Tuition Opportunity Program (TOPS)
TOPS (Tuition Opportunity Program for Students) is a comprehensive program of state scholarships. TOPS has five components: The Teacher Award, the Opportunity Award, the Performance Award, the Honors Award, and the Tech Award (for technical schools only). These programs are open only to Louisiana residents.
Requirements:
- Any graduating high school student who achieves a cumulative 2.50 grade-point-average, completes a specified college-preparatory curriculum and who scores the state average (not less than 20) on the American College Test (ACT) is eligible to receive free college tuition through the TOPS program
- For the TOPS Opportunity Award, the Performance Award and the Honors Award, students must take a minimum of 16.5 core units in the college prep curriculum, achieve minimum standards for their grade point average, and achieve a minimum score on the ACT.
- In order to continue receiving TOPS Honors and Performance Awards, recipients must maintain a 3.00 GPA and earn 24 hours each academic year. Opportunity scholars must achieve a 2.30 GPA in their first year, but must increase to 2.50 as they accumulate more than 48 credit hours. Award limits on all components of the program are four years or eight semesters, and eligibility is lost if the student fails to make steady academic progress, but may be reinstated.
- The purpose of the TOPS Teacher Award is to attract academically talented teachers into the state's classrooms. It offers a generous loan stipend to talented students to use toward the attainment of teacher's certification. This program is competitive, meaning that those students with the highest combined scores based on the student's grades, standardized test scores, years in college, and college major, will be given first consideration. Standards include cumulative high school GPA of 3.25, the completion of 16.5 units in a college preparatory curriculum and a score of 23 on the ACT.
To apply for all TOPS awards, you must submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the academic year you enroll as a full-time student at a Louisiana college or university. For example, if you will graduate from high school in school year 2004-2005 and enroll during the 2005-2006 academic year, submit the 2005-2006 version of the FAFSA. Students who can demonstrate that they do not qualify for federal grant aid and are not interested in obtaining other forms of federal student aid, such as loans or work-study, may submit an abbreviated FAFSA (must be filed in its paper form) or complete the On-Line Application found at https://osfantweb.osfa.state.la.us/TOPSPort.nsf. Contact LOSFA for assistance in filing an abbreviated FAFSA or the On-Line Application. The FAFSA may be filed after January 1, and will be given priority consideration, if received by May 1, and must be received by July 1 to avoid penalties. A FAFSA received more than 120 days after July 1 will not be considered.
Students may check the status of their TOPS eligibility by calling (800) 259-5626, Ext. 1012 or via Internet at
www.osfa.state.la.us. LOSFA’s email address is custserv@osfa.state.la.us. Note: LSU Alexandria does not offer the TECH Award.