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Butler scholarships and merit aid

Two prices: the posted one, and yours.

Posted price$72,060per year · 2025-2026 · cost of attendance
Yours?depends on the rules below

The short answer

Butler may be worth checking, but its awards do not follow a simple grades-and-scores chart. Start with the published scholarships below.

Where does your student land?

Verified Jul 2026
2 school sources to explore

Published rules, with the school sources close at hand. Confirm the details before you count on an award.

The award collection

Published scholarships

These amounts and requirements come from the school’s own published pages. Open an award to see who qualifies and how to keep it.

Where does your student land?

  1. Academic Scholarship Program$18,000-$30,000Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Academic Scholarship Program

    $18,000-$30,000

    Published rangeNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Academic Scholarship Program

    Who qualifies

    Based on academic record and test scores (if submitted). Apply via Common App by November 1 and be admitted Early Action/Early Decision for maximum consideration; later/Regular Decision considered based on available funds

    How to keep it

    Renewable as long as the student maintains the renewal criteria in the scholarship offer.

    Worth knowing

    Automatic with the Common App (no separate application). Tuition-only (all Butler gift assistance is for tuition only unless otherwise stated). Amounts are 2025-26 and vary by year based on the applicant pool.

  2. Morton-Finney Scholars Award$5,000-Full tuitionNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Morton-Finney Scholars Award

    $5,000-Full tuition

    Published coverage or packageNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Morton-Finney Scholars Award

    Who qualifies

    Strong academic rigor/performance and a commitment to fostering inclusion; Common App by Nov 1 (EA/ED) or Feb 1 (RD), plus the Morton-Finney application by Nov 15/Feb 15; interviews (Butler Blue Scholars' Day)

    How to keep it

    Renewable with renewal criteria plus Morton-Finney Scholars Program participation (meeting attendance, campus/community engagement, monthly journal reflections).

    Worth knowing

    'Awards range from $5,000 to full tuition (with other Butler gift assistance, state, and federal aid)' — the full-tuition ceiling is reached in combination with other aid. Competitive, separate application.

  3. The Compass Center Scholarship$4,000Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    The Compass Center Scholarship

    $4,000

    Published amountNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for The Compass Center Scholarship

    Who qualifies

    Admitted Early Action or Early Decision; Common App by Nov 1, Compass Center application by Nov 15; essay; demonstrated interest in interfaith/religious exploration, leadership, or service

    How to keep it

    Renewable for the first four years; students should maintain a 3.0 GPA and participate at least 10 hours/semester of interfaith engagement on campus.

    Worth knowing

    Offered to fewer than 10 incoming students per year; competitive.

  4. Butler Tuition GuaranteeFull tuition (guaranteed when combined with all federal, state, and University scholarships and grants)Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Butler Tuition Guarantee

    Full tuition (guaranteed when combined with all federal, state, and University scholarships and grants)

    Published coverage or packageNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Butler Tuition Guarantee

    Who qualifies

    NEED-BASED (FAFSA); must attend and anticipate graduating from a Marion County high school; solid academic record; HS extracurriculars/community service. Apply by Nov 1, admitted EA/ED, FAFSA by Dec 1. Priority for free/reduced-lunch, 21st Century Scholars, first-gen, IPS students

    How to keep it

    Renewable with the renewal criteria in the award offer.

    Worth knowing

    NOT a flat merit award — it is a guarantee that gift aid will reach full tuition once all federal, state, and University scholarships and grants are combined. Need-based and geographically gated. Not available to students ineligible for federal aid (international/undocumented/DACA).

  5. Jordan College of the Arts AwardAmount not published (varies)Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Jordan College of the Arts Award

    Amount not published (varies)

    Variable or qualified amountNot recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Jordan College of the Arts Award

    Who qualifies

    Audition, interview, or artwork submission required in addition to the Common App; only for JCA — School of Music; Dance, Theatre, Arts Administration; and the Arts Program

    How to keep it

    Renewal not detailed on the page.

    Worth knowing

    Amounts vary by performance ability/interview/submitted work and departmental needs.

Free Merit Check

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The fine print

Aid capHard $72,060 cost-of-attendance ceiling

Institutional aid at Butler cannot push the package past $72,060. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.

Campus view at Butler University

Campus view at Butler University

What makes Butler different

Butler awards an automatic $18,000-$30,000 Academic Scholarship to first-year applicants through the Common App, but all Butler gift aid is for tuition only, and its headline 'full tuition' awards are either competitive (Morton-Finney) or a need-based top-up guarantee (Tuition Guarantee), not flat merit.

Merit tiers5See who qualifies
Research checkedJul 2026By our research team

Selection beyond grades and scores

Start with the selection process.

These awards are not recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read each award's selection rules, application steps and dates. Meeting a minimum is not an award offer.

  1. Read the selection rules

    Look for the school's stated criteria and whether an additional application is needed.

  2. Check the application dates

    Confirm the current admission and scholarship deadlines directly with the school.

  3. Know what happens next year

    Check renewal, credit requirements and how other aid affects the award.

The fine print / Three questions to carry forward

Before you count on it.

Does it apply to us? Confirm the entering year, residency and every eligibility condition.

Can we keep it? Check renewal GPA, credits and how long the award lasts.

Can we combine it? Ask how outside scholarships and other school awards change the offer.

Take Butler's decision sheet

A printable research summary, source links and room for your questions.

See what could change an award

Straight from the aid office

What Butler's aid office says

Per the Office of Financial Aid, Butler University, August 2026. How we verify

GPA required for scholarship renewal

What minimum GPA does a student need to maintain to renew the academic scholarship?

The academic scholarship renews at a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.

“The academic scholarship renews at a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0.”

What families often miss

  1. All Butler gift assistance — including the Academic Scholarship — is for tuition only unless otherwise stated, so room, board, and indirect costs are not covered by these awards.

  2. The Butler Tuition Guarantee is a need-based award (FAFSA) limited to Marion County high-school graduates; it guarantees full tuition only by combining all federal, state, and University aid — it is not a stand-alone merit grant and is unavailable to FAFSA-ineligible students.

  3. The Morton-Finney award ranges from $5,000 to full tuition, and the full-tuition figure is reached 'with other Butler gift assistance, state, and federal aid' — and it requires a separate competitive application plus ongoing program participation.

  4. Maximum Academic Scholarship consideration requires applying by November 1 and being admitted Early Action or Early Decision; Regular Decision applicants are considered only based on available funds.

  5. Morton-Finney and Compass Center require a SECOND application (by Nov 15 for EA/ED) beyond the Common App, plus interviews — submitting only the Common App forfeits them.

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

Strong first-year applicants who apply by November 1 for the automatic Academic Scholarship; high-achieving students committed to inclusion can compete for Morton-Finney (up to full tuition), and need-eligible Marion County students can reach full tuition via the Tuition Guarantee.

Published yearly cost: Approximately $72,060 for 2025-2026. Source

Cost and graduation facts

Federal reporting on who actually enrolls at Butler, what they paid after aid, and what happened next — independent of anything the school markets.

Average annual net price by family income at Butler, academic year 2021-22
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$25,278
$30,001–$48,000$25,696
$48,001–$75,000$32,679
$75,001–$110,000$36,778
$110,001+$41,134
All income levels (average)$36,041

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Published tuition & fees, AY 2022-23
$47,560
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$36,041

That works out to roughly a 45% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $65,970 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).

Outcomes for students who enrolled here

Graduation rate (150% of normal time), 2016 cohort
80%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
87%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$26,000 (~$276/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$77,235
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
19%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
47%
See other scholarships and cost examples

If your student brings another scholarship

All Butler gift assistance (including the Academic Scholarship) is for tuition only unless otherwise stated and is limited to full-time students pursuing a first bachelor's degree. The Morton-Finney 'full tuition' ceiling and the Butler Tuition Guarantee 'full tuition' are both reached by COMBINING Butler gift aid with state and federal aid, not by a single flat award.

Tuition-only gift aid; full-tuition outcomes are aggregate (Butler + state + federal). The pages opened do not state an explicit order for reducing outside/private scholarships (a separate Outside Scholarships page was not opened).

Source

Other Butler scholarships worth checking

These awards can be harder to find. Each one has its own rules.

AmountVarious amountsEligibilityFull-time students who complete the FAFSA and show financial need

Not automatically renewed — FAFSA each year; not available to FAFSA-ineligible (international/undocumented/DACA) students

Source

AmountVarious amountsEligibilityNCAA D-I athletes per coach/team needs (football and women's swimming are non-scholarship)

Source

Amount$700-$10,400 (tuition)EligibilityIndiana-domiciled, need-based; 30 credits/year for the max (24 for reduced)

State of Indiana program; FAFSA by April 15

Source

Butler merit aid FAQ

  • Do I need a separate application for the Academic Scholarship?

    No — completing the Common App is enough. Apply by November 1 and be admitted Early Action or Early Decision for maximum scholarship consideration.

  • Are Butler scholarships applied to tuition only?

    Yes. All Butler gift assistance is for tuition only unless otherwise stated, and only for full-time students pursuing a first bachelor's degree.

  • What is the cost of attendance?

    For 2025-26, the total cost of attendance is $72,060 (tuition $48,900); for 2026-27 it rises to $75,080 (tuition $50,860).

See sources and other schools

How Butler compares

  • 235 of 749 verified schools in our dataset use cost-of-attendance cap displacement.

    Butler is in a recognizable cluster (235 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.

  • 665 of 749 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.

    Butler is one of them. The cohort minority (84 schools) only awards one-year scholarships, which means the four-year value families assume on a brochure quote isn't guaranteed at every school.

Sources used on this page

Every claim is checked against Butler’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

  • Rose-Hulman merit aid. Indiana private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • Saint Mary's merit aid. Indiana private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • Wabash merit aid. Indiana private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • DePauw merit aid. Indiana private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.

Keep exploring Butler merit aid

The next chapter

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