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HOPE (Lottery) Scholarship

The HOPE (Lottery) Scholarship is only available to Tennessee residents that have resided in TN for one year.

Award Amounts

  • You are eligible for a total of up to $20,400 for 4 years or 6,400 for 2 years.
  • It is available for any two-year or four-year college in the state of TN.

Applying for the HOPE

To be eligible, you must do a couple of things.

  • First, you must complete the FAFSA. This is how you tell the government and the college how much money your family made in the previous year. You may qualify for other money based just on your income too. Money that you receive based on your family’s income is usually known as grant money. It doesn’t have to be paid back!! The money you receive based on your grades is known as scholarship money. It doesn’t have to be paid back either. So be sure to complete the FAFSA during the fall of your senior year.
  • Second, you must have a minimum of a 21 composite ACT (980 old SAT or 1060 new SAT), or graduate an overall unweighted 3.0 or better grade point average (GPA). You don't have to do both. 

Retaining the HOPE

To keep the HOPE Scholarship, you must maintain a college GPA of 2.75 after attempting 24- and 48-hour benchmarks.

What terminates the HOPE Scholarship?

Almost 50% of students in TN lose the Hope Scholarship after one year in college. What are some things you can do now to make sure that you earn the Hope Scholarship and keep it while in college?  Begin good study and work habits now, and take challenging classes, so you are prepared.

Please contact your counselor with questions!