Is there a minimum GPA/test score for the resident four-year grid?

Yes — a 3.0 minimum unweighted GPA and a 960 SAT or 18 ACT minimum for eligibility; the actual award level is set by the GPA x test-score grid.

How much is the National Merit Scholarship and what are the key dates?

$16,000 per year for four years. Finalists must complete the UNR application by Feb 15, designate UNR as first choice with NMSC before May 1, and accept admission in MyNEVADA by June 1. Retention requires a 3.50 UNR cumulative GPA and 15 credits each fall/spring.

Nevada (Reno)· Renewal Rules

Keeping Nevada (Reno)’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 2026today· COWORK

At a glance

Renewable tiers: 6 of 7
One-time tiers: 1
Tiers with published renewal terms: 6
Renewal risk profile: high

Renewal risk profile

Nevada (Reno)'s top merit tiers carry renewal floors at or above 3.5 cumulative GPA, which is above the median freshman college GPA at most US flagships. A single rough semester can knock a four-year award out without a published reinstatement path. Plan year-one course load with renewal in mind, not just first-year survival.

Nevada Resident Four-Year Scholarship Grid (Presidential / Provost / Nevada Scholars / Pack Pride / Alphie / Luna): SAP standards
Presidential Level Scholarship (WICHE / out-of-state): 3.5 GPA
Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) tuition reduction: See notes
Pack Exchange Program (PEP) tuition reduction: See notes
Stackable Non-Resident Awards: Tahoe Award + Dean's Pack Award + Honors Award (non-WICHE): SAP standards
National Merit Scholarship: See notes

Renewal terms by tier

Nevada Resident Four-Year Scholarship Grid (Presidential / Provost / Nevada Scholars / Pack Pride / Alphie / Luna)
$750-$8,000
Entry requirements: 3.0 minimum for consideration GPA · 960 minimum SAT · 18 minimum ACT
To keep it: Per year for up to four consecutive years or graduation, whichever is first. Maintain Nevada residency, meet federal SAP, complete 15 credits each fall/spring. Cumulative UNR GPA to maintain: Presidential 3.5, Provost 3.2, Nevada Scholars 2.9, Pack Pride 2.8, Alphie 2.8, Luna 2.8. GPA enforcement begins start of second year.
Source: https://www.unr.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/first-year-scholarships/nevada-residents
Presidential Level Scholarship (WICHE / out-of-state)
$8,000
Entry requirements: 4.0/32+ ACT/1420+ SAT down to 3.6/36/1570+ GPA · 1420+ at 4.0 GPA SAT · 32+ at 4.0 GPA ACT
To keep it: Same renewal structure as resident Presidential (cumulative 3.5 GPA, 15 credits/term).
Source: https://www.unr.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/first-year-scholarships/non-residents
Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) tuition reduction
Reduced non-resident tuition rate (save up to $15,500/yr)
To keep it: Up to four years for freshmen (per non-resident scholarship terms).
Source: https://www.unr.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/first-year-scholarships/non-residents/wue
Pack Exchange Program (PEP) tuition reduction
Reduced tuition rate (save up to $11,000/yr)
To keep it: Per non-resident scholarship terms.
Source: https://www.unr.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/first-year-scholarships/non-residents/pack-exchange
Stackable Non-Resident Awards: Tahoe Award + Dean's Pack Award + Honors Award (non-WICHE)
$2,000-$12,000
Entry requirements: Tahoe: 3.0 unweighted cumulative (freshman); transfer 2.5 + 24 transferable credits GPA · No minimum score required SAT · No minimum score required ACT
To keep it: Renewable up to four consecutive years (freshman) / three (transfers). Maintain out-of-state residency, federal SAP, 15 credits each fall/spring. Honors Award also requires maintaining an active Honors College plan.
Source: https://www.unr.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/first-year-scholarships/non-residents/stackable-awards
National Merit Scholarship
$16,000
To keep it: $16,000 annually for four consecutive years. Maintain minimum UNR cumulative GPA of 3.50 and complete 15 credits each fall and spring.
Source: https://www.unr.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/national-merit-scholarship

How families lose this aid

Assuming the test-optional one-year resident award stacks on top of the four-year grid or National Merit
The page states the GPA-only one-year awards 'are not stackable with the freshman 4-year scholarships or National Merit Scholarship.' Submitting test scores to qualify for a renewable four-year award is usually worth far more.
Letting cumulative GPA fall below the per-tier renewal floor
Each resident tier has its own maintenance GPA (Presidential 3.5, Provost 3.2, Nevada Scholars 2.9, Pack Pride/Alphie/Luna 2.8); enforcement starts in year two and falling short can cost the award (appeal allowed once, no appeal after permanent loss).

Renewal questions families ask

Is there a minimum GPA/test score for the resident four-year grid?: Yes — a 3.0 minimum unweighted GPA and a 960 SAT or 18 ACT minimum for eligibility; the actual award level is set by the GPA x test-score grid.
How much is the National Merit Scholarship and what are the key dates?: $16,000 per year for four years. Finalists must complete the UNR application by Feb 15, designate UNR as first choice with NMSC before May 1, and accept admission in MyNEVADA by June 1. Retention requires a 3.50 UNR cumulative GPA and 15 credits each fall/spring.

Rules that bite at Nevada (Reno)

The renewal trip wires we'd flag in a custom playbook, derived from Nevada (Reno)'s own tier rules and not generic advice.

renewalNevada Resident Four-Year Scholarship Grid (Presidential / Provost / Nevada Scholars / Pack Pride / Alphie / Luna): renewal floor that quietly knocks awards out
Per year for up to four consecutive years or graduation, whichever is first. Maintain Nevada residency, meet federal SAP, complete 15 credits each fall/spring. Cumulative UNR GPA to maintain: Presidential 3.5, Provost 3.2, Nevada Scholars 2.9, Pack Pride 2.8, Alphie 2.8, Luna 2.8. GPA enforcement begins start of second year. A single rough term can end a four-year award here without warning if the GPA floor isn't met cumulatively.

How Nevada (Reno) compares across our verified dataset

15 of 272 verified schools publish a top renewal tier requiring 3.5+ GPA or major-GPA gating.
Nevada (Reno) is one of them. Calibrate year-one academic load against the renewal floor, not just freshman survival.
247 of 272 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.
Nevada (Reno) is one of them. The cohort minority (25 schools) only awards one-year scholarships, which means the four-year value families assume on a brochure quote isn't guaranteed at every school.
75 of 272 verified schools publish a dedicated National Merit Finalist package.
Nevada (Reno) is one of them. NMF packages typically carry their own stacking and renewal carve-outs separate from the standard automatic merit ladder; confirm those before assuming the headline NMF value is final.

Sources used on this page

Every renewal claim is checked against Nevada (Reno)’s own published materials.