Elms College offers scholarships to students based on their academic achievement. The list on this webpage includes some of the better known resources offered publicly and directly through Elms College, however there are many other scholarship programs available to students to reduce their balance, such as Outside Scholarships.

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Merit-Based Scholarships

For Incoming First-Year Students

The following is a list of merit-based awards offered by Elms College through the Office of Admission for incoming first year, full-time students. Upon acceptance to the college, students will be notified about their eligibility for the award. Students are only eligible for one of the following merit-based awards through the Office of Admission. Eligibility for any of the following merit-based awards is contingent on maintaining continuous full-time student status at Elms College and maintaining good academic standing. Merit awards will not change as the student progresses to his or her second, third, or fourth year at Elms.

Please note: Scholarship amounts below are for freshmen beginning in the 2023-2024 academic year.

Name of Merit AwardAmount of Award
Presidential Scholarship$25,000
Dean Scholarship$22,000
Director Scholarship$20,000
Elms Scholarship$18,000
Opportunity Scholarship$15,000

For Incoming Transfer Students

The following is a list of merit-based awards offered by Elms College through the Office of Admission for incoming transfer students. Upon acceptance to the college, students will be notified about their eligibility for the award. Students are only eligible for one of the following merit-based awards through the Office of Admission. Eligibility for any of the following merit-based awards is contingent on maintaining continuous full-time student status at Elms College and maintaining good academic standing. Merit awards will not change as the student progresses to his or her second, third, or fourth year at Elms.

Please note: Students enrolled in degree completion programs through the Sr. Kathleen Kirley ’66 School of Continuing Education are not eligible for merit scholarships. Scholarships amounts listed below are for transfer students beginning in the 2023-2024 academic year.

Name of Merit AwardAmount of Award
Transfer Presidential Scholarship$20,000
Transfer Dean Scholarship$18,000
Transfer Director Scholarship$16,000
Transfer Elms Scholarship$15,000

For Accelerated Nursing Students

Offered to applicants admitted to our Accelerated Nursing Second Degree Program with outstanding academic records, the award can range from $8,000 to $10,000 per academic year. The Elms Accelerated Nursing Scholarship is automatically renewed for the length of the Accelerated Nursing Degree Program and requires that the student maintain continuous full-time student status at Elms College and good academic standing.

Name of ScholarshipAmount of Award
Accelerated Nursing Presidential Scholarship$10,000
Accelerated Nursing Dean Scholarship$8,000

Special Scholarships

Early FAFSA Grant

Incoming undergraduate students who submit their FAFSA for the 2023-2024 academic year prior to March 1, 2023 qualify to receive this $1,000 grant. Please note, students enrolled in programs through the Sr. Kathleen Kirley ’66 School of Continuing Education Office are not eligible for this award.

Transfer Partnership Grant

This $5,000 grant is awarded to incoming transfer students who are currently enrolled or have attended Springfield Technical Community College or Holyoke Community College. Please note: Students enrolled in degree completion programs through the Sr. Kathleen Kirley ’66 School of Continuing Education are not eligible for this offer.

Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship

Transfer students who have been accepted into Phi Theta Kappa are eligible to receive a $2,000 Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship from Elms College. Please note: Students enrolled in degree completion programs through the Sr. Kathleen Kirley ’66 School of Continuing Education are not eligible for this offer. Students can become eligible for this scholarship by submitting a copy of their certificate to the Undergraduate Admissions Office.

Chicopee, Holyoke, and Springfield Grant

Students attending Chicopee, Holyoke, or Springfield public high schools in Massachusetts are eligible for this $5,000 grant. Incoming first-year students are automatically considered when they submit their application. To qualify, students must be currently enrolled at their respective high school when they apply to Elms.

Catholic School Scholarship

This $2,000 scholarship is open to students attending a Catholic high school anywhere in the country. Incoming first-year students are automatically considered when they submit their application. To qualify, students must be currently enrolled at a Catholic high school when they apply to Elms.

Sibling Discount Scholarship

If a family enrolls more than one dependent undergraduate student full-time at Elms College in any given year, each student will receive a discount equal to $1,000 per year, per full-time dependent undergraduate concurrently enrolled on the main campus. Please contact the Financial Aid Office if you are eligible by the 4th week of the semester in which siblings are enrolled. Verification may be requested. Students enrolled in programs through the Sr. Kathleen Kirley ’66 School of Continuing Education Office are not eligible for this discount.

Outside Scholarships

Students are encouraged to apply for outside scholarships through reputable scholarship search engines. Outside scholarships can reduce educational borrowing or reduce a student’s remaining balance. All outside scholarship search websites listed below are provided as a courtesy and do not imply an endorsement by Elms College.

Please use caution when applying for outside scholarships to avoid possible scams. See Finaid.org’s Scholarship Scams – if you have to pay money to get money, it’s probably a scam.

Tuition Exchange Programs

Elms College participates in several different tuition exchange programs, including the Tuition Exchange Program, Inc (TEP), the Council for Independent Colleges – Tuition Exchange Program (CIC-TEP), and the Catholic College Cooperative Tuition Exchange (CCCTE). Students eligible for these programs are dependents of an employee who works at an institution that also participates in the programs. Students will receive a full-tuition scholarship per year for a maximum of four years. Students must remain in good academic standing to be eligible for the benefit. Students receiving full-tuition scholarships will not receive any other institutional financial aid but can receive other need-based financial aid from federal, state, and private resources.