Minot State award rules
Will the scholarship last four years at Minot State?
We pulled the school’s grade, credit, and time limits into one place so you can see what it takes to keep the award.
The short answer
2 of 2 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
- 2 of 2
- One-time tiers
- 0
- Tiers with published renewal terms
- 2
- Renewal risk profile
- moderate
Renewal risk profile
Minot State's renewal bar is achievable for steady students but isn't generous. Most awards require a cumulative GPA in the 3.0–3.4 band plus full-time enrollment. Audit the strictest tier on this school's list before assuming the four-year value is locked in.
- Academic Excellence Scholarship: Full-time enrollment
- Automatic 4-Year Award (DISCONTINUED for new freshmen — renewal only): 3.0 GPA
Renewal terms by tier
Academic Excellence Scholarship
$2,500-$10,000 over four yearsEntry requirements: Unweighted HS GPA: 3.9+ = $10,000 ($2,500/yr); 3.7-3.89 = $7,500 ($1,875/yr); 3.5-3.69 = $5,000 ($1,250/yr); 3.0-3.49 = $2,500 ($625/yr) GPA · No test score required SAT · No test score required ACT
To keep it: Renewable up to eight consecutive fall and spring semesters: maintain a 3.0+ cumulative GPA, complete 24+ Minot State credits during fall and spring, and stay continuously enrolled full-time (12+ credits). Evaluated for renewal at the end of each spring. Award is reduced if the final unweighted HS GPA is lower than the in-progress GPA used initially.
Source: https://www.minotstateu.edu/finaid/scholarships/Academic-Excellence-Scholarship.shtml
Automatic 4-Year Award (DISCONTINUED for new freshmen — renewal only)
$8,000-$12,000 over four years (legacy grid)Entry requirements: Legacy grid combined GPA and test: e.g., ACT 30+ (or SAT 1360+) with GPA 3.8-4.0 = $3,000/yr ($12,000/4yr), 3.5-3.79 = $2,000/yr, 3.0-3.49 = $1,500/yr; ACT 26-29 (or SAT 1230-1350) tier = $8,000/4yr with GPA 3.8-4.0 = $2,000/yr, 3.5-3.79 = $1,500/yr GPA · 1360+, 1230-1350, etc. SAT · Used in the legacy grid (30+, 26-29, etc.) ACT
To keep it: Same renewal criteria as AES (3.0 GPA, 24 credits/year, full-time, up to 8 semesters). No longer awarded to new freshmen.
Source: https://www.minotstateu.edu/finaid/scholarships/automatic-4-year.shtml
How families lose this aid
- Using the old Automatic 4-Year Award chart
That award 'is no longer being awarded to new freshman' — the current freshman award is the Academic Excellence Scholarship (a GPA-only tuition waiver up to $10,000). Don't plan around the legacy $12,000/$8,000 ACT-based grid.
- Overlooking the 24-credit renewal requirement
Renewal requires both a 3.0 cumulative GPA AND completing 24 total Minot State credits during fall and spring; falling short ends the award for future years (summer can be used to catch up).
- Reporting a weighted GPA
The award is based on your official UNWEIGHTED high school GPA, and it will be reduced if your final unweighted GPA is lower than the in-progress GPA used for the initial offer.
Renewal questions families ask
- Do I need a test score?
- No. The current Academic Excellence Scholarship is based on your official unweighted high school GPA only.
- How is the award paid and renewed?
- It's a tuition waiver disbursed equally between fall and spring, renewable up to eight consecutive fall/spring semesters if you keep a 3.0 GPA, complete 24 credits per year, and stay continuously enrolled full-time.
Rules that bite at Minot State
The renewal trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook, derived from Minot State's own tier rules and not generic advice.
- Renewal ruleAcademic Excellence Scholarship: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out
Renewable up to eight consecutive fall and spring semesters: maintain a 3.0+ cumulative GPA, complete 24+ Minot State credits during fall and spring, and stay continuously enrolled full-time (12+ credits). Evaluated for renewal at the end of each spring. Award is reduced if the final unweighted HS GPA is lower than the in-progress GPA used initially. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.
How Minot State compares across our verified dataset
- 665 of 749 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Minot State 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 Minot State’s own published materials.
- Policy pageMinot State stacking policy
- Cost of attendanceMinot State cost-of-attendance worksheet
- Merit tiersAcademic Excellence Scholarship
- Merit tiersAutomatic 4-Year Award (DISCONTINUED for new freshmen — renewal only)
More on Minot State merit aid
- Minot State merit aid overviewFull tier ladder, named scholarships, departmental awards, and how families decide.
- Minot State scholarship stackingWhether outside awards land as upside or quietly displace institutional aid.
- Does Minot State displace outside scholarships?The dollar math on a $5,000 outside award, plus peer schools that handle it differently.