Palmetto Fellows Scholarship: Eligibility and Award Details

The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship is a merit-based program established in 1988 and administered by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE). It aims to support academically talented South Carolina high school students pursuing their first baccalaureate degree at an accredited university. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the scholarship's eligibility criteria, award amounts, and other important details.

Application Process and Deadlines

Students must apply for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship through their high school guidance office, submitting the application to the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE).

The CHE has two application windows: Early Awards and Late Awards.

Early Awards

For Early Awards, the high school counselor/representative must submit the application and required documentation to the Commission on Higher Education (CHE) for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship by April 15th of the student’s senior year. If the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday, the deadline is the preceding Friday. The South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE) will begin accepting Palmetto Fellows applications for Early Awards around May 1 during students’ junior year in high school and will continue accepting applications through April 15 of their senior year.

Late Awards

For Late Awards, the high school counselor/representative must submit the application and required documentation to the CHE for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship by June 30th of the student’s senior year. If the deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday, the deadline is the preceding Friday. Students cannot use the Early Awards criteria to be eligible for the Late Awards.

Counselors identify eligible students and submit applications electronically through College NET. CHE reviews applications on an ongoing basis.

General Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship, students generally need to meet certain academic criteria. These criteria may include:

Achieving a minimum score on the SAT or ACT.
Attaining a specific GPA.
Ranking within a certain percentage of their high school class.

Score at least 1200 on the SAT (25 on the ACT). GPA’s must be reported to at least two decimal places and cannot be rounded.

To use rank as an eligibility criterion, the high school or home school association must have a policy on the rank that has been reviewed to verify compliance with the South Carolina Uniform Grading Policy and established Regulations for the State Scholarship programs. For the PFS those schools and home school associations that do rank as a policy, and have fewer than twenty students, then the top two students (at the end of either the sophomore, junior, or senior academic year) regardless of rank will be able to use rank as an eligibility criterion. Rank is calculated by multiplying the number in class by six percent. If the result is not a whole number, then you should round it up to the next whole number. Private institutions that do not utilize the SC Uniform Grading Policy, out-of-state high schools, and the third option must contact the Commission to determine which eligibility criteria must be used to qualify.

Award Amount and Usage

The Palmetto Fellows award amount is determined annually by the South Carolina General Assembly. While the vast majority of incoming freshman Palmetto Fellows Scholarship recipients will receive $6,700, there is a cap on the total amount of funding that can be awarded to an individual student per year from the state of South Carolina. Currently, the maximum value is $6,700 for the first year and up to $7,500 for each of the next three years. Students who are named Palmetto Fellows will receive a minimum of $10,000 in institutional aid. The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship is credited to your student account to satisfy any charges. Excess aid is refunded to the student.

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The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship is typically available during the Fall and Spring semesters. A student who is part time in their final semester prior to graduation may receive a pro-rated Palmetto Fellows award.

The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship cannot be used to fund graduate education. It is only available to students pursuing their first baccalaureate degree from an accredited university. If a student graduates before using all eight semesters, that student forfeits any remaining Palmetto Fellows Scholarship stipends.

Maintaining Eligibility

To maintain eligibility for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship, students must meet certain academic requirements throughout their college career. These requirements typically include:

Enrolling in a minimum number of credit hours each semester.
Maintaining a minimum cumulative GPA.
Earning a total of 30 credit hours each academic year.

Students must enroll in at least 12 college-level credit hours each semester (fall and spring). Must earn a total of 30 credit hours each academic year. You must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA on all courses taken. If you do not meet the above criteria at the end of the Spring semester, your Palmetto Fellows award will be withdrawn.

A break in continuous full-time enrollment, such as taking a gap year, will result in forfeiting the scholarship. The semester you are not enrolled in is still counted as one of the eight terms of potential eligibility.

If the continued eligibility requirements are not maintained, you forfeit continued participation in the program and your Scholarship will be discontinued. However, if a legitimate extenuating circumstance affected your ability to meet the renewal requirements, you may submit an appeal by the established deadline. Appeals must be submitted immediately following your notification of failing to meet the renewal requirements.

Additional Considerations

School Designation Form

Students must complete a School Designation Form with the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE) office in order for their scholarship to be disbursed at their designated university. If you do plan to enroll, you must complete the School Designation Form with the SC Commission on Higher Education as part of your requirement. S.C.

Impact of Dropping Below Full-Time Status or Withdrawing

If you are receiving the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship or any other financial aid, dropping below full-time status or withdrawing completely may affect your eligibility to receive aid. In the event a student who has been awarded the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship withdraws, is suspended from the institution, or drops below full-time status during any regular term of the academic year, institutions must reimburse the Program for the amount of the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship for the term in question pursuant to refund policies of the institution.

Study Abroad

Some study abroad programs allow students to use their Palmetto Fellows scholarship funds for the semester abroad. Students will determine during the study abroad preparation if their scholarship can be used for the study abroad term. You may be eligible to receive your scholarship funds as long as you are in a Furman affiliated or Furman sponsored study away program. You must maintain full-time enrollment for the semester. Returning to Clemson The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship requires 30 or more credit hours earned each academic year. If you study abroad and your transcripts from a foreign school are not sent back to Clemson before the next school year starts, you cannot have the scholarship while you wait for study abroad transcripts to be processed at Clemson. However, once the credit hours from the study abroad have been added to Clemson's transcript, the scholarship can be awarded at the time, even if the semester has already begun.

GPA Improvement

Students have the opportunity to increase their GPA by the end of the academic year (summer term). Students must attend their home institution (Furman) if they intend to increase their GPA in the summer. Students may attend another eligible institution if they wish to increase their credit hours provided that their home institution will accept the credit hours for graduation purposes. Please consult with Enrollment Services prior to registering at another university to ensure the credits will transfer back for graduation purposes.

Academic Forgiveness

Renewal for Clemson and state scholarships is based on your GPA and your earned credit hours.

Pass/No Pass Classes

The credit hour(s) will count toward the required 30 earned credit hours you will need for continued eligibility if you pass the class.

Taking a Semester Off

The semester you are not enrolled in is still counted as one of the eight terms of potential eligibility. A student must also file an appeal to the Commission on Higher Education for a review of their file under certain circumstances.

Medical Reasons

There are instances where a student must leave school for documented medical reasons, including psychological reasons.

Transferring Schools

If you transfer to another school, the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship will not automatically be transferred to the other school.

Palmetto Fellows Enhancement

Starting sophomore year, students who complete 14 credit hours in mathematics, life sciences, physical sciences, or a combination by the end of freshman year and declare a major in science, mathematics, or a health-related field are eligible for an enhancement of $2,500 per year. The enhancement is distributed evenly between the fall and spring semesters.

Institutional Policies and Contact Information

Please contact the Office of Financial Aid if you qualify for Palmetto Fellows but are not awarded the scholarship on your financial aid. In most cases, students are awarded LIFE or HOPE until eligibility is confirmed with SC Commission on Higher Education. The state provides the names to the university and we can verify your eligibility. Please note that we cannot add your scholarship until you are either on the state approved or designated list.

Clemson University

To be eligible for Palmetto Fellows over the Summer, you must meet renewal requirements at the end of Spring, meaning you have at least a 3.0 Clemson GPA and have earned at least 15 hours during the semester in which you enrolled in classes full-time.

Furman University

You must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA on all courses taken at Furman.

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