HOPE/Zell Miller Scholarship

  • Georgia's HOPE Scholarship is available to Georgia residents who have demonstrated academic achievement. The HOPE Scholarship enables students to have a percentage of their tuition be covered if they attend an eligible college or university in Georgia. The HOPE Scholarship only covers an associate's or bachelor's degree. In contrast, the Zell Miller Scholarship Program enables students to have up to the total standard tuition cost covered if they attend an eligible college or university in Georgia. However, the Zell Miller Scholarship has higher academic requirements to attain.

    Students must maintain their grade point average (GPA), comply with the Georgia Drug-Free Postsecondary Education Act of 1990, and comply with Selective Service registration requirements to keep the scholarship throughout college.

    How to Apply

    Students can apply for the HOPE/Zell Miller Scholarships through one of two applications:

    • Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
    • Complete the online Georgia Student Finance Application (GSFAPP)

    There is a difference between these two applications. The FAFSA is utilized nationally by many universities and scholarship programs. Students must submit FAFSA every year to receive federal funding, including Pell Grants and federal student loans. The GSFAPP is only eligible for Georgia state funding. Students who only complete the GSFAPP will only be eligible to receive HOPE funds. However, the GSFAPP is valid for ten years, meaning most students only have to fill it out once.

    Calculating HOPE GPA

    The high school HOPE GPA calculation is to determine academic eligibility for HOPE Scholarship and Zell Miller Scholarship. A student's high school HOPE GPA is not the same as their high school GPA. The HOPE GPA utilizes the following courses:

    • English - course numbers beginning with 23
    • Mathematics - course numbers beginning with 27
    • Science – course numbers beginning with 26 or 40
    • Social studies – course numbers beginning with 45
    • Foreign language – course numbers beginning with 60 – 64
    • Specific fourth science courses from GaDOE's Fourth Science List

    High school courses taken in middle school, like Spanish I or Algebra I, are not calculated in the HOPE GPA.

    HOPE GPA assigns a value to the letter grade a student receives.

    A = 4.0     B = 3.0     C = 2.0     D = 1.0     F = 0

    Any weight added to a student's GPA for honors, AP, or Dual Enrollment classes is removed. Half a point (0.5) is re-added to Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and Dual Enrollment (DE) classes. Since the HOPE GPA is on a 4.0 scale, no weight is added to classes the student received an "A" (4.0). No weight is added for honors. The value assigned to the honor letter grade a student gets is below.

    A = 4.0     B = 3.5     C = 2.5     D = 1.5     F = 0.5

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     HOPE and Zell Information

     
     
     
     
     

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