First-Time, Full-Time Incoming Freshman Only: 2023 High School Graduates
Freshman scholarships are available to high school seniors fully admitted to Southern
Miss for the fall semester immediately following high school graduation. The priority
admission deadline for all possible scholarship consideration is DECEMBER 1. Scholarship applications begin closing as early as January 15th, so we want to make
sure you have adequate time to apply for all available scholarship opportunities for
the upcoming year.
A completed admission file includes an application for admission, the $45 application
fee, your high school transcript, and ACT or SAT scores. A current Free Application
for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is required for all undergraduate scholarships. The
Southern Miss priority date for FAFSA completion for scholarship consideration is
December 15.
* Students who are classified as freshman by the criteria above do not qualify for
transfer scholarships. Freshman scholarships cannot be stacked with transfer scholarships.
For Freshman Academic Scholarships, Designation-Based Scholarships, and Competitive
Scholarships, only standardized test scores (ACT or SAT) earned through December of
student's senior year will be considered.
For students exclusively submitting SAT scores, the combined scores of the Critical
Reading and Quantitative sections will be the standardized test scores of record for
the purposes of scholarship awarding and Honors College admission consideration.
This score will be converted to the equivalent ACT score based on the testing concordance
in place at the time of the testing date. (Click here and view Table A2.)
For students taking the December standardized test during their senior year, official
scores must be submitted to the Office of Admissions by February 1 for scholarship
consideration. Notifications regarding an updated scholarship offer will be mailed
in February.
The University of Southern Mississippi does accept super score ACT for scholarship
purposes. (This only applies to incoming Freshman Academic Year 2022 and beyond. Previous
years are ineligible for superscore criteria.)
Core GPA is calculated using the student's grades earned in coursework that is part
of the College Preparatory Curriculum (CPC) as set forth by the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning.
Core GPA is calculated on a four-point scale; thus, weighted grades earned in AP,
advanced or honors classes are not calculated into core GPA.
For freshman scholarship consideration, core GPA will be calculated from the official
high school transcript based on the student's first six semesters of high school work.
High school students with dual enrollment credit will still be considered for freshman
scholarships as long as they are attending Southern Miss the fall semester immediately
following high school graduation.
All University offered scholarships are available in the GO System. Once a student completes the General Application, the student is then matched to
various scholarship applications within the system or can search among 900 options.
After reviewing the brief description provided, the student may then determine if
they would like to complete the additional scholarship application(s). We highly encourage
students to apply for as many additional scholarships as possible each year. Applying for a scholarship does not guarantee receival of the award. All offers will
be sent to the student's USM email address. Offers can be made at anytime during the year, but the majority of offers will be
made by May 1st. This process will need to be completed each year before the February 15th priority deadline.