Navigating UCF Bright Futures: Requirements, Renewal, and Beyond

The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship program provides opportunities for Florida high school graduates to receive funding for their college education. This article focuses on the requirements and processes specific to students attending the University of Central Florida (UCF). Understanding these requirements is crucial for both initial eligibility and maintaining the scholarship throughout your academic career at UCF.

Initial Eligibility and Award Amounts

The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship is a merit award based on high school academic achievement. This scholarship program consists of two primary awards:

Florida Academic Scholars (FAS): This is the most competitive Bright Futures scholarship and the most generous one. Florida Academic Scholar recipients may receive funding for up to five years from high school graduation for a maximum of 120 semester hours toward the completion of a first baccalaureate degree. The Florida Academic Scholars will receive an award amount equal to 100% of tuition and applicable fees.
Florida Medallion Scholars: This scholarship is less competitive than the FAS, but it still has relatively high minimum test score and GPA requirements. Florida Medallion Scholars will receive an award amount equal to 75% of tuition and applicable fall, spring and summer fees.

Each award has different academic criteria for eligibility and provides a different award amount and/or number of semester hours.

Important Note: In order to receive the Bright Futures Scholarship award, your post-secondary institution selection on the Initial Student Florida Financial Aid Application (FFAA) must be stated as “University of Central Florida.” If you have selected another institution on the FFAA and you are planning to attend UCF, you must update your institution name selection to reflect “UCF”. Florida Bright Futures awards are not considered definite until the state has notified UCF of students’ official eligibility.

Renewal Requirements

Renewal eligibility is an automatic process that occurs at the end of the spring term for those students who received funding during the previous year. Renewal students must earn the GPA and the required hours on all college coursework attempted, including transient enrollment hours. Full-time students are required to earn at least 24 credit hours (prorated for half-time or three-quarter students), in order to renew their award at the end of the spring term.

In order for the credit hours to be counted as “Earned Hours”, the Bright Futures Scholarship requires the student to earn successful grades for all credit hours funded by the program. *NOTE: Grades of I, NC, U and F do not result in earned credit hours. UCF will require the repayment of NC grades. Repaying for course(s) with an NC grade will reduce your “earned hours” renewal requirement. An award adjustment for the NC grade will occur after grades are posted.

GPA Restoration

If Bright Futures renewal requirements were not met during the first year of funding, Summer GPA may be earned during the summer after spring evaluation to meet the scholarship requirements. Take summer classes to raise the overall GPA to the minimum required to meet renewal. Summer courses taken at UCF will be reported systematically to the Florida Department of Education, Office of Student Financial Assistance (OSFA). Raise overall cumulative GPA above the renewal requirement before the fall term for which the student is seeking funding. If a student took transient hours, the grades and hours earned at the other institution must be reported to UCF by August 12 in order to be reported systematically.

If student is not able to restore eligibility with summer courses, then the student must wait until the end of the following renewal period (end of spring or summer) to apply for restoration. If the GPA is improved above a 3.0 in a subsequent renewal period, the student will restore as an FAS, using the one-time restoration opportunity. A student must complete a Reinstatement/Restoration Application after logging into their online OSFA account. Please note that the academic year for which a student is applying is at the top of the application. For students who did not receive funding during the previous academic year, the deadline for submission of the Reinstatement/Restoration Application for both fall and spring (or equivalent) of the year in which the student is seeking funding is May 30.

Repayment Requirements

UCF Repayment Deadline - See Academic Calendar for the specific term. Florida Department of Education (OSFA Repayment Deadline - Students must pay UCF before the end of the spring term to be reported automatically. A student with a verifiable illness or some other emergency beyond the student’s control may appeal the repayment requirement by completing the State Programs and Scholarships Appeal Form and submitting it with supporting documentation. Repayment for withdrawn courses appeals may be submitted after courses are withdrawn but must be submitted no later than April 30th.

If you do not meet the renewal GPA and/or required hours due to a verifiable illness or other emergencies, you may file a State Programs and Scholarships Appeal Form with our office. The medical or emergency circumstances that affected the semester/s in question must be documented.

Read also: Navigating Florida Bright Futures

Term Limits and Extensions

A maximum of 8 terms or until graduation, whichever is less. Students may receive funding for up to five years from high school graduation for a maximum of 120 semester hours toward the completion of the first baccalaureate degree. Students whose major requires 124 or more hours may receive a one-term extension (double majors and minors are not considered). A letter (on letterhead) from the department verifying the number of hours required for the degree must be submitted to the Office of Student Financial Assistance prior to the 9th term. The 2026-27 academic year includes the summer 2026 term.

Specific Situations and Requirements

Students needing less than 6 credit hours to graduate: Eligible students who need less than 6 credit hours to graduate. These students must submit a letter (on official letterhead) from their student success coach. Graduate level hours may be approved by the student’s student success coach if the graduate level hours will count toward the undergraduate degree completion requirements. These students must submit a letter (on official letterhead) from their student success coach. Courses will be paid as an undergraduate rate.
National Merit Scholarship recipients: As a National Merit Scholarship recipient, you are required to complete at least 24 UCF credit hours and earn a UCF G.P.A. of at least a 3.2 at the end of the spring semester.
Taking time away from UCF: Possibly. You must submit a Scholarship Appeal and letter stating the reason(s) that you need the time away from UCF. The appeal must be submitted prior to the term(s) that you plan to be away from UCF. The UCF Scholarship Committee will review your request and render a decision. If you leave UCF without asking for the time off, you will not be reinstated to the scholarship program upon your return.
Co-ops and Internships: Yes. If you want to Co-Op or intern, you must let us know in writing which term you plan to Co-Op or intern prior to that term.

Read also: Requirements for Bright Futures
Transient Enrollment: UCF will include approved transient enrollment hours in Bright Futures awards according to the per credit hour award amount for the type of institution attended. Yes. Grade and hours information will be reported for all students funded during the summer. If a student took transient hours, the grades and hours earned at the other institution must be reported to UCF by August 12 in order to be reported systematically. If a student has an opportunity to restore the Bright Futures award, the grades from the summer term may be used to meet restoration requirements.
Out-of-State Students: As an out of state student your scholarship is comprised of two portions, a scholarship portion and a waiver portion. The scholarship portion of your award will serve for deferment purposes, and your waiver will be applied directly towards your tuition, but will not serve as a deferment. Only students who are enrolled full-time will receive the waiver.* The waiver will be applied the week after the add/drop period has ended. *The only exception to the full-time enrollment requirement is granted to students during their graduating semester.

Appeals Process

Extenuating circumstances are the exception. You must submit a letter describing in detail the circumstances supporting your appeal. Your written statement must include a description of the problem/incident indicating dates and time period involved, as well as the impact on your academic performance. The FAFSA for the academic year you are requesting reinstatement must be on file at the time your appeal is submitted. The Scholarship Committee chaired by the Executive Director of the Office of Student Financial Assistance. You must submit your appeal, along with documentation, in sufficient time for the appeal to be reviewed before the next scheduled meeting. Incomplete applications and requests for additional documentation will cause delays. Please plan accordingly in case you experience a delay in your scholarship appeal. Supporting Documentation includes, but is not limited to, divorce decrees, death certificates, and letters from doctors, counselors, advisors etc. Written statements from a professional should reference your name, diagnosis, dates of treatment and length of time for healing. Include any statements (on company letterhead) from third-party persons (e.g. clergy, employers, medical professionals, etc.) who can verify your extenuating circumstances. Report of incident/s, such as a police report, insurance damage report, and bill/s for services related to emergency, obituary, etc.

Additional Scholarship Opportunities

The Pegasus Scholarship Program includes National Merit, National Achievement, National Recognition Program and the Pegasus Scholarships. In addition, we have several Transfer Scholarships that are awarded based on high academic achievement. They include the Ralph C. These scholarships are awarded to entering high school graduates by Undergraduate Admissions to recognize outstanding academic performance. There is no separate application for this scholarship program. These scholarships are awarded to entering out of state high school graduates by Undergraduate Admissions to recognize outstanding academic performance. There is no separate application for this scholarship program. Transfer Scholarships are only available for students graduating with an AA degree from a Florida public state college who transfer directly to UCF for the fall semester. There is a separate application for this scholarship program. Students can obtain an application at any Florida public state college. There are many different ways to begin searching for scholarships such as online search engines like FastWeb.com.

Financial Aid and Loan Information

Financial aid is provided based on your eligibility and the availability of funding. In the event there are changes in funding levels, awards may be reduced or canceled. When your To-Do List has been completed, you will be able to accept, reduce, or decline offered loans online through the myUCF Self-Service.

Loan Adjustments: You may still reduce or decline a loan online through the myUCF Portal even after you have submitted an acceptance, as long as the loan has not disbursed. If you have declined an entire loan or reduced an undisbursed loan in error, please complete and submit the online Loan Adjustment Form from the Forms web page indicating your final request. The time that it takes to process a loan is contingent upon students meeting/completing all loan eligibility criteria. All required documents on the To-Do List must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the beginning of the semester to ensure timely deferments and/or disbursements.

PLUS Loan Denials: A dependent student whose parent has been denied a PLUS loan during the current aid year may be eligible to receive Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans at the independent level with proof of PLUS loan denial from the lender. The additional Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loan will automatically be offered to the student, in which the student may choose to accept, reduce, or decline the loan through the myUCF View Financial Aid “Accept/Decline Awards.” Please allow at least two weeks for processing the additional offered loan upon receipt of a PLUS denial.

PLUS Loan Approval with Endorser: Parents should notify the SFA Loan Department in order for the PLUS loan to be awarded if your credit is approved with an endorser. Borrowers who required an endorser for approval of the PLUS loan must sign the loan.

Loan Acceptance: Yes. If you only want to accept fall loans, you should submit acceptance for only the fall loans, one loan at a time. If you have Subsidized loans in your financial aid package, accept and submit the fall Subsidized loan first. After the confirmation screen, accept and submit the fall Unsubsidized loan next.

Loan Repayment and Consequences of Default: Not paying back your student loan can have serious consequences. If you go into default your lender can require you to repay the entire amount immediately, including all interest plus collection and late payment charges. The lender can sue you and can ask the federal government for help in collecting from you. The Internal Revenue Service may withhold your income tax refund and apply it toward your loan. You cannot receive any additional federal student aid until you make satisfactory arrangements to repay your loan. Your grades and official transcripts will be held until you resolve the default status. Also, the lender may notify credit bureaus of your default.

Loan Forbearance and Deferment: A change in career goals, the loss of a job, or other unexpected changes in your situation could make repaying your loan more difficult than you expected. In some cases, and at the lender’s option, you may be permitted to temporarily stop making your payments, or your lender may accept smaller payments than scheduled. This is called a forbearance. In addition, for some loans, you may defer repayments temporarily which may help. The promissory note outlines the specific terms under which you may be granted a deferment. Contact your loan servicer if you think you may need to make arrangements.

Additional Information

Florida Prepaid: Florida Prepaid is handled through the Student Accounts Office and is applied directly to the student’s account. When the Bright Futures is disbursed, it will be applied to any institutional charges on the student account, and any left-over credit will be refunded to the student.
Enrollment Verification: Enrollment verification is done through the National Student Clearinghouse, which students can access for free via myUCF. On the Student Center page, there is a drop-down box that says Other Academic. Students can open that and select Enrollment Verification. In-school deferment is all handled automatically when the National Student Clearinghouse forwards their enrollment information to the National Student Loan Data System, so there is almost never a need for paper forms unless their information was reported incorrectly.
Planning for Student Loans: Planning ahead is essential to managing debt. If you plan to borrow each year you are in school, estimate the total amount you will borrow. Then use the Federal Student Aid Estimator to estimate how much federal student aid the student may be eligible to receive.
Full Time Requirement: The only exception to the full-time enrollment requirement is granted to students during their graduating semester. If you are enrolled in less than six UCF hours during your graduating semester the exception must be approved by the Office of Student Financial Assistance Scholarship Committee. It is recommended that you submit your request at least two months prior to the beginning of your graduating semester to have a decision rendered before the beginning of the semester.
Committee Meeting Schedule: The scholarship committee is scheduled to meet the second week of each month. Meeting dates are subject to change as deemed necessary by the committee chair.

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