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Palmetto Fellows
The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship is the state’s premier scholarship, valued at $6,700 for the first year and $7,500 for subsequent years.
General Information
Students must apply for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship through the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE) through their high school guidance office. The awards may be renewed for a total of four years (eight semesters) if renewal requirements are met.
If a student graduates before using all eight semesters, that student forfeits any remaining Palmetto Fellows Scholarship stipends. 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.
Terms
Students may receive Palmetto Fellows for up to eight semesters of undergraduate study starting when they initially enroll in an accredited university.
Students can opt to take a gap year between high school graduation and beginning college and still qualify for Palmetto Fellows under two conditions:
- No college coursework is taken during the gap year.
- A reapplication for Palmetto Fellows is submitted to CHE.
Timeline
For the 2020-2021 academic year and beyond, 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 award applications can be submitted between May 15 and June 30 of the senior year.
Award Amount
The Palmetto Fellows award amount is determined annually by the South Carolina General Assembly. Currently, the maximum value is $6,700. Sophomore, junior and senior students may receive a maximum of $10,000 provided they are in a declared science or mathematics major and other enhancement conditions are met.
View Palmetto Fellows Scholarship Enhancement Information.
Note: The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship in combination with all other scholarships and grants may not exceed the cost of attendance as defined by Title IV regulations.
Disbursements
The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship is credited to your student account to satisfy any charges. Excess aid is refunded to the student. If all tuition and fees are satisfied and you are enrolled full-time, excess aid is refunded to the student and can be used for any college-related expenses, including off-campus housing.
The Palmetto Fellows Scholarship is typically available during the Fall and Spring semesters except for co-op/internship students.
Learn about the Summer disbursement program for the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship.
General Eligibility Requirements
- U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen under state residency statutes.
- South Carolina resident at the time of high school graduation and during the period of the award.
- Graduated from a South Carolina high school or was a dependent of a parent or guardian who was a legal resident of South Carolina at the time of the student's high school graduation.
- Full-time undergraduate seeking a first baccalaureate degree.
- Must not have been judged delinquent nor have been convicted or pled guilty or nolo contendere to any felony in any state.
- Must not have been convicted of any second alcohol- or drug-related misdemeanor in any state for 12 months prior to the period of the award.
- Must not be in default or owe a refund or repayment on any federal or state financial aid.
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First-year Student Eligibility Requirements
Students must meet the following three academic criteria to be eligible to apply:
- Score at least 1200 on the SAT (25 on the ACT). Test scores must be submitted to CHE by no later than the established deadline in December.
- Earn a cumulative 3.50 GPA on the Uniform Grading Scale at the end of the junior year.
- Rank in the top six percent of the class at the end of either the sophomore or the junior year.
OR
- Score at least 1400 on the SAT (32 on the ACT) through the June test administration of the senior year.
- Earn a minimum 4.00 cumulative GPA on the South Carolina Uniform Grading Scale at the end of the junior year without regard to class rank.
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Continuing Student Requirements
Students must meet the following requirements for their Palmetto Fellows scholarship to be renewed each year.
- Must earn a total of 30 credit hours each academic year. Any hours earned prior to high school graduation, hours exempted by examination and Advanced Placement credit do not count toward the 30-hour requirement.
- You must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA on all courses taken at Clemson. Courses taken at other institutions will not affect the grade point average requirement for Palmetto Fellows.
- If you do not meet the above criteria at the end of the Spring semester, your Palmetto Fellows award will be withdrawn. If you make up the deficiency during the Summer Session, please notify us and the award will be reinstated.
- Coursework taken at other institutions and accepted for credit by Clemson University can be used to satisfy the 30-hour requirement.
Continuing Student Considerations
Co-op/Internship and Summer Semesters
If you participate in the Cooperative Education Program and/or certain sanctioned internship programs, during Fall or Spring semester, you are not charged tuition and fees, so the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship stipend cannot be used and remains available for future semesters if you meet the regular Palmetto Fellows Scholarship criteria.
You may elect to receive the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship in the succeeding Summer Session at Clemson if you take at least 12 credit hours during the Summer.
Summer Palmetto Fellows Eligibility After Co-op/Internship
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. You may also elect to move the award that you would have received during your participation semester to the term immediately following your eighth normal semester (if you continue to meet all other eligibility requirements).
If you elect to use the Palmetto Fellows award during the Summer, you will only be expected to earn 27 hours (rather than 30) for that academic year for renewal purposes.
If you co-op during a Fall or Spring semester and do not attend Summer Session, you are only required to earn 15 hours for that academic year.
Learn more about Palmetto Fellows Summer Disbursements.
Dropping Below Full-time or Withdrawing
A student who is part time in their final semester prior to graduation may receive a pro-rated Palmetto Fellows award. All other students who are part time will not receive a disbursement unless approved for a reduced course load by the Student Accessibility Services Office.
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. Under some circumstances, withdrawing from the University may require you to repay part, or all, of any financial aid received.
If you are considering dropping a class (and will be enrolled in less than 12 credits hours as a result) or considering withdrawing from the University, you should contact the Office of Student Financial Aid at finaid@clemson.edu to determine the effect on your financial obligations.
Frequently Asked Questions
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1. How does the Palmetto Fellows scholarship work with my study abroad goals?
Going 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.
See study abroad financial aid details.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. Students would then be reimbursed once the scholarship is credited. -
2. If I take a course in the Summer before I start college, will those credits count toward the 30 credit hours I need my first year?
No. A student with the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship begins counting the credit hours when they enroll in college for the first time. Although the transfer credit hours often will count toward the student's degree requirements, they don't count if they were earned prior to starting college.
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3. How will Academic Forgiveness affect my Palmetto Fellows eligibility?
Renewal for Clemson and state scholarships is based on your GPA and your earned credit hours. Academic Forgiveness can improve your GPA while reducing your credit hours, so you must be aware of all consequences before requesting that a grade be forgiven.
Please speak with the Office of Student Financial Aid if you have questions about how Academic Forgiveness may affect your scholarship eligibility.
If you are seeking to regain a scholarship for an upcoming academic year, you must complete a Request for Academic Forgiveness (located in iROAR > Student Self-Service > Student Records > Request Academic Forgiveness) before the first day of class of the Fall semester.
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4. Do pass/no pass classes count toward Palmetto Fellows eligibility even though they do not count as GPA hours?
Yes. The credit hour(s) will count toward the required 30 earned credit hours you will need for continued eligibility if you pass the class. A no pass grade will not hurt your GPA, but it also will not count toward the 30-credit hour requirement.
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5. If I have fewer than 30 credit hours and/or lower than the 3.0 Clemson GPA at the end of the year, do I permanently lose the Palmetto Fellows scholarship?
Yes. Once a student has failed to meet the renewal requirements (either GPA, credit hours or both by the end of the academic year — which is Fall, Spring and Summer each year) they lose the scholarship permanently. The student might be eligible for the LIFE Scholarship if they meet the criteria for that program.
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6. My Clemson transcript shows that I have “duplicate credit” for a math course I took at Clemson. I took that same course at technical school before I started college. Will the course I took at Clemson (duplicate credit) count toward the 30 hours I need to earn?
Yes. A duplicate credit taken at Clemson will count toward your 30 hours of required credit at Clemson for Palmetto Fellows renewal. The previous class credit will be "replaced" with the Clemson class credit.
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7. What happens if I take a semester off to work or be away from school for personal reasons?
The semester you are not enrolled in is still counted as one of the eight terms of potential eligibility. Future eligibility might be jeopardized because of lower credit hours earned and/or low GPA after a student has taken a semester off.
A student must also file an appeal to the Commission on Higher Education for a review of their file under certain circumstances. Typically, just taking off a semester is not considered a valid reason to request a review.
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8. What happens if I must take a medical withdrawal from Clemson
There are instances where a student must leave school for documented medical reasons, including psychological reasons. If a student takes a medical withdrawal during the Fall term, they should still be able to enroll and use their Palmetto Fellows as a full-time student in the Spring, since the scholarship is awarded for a year at a time.
Regardless of the semester itself, we would advise the student to submit an appeal to the Commission on Higher Education for a review of the student's eligibility for the next academic year.
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9. If I transfer to another school, will the Palmetto Fellows Scholarship automatically be transferred to the other school?
No. The student must complete the Transfer Request form available on the Commission on Higher Education Website. The Commission can then notify the new school that the student is transferring and should be awarded the Palmetto Fellows for the upcoming semester.
This information is subject to change by either the South Carolina General Assembly or the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. You may view the most recent guidelines for the Palmetto Fellows program at S.C. Commission on Higher Education.
