What does it take to win Drake's full-tuition scholarship?

The National Alumni Scholarship (one full-tuition award) and three $10,000 Carpenter Scholarships require entering directly from high school with a 3.8 GPA or a top-5% class rank, a separate scholarship application plus the admission application by December 1, and a virtual interview if you are named a semifinalist in early February.

Is Drake's tuition locked for four years?

Tuition is. The Drake Tuition Guarantee fixes tuition so it will not change during your four years (for first-year/transfer students entering Fall 2026). Room and board are not locked and may fluctuate.

Drake award rules

Will the scholarship last four years at Drake?

We pulled the school’s grade, credit, and time limits into one place so you can see what it takes to keep the award.

Verified Jul 20262 months ago

The short answer

3 of 3 published awards are listed as renewable.

The exact rule can change by award. Check the award your student may receive before you count on the same amount every year.

What to do

Find the award name in the full research below. Save its grade, credit, and deadline rules with your college plan.

See every award rule, common mistake, and source

At a glance

Renewable tiers: 3 of 3
One-time tiers: 0
Tiers with published renewal terms: 3
Renewal risk profile: low

Renewal risk profile

Drake's published renewal rules cluster around a 3.0 floor with no major-GPA gating, which is survivable for the typical freshman with steady study habits. The risk is non-renewal due to enrollment status (dropping below full-time), not GPA.

Presidential Scholarship: See notes
National Alumni Scholarship: See notes
Carpenter Scholarship: See notes

Renewal terms by tier

Presidential Scholarship
$27,000–$35,000 per year
To keep it: Renewable for students enrolling in at least 12 credit hours per semester and making satisfactory academic progress; renewable up to four years total or until a bachelor's degree is earned.
Source: https://www.drake.edu/admission/first-yearstudents/costsfinancialaid/scholarships/presidential/
National Alumni Scholarship
One full-tuition award
Entry requirements: 3.8 GPA
To keep it: Full-tuition award covering Drake tuition; competitive, awarded to one recipient.
Source: https://www.drake.edu/admission-aid/financial-aid/scholarships/nas
Carpenter Scholarship
$10,000 per year (three awards)
Entry requirements: 3.8 GPA
To keep it: Applied toward Drake tuition; three awards offered through the same competition as the National Alumni Scholarship.
Source: https://www.drake.edu/admission-aid/financial-aid/scholarships/nas

How families lose this aid

Assuming the Drake Tuition Guarantee also locks room and board.
The guarantee fixes tuition for four years only. Drake states the cost of room and board is not fixed and may fluctuate, so budget for annual increases on housing and the meal plan.

Renewal questions families ask

What does it take to win Drake's full-tuition scholarship?: The National Alumni Scholarship (one full-tuition award) and three $10,000 Carpenter Scholarships require entering directly from high school with a 3.8 GPA or a top-5% class rank, a separate scholarship application plus the admission application by December 1, and a virtual interview if you are named a semifinalist in early February.
Is Drake's tuition locked for four years?: Tuition is. The Drake Tuition Guarantee fixes tuition so it will not change during your four years (for first-year/transfer students entering Fall 2026). Room and board are not locked and may fluctuate.

How Drake compares across our verified dataset

665 of 749 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Drake 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 renewal claim is checked against Drake’s own published materials.

Policy pageDrake stacking policy
Cost of attendanceDrake cost-of-attendance worksheet
Merit tiersPresidential Scholarship
Merit tiersNational Alumni Scholarship
Scholarship pageDrake National Merit Scholarship