Rules & Eligibility

The Faith & Reason Scholarship Contest is open to all incoming freshmen at Thomas More College.

Awards: 

• One full tuition scholarship for four years.
• Five half tuition scholarships for four years.
• Seven $3,500 scholarships for four years.
• All other participants will be eligible for a $1,000 scholarship for four years.

A Completed College Application:

All students wishing to submit an essay for the Faith & Reason Scholarship Contest must also complete and submit a full College Application. The online application can be started here. A complete application must include: two letters of recommendation; high school transcripts;  and a completed online application.

A Completed Essay:

Essays should be three to four pages typed, double-spaced, with 12-point Times New Roman font and 1-inch margins on all sides. Applications must include a cover sheet listing the applicant’s name, address, telephone number, e-mail, high school graduation date, and age. The prompt for the essay can be found here.

A Completed FAFSA:

Students applying for the Faith and Reason Scholarship must submit a FAFSA.

Admissions Interview:

Students applying for the scholarship must schedule an interview with an Admissions officer. Interviews will be conducted either in person or via Zoom, and should be scheduled after submitting your completed application and essay to the College. Schedule your interview by calling the Admissions office at (603) 880-8308 or emailing admissions@ThomasMoreCollege.edu.

Method of Submission:

All completed Faith & Reason Essays and College applications must be submitted by November 1st, 2025. Completed essays can be e-mailed to admissions@thomasmorecollege.edu, submitted online, or mailed to the College at the following address:

Admissions Office
Thomas More College of Liberal Arts
6 Manchester Street
Merrimack, NH 03054

Thomas More College is launching an Early Action application option that would enable rising high school Seniors to apply, receive financial aid, and be accepted early. Students who apply under Early Action and are accepted will receive a renewable $5,000 Early Action Scholarship—an exclusive opportunity available only for Early Action applicants, which is combinable with other scholarships. Review the deadlines here.

Thomas More College of Liberal Arts is pleased to offer the prestigious Pope Benedict XVI Scholarship, which recognizes students of exceptional academic achievement and intellectual promise. This scholarship is designed to support those who have demonstrated a commitment to their studies and a deep engagement with the Catholic intellectual tradition.

Scholarship Details

The Pope Benedict XVI Scholarship is valued at up to $18,000 per year.  It is renewable for up to four years, provided the student maintains a CGPA of 3.8 or higher throughout their time at the College and also meets one of the test score requirements listed below.  This award is available to freshmen applicants only.

CLT: 90 or higher

ACT: 32 or higher

SAT: 1400 or higher

Deadline: March 1

Eligibility 

To be eligible for the Pope Benedict XVI Scholarship, students must meet the following academic and application requirements:

A cumulative GPA of 3.8 or higher

Standardized test scores that meet one of the following criteria:

CLT: 90 or higher

ACT: 32 or higher

SAT: 1400 or higher

Standardized test scores must be submitted directly from the testing agency to the Thomas More College Admissions Office.

Essay Requirement: Applicants must submit a thoughtful, well-written essay that engages with the themes and arguments presented in Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical, Deus Caritas Est. The essay must be 5 pages in length, typed in 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, with 1-inch margins. A cover sheet listing the applicant’s name, contact information, high school graduation date, and age should accompany the essay. The style of the essay should be reflective, meditative, and clear-spoken; not a book report or a merely “expository” essay. 

The essay will be evaluated for its intellectual depth and clarity of thought, and it must receive a grade in the B+ to A+ range to qualify for the scholarship.

All essays should be submitted to the Admissions Office at: admissions@thomasmorecollege.edu

Additional Requirements:

A completed academic application to Thomas More College

Submission of the FAFSA

If a student falls below the required GPA during their time at the College, they will have the opportunity to regain the scholarship if their GPA improves by the end of the following academic year.

Honoring Excellence

The Pope Benedict XVI Scholarship reflects Thomas More College’s dedication to fostering a community of scholars who are both academically accomplished and deeply engaged with questions of faith, reason, and charity. By recognizing and rewarding academic excellence, this scholarship invites students to join a vibrant intellectual and spiritual tradition.

This opportunity is available to students enrolling after the completion of the 2024-2025 academic cycle. 

Thomas More College welcomes applicants who aspire to immerse themselves in the richness of Catholic intellectual life and who seek to grow in wisdom, virtue, and service.

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Thomas More College of Liberal Arts is proud to offer the Catholic Renewal Scholarship, a special scholarship designed to support students who have been prepared in high school to appreciate and understand the riches of the education offered at Thomas More, and who demonstrate exceptional academic promise. This scholarship affirms our commitment to forming students in the Catholic intellectual tradition and provides financial assistance to make a Thomas More College education accessible to those who share in that vision.  

Scholarship Details

The Catholic Renewal Scholarship is valued at up to $15,500 per year. It is renewable for up to four years, provided the student maintains a CGPA of 3.5 or higher throughout their time at the College and also meets one of the test score requirements listed below.  This award is available to freshmen applicants only.

Eligibility Requirements

To be considered for the Catholic Renewal Scholarship, students must:

Be currently enrolled in one of the following schools or groups of schools:

Students must have a 3.5 cumulative GPA at the time of application to TMC.

Students must submit academic transcripts and standardized test scores that meet the following criteria:

SAT: 1200 or higher

CLT: 78 or higher

ACT: 25 or higher

Standardized test scores must be submitted directly from the testing agency to the Thomas More College Admissions Office.

Additional Requirements:

A completed academic application to Thomas More College

Submission of the FAFSA 

If a student falls below the required CGPA during their time at the College, they will have the opportunity to regain the scholarship if their CGPA improves by the end of the following academic year.

Students must notify the Admissions Office and Financial Aid Office that they are applying for this scholarship. 

Admissions Office:   admissions@thomasmorecollege.edu 

Financial Aid Office: treidy@thomasmorecollege.edu 

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Named in honor of St. John Henry Newman—recently declared a Doctor of the Church— this scholarship welcomes transfer students whose pursuit of truth and love of learning have already taken root at other faithful liberal arts institutions.

Purpose

The St. John Henry Newman Transfer Scholarship recognizes high-achieving students from colleges that share Thomas More College’s commitment to a rigorous, integrated, and distinctly Catholic education.

By welcoming transfer students from peer institutions, the College seeks to build a community of learners united by a shared devotion to truth, beauty, and goodness within the Catholic intellectual tradition.

Eligibility

Applicants must:

• Be transferring in good academic and disciplinary standing.
• Provide documentation of all financial aid currently received, including outside scholarships.
• Complete the full undergraduate application to Thomas More College.
• Demonstrate adequate academic preparation for placement in their desired class year, as determined by the Dean and Admissions Review Committee.
• Maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA.

While priority consideration is given to students from mission-aligned institutions (see below), students from other institutions may also apply and will be evaluated under the same standards.

Scholarship Awards

Base Award: All eligible transfer students receive an annual guaranteed tuition discount of 30% of Thomas More College’s current tuition.

Additional Awards for Exceptional Applicants: In exceptional cases—such as students with outstanding academic records, leadership qualities, or demonstrated excellence in other areas—Thomas More College may grant additional aid through the St. John Henry Newman Transfer Scholarship.

Additional awards are typically given to students with a 3.7 GPA or higher, those who have shown leadership within their college community, or who have demonstrated excellence in fields consonant with the College’s mission—such as artistic or literary achievement, service or leadership within the Church, or contributions to the intellectual and cultural life of their college.

Peer Institutions

Transfers from the following institutions are eligible for this scholarship:

• Wyoming Catholic College
• University of Dallas
• Thomas Aquinas College
• San Damiano College for the Trades
• Our Lady Seat of Wisdom College
• Holy Apostles College and Seminary
• Christendom College
• Ave Maria University
• The Collegium
• Rosary College
• The College of St. Joseph the Worker

While students from these colleges will receive priority consideration, students from other mission-aligned institutions may also apply and will be evaluated under the same criteria.

Every incoming student who provides scores from the Classic Learning Test (CLT) will receive a $1,000 tuition scholarship for each year the student is enrolled at Thomas More College as a full-time student, with a maximum of $4,000 for four years. This is in addition to other forms of assistance for which a student qualifies.

All sibling applicants of current and former students, along with children of our alumni, will receive a $1,000 tuition scholarship for each year the student is enrolled at Thomas More College as a full-time student, with a maximum of $4,000 for four years. This is in addition to other forms of assistance for which a student qualifies.

This scholarship is meant specifically for our international applicants. Eligible students may be awarded an amount of up to half-tuition.

This scholarship is awarded to students who demonstrate financial need as determined by the Student Aid Report.  This scholarship may increase year to year based upon the demonstrated need of the student.

New students who have attended a Collegiate Summer Program at Thomas More College will be awarded a $1,000 tuition scholarship for each year the student is enrolled as a full-time student, with a maximum of $4,000 for four years. This is in addition to other forms of assistance for which a student qualifies. Summer Program alumni who wish to receive the Summer Program Scholarship should submit their completed application to TMC’s undergraduate program no later than November 1st.

New students who have attended the Western Pilgrimage Program at Thomas More College will be awarded a scholarship valued at up to half of annual tuition.  Students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in order to retain this award.

In memory of Jackson Robert Paige, this scholarship is awarded to a Junior student who shows continued progress in academics and has financial need. The student will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship for the year, as long as the student is enrolled full-time.

In memory of Brett Thomas Lambert, this scholarship is awarded to a Senior who shows continued progress in academics and has financial need. The student will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship for the year, as long as the student is enrolled full-time.

The Ogilvie Scholarship is awarded to one freshman each year who demonstrates an ability to lead others in music. The student will receive a $1,000 tuition scholarship for each year that he or she is enrolled at Thomas More College as a full-time student, with a maximum of $4,000 for four years. The Ogilvie Scholarship would complement other forms of assistance for which the entering freshman qualifies. The purpose of the scholarship is to promote communal folk singing among the student body. The scholarship goes to whichever applicant promises to contribute his or her talents to the culture of music on campus. Prospective students interested in the scholarship should write a brief essay, one or two pages, in which they present their qualifications for this scholarship.    Relevant information includes previous musical training and experience leading others in song. The essay for the Ogilvie Scholarship must be submitted with a student’s application to Thomas More College.

Thomas More College is pleased to offer Legatus members, employees, and their immediate families (spouses, children, and grandchildren) tuition scholarships.

● Legatus affiliates (spouses and children) will receive a 30% tuition scholarship to Thomas More College.

● Legatus affiliates (grandchildren) will receive a 25% tuition scholarship to Thomas More College.

● Additional grant and need-based aid may be available and can be combined with this scholarship if deemed appropriate by Thomas More College.

The mission of the St. Robert Bellarmine Fund is to empower Catholic students who are committed to orthodoxy and the teachings of the magisterium of the Catholic Church by providing scholarships to authentically Catholic universities. Our goal is to enable these students to receive a quality education that will equip them to become effective missionaries in all fields of work. By exclusively offering scholarships to universities listed on the Saint Robert Bellarmine Fund website, we aim to support the growth and development of the next generation of Catholic leaders who will make a positive impact on our Church, our society, and our world.

• Only current high school seniors are able to apply. Current college students and transfer students are not eligible.
• Applicants MUST be planning to attend a school listed on the Newman Guide.
• In order to be considered eligible, a short application must be submitted via the Saint Robert Bellarmine Fund website (linked below). This application includes sections for high school GPA, family income, and an essay. This is a need AND merit-based scholarship.
• The deadline to apply for this scholarship is January 31st.
• The website and application can be found at: https://www.saintrobertbellarminefund.org

This scholarship has received public recognition from:

Cardinal Newman Society: https://cardinalnewmansociety.org/bellarmine-fund-sharing-the-treasure-of-faithful-catholic-education/

National Catholic Register: https://www.ncregister.com/features/follow-in-the-footsteps-of-st-robert-bellarmine-scholarships-for-scholars

To honor Ignatius Cardinal Kung Pin-Mei’s heroic fidelity to the Church (1901-2000), The Cardinal Kung Foundation is pleased to offer the Cardinal Kung, A Defender of The Faith Scholarships:

Current high school students who plan on a 2025 Fall entry to a college recommended in the Newman Guide or to a Catholic seminary:

➢ A Scholarship of $2,000 will be awarded to one (1) high school senior.
➢ Additional awards of $1000 each may be awarded to outstanding applicants, at the discretion of the Foundation.

Ignatius Cardinal Kung Pin-Mei, Bishop of Shanghai, China was a renowned educator in Shanghai, and a prisoner for Christ for thirty-two years under the current Chinese communist government.  Saint Pope John Paul II named him Cardinal in pectore in 1979 while he was serving a life sentence in China. In 1991, he was publicly proclaimed Cardinal.  Saint Pope John Paul II referred to Cardinal Kung as, “….a man who has given witness by word and deed, through long suffering and trials, to what constitutes the essence of Life in the Church, participation in the divine life through the apostolic faith and evangelical love.”

Prior to his arrest in 1955, Bishop Kung vigorously engaged in practical activities to prepare himself and the Church in Shanghai for coming persecutions. He visited all parishes to encourage weekly devotions such as adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, public recitation of the rosary, and praying the Passion of the Cross. He strengthened the catechetical training in all parishes to enable the faithful to defend their faith against communism. He trained hundreds of lay Catholics, especially youth, as catechists to pass on the faith to future generations when clergy and nuns would be jailed or martyred.

In honor of Cardinal Kung’s commitment to practical activity in the service of Christ and His Church, the scholarship awards will be made based on the student’s demonstrated commitment to actively promoting and defending the Catholic faith.

Thomas More College will continue the award for any Cardinal Kung Scholarship recipient for the recipient’s sophomore, junior, and senior years.

2025 Cardinal Kung A Defender of the Faith Scholarship

http://www.cardinalkungfoundation.org/

The State of New Hampshire offers several financial aid options for residents with demonstrated need.

Governor’s Scholarship Program

Granite Edvance Scholarship

UNIQUE Scholarship Programs

For additional information on NH financial aid options and planning:

The NHHEAF Network Organization

Below is a list of some independent scholarship opportunities. The Thomas More College of Liberal Arts does not endorse these scholarships (unless otherwise noted) but merely offers them as an optional resource for incoming and returning students who are seeking alternate ways to earn financial aid:

Citizens Bank Scholarship

Discover Student Loans Scholarship Award

Henry C. Lord Scholarship a need-based scholarship for incoming students from New Hampshire.

New Hampshire Charitable Foundation Scholarship

Newman Society’s Annual Essay Scholarship Contest: High School students have the opportunity to earn a $5,000 scholarship from the Cardinal Newman Society (details in link). Thomas More College will supplement the one-time award with additional $5,000 grants over the following three years.

Saint Robert Bellarmine Fund

College Board’s Scholarship Search

CollegeXpress

BestColleges 

FastWeb

Indigenous Student College Guide

Scholarship Finder

Study.com – College Guide for Low-Income Students

Study.com – Strategies for Graduating College Debt-Free

Graduate Scholarships Available to Alumni of Newman Guide Colleges