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NCCU scholarships and merit aid

Two prices: the posted one, and yours.

Posted price$29,776per year · 2026-2027 · cost of attendance
Yours?depends on the rules below

The short answer

NCCU 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 Jun 2026
4 school sources to explore

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

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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. Cheatham-White ScholarshipFull ride (full cost of attendance: full tuition and fees, housing, meals, textbooks, a laptop, travel, and personal expenses) plus four funded summersNot automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Cheatham-White Scholarship

    Full ride (full cost of attendance: full tuition and fees, housing, meals, textbooks, a laptop, travel, and personal expenses) plus four funded summers

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

    GPA
    Minimum weighted or unweighted cumulative GPA of 4.0 or higher
    SAT
    Optional: minimum SAT 1280 (test scores OPTIONAL for 2026-2027; superscores accepted)
    ACT
    Optional: minimum ACT 28 (test scores OPTIONAL for the Cheatham-White for 2026-2027; superscores accepted)
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Cheatham-White Scholarship

    Who qualifies

    Admitted as a freshman in the fall into a baccalaureate program; U.S. citizen or permanent resident; on course to graduate HS the spring prior; exceptional character/leadership; significant extracurricular involvement; strong commitment to service. Requires nomination (by a HS administrator or self-nomination) then an application. Applicants do NOT have to be NC residents.

    How to keep it

    Renewed annually contingent on: minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 annually; enroll full time each semester and earn a minimum of 30 credit hours each academic year; maintain membership and active participation in the University Honors Program.

    Worth knowing

    Fully funded four-year award covering full cost of attendance (not merely full tuition). Scholar performance averages cited on the program page (4.42 GPA, 28.8 ACT, 1322 SAT) are AVERAGES of selected scholars, not minimum cutoffs.

  2. Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Soaring Eagle$7,500Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Soaring Eagle

    $7,500

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

    GPA
    Awarded based on entering students' cumulative GPA (specific GPA band for each level not published)
    SAT
    Test scores are not required
    ACT
    Test scores are not required
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Soaring Eagle

    Who qualifies

    New first-time entering undergraduate students who have exemplified academic excellence.

    How to keep it

    Renewal terms not stated on the award-levels page.

    Worth knowing

    Highest of three GPA-based levels. The page states awards are based on cumulative GPA with test scores not required; whether placement is fully automatic or requires a separate application is not fully clear from the pages opened (a 'how to apply / selection guidelines' page was not opened).

  3. Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Rising Eagle$3,500Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Rising Eagle

    $3,500

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

    GPA
    Awarded based on entering students' cumulative GPA
    SAT
    Test scores are not required
    ACT
    Test scores are not required
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Rising Eagle

    Who qualifies

    New first-time entering undergraduate students.

    How to keep it

    Renewal terms not stated on the award-levels page.

    Worth knowing

    Middle of three GPA-based levels.

  4. Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Eagle-In-Flight$2,500Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Eagle-In-Flight

    $2,500

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

    GPA
    Awarded based on entering students' cumulative GPA
    SAT
    Test scores are not required
    ACT
    Test scores are not required
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Chancellor's Cycle of Success Scholarship — Eagle-In-Flight

    Who qualifies

    New first-time entering undergraduate students.

    How to keep it

    Renewal terms not stated on the award-levels page.

    Worth knowing

    Entry of three GPA-based levels.

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The fine print

Renewal ruleCheatham-White Scholarship: renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out

Renewed annually contingent on: minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 annually; enroll full time each semester and earn a minimum of 30 credit hours each academic year; maintain membership and active participation in the University Honors Program. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

Aid capHard $29,776 cost-of-attendance ceiling

Institutional aid at NCCU cannot push the package past $29,776. Big outside wins can mathematically reduce institutional grant once the ceiling is reached.

What makes NCCU different

An HBCU whose flagship Cheatham-White Scholarship is a fully funded, four-year, full-cost-of-attendance award (open to non-residents), backed by fixed-amount Chancellor's Cycle of Success scholarships awarded on GPA with no test scores required. DRAFT.

Merit tiers4See who qualifies
Research checkedJun 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 NCCU's decision sheet

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

See what could change an award

What families often miss

  1. A student cannot complete a Cheatham-White application until the nomination process is complete (nominated by a HS administrator or self-nomination via the Eagle Promise Portal), and must be fully admitted to NCCU by the deadline.

  2. For 2026-2027: nomination forms due November 1, 2025; application materials due November 26, 2025 (extended); finalist notification January 15, 2026; Eagle Scholars Day/interviews February 21, 2026; final notification March 23, 2026.

  3. The Cheatham-White minimum is a 4.0 weighted or unweighted GPA (test scores optional for 2026-2027, min SAT 1280/ACT 28 if submitted). The published 4.42 GPA / 28.8 ACT / 1322 SAT are averages of selected scholars, not requirements.

  4. It renews only if you keep a 3.5 cumulative GPA, earn at least 30 credit hours each year (full-time each semester), AND maintain active membership in the University Honors Program — failing any one ends the scholarship.

  5. The Chancellor's Cycle of Success amounts are fixed at $7,500 (Soaring Eagle), $3,500 (Rising Eagle), or $2,500 (Eagle-In-Flight) — not full tuition or full cost of attendance.

  6. COA is the maximum total of grants, scholarships, work assistance, and loans a student may receive for the enrollment period, so additional awards can be reduced once total aid reaches COA.

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

Exceptional scholars (4.0+ GPA, leadership and service) chasing the full-ride Cheatham-White, and strong-GPA freshmen who want an automatic-style GPA-based Chancellor's award without test scores. DRAFT.

Published yearly cost: Approximately $29,776 for 2026-2027. Source

Cost and graduation facts

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

Average annual net price by family income at NCCU, academic year 2021-22 — in-state, Title-IV aid recipients only
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$13,032
$30,001–$48,000$13,882
$48,001–$75,000$17,527
$75,001–$110,000$22,401
$110,001+$23,658
All income levels (average)$15,359

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Published tuition & fees (in-state), AY 2022-23
$6,699
Published tuition & fees (out-of-state), AY 2022-23
$19,735
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$15,359

That works out to roughly a 42% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $26,556 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).

NCCU is a public school; Scorecard's net price figure covers in-state, Title-IV-aid-recipient payers only — there is no comparable federal figure for out-of-state students.

Outcomes for students who enrolled here

Graduation rate (150% of normal time), 2016 cohort
42%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
73%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$28,250 (~$299/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$42,968
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
74%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
72%
See other scholarships and cost examples

If your student brings another scholarship

Cost of attendance reflects the maximum total of grants, scholarships, work assistance, and loans a student may receive for the enrollment period; need is COA − SAI − Other Financial Assistance.

The Applying for Aid page defines COA as the maximum amount of financial assistance a student may receive and uses COA − SAI − OFA = Need. No specific policy on how private/outside scholarships displace institutional merit awards was found on the pages opened.

Source

Other NCCU scholarships worth checking

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

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityTwo-year undergraduate scholarship for entering North Carolina Community College graduates.

Details in a PDF (myEOL) not opened for this extract.

Source

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityVarious institutional scholarship opportunities for new, continuing, graduate and professional students.

Apply via NCCU's AcademicWorks portal.

Source

NCCU merit aid FAQ

  • What is the Cheatham-White scholarship deadline?

    For 2026-2027: nominations due November 1, 2025; application materials due November 26, 2025 (deadline extended); finalists notified January 15, 2026; Eagle Scholars Day February 21, 2026; final decisions March 23, 2026. You must be fully admitted to NCCU and nominated to apply.

  • Do I have to be a North Carolina resident for the Cheatham-White?

    No. Applicants do not have to be residents of North Carolina.

  • Are test scores required?

    For the Cheatham-White, test scores are optional for 2026-2027 (min SAT 1280/ACT 28 if submitted; superscores accepted) with a 4.0 GPA minimum. The Chancellor's Cycle of Success scholarships are awarded on cumulative GPA with test scores not required.

  • How much does NCCU cost?

    For the Fall 2026-Spring 2027 estimated cost of attendance, an N.C.-resident on-campus undergraduate total is $29,776 (tuition & fees $6,932); a non-resident on-campus total is $43,212 (tuition & fees $20,360).

See sources and other schools

How NCCU compares

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

    NCCU 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.

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

Compare with similar schools

Keep exploring NCCU merit aid

The next chapter

Where does NCCU fit in your plan?

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