Vermont Grant — Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC)

The Vermont Grant is a need-based state award administered through VSAC, the state’s student-assistance corporation. It is for Vermont residents enrolled full- or part-time in an eligible undergraduate degree or certificate program at a Title IV institution. One less obvious advantage is that Vermont residency may allow a student to apply while attending college either in Vermont or out of state. It is not automatically a full-tuition scholarship: the amount depends on financial need, cost of attendance and available funding.

VSAC reported awards of $1,000 to $15,350 for 2025–26; that is a historical range for the prior cycle, not a promise or confirmed 2026–27 amount. The site says funding varies each year and applications are considered first-come, first-served while funds remain. It is sensible to learn the process as soon as the new cycle opens rather than wait for a final admission letter. In general, a student may receive up to ten full-time semesters before earning a first bachelor’s degree, with professional-program exceptions described by VSAC.

FAFSA alone is not enough. Create a MyVSAC account, choose “Work with Grants,” complete the Vermont Grant application and submit a new FAFSA for each academic year. Depending on the answers, the form may request financial information from the student, spouse or parents, including home value and debt. If you cannot complete FAFSA, VSAC says an alternative Vermont Grant Pathway may be available; ask how to use it before abandoning the application. Save confirmation of both submissions and check your account status.

A recent UVM student-and-family discussion describes receiving a Vermont Grant alongside UVM Promise and a program-specific scholarship, while another person asks why a preliminary net-price calculator did not show the same package. That is one family’s experience, not proof that every award stacks or that the grant covers full tuition. When comparing colleges, request the final offer line by line, ask whether other scholarships can reduce individual awards and confirm what remains for housing, meals, transportation and insurance.

VSAC’s grants team answers at grants@vsac.org and 800-882-4166 or 802-654-3750. The resource center is at 10 East Allen Street, Winooski, VT 05404; public hours are Tuesday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m., and the public space is closed Monday and Friday. The aid application is online through MyVSAC and FAFSA; an office visit is not required. Prepare residency, institution, credit load and financial information, then ask VSAC and the college for written confirmation of the award and remaining balance.