Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 10 - Education Institutions and Agencies › Part 613 - Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant (MESG) › Chapter 1 - Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant (MESG) Rules and Regulations › Rule 10-613-1.1 - Mississippi Eminent Scholars Grant (MESG) Rules and Regulations

Current through June 25, 2024
These Rules and Regulations are subject to change by the
				  Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board (Postsecondary
				  Board). All eligible students shall receive a Mississippi Eminent Scholars
				  Grant (MESG) award; however, the amount of each MESG award depends upon the
				  availability of funds as authorized by the State Legislature.
I.
GENERAL ELIGIBILITY
A. The applicant must be a current legal
				resident of Mississippi. Resident status for purposes of receiving MESG under
				this act shall be determined in the same manner as resident status for tuition
				purposes as set forth in Sections
				37-103-1
				through
				37-103-29,
				of Ms. Code Ann., with the exception of Section
				37-103-17.
B. The applicant must be continuously
				enrolled (not less than two semesters or three trimesters in each successive
				academic year) full-time (minimum 15 semester hours or 9 trimester hours) at
				the undergraduate level at one (1) eligible institution in the State of
				Mississippi.
C. The applicant must
				meet one of the following sets of academic criteria:
1. Graduated from high school or earned the
				equivalent in high school subjects acceptable for credit toward a diploma, as
				verified by the institution before disbursement of awards, with a minimum
				cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale based on the high
				school's grading system and certified by the high school counselor or other
				authorized school official, and scored an ACT composite score of 29 or higher
				from a national test or tests taken prior to being enrolled as a first time
				college student. In lieu of ACT scores, students may submit equivalent SAT
				scores according to the official ACT/SAT concordance tables in publication at
				the time of the test in question; or
2. Attended a home education program during
				grade levels 9 through 12 and scored an ACT composite score of 29 or higher
				from a national test or tests taken prior to being enrolled as a first-time
				college student. In lieu of ACT scores, students may submit equivalent SAT
				scores according to the official ACT/SAT concordance tables in publication at
				the time of the test in question; or
3. Graduated from high school or earned the
				equivalent in high school subjects acceptable for credit toward a diploma, as
				verified by the institution before disbursement of awards, with a minimum
				cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale based on the high
				school's grading system and certified by the high school counselor or other
				authorized school official, and was recognized as a semifinalist or finalist by
				the National Merit Scholarship Corporation or the National Achievement
				Scholarship Program.
D.
				The applicant must enroll as a first-time college student in Mississippi.
1. A "first-time in college" student is any
				student who has earned fewer than 12 hours of postsecondary academic credit.
a) Postsecondary academic credit earned prior
				to or during the summer immediately subsequent to receiving a high school
				diploma, or earned while dually enrolled in secondary and postsecondary
				educational institutions, or while enrolled in the early admission program of a
				postsecondary institution shall not be considered when determining if a student
				is a "first-time in college" student.
b) Postsecondary academic credit granted by
				an institution for Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB)
				courses completed in high school shall not be considered when determining if a
				student is a "first-time in college" student.
2. A student may enroll as a first-time
				college student
in Mississippi
as long as the student has
				earned no more than 36 hours of postsecondary academic credit out of state
				before enrolling in a Mississippi institution. The eligibility of such
				applicants will be determined in the same manner as "first-time in college"
				applicants, except that these students shall be required to have maintained the
				equivalent of a 3.5 cumulative grade point average on a 4.0 scale for all
				college work attempted, as certified by the attending institution.
E. The applicant must complete an
				initial application for state financial aid before the expiration of the third
				school year succeeding the year of his or her high school graduation and must
				complete an application on or before September 15 during the fall of the aid
				year for which the student is seeking assistance.
F. The applicant must not currently be in
				default on a Federal or State educational loan or owe a repayment on a Federal
				or State grant.
G. The applicant
				must meet any other general requirements for admission and student financial
				aid at the student's eligible institution of choice.