Tuition Advantage Past Years - Eligibility

Eligibility Criteria 25-26
Scenarios

Eligibility Criteria Table
First-Time Freshman	New Transfer	Readmit	Continuing
$125K Family Income or Less	$125K Family Income or Less	$125K Family Income or Less	$125K Family Income or Less
Financial Need	Financial Need	Financial Need	Financial Need
Minimum 19 ACT or 990 SAT or Top 25% of HS Class****	Minimum 2.5 Overall GPA	Minimum 2.5 UTRGV GPA	Minimum 2.5 UTRGV GPA
Admitted to UTRGV by: April 1^st	Admitted to UTRGV by: April 1^st	Admitted to UTRGV by: April 1^st	N/A
*2025-26 FAFSA/TASFA completed by April 1^st, 2025	*2025-26 FAFSA/TASFA completed by April 1^st, 2025	*2025-26 FAFSA/TASFA completed by April 1^st, 2025	*2025-26 FAFSA/TASFA completed by April 1^st, 2025
N/A	Must meet Financial Aid SAP (satisfactory academic progress)	Must meet Financial Aid SAP (satisfactory academic progress)	Must meet Financial Aid SAP (satisfactory academic progress)
Texas Resident	Texas Resident	Texas Resident	Texas Resident
Enrolled 15 *** Semester Credit Hours or more	Enrolled 15 *** Semester Credit Hours or more	Enrolled 15 *** Semester Credit Hours or more	Enrolled 15 *** Semester Credit Hours or more
Covers: Tuition and Mandatory Fees	Covers: Tuition and Mandatory Fees	Covers: Tuition and Mandatory Fees	Covers: Tuition and Mandatory Fees

*Based on fund availability per academic year and awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis.

**Effective Fall 2022 Tuition Advantage will apply to students with an adjusted family income of $125,000 or less, based on unmet financial need. Please refer to our FAQ’s section below.

***Due to limited fund availability, students must be taking classes that are part of their degree plan and fulfilling any unmet degree requirements as reflected in Degree Works.

**** NEW for Fall 2025-2026, Tuition Advantage will be expanded to include students in the Top 25% of High School class.

The Fall 2022-Spring 2023 scenarios below will help illustrate how the program supports UTRGV students.

Anabel Hernandez – No Tuition Advantage Award – Family Contribution

Table describing costs for student awarded full Tuition Advantage
UTRGV Vaquero #1 - Natalie Garcia - Awarded Full Tuition Advantage: Enrolled 15 hours in both Fall and Spring Family Income is $125,000 or less Average Cost of Attendance at UTRGV is $15,896 ($7,948 for Fall and $7,948 for Spring) Guaranteed tuition is $8,132 ($4,066 for Fall and $4,066 for Spring) View the table below to see how Natalie is eligible for FULL Tuition Advantage to pay for her tuition and mandatory fees:
	Financial Need Calculation	UTRGV Tuition Advantage Calculation
Cost of Attendance (COA)	$15,896
Less Student Aid Index (SAI) from FAFSA	-$7,500
Available Unmet *Financial Need	$8,396

Tuition & Mandatory Fees (T&F)		$8,132
Less Total Financial Aid Received (Pell, TEXAS Grant, TPEG, SEOG)		$0
Remaining T&F Balance		$8,132

**Tuition Advantage Award Amount:		$8,132
(Financial Need is based on COA less SAI) (In this scenario student is eligible for the lesser amount* between Financial Need or T&F Balance which means Tuition Advantage would cover her full T&F balance of $8,132).

Jonathan Williams – Awarded Partial Tuition Advantage

Table describing costs for student awarded partial Tuition Advantage
UTRGV Vaquero #2 - Jonathan Williams - Awarded Partial Tuition Advantage: Enrolled 15 hours in both Fall and Spring Family Income is $125,000 or less. Average Cost of Attendance at UTRGV is $15,896 ($7,948 for Fall and $7,948 for Spring) Guaranteed tuition is $8,132 ($4,066-Fall and $4,066-Spring) View the table below to see how Jonathan is eligible for PARTIAL Tuition Advantage to pay for his tuition and mandatory fees:
Cost of Attendance (COA)	$15,896
Less Student Aid Index (SAI) from FAFSA	-$12,000
Available Unmet *Financial Need	$3,896

Tuition & Mandatory Fees (T&F)		$8,132
Less Total Financial Aid Received (Pell, TEXAS Grant, TPEG, SEOG)		$0
Remaining T&F Balance		$8,132

**Tuition Advantage Award Amount:		$3,896
(Financial Need is based on COA less SAI) (In this scenario student is eligible for the lesser amount* between Financial Need or T&F Balance which means Tuition Advantage amount would be $3,896 ($1,948-Fall and $1,948-Spring).

Jose Garza – No Tuition Advantage Award – Grants and Scholarships

Table describing costs for student with grants and scholarships
UTRGV Vaquero #3 - Jose Garza - Not eligible for Tuition Advantage due to receiving Grants and Scholarships: Enrolled 15 hours in both Fall and Spring Family Income is $125,000 or less. Average Cost of Attendance at UTRGV is $15,896 ($7,948 for Fall and $7,948 for Spring) Guaranteed tuition is $8,132 ($4,066-Fall and $4,066-Spring) View the table below to see why Jose is not eligible for Tuition Advantage because he has enough Grants and Scholarships to pay for his tuition and mandatory fees:
Cost of Attendance (COA)	$15,896
Less Student Aid Index (SAI) from FAFSA	$0
Available Unmet *Financial Need	$15,896

Tuition & Mandatory Fees (T&F)		$8,132
Less Total Financial Aid Received (Pell, TEXAS Grant, TPEG, SEOG)		-$9,500
No Remaining T&F Balance (Fully Covered by Financial Aid Received)		$0

**Tuition Advantage Award Amount:		$0
(Financial Need is based on COA less SAI) *(In this scenario student is not eligible for Tuition Advantage because he is receiving more Grants and Scholarships totaling $9,500 compared to his T&F of $8,132. His Grants and Scholarships will fully cover the cost of his T&F).

Natalie Garcia – Awarded Full Tuition Advantage

Table describing costs for student with high Student Aid Index (SAI)
UTRGV Vaquero #4 - Anabel Hernandez - No Tuition Advantage due having a high Student Aid Index (SAI) amount: Enrolled 15 hours in both Fall and Spring Family Income is $125,000 or less Average Cost of Attendance at UTRGV is $15,896 ($7,948 for Fall and $7,948 for Spring) Guaranteed tuition is $8,132 ($4,066 for Fall and $4,066 for Spring) View the table below to see why Anabel is not eligible for Tuition Advantage because her Student Aid Index (SAI) amount is higher than the Average Cost of Attendance:
Cost of Attendance (COA)	$15,896
Less Student Aid Index (SAI) from FAFSA	-$16,000
No Available Unmet *Financial Need (SAI more than COA)	$0

Tuition & Mandatory Fees (T&F)		$8,132
Less Total Financial Aid Received (Pell, TEXAS Grant, TPEG, SEOG)		$0
Remaining T&F Balance		$8,132

**Tuition Advantage Award Amount:		$0
(Financial Need is based on COA less SAI) *(In this scenario student is not eligible for Tuition Advantage because her Student Aid Index (SAI) of $16,000 based on her FAFSA is higher than the Cost of Attendance of $15,896 at UTRGV).

If you are interested in receiving more information or to find out if you are eligible, please contact us by email at ucentral@utrgv.edu or by phone at (956) 882-4026.