this up for you. Do it yourself:
Read the restriction list on every gem below and check it against your actual county and high school.
Complete My Scholarship Profile in Wolverine Access so departments can find your student.
Submit the LSA Scholarship application by April 9 if your student is in LSA. One form covers about 40 merit awards and roughly 300 four-year renewable awards.
Search your regional alumni club on the Alumni Association site. Around 400 students a year get club money and it is purely geographic.
Screenshot every confirmation. These offices do not share systems with each other.
Parent translation: if you skip this step at a school like Alabama, you still get automatic merit. If you skip it at Michigan, you may get nothing at all.
💎 Hidden Gem Scholarships
None of these are automatic, most have their own application, and several are restricted in ways that either fit your family perfectly or not at all. Check the restriction line first, then the deadline.
App Requiredgeographicmajor
Joseph M. Geisinger Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Submit the U-M admission application as early as you can. Admission processing takes 10 to 12 weeks, and if the admission decision has not landed by the late-February committee meeting, the scholarship application cannot be considered. · 📢 Results: Committee meets in late February. ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
$20,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Restricted to residents of 33 specified states and to students entering the College of Engineering. Requires its own application.
First-year students entering the College of Engineering who are residents of one of 33 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming. Every one of those is an out-of-state address, which is exactly the point.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Combines with other U-M aid and outside scholarships, subject to the total cost-of-attendance cap managed by the central Office of Financial Aid.
📄
How to Apply
This one does need its own application, separate from admission. It opens around November on the College of Engineering scholarships site. You can submit it before you have an admission decision, and you should, but the student must be admitted to CoE by the time the committee meets in late February. That is the real deadline behind the deadline: get the U-M application in early enough that a 10 to 12 week processing window still clears February.
Selection criteria: Committee review in late February of the scholarship application alongside the admission record.
💡
Strategic Detail
If your student is applying to Michigan Engineering from one of 33 named states, stop and read this one twice. It is $20,000 a year for four years, funded by a trust Joseph Geisinger set up during his lifetime, and it exists specifically for out-of-state engineering students. At a school where out-of-state families are routinely told to expect very little institutional money, this is $80,000 over four years with a separate application almost nobody fills out. Renewal needs satisfactory progress and a 3.0 cumulative GPA. No financial need requirement.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Out-of-state engineering admits from the 33 qualifying states who actually found the application. The restriction list is the whole story here. This is not a national competition against 100,000 applicants, it is a small pool defined by geography and major, and most families never learn it exists.
App Requiredgeographicmajor
Gloria Wille Bell and Carlos R. Bell Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Applications have historically been due March 1 through the Bell Charitable Trust, which is separate from anything U-M runs. The posted cycle year on the CoE page lags, so confirm the current date before you rely on it. ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 4 yrs)
$10,000–$20,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Restricted by geography and major. External application through the Bell Charitable Trust, not through U-M.
🏫 3.0+ GPARequires a 3.0 high school GPA and one of the following: residency in Virginia; residency in one of 19 Michigan counties (Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Eaton, Hillsdale, Ingham, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Lenawee, Livingston, Monroe, Oakland, St. Joseph, Van Buren, Washtenaw, Wayne); graduation from New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois; graduation from the Chicago public, parochial, or private school system; or graduation from the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in Aurora.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stacks with U-M institutional aid and outside awards, coordinated through the central Office of Financial Aid.
📄
How to Apply
This has its own application, filed with the Bell Charitable Trust rather than with Michigan. Start from the CoE scholarship page, which carries the current link and contact. Because it runs outside the university, it does not show up in the LSA portal or Wolverine Access, and nobody at U-M will remind you about it.
💡
Strategic Detail
A quirky one, and quirky is good news if you happen to fit. $20,000 a year for students from Virginia, Chicago-area schools, New Trier, or the Illinois Math and Science Academy. $10,000 a year for students from 19 specific Michigan counties. Four years, renewable with a 3.0. Open to both Engineering and LSA students in engineering, math, physics, computer science, or related sciences. The Bells set this up from their estate in 2001 and it is administered by a trust in Richmond, not by U-M, which is a big part of why so few families find it.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
STEM-bound students who happen to live in Virginia, a Chicago-area school district, or one of the 19 named Michigan counties. Eligibility here is almost entirely an accident of address, so it costs nothing to check the county list and a lot to skip it.
Automaticgeographic
U.P. Scholars Program
📅 Deadline: Tied to the admission cycle. Check the Becoming a U.P. Scholar page for current steps and dates. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
⚠ Upper Peninsula residents only. Award amounts are not published; contact the program directly.
Incoming students from Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Scholars come from across the U.P., from Gogebic to Chippewa counties.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Coordinated with U-M institutional and need-based aid through the Office of Financial Aid.
💡
Strategic Detail
If you live in the Upper Peninsula, this is the most underused door into Michigan. The program started in 2020 as a partnership between LSA, the Ross School of Business, and the Office of Financial Aid, and it provides substantial scholarship aid across four years exclusively for incoming U.P. students. The money is only half of it. Scholars get one-on-one coaching with professional staff, leadership development, and a built-in community of students from the same part of the state, which matters more than families expect when a kid moves six hours from home. U-M does not publish the award amounts, so ask directly.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Incoming first-year students from Upper Peninsula counties. The pool is small by design, which is precisely what makes it worth chasing if your address qualifies.
Four years of funding plus mentorship and a tight community, for first-generation students at U-M. Part of the national Kessler Scholars Collaborative, which now spans 15 other institutions, and it was founded here at Michigan. The program is distinctive because the support is wrap-around rather than a check: coaching, community, and staff who stay with students from admission through graduation. Dollar amounts are not published.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
First-gen students with academic promise, as identified by admissions.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Onlygeographicmajorcohort
Leinweber STEM Scholars Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Applications run January 1 through early June. The 2027-28 window opens January 1, 2027. Late applications are not accepted. · 📢 Results: Notifications by late July. ✓ Renews (3 GPA, 3 yrs)
$10,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Cohort-locked. Current eligibility requires a Summer or Fall 2025 admit term, so students entering later may not qualify at all.
🏫 3.0+ GPA🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Can stack with other LSA and university aid. No FAFSA/CSS required, so this is accessible to families who may not qualify for need-based aid but still want meaningful support.
📄
How to Apply
Apply through the LSA Scholarships portal during the open window (January 1 through early June each year). No FAFSA or CSS Profile required — this is a merit/mission-based award, not need-based. Only students who meet all eligibility requirements will see this scholarship appear under 'My Applications' in the portal.
Selection criteria: Merit and mission-based review; academic standing (3.0+ GPA), STEM major alignment, rural Michigan residency, and stated commitment to Michigan STEM workforce.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
$10,000 a year, renewable up to three years, for LSA students from rural Michigan counties majoring in Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, or Physics. Excluded counties are Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Kent, Genesee, Washtenaw, Ottawa, Ingham, and Kalamazoo. No FAFSA or CSS Profile required, which makes it rare. Read this one carefully before you count on it: the published eligibility currently requires an admit term of Summer or Fall 2025. It started as a pilot tied to a specific cohort, and LSA has not said whether later entering classes will be eligible. Worth an email to the LSA Scholarships Office before you build it into a plan.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
LSA students who grew up in rural Michigan counties (outside the major metro exclusion list), are enrolled in Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, or Physics, and maintain a 3.0 GPA. This scholarship is tailor-made for students from smaller towns who want to study STEM at Michigan and give back to the state's workforce. It's genuinely underutilized because most families from those counties don't know it exists.
App Requiredincomefirst genapplication plan
Future Alumni of Michigan (FAM) Scholars Program
📅 Deadline: Applications open in January for the following fall and the 2026 cycle has closed. Because it requires your financial aid notice, you apply after your U-M aid package arrives, not before. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
$5,000/yr
✔ Stackable
⚠ Early Decision applicants are not eligible. Household AGI must be under $150,000. US citizens and permanent residents only.
Admitted first-year degree-seeking students at Ann Arbor who applied Early Action or Regular Decision. Early Decision applicants are not eligible. US citizens and permanent residents only. Combined household income below $150,000 by adjusted gross income. Priority goes to first-generation college students.
✚
Stacking & Combining
Designed to sit on top of your U-M package and cover unmet need, so it adds to rather than replaces institutional aid.
📄
How to Apply
Apply through the Alumni Association site once applications open in January. You will need your U-M financial aid notice in hand, so the sequence is: apply to U-M by the November 1 or February 1 deadline, file FAFSA and CSS Profile by March 1, receive your aid package, then apply for FAM. Scholars commit to one required alumni networking event per semester.
💡
Strategic Detail
$5,000 a year, paid $2,500 per semester, renewable for up to eight consecutive semesters. The Alumni Association launched this in 2026 after discontinuing the LEAD Scholars program, and it is aimed at low-to-moderate-income admitted students, with priority for first-generation families. Two features make it unusually useful. It targets unmet need, meaning it comes in after your U-M package to cover what is left rather than displacing aid you already have. And it follows the student if they change majors or transfer to another school or college within Ann Arbor, which LSA's own scholarships do not. Read the eligibility line carefully: applying Early Decision disqualifies your student from this award.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Admitted students from households under $150,000 AGI who still have a gap after Michigan's package, with first-generation students prioritized. For out-of-state families this is one of the few need-based awards at Michigan that is actually open to you.
Automatic
SMTD Merit Scholarships
📅 Deadline: SMTD is Regular Decision only, with its own December 1 application deadline. Scholarship consideration happens after admission, so the audition or interview is what decides it. ✓ Renews (4 yrs)
Varies
✔ Stackable
Holistic / Status Based
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stackable with need-based aid. Not stacked with other talent-based awards.
💡
Strategic Detail
SMTD commits more than $3 million a year to undergraduate scholarships and calls them merit-based and need-informed, meaning they reward artistic and academic strength while also looking at what the FAFSA and CSS Profile show. Every admitted student is considered, renewable for four years. Two things families miss: SMTD does not participate in Early Action or Early Decision and has a December 1 deadline of its own, and music students on merit scholarships are required to play in a large ensemble.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Admitted Music, Theatre, or Dance students whose audition or portfolio stands out. Not every admitted student gets one.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
U-M Alumni Club Scholarships
📅 Deadline: Varies by club, and the spread is wide. Chicago closes in early April for incoming freshmen. Other clubs run later or key off enrollment. Find your club and check its own page. Non-Renewable
$1,500–$5,000/yr
✔ Stackable
👥 ~about 400 students a year across all clubs winners/yr🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Stackable with need-based or university awards.
📄
How to Apply
Find your regional club on the Alumni Association site and go to its scholarship page. Most clubs require their own short application or questionnaire and set their own deadline. Several notify students directly once they are admitted, so keep an eye on email in the spring.
U-M alumni clubs collectively support around 400 students a year from their own local areas, and the amounts vary a lot by club. Southwest Florida runs $1,500 a year. Grand Rapids has awarded $4,000 to $5,000 and runs the largest club scholarship program in the country. Some clubs renew, some are one year at a time. This is entirely geography-driven, so the only thing that matters is whether an active club covers your county.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Admitted students from a club footprint with an active, well-funded local club. Whether this is worth anything to your family comes down to geography, not stats.
App Required⚠ All Undergrad Only
LSA Returning Student Scholarship
📅 Deadline: Same as application close date — no rolling awards. · 📢 Results: Award notices go out mid-August, before fall term begins. Non-Renewable
Varies
✔ Stackable
🎓 All Undergrad
✚
Stacking & Combining
Coordinated with central need-based aid packaging. Where possible, award dollars are applied to reduce loans or work-study before being counted as grant aid.
📄
How to Apply
Log in to the LSA Scholarships portal using your UMich email and password. Submit the Returning Student Scholarship application during the open window (January 1 through early June each year). Make sure your current FAFSA and CSS Profile are on file with the Office of Financial Aid — awards won't be packaged until OFA has processed your need.
Selection criteria: LSA Scholarships Office evaluates academic standing and demonstrated financial need as determined by OFA packaging.
✎ Essays
💡
Strategic Detail
This one is genuinely re-applicable. It does not auto-renew, but a student can and should apply every single year from January 1 through early June. Amounts are set by individual financial need. Awards are not reviewed until the Office of Financial Aid has packaged the student for fall and winter, which is why notices land in August rather than spring.
🕵
Who Actually Wins
Most winners: Current LSA undergraduates (including internal and cross-campus transfers into LSA) who demonstrate financial need and are in good academic standing. The good news: you can (and should) apply every single year, since it's non-renewable but re-applicable annually.
Data last verified Sep 24, 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.
❓ Hidden Gems FAQ
We are out of state. Is there really anything here for us?
Two things, and both are real. The Geisinger Scholarship is $20,000 a year for four years, restricted to engineering students from 33 named states, all of them out of state. The Bell Scholarship is $20,000 a year for STEM students from Virginia, New Trier High School, Chicago-area school systems, or the Illinois Math and Science Academy. Both need their own application and both are quiet enough that the applicant pools stay small.
Why do these have such strange eligibility rules?
Because they are donor trusts, not university programs. Somebody left money with conditions attached, and those conditions are now the rules. The Bell trust is even administered by a law firm in Richmond rather than by Michigan, which is a big part of why it stays under the radar.
What happens if we apply Early Decision?
You lose the FAM scholarship. The Alumni Association’s Future Alumni of Michigan program is $5,000 a year, renewable up to eight semesters, open to households under $150,000 in adjusted gross income, and its eligibility criteria explicitly exclude Early Decision applicants. If your family is anywhere near that income range, factor this into the ED decision.
Is LEAD Scholars still an option?
No. The Alumni Association discontinued the LEAD Scholars program after 16 years, citing compliance with federal and state law. Current scholars keep their funding with no adverse financial impact, but there are no new awards. The FAM scholars program is the replacement.
The Leinweber scholarship looks perfect for us. Can we count on it?
Be careful with this one. It is $10,000 a year for rural Michigan LSA students in five STEM majors, with no FAFSA or CSS Profile required, which makes it genuinely unusual. But the published eligibility currently requires an admit term of Summer or Fall 2025. It started as a cohort-specific pilot and LSA has not said whether later entering classes qualify. Email the LSA Scholarships Office before you build a plan around it.
Can current students apply for these, or is it freshman-only?
Several are open to continuing students. The LSA Returning Student Scholarship reopens January 1 each year and can be reapplied for annually. The Leinweber award runs the same window. The College of Engineering need- and merit-based application opens in early May. Alumni club scholarships often accept continuing students too.
How do we know if we won?
It varies by office, which is part of the problem. LSA sends all notices by April 16. Engineering notifies by mid-April and posts the award in Wolverine Access. LSA Returning Student awards go out in mid-August, because they are not packaged until the aid office finishes. Alumni clubs notify on their own schedules, often by direct email in the spring.
A quick terminology note, because it changes what you should expect. Michigan does not have an Honors College in the way Alabama, Arizona State, or South Carolina do. It has the LSA Honors Program, housed inside the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, plus separate honors tracks in other colleges such as Engineering Honors. Michigan reports “honors program” on its own Common Data Set, and the distinction matters for one specific reason.
The honest answer on honors and money: At a lot of flagships, honors admission unlocks a scholarship tier. At Michigan it generally does not. LSA Honors is an academic program, not a funding program, and it does not carry its own scholarship pool the way an honors college often does. If your student is choosing between schools partly on honors-linked merit aid, Michigan is not where that math works out.
What Honors Actually Gets You
Smaller classes in a very large university. Michigan enrolls over 35,000 undergraduates. Honors seminars are where a student gets a room with twelve people in it instead of three hundred.
A research pathway. Honors students are pointed toward the thesis track and toward faculty relationships early, which is the actual currency for graduate school and for nationally competitive awards later.
Advising that knows the system. At a school this size, dedicated advising is worth more than it sounds.
A community. Honors housing and cohort programming give a student a smaller world to land in freshman year.
This institution does not offer designated Honors College scholarships at this time.
Where the money actually lives instead
LSA Scholarships Office: roughly 300 four-year renewable awards and about 40 merit awards a year. One application, due April 9.
College of Engineering: the Engineering Scholarship of Honor, automatic for admitted domestic students, plus the Geisinger and Bell applications.
Your college or department: Ross, SMTD, Nursing, and Kinesiology each run their own funds. My Scholarship Profile in Wolverine Access is how they find your student.
Nationally competitive awards: this is where honors pays off indirectly. Michigan has a strong track record placing students into Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater, and Fulbright competitions, and those relationships usually start in an honors seminar sophomore year.
Honors — FAQs (University of Michigan)
Is honors admission automatic?
No. LSA Honors admission is separate from general admission and is competitive. Michigan publishes honors application information through the Office of Undergraduate Admissions alongside first-year requirements.
Does getting into Honors increase my scholarship odds?
Not directly, and we would rather tell you that than imply otherwise. LSA scholarship decisions and honors admission are separate processes run by separate offices. An honors admit and a non-honors admit submit the same LSA Scholarship application by the same April 9 deadline.
Is there an honors option outside LSA?
Yes. The College of Engineering runs its own honors program, including the Engineering Global Leadership track, and those students access CoE scholarship opportunities like any other engineering student.
Can out-of-state students apply?
Yes, and 45% of Michigan’s first-year class is from out of state. Honors admission does not have a residency preference.
Are honors courses harder?
Different rather than harder. Smaller sections, more discussion, more writing, more direct faculty contact. The workload is comparable; the expectations for participation are higher.
Michigan is one of a handful of public universities that competes with the Ivies across essentially every field at once. It is an R1 research institution with a $21 billion endowment, a 15 to 1 student-faculty ratio, a 97% first-year retention rate, and a 93% six-year graduation rate. Those last two numbers are the ones parents should actually care about, because they mean students who start here finish here.
The thing that changes your application strategy:
At Michigan, which school you apply to matters more than the university’s acceptance rate. Some colleges admit first-year students directly and some do not. LSA, Engineering, Ross, Taubman (Architecture), Marsal (Education), Nursing, Kinesiology, Stamps (Art & Design), Music, Theatre & Dance, and Pharmacy take first-year applicants. The School of Information, the School of Public Health, and the Ford School of Public Policy do not admit first-years directly. You start in LSA and move over later through an internal process. If your student wants public policy or information science, plan on that path.
What Michigan Is Actually Known For
Ross School of Business: consistently a top-5 undergraduate business program. Direct-admit since 2017, and it requires an Admissions Portfolio submitted with the U-M application. Note that the preferred-admission path into Ross through Engineering has been sunset.
College of Engineering: broad and deep, with real strength in aerospace, mechanical, nuclear, and computer science. Also the only place at Michigan with anything resembling automatic merit money, which is worth weighing.
Computer Science: offered through both Engineering and LSA. Good news for 2027 applicants: the advance selection process for CS has been removed in both colleges because teaching capacity grew and enrollment stabilized.
Life sciences and pre-health: Biology, Psychology, and the broader social sciences are among the largest majors on campus, with 867, 734, and 990 bachelor’s degrees conferred in a single year respectively.
Music, Theatre & Dance: one of the premier conservatory-caliber programs inside a major research university, and the only U-M school with its own December 1 Regular Decision deadline.
Nursing, Kinesiology, Taubman Architecture, and Penny W. Stamps Art & Design: all direct-admit, all with their own supplemental requirements, and all with their own departmental funding.
Public policy and information: the Ford School and the School of Information are genuinely elite, but they are upper-division destinations rather than first-year majors.
New and worth knowing for fall 2027:
Beginning fall 2027, every LSA first-year student’s first-semester grades post as pass or no credit on external transcripts and do not count toward GPA. Students still receive grades and instructor feedback in every course; the grades simply do not follow them out into the world. No other flagship does this. It is designed to take some of the pressure off the transition semester, and it is a genuine point of difference if your student is a strong but anxious performer. Also new: the School of Public Health opens as a preferred admission option through LSA, and Taubman now accepts Early Action applications.
🔗 Official University of Michigan Links
Michigan’s scholarship information is spread across the central financial aid office, individual colleges, and the Alumni Association, and those offices do not always say the same thing. Use the pages below to verify deadlines, award terms, and costs before you make any decision.
Michigan splits cleanly into two very different conversations, and which one you are having depends almost entirely on where you live.
If you are a Michigan family earning $125,000 or less, this is one of the best deals in American higher education and the whole game is paperwork. File the FAFSA and the CSS Profile by March 1, every year, and tuition is covered. Do not let the CSS Profile be the thing that costs you $76,000.
If you are out of state, go in with clear eyes. Michigan is a great school that is not going to discount itself much for you, and the average institutional award to a first-year student without financial need was $4,587 against an $88,394 price tag. The money that does exist for you is specific and quiet: the Engineering Scholarship of Honor if your student is in CoE, the Geisinger Scholarship if you live in one of 33 states, the Bell Scholarship if you are in Virginia or Chicago, the FAM scholarship if your household is under $150,000 and you did not apply Early Decision. None of those will find you. You have to go find them.
For everybody: apply Early Action rather than Early Decision unless Michigan is unambiguously your first choice and you can afford it without comparing offers. Submit the LSA Scholarship application by April 9 if your student lands in LSA. Fill out My Scholarship Profile. And check the restriction lists on the hidden gems against your own county, because at Michigan that is where the real money hides.
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.
Leo Dimilo
Leo built CollegeReadyParent after going through the college affordability process with his own daughter and finding that almost nothing written for parents was actually useful. He writes every guide on this site himself, verifies the numbers against the colleges’ own documents, and keeps it free with no paywall and no lead generation. More about Leo →
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