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Central Arkansas· Renewal Rules

Keeping Central Arkansas’s Merit Aid for Four Years

What the financial-aid office actually requires after freshman year: minimum GPA, credit-hour pace, and the cliffs that quietly downgrade families mid-degree.

Verified Jun 20268 days ago· CC

At a glance

Renewable tiers
5 of 5
One-time tiers
0
Tiers with published renewal terms
5
Renewal risk profile
moderate

Renewal risk profile

Central Arkansas'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.

  • Schedler Honors College Scholarship: See notes
  • Schedler Honors Program Scholarship: See notes
  • Achievement Scholarship: 3.25 GPA
  • University Scholarship: 3.00 GPA
  • Future Leaders Scholarship: 2.75 GPA

Renewal terms by tier

  • Schedler Honors College Scholarship

    $10,500 per year (Tuition & Fee $5,000 + Housing $1,500 + Private Room Upgrade ~$2,000 + $2,000 stipend)

    Entry requirements: Minimum 3.75 Cumulative High School GPA (6th/7th semester transcript) GPA

    To keep it: Year 1: 11 UCA hours/semester (27 annually) with min 2.50 per-semester / 3.25 annual UCA cumulative GPA. Year 2+: min 3.25 per-semester and 3.25 annual UCA cumulative GPA. Must enroll in 15 UCA credit hours and live in University housing to receive the full award.

    Source: https://uca.edu/scholarships/files/2025/08/FA_Scholarship_Policy_Chart_2627.pdf

  • Schedler Honors Program Scholarship

    $9,500 per year (Tuition & Fee $5,000 + Housing $1,500 + Private Room Upgrade ~$2,000 + $1,000 stipend)

    Entry requirements: Minimum 3.75 Cumulative High School GPA (6th/7th semester transcript) GPA

    To keep it: Year 1: 11 UCA hours/semester (27 annually) with min 2.50 per-semester / 3.25 annual UCA cumulative GPA. Year 2+: min 3.25 per-semester and 3.25 annual UCA cumulative GPA. Must enroll in 15 UCA credit hours and live in University housing for the full award.

    Source: https://uca.edu/scholarships/files/2025/08/FA_Scholarship_Policy_Chart_2627.pdf

  • Achievement Scholarship

    $6,500 per year (Tuition & Fee $5,000 + Housing $1,500)

    Entry requirements: Minimum 4.00 Cumulative High School GPA (6th/7th semester transcript) GPA

    To keep it: Year 1 (Fall to Spring): 11 UCA hours, min 2.75 UCA cumulative GPA. Year 1 (Spring to Fall): 27 combined hours, min 3.25 cumulative GPA. Year 2+: 11 hours/semester (30 annually) with min 3.25 per-semester and 3.25 annual UCA cumulative GPA. 15 UCA credit hours required; must live in University housing for the housing award.

    Source: https://uca.edu/scholarships/files/2025/03/2026-2027-Academic-Scholarship-Policy.pdf

  • University Scholarship

    $4,500 per year (Tuition & Fee $3,500 + Housing $1,000)

    Entry requirements: Minimum 3.75 Cumulative High School GPA (6th/7th semester transcript) GPA

    To keep it: Year 1 (Fall to Spring): 11 UCA hours, min 2.50 UCA cumulative GPA. Year 1 (Spring to Fall): 27 combined hours, min 3.00 cumulative GPA. Year 2+: 11 hours/semester (30 annually) with min 3.00 per-semester and 3.00 annual UCA cumulative GPA. 15 UCA credit hours required; must live in University housing for the housing award.

    Source: https://uca.edu/scholarships/files/2025/03/2026-2027-Academic-Scholarship-Policy.pdf

  • Future Leaders Scholarship

    $2,000 per year (Tuition & Fee $1,000 + Housing $1,000)

    Entry requirements: Minimum 3.50 Cumulative High School GPA (6th/7th semester transcript) GPA

    To keep it: Year 1 (Fall to Spring): 11 UCA hours, min 2.50 UCA cumulative GPA. Year 1 (Spring to Fall): 27 combined hours, min 2.75 cumulative GPA. Year 2+: 11 hours/semester (30 annually) with min 2.75 per-semester and 2.75 annual UCA cumulative GPA. 15 UCA credit hours required; must live in University housing for the housing award.

    Source: https://uca.edu/scholarships/files/2025/03/2026-2027-Academic-Scholarship-Policy.pdf

How families lose this aid

  • Assuming a strong senior year (8th-semester) GPA sets the award.

    Eligibility is based on the cumulative GPA from the 6th or 7th semester high school transcript (4th/5th semester for early graduates). Spring-senior grades do not move you up a tier.

  • Counting the full annual total when you live off campus.

    Each award splits into a Tuition & Fee Award and a Housing Award; students must live in University housing to receive the housing portion and therefore the full annual total. Future Leaders is half housing, so off-campus students lose $1,000 of the $2,000.

  • Treating Schedler Honors awards as automatic once you hit the GPA.

    Schedler Honors College/Program require a separate online application (2 references, 2 essays) by January 26, 2026, and only 80 (+40) students are selected. The 3.75 GPA is a floor, not a guarantee.

Renewal questions families ask

Do UCA freshman scholarships require an ACT or SAT score?
No. The 2026-27 freshman academic scholarships (Future Leaders, University, Achievement, and the Schedler Honors awards) are based on cumulative high school GPA only; no ACT or SAT score is listed as a requirement.
What GPA must I keep to renew my scholarship?
It depends on the award. By Year 2+, the required UCA cumulative GPA is 2.75 (Future Leaders), 3.00 (University), and 3.25 (Achievement and both Schedler awards), with at least 11 UCA credit hours each semester (and 15 enrolled). Year-1 thresholds are lower (as low as 2.50).

How Central Arkansas compares across our verified dataset

  • 669 of 751 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.

    Central Arkansas is one of them. The cohort minority (82 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 Central Arkansas’s own published materials.

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