As a Pacific student, you have access to a powerful network of support from staff, faculty, fellow students, alumni, and many others who take pride in investing in you. In addition, scholarships are made possible by generous benefactors who are passionate about supporting your success.

Admitted students are automatically considered for all Academic Merit Scholarships except for the Powell Scholarship, which requires a supplemental application. Learn more about applying on the Powell Scholars Program page.

Note: The Student Account's Office (login required) processes external (non-Pacific) Scholarships for students.

Academic Merit Scholarships for First-Year Students

The university is pleased to offer merit scholarships to both domestic and international first-year undergraduate students as our investment in your experience at the university. Students who are enrolled via the University of the Pacific International (UOPI) program can find information about scholarships by visiting the UOPI page. 

Academic Merit scholarships for first-year students are renewable for up to four years, as long as you maintain the required GPA and meet all other eligibility criteria. Undergraduate students who are enrolled in the university’s engineering program are generally subject to the same financial aid eligibility rules and regulations as all other students; however, due to the structure of the engineering majors, students have the eligibility expansions and restrictions that are described in the drop-down under Financial Aid Resources.

Scholarships are awarded based on your high school record, the rigor of your high school curriculum and your extracurricular and leadership activities. Please select any of the scholarships below for an overview of general requirements.

Merit Scholarships for Incoming First-Year Undergraduate Students include but are not limited to:

Merit scholarships are awarded to academically exceptional high school seniors who are accepted for admission as first-year undergraduates. These scholarships range in annual value from $10,000 to $30,000.

  • You are not required to submit the FAFSA to be considered for the merit scholarships listed above and there is no separate scholarship application; with exception of the CIP (FAFSA required) and Forensic Scholarships, both of which require a separate application.
  • Merit scholarships are determined holistically, with factors such as high school attended, grade point average, curriculum rigor, commitment, extracurricular activities and obligations, leadership, and demonstrated interest all being factors. 

Merit Scholarship Renewal Requirements

  • Retaining your scholarship requires maintaining full-time enrollment (12 or more units per semester) as an undergraduate at Pacific in a bachelor's or pre-professional program and maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward completion of your degree.  
  • Merit scholarships can be renewed for full-time enrollment in your first bachelor's degree program at Pacific for up to a total of four years (eight fall and spring semesters) of scholarship support. 
  • Scholarships can only be applied to undergraduate coursework and cannot be applied to professional coursework in pharmacy, dentistry, or law. Thus, students are no longer eligible for merit scholarships once they begin their graduate level courses in the pharmacy, dentistry and law programs.

For more information on merit scholarships, please contact a member of our financial aid counseling team at financialaid@pacific.edu or 209.946.2421.

Academic Merit Scholarships for Transfer Students

As a transfer student, you are already on the path to pursuing your passion and discovering your purpose. At Pacific, we help you finish what you started. The scholarships below are exclusively for transfer students.

Scholarships for Incoming Undergraduate Transfer Students

The university is pleased to offer merit scholarships to academically exceptional transfer (domestic and international) students who are accepted for admission as undergraduates. The Transfer Academic Excellence merit scholarship ranges in annual value from $16,000 to $25,000. Transfer students who are enrolled via UOP International are not eligible for this award but can contact Admissions UOPI to learn about alternative scholarship opportunities.

  • Minimum cumulative transfer GPA of 2.60
  • You are not required to submit the FAFSA to be considered for a transfer merit scholarship and there is no separate scholarship application.
  • Transfer merit scholarships are determined holistically, with factors such as transfer grade point average, curriculum rigor, commitment, extracurricular activities and obligations, leadership, and demonstrated interest all being factors. 

Merit Scholarship Renewal Requirements

  • Retaining your merit scholarship requires maintaining full-time enrollment (12 or more units per semester) as an undergraduate at Pacific in a bachelor's or pre-professional program and maintaining Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward completion of your degree.  
  • Transfer merit scholarships can generally be renewed for full-time enrollment in your first bachelor's degree program for up to a total of three years (six fall and spring semesters) of scholarship support. 
  • Scholarships can only be applied to undergraduate coursework and cannot be applied to professional coursework in pharmacy, dentistry, or law. Thus, students are no longer eligible for merit scholarships once they begin their graduate level courses in the pharmacy, dentistry and law programs.

For more information on transfer merit scholarships, please contact a member of our financial aid counseling team at financialaid@pacific.edu. or 209.946.2421

Benerd College Scholarships and Financing

At Benerd College, we work hard to make sure every student admitted to our programs has access to the full array of available scholarships, grants and loans. Don't let concern over finances keep you from enjoying the benefits of a Pacific education. 

Tuition and Fees

Please refer to Benerd Sacramento Tuition and Fees for the most current tuition and fee information. Benerd College graduate students automatically receive a 31% tuition discount, which is built into the special tuition rate for the school.

Benerd College awards scholarships to deserving and meritorious students each year. These scholarships often represent a family or organization's wish to honor the legacy of the life of a loved one or a colleague's work, or to fulfill their wish to contribute in a meaningful way to their community.

Graduate students may be eligible for unsubsidized Federal Direct Stafford loans, Grad PLUS loans and private (alternative) loans. Graduate students must be enrolled in at least 4 units to be considered for this type of financial assistance.

Under the Teacher Loan Forgiveness Program, those who teach full-time for five complete and consecutive academic years in a low-income school or educational service agency and meet other qualifications may be eligible for forgiveness of up to $17,500 on their Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans and Subsidized and Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loans.

The Pacific Noyce Scholars Program provides scholarships and other support for STEM majors who become teachers in high-need school districts such as Stockton. During your your junior or senior year of your BA/BS program in STEM, you could be awarded up to $13,750 a year. If a fifth year is needed to obtain your teaching credential, you could be awarded up to $20,000 for the MA Education year. In exchange, you just need to teach in a high-need school district for two years following graduation.

Other Scholarships

Pacific offers scholarships to outstanding athletes who wish to play for one of our 17 NCAA Division I intercollegiate teams.

While some players are offered "full" athletic scholarships, which cover the cost of tuition and room and board (i.e. housing and food), other student-athletes receive athletics scholarships that may cover only room and board, or only tuition, or only a portion of tuition. 

It is important to realize that every not player on an athletic team is awarded an athletic scholarship and that other forms of financial aid (i.e. merit scholarships, grants and loans) may be offered in combination with athletic aid.

Receiving an Athletic Scholarship
  • For more information on athletic scholarships, contact the coach of your sport. Visit the Athletics website for a list of coaches.
  • Coaches have the final decision on which student-athletes receive athletic scholarships.

The Bishops Scholarship is available to incoming first year and transfer students who are active members of any United Methodist Church. Students must demonstrate academic excellence and commitment to the church.

The Community Involvement Program (CIP) was established in 1969 as a comprehensive, need-based scholarship and retention program for first-generation college students from the Stockton community, promoting the values of equity, social justice, self-knowledge, personal empowerment, collaboration, citizenship, and service as developmental paradigms. Since its inception more than 1000 students have graduated from Pacific and the Community Involvement Program. For information about the CIP Scholarship application process, please contact the program at cip@pacific.edu

The MESA program encourages high school or community college MESA students to enroll in engineering, mathematics and science programs at University of the Pacific. MESA students who have unmet need based on the FAFSA will be considered for an annually renewable $1,000 MESA Scholarship. 

To be eligible for this program, you must:
  • Have participated in any high school or community college MESA Program for at least one year before entering University of the Pacific.
  • Be admitted to the university with a minimum GPA of 3.00.
  • Major in engineering, mathematics or a science-related field.
  • Meet university academic requirements, and maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) toward completion of your degree.
  • Not have previously received a bachelor's degree.

For more details and to apply, download the MESA Scholarship application. For more information, email MESA Director Elana Peach-Fine at epeachfine@pacific.edu, or call or text her at 530.768.7227.

The generosity and support of many donors enables the university to offer a range of endowed scholarships to eligible students.

Endowed scholarships are offered by various colleges and departments to continuing undergraduate and graduate students who meet specific criteria. Typically, students must have achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher in classes completed at Pacific to be considered for any scholarship assistance. Due to the exceptional qualifications of the students who apply, consideration for many scholarship opportunities will be limited to those students who have achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or above by the end of their fall semester.

Students who first enroll after the fall semester are not eligible to apply for endowed scholarships until the following fall semester.

University of the Pacific is pleased to connect you with scholarships to help fund your education and achieve your goals. By completing an application on the Tiger Scholarships portal, you will be matched to available scholarship opportunities offered by the university.

The scholarship application period is now open for the 2024-2025 academic year. The deadline to apply for scholarships is Jan. 15, 2024.