Scholarships

Scholarships are gifts. They don't need to be repaid. You can find scholarships to attend Shippensburg University from a variety of outside sources.  There are thousands of them, offered by schools, employers, individuals, private companies, nonprofits, communities, religious groups, and professional and social organizations.

Here are just a few:

• Finding and Applying for Scholarships | Federal Student Aid
• Cappex
• The College Board
• FinAid
• Fast Web
• Scholarships.com
• U.S. Department of Labor's FREE Scholarship Search Tool

Shippensburg University Foundation Scholarships

These academic awards were established through contributions from alumni, friends, corporations, and associates of the Shippensburg University Foundation, a not-for-profit organization incorporated in 1977 to support the university's programs and services.

Please note, not all scholarships are able to be combined. Presidential Scholarships (formerly Board of Governors Scholarships) for valedictorians and salutatorians and SU Foundation scholarships with values that exceed the maximum amount of a merit scholarship will replace the merit scholarship in a student’s financial aid package.

To search and apply for University Foundation Scholarships for 2025-2026 please click on the following link: https://ship.scholarships.ngwebsolutions.com

For more information about your SU Foundation Scholarship and any additional requirements to maintain, please click here.

Legacy Scholarship

Investing in potential: supporting today's legacies who are tomorrow's alumni. Recipients of the SU Alumni Association Legacy Scholarship should be entering full-time freshmen with a legacy relationship. A legacy student is defined as an individual whose parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle received a degree from Ship.

To be considered, applicant must identify themselves as a legacy student and include the name of their alumni legacy(ies) and relationship to legacy on their scholarship application. For full consideration, please also complete the question on the scholarship application asking what it means to you to be a legacy. 

Not all scholarships are able to be combined. Presidential Scholarship (formerly Board of Governors (BOG)) for valedictorians and salutatorians and SU Foundation scholarships with values that exceed the maximum amount of a merit scholarship will replace the merit scholarship in a student’s financial aid package. This includes full tuition waivers from the Office of the Chancellor, PASSHE, or University employees’ dependents.

  Raider Success Scholarships 

New First Year Undergraduate Students: Raider Success Scholarships are based upon academic success and require no application! Qualified full-time students receive a guaranteed scholarship for eight continuous Fall and Spring semesters. Continuing eligibility will be reviewed at the end of each academic year.  Beginning 23-24 recipients must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.5. Students who enroll in the Spring semester receive half the annual amount for that year. 

Effective Fall 2025, the deadline to secure the Raider Success Scholarship is May 1^st, 2025. First-time college students must pay their enrollment deposit to secure their scholarship.

Effective Fall 2026, the deadline to secure the Raider Success Scholarship is May 1^st, 2026. First-time college students must pay their enrollment deposit to secure their scholarship.

NOTE: The Office of the Chancellor, PASSHE and University employee's dependents are not eligible for this scholarship. *Full tuition waivers

Requirements for 2024-2025, 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 recipients:

Requirements for 2023-2024 and 2022-2023 recipients:

Requirements for 2021-2022*:

*First year and transfer students offered the Raider Success Scholarship for the 2021-2022 aid year will need to be full-time in both the Fall and Spring semesters and maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 which will be reviewed at the end of the Spring semester. 

New Undergraduate Transfer Students: The Raider Success Scholarship is available with no application required to transfer students with 24 or more transferable credits.  Qualified students will receive a guaranteed scholarship for four continuous Fall and Spring semesters for full-time enrollment as a degree seeking student. Continuing eligibility will be reviewed at the end of each academic year. Beginning 23-24 recipients must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.5. Students who defer their admission to the Spring semester, will receive half the annual amount for that year.

Transfer student requirements for 2026-2027, 2025-2026, 2024-2025, 2023-2024 and 2022-2023 recipients:

Fall 2021 transfer students with 30+ credits and a GPA of 3.0 or above are eligible for a $2000 Raider Success Scholarship. Students who defer their admission to the Spring semester, will receive half the annual amount for that year.

Presidential Scholarship

This merit scholarship is awarded to Pennsylvania (PA) students who graduate first or second in their high school class and choose to immediately pursue their higher education at Shippensburg University. 

Recipients are encouraged to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by May 1^st each year.

The Scholarship is renewable for up to eight consecutive Fall and Spring semesters for full-time (limited to 15 credits counting towards Course Program of Study) degree-seeking students. Eligibility is reviewed at the end of each academic year. Beginning 23-24, recipients must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.5.

This full tuition scholarship (up to 15 credits max per fall and spring terms) will replace all other previously awarded SU Foundation full tuition academic scholarships.

All PA high school, Valedictorian, and Salutatorian students will be automatically awarded the Presidential Scholarship and asked to verify class rank with the Office of Admissions before enrolling in the initial fall semester. 

Effective Fall 2025, the deadline to accept the Presidential scholarship offer will be May 1^st, 2025. The first 40 first-time college students to pay their enrollment deposit will have their scholarship secured. Students will be placed on a waitlist after the first 40 scholarships are accepted. Ongoing review in order of date of deposit will automatically occur after May 1st, 2025, through the Shippensburg University deposit deadline.

Effective Fall 2026, the deadline to accept the Presidential scholarship offer will be May 1^st, 2026. The first 25 first-time college students to pay their enrollment deposit will have their scholarship secured. Students will be placed on a waitlist after the first 25 scholarships are accepted. Ongoing review in order of date of deposit will automatically occur after May 1st, 2026, through the Shippensburg University deposit deadline.

NOTE: The Office of the Chancellor, PASSHE and University employee's dependents are not eligible for this scholarship. *Full tuition waivers

NO LONGER BEING AWARDED

Ship Advantage Grant - Fall 2022 and 2023 Only

New First Year Undergraduate Students are eligible for this grant based on need from the current aid year Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Students must be enrolled full-time for the fall and spring semesters to be eligible for this need-based, one-year, non-renewable grant.

University employee’s dependents are not eligible for this grant.

Ship PA Neighboring Grant- Fall 2023 Only

 Out of State New First-Year Undergraduate Students and Current Students for 2023-2024: If you are currently a resident of New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Ohio, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC, and West Virginia, and are a full-time student, you are given a grant of $1,500 in response to a recent required out of state tuition increase for Shippensburg University students. This tuition increase is effective fall 2023.

This grant will be listed on your financial aid offer as the PA Neighboring State Grant and will be applied to your bill in fall and spring, $750 per semester. Recognizing the importance of affordability, we are pleased to assist students from neighboring states with these funds. There is no increase in tuition for Pennsylvania residents.

Ship Launch Grant- Fall 2023 ONLY

New First Year Undergraduate Students: In response to regional workforce needs, Shippensburg University is pleased to offer the Ship Launch Grant for new and transfer students entering in the fall of 2023. These one-time grants are available to students enrolling in majors that have been identified as high demand areas. This $2000 one-time grant is being awarded based on Fall 2023 entry and will be evenly split between the fall and spring semesters during the 2023-2024 academic year. Qualified full-time students that deposit between March 6^th 2023 and May 1^st 2023 will receive this one-time grant for Fall and Spring semester.

Please note any student receiving full tuition waivers/scholarships, such as employee or dependent tuition waiver, our SU Presidential Scholarship, or full tuition SU Foundation scholarships are not eligible for this one-time Ship Launch Grant.

Requirements for 2023-2024 recipients:

Student must deposit by May 1^st 2023, 11:59pm and have been accepted into one of the following majors:

Art Education Certification K-12 (BA), Biology (BS), Biology Secondary Education Certification (BS), Business Management (BSBA), Chemistry Secondary Education Certification (BS), Civil and Mechanical Engineering General, Civil Engineering (BS), Computer and Electrical Engineering General, Computer Engineering (BS), Computer Science (BS), Computer Science and Software Engineering General, Criminal Justice (BS), Early Childhood/Elementary Education PK-4 (BSEd), Electrical Engineering (BS), Elementary/Middle Level Education Grades 4-8 (BSEd), English Secondary Education Certification (BA), Entrepreneurship (BSBA), Exercise Science (BS), French Secondary Education Certification (BA), History, Social Studies Secondary Education Certification (BSEd), Mat Secondary Education Certification (BS), Mechanical Engineering (BS), Physics Education Certification (BSEd), Psychology (BA), Social Work (BSW), Software Engineering (BS), Spanish Secondary Education Certification (BA), Special Education & Early Childhood Education Dual Certification (BSEd), Supply Chain Management (BSBA)

Shippensburg University Housing Assistance - (2022-2023 Only)  

First year students are eligible for a housing grant based on need from the current aid year Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).  The $1000 annual housing grant will be included in the student's financial aid offer.  Students must be in an on-campus housing agreement and enrolled full time for the fall and spring semesters to be eligible for this need-based housing grant.  This is a one-year, non-renewable grant.

NOTE: University employee's children are not eligible for this grant.

 Last Dollar Housing Grant

Housing assistance may be available to students who have exhausted all other available financial resources including federal, state, and private loans. This is meant to be a last resort financial resource to assist students with the cost of on-campus housing.

Students must be in an on-campus housing agreement and reside in a B unit suite or communal housing room to receive this aid. You must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to receive this assistance.

NOTE: If a student is exempted from living on campus or approved of a cancellation of the housing agreement, the housing grant is thereby canceled.

Withdrawal from Housing: If a student is released from the on-campus housing agreement or withdraws/takes a leave of absence from the university, the housing grant will be removed in the proportion that the student is refunded. Refund schedule can be found on SU website: https://www.ship.edu/paying/student-accounts/refund_schedule/

Through various programs, the PASSHE Foundation supports 14 universities by providing scholarships to students. To learn more about these opportunities, visit the PASSHE Foundation Scholarship  page for eligibility requirements, award amounts, application instructions, and deadlines. The PASSHE Foundation scholarship application will be open June 2^nd through August 15^th for Fall 2025 scholarships.

The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) Foundation announced that the Wolf Administration is providing $5 million in grant funds for a new scholarship program for Commonwealth of Pennsylvania employees who work in the Office of Administration, and their dependents to attend Shippensburg University or any State System of Higher Education university. 

The application will be accepted during the following timelines:

• Fall 2025 – 6/2/2025 through 8/17/2025
• Spring 2026 – 11/3/2025 through 1/11/2026
• Fall 2026 – 6/1/2026 through 8/16/2026

Learn More

If you are an outstanding student-athlete, your coach may recommend you for an athletic grant-in-aid, which is processed through the Financial Aid Office. The amount of funds varies from sport to sport.

• Men and women's sports include basketball, cross-country, soccer, swimming, and track and field.
• Women-only sports include field hockey, lacrosse, softball, tennis, and volleyball.
• Men-only sports include football, wrestling, and baseball.  

If you have any questions about your eligibility to receive your VA educational benefits or scholarships, contact the VA Coordinator at 717-477-1164.

Scholarship Opportunities for Veterans

Communities across the Commonwealth have experienced the growing crisis of a declining workforce within certain in-demand occupations. The Pennsylvania General Assembly established the Grow PA Scholarship Grant Program in 2024 to help build the workforce in PA.

Additionally, the General Assembly established the Grow PA Tuition Waiver Program to encourage out-of-state students enrolling in PA State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) schools to work in PA after graduation and help build the workforce for in-demand occupations.

There are over 460 eligible programs of study or majors that lead to in-demand occupations in a variety of fields, such as agriculture, business, education, computer science, STEM, nursing, allied health, and criminal justice.