Lottery Scholarships

Lottery Scholarships Information


Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship

State Scholarship
HOPE, Aspire, Access, and Merit

Application: FAFSA (yearly)

Deadline: Sept. 1 for fall starters and Feb. 1 for spring and summer starters.

 

HOPE Scholarship (Base)

Award: 0 - $3,200

Eligibility

  • Must be a Tennessee Resident
  • Enroll within 16 months of HS graduation
  • At least half-time (6 hours), awards are pro-rated based on enrollment See *Exceptions.
  • 3.0 HS GPA or at least 21 on ACT
  • Degree seeking
  • Undergraduate
  • Meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
  • Not in default on student loan or owe a federal repayment

*Exceptions for less than 6 hours (half-time) - Must complete the Lottery Exception Form.

  • Last Semester to graduate
  • Program has less than half-time enrollment requirement
  • Only course in program offered in that semester


Eligibility shall be reviewed by the institution at the end of the semesters in which the student has reached their benchmarks by attempting a total of 24, 48, 72, 96, or 120 semester hours

Must have a minimum cumulative *TELS GPA of 2.75 after 24 & 48 attempted semester hours

Must have a minimum cumulative *TELS GPA of 3.0 after 72, 96, and 120 attempted semester hours

Must be enrolled in fall and spring semesters and maintain enrollment status as of the 14th day of class

Aspire Award (must be HOPE recipient)

Award: 0 - $500 supplement to Tennessee HOPE Scholarship

Eligibility

  • Meet Tennessee HOPE Scholarship requirements AND
  • Must have parents' or independent student's and spouse's adjusted gross income of $36,000 or less on IRS tax form.

 

General Assembly Merit Scholarship (must be HOPE recipient)

Award amount: 0- $1,000 supplement per year to Tennessee HOPE Scholarship

Eligibility

  • Meet Tennessee HOPE Scholarship requirements AND
  • Entering freshmen must have a minimum 3.75 GPA AND 29 ACT (1280 SAT)
  • Home school students must complete 12 college credit hours (at least 4 courses) with a minimum 3.0 GPA at a Tennessee college or university while they are enrolled in the home school program.

 

Lottery Retention Standards

Students must be in a degree seeking program; certificate programs are not eligible.

In order to continue receiving the Lottery scholarship, students must meet the following criteria: Student must meet the institution's SAP (Satisfactory Academic Progress) standards for each term. *TELS GPA Eligibility will be reviewed by the institution at the end of the semesters in which the student has reached a benchmark attempting a total of 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 semester hours:

  • Must have a minimum cumulative *TELS GPA of 2.75 after 24 and 48 attempted semester hours; AND
  • Must have a minimum cumulative *TELS GPA of 3.0 after 72, 96, and any subsequent multiples of 24 attempted semester hours thereafter; OR
  • Provisional Lottery - an exception is made if a student has between a 2.75 - 2.99 cumulative *TELS GPA at the 72 hour benchmark or any subsequent benchmark thereafter. The student will be reviewed on a semester-by-semester basis and must maintain full-time enrollment each semester and must have a semester GPA of at least a 3.0
  • If a student ceases to be academically eligible for the HOPE Scholarship, the student may regain the award one-time only. The award may be re-established once the student meets any of the above criteria and continues to meet non-academic requirements

Student must be continuously enrolled at an eligible postsecondary institution in the fall and spring semesters and maintain satisfactory academic progress.

Eligibility terminates when the student has earned an advanced degree or five years has passed.

Students must maintain their enrollment status as of the 14th day of the term.

Note: In order to ensure as many students as possible retain the Lottery scholarship, WSCC has established the 14th day of each term as the census date for determining eligibility. Thus, students may adjust their schedule prior to the 14th day without losing their scholarship for future terms. Failure to complete all courses enrolled as of the 14th day could result in the loss of the Lottery scholarship. Please check with the Financial Aid office before officially, or unofficially, changing your enrollment status.

Option to Regain Lottery Scholarship (except Merit)

Available One time only

This option allows students who lost their lottery (due to GPA) the opportunity to regain it by reaching the required cumulative *TELS GPA at any subsequent benchmarks. This does include remedial hours. Awards are not retroactive. The student will regain eligibility the first term after they have achieved the required *TELS GPA if they stay continuously enrolled and have not changed enrollment status in a term.

It is the responsibility of the student to complete the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship Request for Reinstatement Form and submit it to the Financial aid Office when they want to use this option.

 

Option for Reinstatement Due to Grade Change

Request for Reinstatement Due to Grade Change: A student who obtains a grade change must notify the Financial Aid Office within 30 calendar days of the grade change to request reinstatement of the TELS award.

  • If the grade change makes the student eligible for a TELS award, the student can then be awarded.

 

Option to Repeat One Class

Available One time only

This option allows students to repeat a course and utilize only the higher of the two grades in the calculation of the postsecondary *TELS GPA. Credit hours count for both classes in determining attempted hours for benchmark purposes. 
 
It is the responsibility of the student to complete the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship Course Repeat Form and submit it to the Financial Aid Office when they want to use this option.
 
Additional information for Lottery is available at:  Tennessee HOPE Scholarship

 

Appeal Process

for Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship (TELS)

Complete the relevant appeal form. Attach verifiable dated documentation of medical or personal reasons listed on form and a written explanation. The appeal will be reviewed by the IRP (Institutional Review Panel). The student will be notified of the results in writing and via MyWS.

NOTE: Appeal forms are available in the Financial Aid Office or by choosing the appropriate form on this website.

Appeals cannot be considered if Lottery eligibility is lost due to GPA.

Reasons that may be considered for Lottery Appeals

Change of Enrollment Status: A recipient of the TELS may not withdraw or drop below full-time enrollment after the 14th calendar day (census date) of the semester and maintain their scholarship unless the student requests and the institution approves the change in enrollment.

  • Approved - the TELS award will remain in the student's account for the current semester. However, it may be adjusted to reflect actual enrollment. This may vary by individual case.
  • Denied - The student completes the drop or withdrawal process; the student will be ineligible for the TELS award for future semesters. The student may appeal the decision to TSAC; see Appeals to TSAC below.

Leave of Absence: A recipient of the TELS may be granted a medical or personal leave of absence and resume receiving the TELS award(s) upon resumption of attendance as long as all other applicable eligibility criteria are met.

  • Approved - the TELS award will be reinstated beginning the semester that the student resumes his/her education.
  • Denied - the student will lose the TELS for all subsequent semesters. The student may appeal the decision to TSAC; see Appeals to TSAC below.

 

Appeals to TSAC

To appeal Denied decisions rendered by the Institutional Review Pane (lRP), the student must appeal to the Appeals Panel at Tennessee Student's Assistance Corporation (TSAC) within 45 calendar days from the date the IRP decision was delivered to the student.

  • The student will be notified by TSAC of a decision after an appeal is filed and documentation is received
  • The TELS Award Appeals Panel at TSAC is the final administrative appeal.

 

*TELS GPA

Your TELS (Lottery) GPA may differ from your overall combined GPA. TELS GPA includes all attempted hours AFTER high school. All attempts of repeated courses are included unless student has requested to use their one-time repeat option for a class.

To view your Lottery eligibility:

Log into your MyWS account

  • Select Student Records
  • Select TELS Eligibility
  • Select the current term – This will show your TELS GPA and Eligibility Status