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NYU scholarships and merit aid

Two prices: the posted one, and yours.

Posted price$96,988per year · 2025-2026 · On-campus
Yours?depends on the rules below

The short answer

NYU awards automatic merit on admission. NYU does not publish a GPA or test chart, so you cannot self-calculate the dollars.

Where does your student land?

Verified Jul 2026
4 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. Need-aware merit-based scholarshipsAwards combine merit and need consideration; specific dollar amounts not publicly listed in tier formAutomaticRenewable
    Published awardAcademic thresholds

    Need-aware merit-based scholarships

    Awards combine merit and need consideration; specific dollar amounts not publicly listed in tier form

    Published award termsAll published eligibility conditions still apply. Confirm the policy year with the school.

    Start with the award’s published eligibility.

    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Need-aware merit-based scholarships

    Who qualifies

    Considered automatically upon admission. NYU states explicitly that 'NYU offers very few scholarships that are awarded based only on merit. You will automatically be considered for merit-based scholarships upon entrance to NYU.' Most awards are combined merit + need — file FAFSA and CSS Profile on time.

    How to keep it

    Most NYU scholarships are renewed automatically each year contingent on continued full-time enrollment. Awards are prorated for less-than-full-time enrollment, and students enrolled less than half-time are ineligible.

    Worth knowing

    NYU does not publish a stat-banded automatic merit ladder. The amount students receive in year one is typically what they receive each subsequent year if they remain eligible.

  2. Trustee Scholarships (top tier)NYU's top competitive merit awards; historically full tuition for selected studentsNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Trustee Scholarships (top tier)

    NYU's top competitive merit awards; historically full tuition for selected students

    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 Trustee Scholarships (top tier)

    Who qualifies

    Awarded based on the admission application — no separate application. Very selective. Specific selection criteria not publicly published.

    Worth knowing

    NYU's most prestigious merit pathway. Limited slots per cohort.

  3. Tuition Remission Supplement (for employee dependents)Scholarship above and beyond tuition remission benefit if standard scholarship review would have produced a larger amountNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Tuition Remission Supplement (for employee dependents)

    Scholarship above and beyond tuition remission benefit if standard scholarship review would have produced a larger amount

    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 Tuition Remission Supplement (for employee dependents)

    Who qualifies

    Beginning with Fall 2018 incoming class — undergraduate dependents of NYU employees with tuition remission may qualify. Must file CSS Profile on time and demonstrate financial need based on the CSS Profile. Tuition remission combined with all other aid cannot exceed cost of attendance.

    Worth knowing

    Specific to NYU employee families — a meaningful additional layer for that population.

Lights up against NYU's published cutoffs. Not an award offer; confirm with the financial aid office. Award terms and residency rules change; some awards differ for in-state and out-of-state students. Always confirm at the school’s source page.

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The fine print

Renewal ruleNeed-aware merit-based scholarships: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out

Most NYU scholarships are renewed automatically each year contingent on continued full-time enrollment. Awards are prorated for less-than-full-time enrollment, and students enrolled less than half-time are ineligible. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

Aid capHard $96,988 cost-of-attendance ceiling

Institutional aid at NYU cannot push the package past $96,988. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.

What makes NYU different

NYU explicitly states it 'offers very few scholarships that are awarded based only on merit' and that most awards are need-aware. But its outside-scholarship policy is unusually student-friendly: outside aid does NOT generally displace NYU scholarships up to the cost-of-attendance ceiling.

Read our full reasoning

If you're hunting for automatic merit, NYU is not the school. But its outside-scholarship policy is unusually friendly — outside dollars do NOT generally displace NYU aid below COA.

NYU is upfront about its merit posture: 'NYU offers very few scholarships that are awarded based only on merit.' The university does not run a published stat-banded automatic merit ladder, and most awards blend need and merit. For families assuming Alabama-style or even Belmont-style merit dollars, NYU is structurally a poor fit. But two things make NYU's aid posture distinctive: (1) outside scholarships generally don't displace NYU institutional aid below cost of attendance — a friendlier rule than most peer privates — and (2) the Tuition Remission Supplement provides additional scholarship for NYU employee dependents above the tuition benefit if their standard scholarship review would have produced more. For most families, the practical decision at NYU is whether you can pay close to the published COA, supplemented by need-based aid for those who qualify on FAFSA and CSS Profile.

Merit tiers31 based on grades or scores
Research checkedJul 2026By our research team

More than one award path

Separate the two paths.

Some awards use published academic thresholds. Others have different selection criteria. A score chart does not describe every award at this school.

  1. Match the published criteria

    Use all requirements together, including residency and the entering class.

  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 NYU'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 NYU's aid office says

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

Merit is scarce

Are there merit scholarships, and is a separate application needed?

Applicants are automatically reviewed with the admission application — but the office is unusually direct that merit-only scholarships are very limited at NYU. Families should plan around need-based aid, not a merit strategy.

“All undergraduate applicants are automatically reviewed for merit scholarships with the submission of the admissions application, however scholarships based strictly on merit are very limited.”
What drives NYU scholarships

What determines most NYU scholarship awards?

Two things, per the office: filing the financial aid application on time, and demonstrated need. On-time filing is a real criterion, not a formality — a late application can cost scholarship consideration regardless of need.

“A majority of our scholarships are based on two criteria: 1) filing your financial aid application on time and 2) demonstrated financial need.”
Set at entrance

When is eligibility for a renewable scholarship decided?

At entrance. For most undergraduates, the renewable scholarship is determined when the student enters NYU — there is no later cycle where a continuing student picks one up.

“For most undergraduates, eligibility for a renewable NYU scholarship is determined upon entrance to the University.”
Renewal terms

Does the entrance scholarship continue in later years?

Yes, while the student stays full-time at 12 or more credits per semester — and NYU adjusts the scholarship upward to track tuition increases, a detail that protects the award’s real value across four years.

“Typically students who are offered scholarships upon entrance to the University will continue to receive that scholarship for subsequent academic years as long as you are a full-time student (enrolled in at least 12 credits per semester). Scholarships will be adjusted in subsequent years to account for any increase to tuition.”
Part-time proration

What happens to the scholarship below full-time enrollment?

Between 6 and 11 credits it is prorated rather than lost, provided the student remains otherwise eligible. Below half-time, the office did not describe the outcome.

“Students who are enrolled less than full-time, but at least half-time (enrolled in 6-11 credits), and are otherwise eligible will have their scholarship prorated.”

What families often miss

  1. NYU states directly: 'NYU offers very few scholarships that are awarded based only on merit.' Most awards combine need and merit and require CSS Profile + FAFSA filing on time. The Alabama/Ole Miss formula does not exist at NYU.

  2. NYU's rule is unusually favorable: 'Outside scholarships do not generally affect your eligibility for NYU scholarships' below cost of attendance. Many peer privates displace dollar-for-dollar, but NYU does not until total aid reaches COA. Worth pursuing outside awards aggressively at NYU.

  3. NYU states: 'The amount of scholarship students receive in their first year is typically the amount they will continue to receive each year if they remain otherwise eligible, filing late can affect eligibility in future years.' Year-one filings effectively lock in your future scholarship level.

See award cutoffs and special programs

NYU's surprisingly student-friendly outside-scholarship policy

Most peer privates (think Bucknell, American, Bowdoin) reduce institutional aid dollar-for-dollar when outside scholarships push the package above tuition, or above the cost-of-attendance cap. NYU's policy is different: 'Outside scholarships do not generally affect your eligibility for NYU scholarships' below the COA ceiling. That means a $10,000 outside award you bring to NYU is more likely to actually lower your out-of-pocket than the same award at a Bucknell or American. The cap is only the cost of attendance itself — once your total package (NYU + federal + state + outside) reaches COA, NYU may adjust. For families chasing outside scholarships (Coca-Cola, Gates, etc.) to layer on top of NYU need-based aid, this is a meaningful structural advantage that the school's reputation for being 'stingy' obscures.

Source

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

Students who can afford NYU's published cost of attendance and who want to be in New York City for one of the country's most cosmopolitan urban research universities. If your goal is automatic merit dollars, NYU is structurally a poor fit — it deliberately spreads aid across many partially-merit-partially-need awards rather than running a top-of-funnel merit ladder. Need-eligible students with CSS Profile-strong cases sometimes find NYU more affordable than expected.

Cost of attendance$96,988 for 2025-2026Each bar is the full published cost for that scenario, sized against the highest figure so totals compare at a glance.
On-campus$96,988
  • Tuition & fees
  • Housing & food
  • Books
  • Travel
  • Personal

General undergraduate COA, on/off campus student.

NYU cost-of-attendance source

Cost and graduation facts

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

Average annual net price by family income at NYU, academic year 2021-22
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$16,977
$30,001–$48,000$14,017
$48,001–$75,000$16,862
$75,001–$110,000$32,766
$110,001+$66,876
All income levels (average)$37,050

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Published tuition & fees, AY 2022-23
$62,796
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$37,050

That works out to roughly a 56% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $84,374 (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
88%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
96%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$20,500 (~$217/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$82,509
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
19%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
17%
See other scholarships and cost examples

If your student brings another scholarship

NYU's policy is unusually generous about outside scholarship layering compared to peer privates: outside scholarships generally do NOT displace NYU institutional aid below the cost-of-attendance ceiling. Displacement happens only when total financial aid (including outside) would exceed COA. Outside checks should be sent to the Bursar's StudentLink Center.

NYU's published policy distinguishes itself from many peer privates: 'Outside scholarships do not generally affect your eligibility for NYU scholarships; however, a student's total financial aid, including outside scholarships, may not exceed their estimated Cost of Attendance (COA).' Below COA, outside aid layers cleanly on top of NYU scholarships without triggering institutional displacement. Federal need-based aid is separately capped at demonstrated financial need. Students must notify the Office of Financial Aid immediately about any outside aid.

Source

Other NYU scholarships worth checking

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

AmountNeed-based award of up to $4,000 per semesterEligibilityUndergraduate degree-seeking students whose home campus is New York City who study away at an NYU global site. Must have a current FAFSA on file.

Notifications in June for fall, November for spring. One of the few NYU awards specifically structured to help defray the additional cost of study away.

Source

AmountVariable; intended to alleviate tuition for Creative Writing program studentsEligibilityUndergraduate or graduate students enrolled in NYU's Creative Writing Program. Selection criteria include demonstrated passion for writing, academic excellence, and a strong portfolio of creative work.

Discipline-specific — only Creative Writing applicants are in the pool.

Source

AmountRenewable scholarship for one new freshman per yearEligibilityUndergraduates who demonstrate academic excellence AND financial need. Open to candidates of all backgrounds.

Very narrow — one new freshman per year. Contact Kourtney Gardner for further information.

Source

NYU merit aid FAQ

  • Does NYU have merit scholarships?

    Very limited pure-merit scholarships. NYU states: 'NYU offers very few scholarships that are awarded based only on merit.' Most awards combine need and merit, and require both FAFSA and CSS Profile filed on time. The Trustee Scholarships are NYU's top competitive merit pathway, awarded through admission review with no separate application.

  • Will an outside scholarship reduce my NYU aid?

    Generally no, below cost of attendance. NYU states: 'Outside scholarships do not generally affect your eligibility for NYU scholarships; however, a student's total financial aid, including outside scholarships, may not exceed their estimated Cost of Attendance (COA).' That's unusually friendly compared to peer privates.

  • What's the year-one aid lock-in?

    NYU determines need-based scholarship eligibility upon entrance, and the year-one amount is typically what you'll continue to receive each year if you remain eligible. Late filings in year one can affect aid in future years even if your circumstances haven't changed.

  • Is the Tuition Remission Supplement automatic?

    For NYU employee dependents who file CSS Profile on time and demonstrate financial need based on the CSS Profile, yes — eligibility is reviewed automatically. The supplement provides scholarship above tuition remission if standard scholarship review would have produced a larger amount. Available beginning with the Fall 2018 incoming class.

  • Can I keep NYU scholarship money if I drop below full-time?

    Prorated for less-than-full-time but at-least-half-time. Students enrolled less than half-time are ineligible for NYU scholarships entirely. Continuing students must file FAFSA each year to be reviewed for federal aid eligibility.

See sources and other schools

How NYU compares

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

    NYU 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.

    NYU 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 NYU’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

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  • Excelsior merit aid. New York private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • Ithaca merit aid. New York private school — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.

Keep exploring NYU merit aid

The next chapter

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