Florida FAS / FMS eligibility check plus award estimate
| Academic (FAS) | Medallion (FMS) | Gold Seal (GSV/GSE) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weighted GPA | 3.50 | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Service / work hours | 100 (service, paid work, or combo) | 75 | 30 (CTE/CAPE path) |
| Test scores (FL public grads) | Not required | Not required | Not required |
| Award at public schools | 100% tuition + applicable fees | 75% tuition + applicable fees | Fixed amount per credit hour |
| Summer funding | Yes, at 100% | Yes, at 75% | Yes |
| College renewal GPA | 3.00 (2.75-2.99 renews as FMS) | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Duration | Up to 5 years from high school graduation, max 120 semester hours toward a first bachelor's | ||
GPA is the unrounded weighted average across the 16 required college-prep credits (4 English, 4 math, 3 science, 3 social studies, 2 world language). FAS has historically included a textbook allowance (most recently $300 per fall and spring term); stipend details shift with legislative sessions, so confirm current terms with the Florida DOE.
| Institution | FAS per credit | FAS, 30 cr/yr | FMS per credit | FMS, 30 cr/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Florida | $214.54 | $6,436 | $160.90 | $4,827 |
| UCF (typical of state universities) | $212.28 | $6,368 | $159.21 | $4,776 |
| State college (typical) | ~$122 | ~$3,660 | ~$92 | ~$2,745 |
University rates shown are published institutional Bright Futures rates; state college rates vary by college. Over a full 120-credit degree at UF rates, FAS covers $25,745 and FMS covers $19,308. Bright Futures stacks with Pell Grants and other aid — it reduces tuition billed, not your Pell eligibility.
Bright Futures is Florida's merit scholarship, funded by the lottery and paid by the Florida Department of Education. Two levers decide your tier — weighted GPA in the 16 core credits, and hours of service or paid work — and the tier decides what percentage of tuition and fees the state covers. This calculator checks both levers and prices the result.
FAS requires a 3.50 weighted GPA and 100 hours. FMS requires a 3.00 weighted GPA and 75 hours. Both thresholds must be met — a 4.0 GPA with 60 hours still lands you short of FMS until the hours catch up. Since the test-score requirement was dropped for Florida public school graduates, GPA and hours are the entire decision for most students. The verdict box tells you exactly what's missing and which tier is already locked in.
A senior with a 3.60 weighted GPA and 100 logged hours clears both FAS bars. At UF's published rate of $214.54 per credit taking 30 credits a year, that's $6,436.20 per year, and $25,744.80 across a 120-credit degree — tuition and applicable fees fully covered, plus summer terms at the same rate.
Now a 3.20 GPA with 80 hours. That clears FMS (3.00 + 75) but not FAS: the student qualifies for 75% coverage worth $4,827 a year at UF rates, and needs +0.30 GPA in the remaining core courses to convert to FAS. That gap is the whole game — use the weighted GPA calculator to see what next semester's grades do to the average.
Enter your weighted GPA exactly as your school reports it (Bright Futures computes it unrounded across the core 16, so don't round up optimistically). Count all approved service hours plus documented paid work hours. Pick an institution rate or enter your own from your college's fee sheet — private and out-of-state schools get a fixed per-credit amount instead of a percentage. Then read the renewal rules below, because the check that keeps the money flowing in college is separate from the one that earns it.
Full rules, the application timeline, and the renewal-and-restoration details are in the Bright Futures guide. This is an independent estimator, not affiliated with the Florida Department of Education — award rules change by legislative session, so always verify at floridabrightfutures.gov before making enrollment decisions.
Florida Academic Scholars (FAS) needs a 3.50 weighted GPA in the 16 required core credits plus 100 hours of volunteer service, paid work, or a combination. Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS) needs a 3.00 weighted GPA plus 75 hours. For Florida public high school graduates, SAT, ACT, and CLT scores are no longer part of the requirement. Gold Seal awards need a 3.00 weighted GPA plus 30 hours on a career-technical path.
Not for Florida public high school graduates — test scores were removed from the FAS and FMS requirements, so weighted GPA and service or work hours carry the decision. Home education, private school, and out-of-state students follow separate evaluation rules that can still involve testing, so those families should confirm their path with the Florida Department of Education.
FAS pays 100% of tuition and applicable fees at Florida public institutions; FMS pays 75%. At recent per-credit rates that's about $6,400 a year for FAS and $4,800 for FMS at a public university taking 30 credits — roughly $25,700 and $19,300 over a 120-credit degree. Both tiers now fund summer terms too.
Yes. The 100 hours for FAS (75 for FMS) can be volunteer service, paid work hours, or a combination of the two. Paid work must be documented by the employer — a pay stub record or letter showing hours — just as service hours are logged and approved through the school.
FAS renews with a 3.00 cumulative college GPA; FMS renews with a 2.75. A FAS student who lands between 2.75 and 2.99 doesn't lose everything — they renew at the Medallion level. Full-time students must also earn at least 24 credit hours per academic year, and dropped or withdrawn hours generally have to be repaid to keep renewal. There's a one-time restoration if you lose the award to GPA during your first funding year.
You must submit the Florida Financial Aid Application (FFAA) by August 31 of your high school graduation year — it doesn't renew automatically with the FAFSA, and the FAFSA itself is not required for Bright Futures. Students who miss the window can appeal, but approval is not guaranteed, so file in spring of senior year while counselors can still fix transcript errors.