Financial Aid is awarded to students who have completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The Office of Financial Aid will give first priority to students who file their FAFSA by March 1.

Scholarships and grants

We have a limited number of scholarships and grants available at JMU to incoming transfer students. Some scholarship opportunities at JMU available to incoming transfer students include:

ONLY for VCCS transfer students

• This grant is available to all eligible transfer students from the Virginia Community College System (VCCS)

• Student may receive up to $2,000 for science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM) degree or up to $1,000 for all other majors

• Eligibility:

1. Students must be transferring to a 4-year institution from a Virginia Community College

2. Have earned an Associate’s degree with a minimum 3.0 GPA

3. Must meet certain financial aid criteria (e.g. Virginia residency, estimated family contribution below $12,000, submitted FAFSA)

4. Must be enrolled at JMU as a full-time undergraduate student

For students with a high financial need

Financing the cost of higher education is a major barrier that has kept qualified and deserving students from under-served backgrounds from attending college.

To meet this challenge, JMU developed the Centennial Scholars program to lower this barrier for qualified under-served students who would not be able to enroll at a four-year institution.

A merit-based scholarship with priority given to students completing their second year of college

The Madison Awards for Academic Excellence are merit-based awards which recognize a broad spectrum of accomplishment and potential. Academic colleges and departments are responsible for selecting individuals who posses scholastic achievement within a particular area of study and demonstrate promise to the university.