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Scholarship Policies

Students are legally required to report all outside aid sources to the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid. These sources may include community foundation scholarships, fellowships, graduate assistantships, employer tuition benefits and/or other assistance through an agency.

Students should use the financial aid portal page, Other Sources of Financial Aid, to report all outside resources not already listed on their award letters.

CMU scholarship policy

  1. Recipients of CMU merit and talent-based scholarships of a dollar value equal to or greater than $2,500 are required to reside on campus during their freshman and sophomore years unless they qualify as commuting students or for another exception to the Campus Residency Policy.
  2. Students may receive two renewable merit scholarships. Students who are selected for more than two renewable scholarships may choose the awards of the highest value. However, you may not receive full tuition or tuition and housing/food scholarships (such as Centralis and Multicultural Advancement Award of Distinction) with another merit-based scholarship (such as Maroon and Gold).
  3. CMU merit scholarships, such as Maroon and Gold, are paid based on 30 credits per academic year. In your final semester of eligibility, the merit scholarship will be prorated based on actual enrollment (for only courses on program). Scholarship awards are calculated prior to the start of each academic year based on the student's applicable tuition rate and will not change mid-year.
  4. CMU will limit institutional funds (i.e., need-based grants, merit scholarships, departmental scholarships, employee tuition waivers, Indian Tuition Grant Waiver, etc.) to the annual cost of attendance.
  5. CMU merit scholarships are renewable for three consecutive academic years or until degree requirements are met; whichever comes first.

Non-CMU scholarship disbursement policy

  1. Estimated scholarships, i.e., Michigan Competitive and outside agency, will not reduce the amount of tuition payable by posted deadlines.
  2. Donors may specify the semester(s) in which the scholarship is paid.
  3. If a student wants the scholarship distributed in a way that differs from what the donor requests, the student will be asked to get an authorization letter from the donor.
  4. If the donor letter does not specify a distribution schedule, CMU will disburse scholarships of less than $500 all in the fall semester. Scholarships $500 or larger will be split with half in the fall and half in the spring.
  5. If the scholarship has been split and the donor has not given instructions, the student may request the entire award be moved to the fall semester. However, the student is then cautioned that he or she may be short of funds for the spring semester.

CMU athletic scholarships

OSFA disburses all athletic aid to student-athletes. The athletic department awards athletic aid according to NCAA guidelines. Athletic aid is considered part of a student's financial aid offer.

CMU merit scholarship renewal criteria

Students who have earned a CMU merit scholarship(s) must meet certain criteria to renew the scholarship:

  1. A student must be enrolled full-time (12 credits or more) each semester as a degree-seeking student. Waitlisted courses do not count toward official enrollment.
  2. Students must earn 30 new credit hours each academic year. CLEP, AP, IB, and dual-enrolled credits do not count toward the 30 new credit hours.
  3. Merit scholarships are renewable for three consecutive years (8 semesters total) or to the point where the student has completed degree requirements for their first bachelor's degree; whichever comes first. Undergraduate students who graduate in less than eight semesters forfeit their remaining scholarship eligibility.
  4. Students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.25 at CMU/3.00 for newly admitted students beginning fall 2019. Scholarship renewal will be reviewed on an annual basis at the end of each spring semester.
  5. If a student chooses to attend another college or university or withdraws from CMU, the scholarship is forfeited.
  6. If a student defers their admission for up to one year (due to reasons other than enrolling at another college or university), the scholarship(s) may be deferred to the new entry term. Students must submit a formal deferral request, in writing to the CMU Office of Undergraduate Admissions.
  7. If a student accepts a CMU scholarship that covers the full cost of attendance, the higher award takes the place of all other scholarships. Subsequently, if a student does not meet the renewal criteria for the scholarship that covers full cost, or decides not to continue with that scholarship program, they cannot "reclaim" the other scholarship.