Wyoming Financial Aid: State Grants, Scholarships and Free College Programs
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Feb 09, 2026 • US States & Cities, US Financial Aid & Scholarships
The Hathaway Scholarship is Wyoming's main state-funded college award, paying Wyoming high school graduates up to $1,680 a year based on GPA, test scores, and coursework, on top of federal aid from the FAFSA.
💵 Hathaway has four tiers: Honors, Performance, Opportunity, and Provisional, each with a different yearly award.
You qualify automatically by graduating from a Wyoming high school, or through the homeschool or equivalency route, and meeting the GPA, test score, and coursework bar for a tier.
📩 File the FAFSA every year so Wyoming colleges count Hathaway and other aid toward your bill.
A separate need-based Hathaway award adds money on top of the merit scholarship for students who qualify.
The Hathaway Scholarship: Wyoming's main state award
The Hathaway Scholarship is Wyoming's flagship state-funded college scholarship, paid out of a dedicated state endowment. It is available to Wyoming high school graduates, and to students who complete an approved homeschool program or the Hathaway Success Equivalency Certificate route, who then enroll at the University of Wyoming or one of the state's seven community colleges.
The four award tiers
Hathaway pays at four levels, each requiring a higher bar of GPA, ACT or SAT score, and completed coursework than the one below it.
| Tier | Annual award |
|---|---|
| Honors | Up to $1,680 |
| Performance | Up to $1,260 |
| Opportunity | Up to $840 |
| Provisional | Up to $840 |
Source: Hathaway Scholarship program overview .
Every tier also requires you to complete the Hathaway Success Curriculum, a set list of core high school classes in English, math, science, social studies, and world language. The exact GPA and test score cutoffs for each tier change by graduating class, so check the current requirement chart on the official Hathaway requirements page for your graduation year rather than relying on an older chart a friend or sibling used.
Hathaway pays out over multiple semesters, not only your first year, but your college requires you to keep meeting a minimum GPA to keep receiving it. Check your college's renewal policy each year so a rough semester does not cost you the scholarship going forward.
How you apply
You do not fill out a separate Hathaway application in most cases. Wyoming automatically considers every eligible Wyoming high school student for the scholarship based on your transcript and test scores once you graduate and enroll at an eligible Wyoming college. Homeschool students and students taking the equivalency route follow a separate documentation path, so start that process with your school counselor or the Hathaway program office well before your senior year ends.
Need-based help on top of Hathaway
Beyond the merit-based tiers, the Hathaway program also runs a need-based component for students who qualify financially. Ask your school counselor or the college's financial aid office how the need-based award stacks with your merit tier, since the two are not mutually exclusive for every student.
File the FAFSA every year
Hathaway covers part of your bill, not all of it. File the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) every year at studentaid.gov so Wyoming colleges calculate your full aid package, including federal grants, work-study, and loans, alongside any state and institutional money. Submit it as early as possible each cycle, since some aid is limited and awarded on a first-come basis.
Aid normally stacks in this order: federal grants and loans from your FAFSA result, then Hathaway and other state money, then scholarships from the college itself. Your financial aid office applies each layer against your bill and tells you what is left to cover with savings, a payment plan, or a student loan.
Other funding to check
Each community college and University of Wyoming runs its own institutional scholarships on top of Hathaway, so check both schools' financial aid pages directly.
Some Wyoming community colleges run local tuition-guarantee or promise programs for graduates of high schools in their service area. Ask your local college's admissions office what current offers apply to you.
Wyoming students planning to attend college outside the state also qualify for national and school-specific scholarships, since Hathaway only pays out at Wyoming institutions.