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MeritPlaybook / Take-home research

Denver
Decision sheet

Colorado · Research checked 2026-07-02 · School research, not an aid offer

The starting point

Private research university in Colorado where merit scholarships are awarded automatically at admission on a single $15,000-$40,000 per-year range, fixed for all four years, with a clean loan-first outside-scholarship displacement order.

Selection beyond grades and scores. 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.

Awards to discuss

The 3 awards in this school's research. Amounts retain the original units and conditions; confirm the entering year with the school.

DU Merit Scholarship

$15,000–$40,000 per year · Published range

Not recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules.

Eligibility: Awarded automatically to admitted first-year students based on the admission application; no separate scholarship application. DU does not publish GPA or test-score cutoffs for specific award amounts within the range. Early Decision applicants receive an additional $5,000 (excludes athletic aid and music majors).

Renewal: Amount is fixed for all four years. To remain eligible you must be enrolled full-time (at least 12 credits per quarter) and maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress.

https://www.du.edu/admission-aid/financial-aid-scholarships/undergraduate-financial-aid/types-aid/grants-scholarships

DU Transfer Merit Scholarship

$12,000–$25,000 per year · Published range

Not recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules.

Eligibility: Awarded automatically to admitted transfer students based on the admission application. No separate scholarship application.

Renewal: Fixed amount; recipient must remain enrolled full-time and maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress.

https://www.du.edu/admission-aid/financial-aid-scholarships/undergraduate-financial-aid/types-aid/grants-scholarships

Music Scholarship

$1,000 to full tuition · Published range

Not recorded as automatic on grades and scores. Read the selection rules.

Eligibility: Based on talent, academic merit, and financial need evaluated holistically. Music scholarship recipients are ineligible for the admission merit scholarship or institutional need-based grants — it is one or the other, not stacked.

Renewal: Awarded through the Lamont School of Music holistically on talent, academic merit, and financial need.

https://www.du.edu/admission-aid/financial-aid-scholarships/undergraduate-financial-aid/types-aid/grants-scholarships

Ask before you decide

  1. Which entering-year policy and residency category apply to us? What are the admission and scholarship deadlines?
  2. What grades and credits are required to renew, and for how many terms?
  3. How would other school awards or outside scholarships change the offer?

Recorded stacking policy: DU applies outside (private) scholarships to unmet need first. If the outside award pushes total aid above demonstrated need or the cost of attendance, DU reduces student loans first, then work-study, and only then institutional scholarships or grants — a favorable loan-first order that protects merit money in most cases.

Our unanswered questions / Family notes

Keep the sources with the decision

Full research, award details and source context: https://meritplaybook.com/colleges/university-of-denver/merit-aid

The research date is not a guarantee that a policy still applies. Confirm current amounts, deadlines and conditions with the school before making a financial decision.