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North Alabama (UNA) scholarships and merit aid

Two prices: the posted one, and yours.

Posted price$30,650per year · 2025-2026 · cost of attendance
Yours?depends on the rules below

The short answer

North Alabama (UNA) is worth checking if your student has strong grades or scores. We found 4 published awards, and 2 are based on those numbers.

Where does your student land?

Verified Jul 2026
3 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. Academic Awards (GPA × ACT grid)$2,000-$8,500AutomaticRenewable
    Published awardAcademic thresholds

    Academic Awards (GPA × ACT grid)

    $2,000-$8,500

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

    GPA
    3.00-4.00 unweighted (two bands)
    ACT
    20-29 (ACT superscore)
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Academic Awards (GPA × ACT grid)

    Who qualifies

    Automatically awarded based on unweighted GPA and ACT superscore; must be admitted by the March 2, 2026 priority deadline; first-time, full-time freshmen

    How to keep it

    Awarded annually; renewal criteria not detailed on this page. No refunds on Academic or Presidential Scholarships.

    Worth knowing

    GPA 3.00-3.50: ACT 20-21 $2,000; 22-23 $2,750; 24-25 $4,000; 26-27 $6,000; 28-29 $7,500. GPA 3.51-4.00: 20-21 $2,500; 22-23 $3,000; 24-25 $5,500; 26-27 $8,000; 28-29 $8,500. ACT below 20 with 3.0+ GPA: apply via General & Endowed application. 2026 amounts subject to final funding October 1, 2025.

  2. Presidential Awards (GPA × ACT 30-36 grid)$9,000-$12,000AutomaticRenewable
    Published awardAcademic thresholds

    Presidential Awards (GPA × ACT 30-36 grid)

    $9,000-$12,000

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

    GPA
    3.00-4.00 unweighted (two bands)
    ACT
    30-36 (ACT superscore)
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Presidential Awards (GPA × ACT 30-36 grid)

    Who qualifies

    Automatically awarded; admitted by March 2, 2026 priority deadline

    How to keep it

    Awarded annually; no refunds. Renewal criteria not detailed on this page.

    Worth knowing

    Each Presidential award includes a Housing Scholarship. GPA 3.00-3.50: ACT 30-32 $9,000+Housing; 33-36 $10,500+Housing. GPA 3.51-4.00: 30-32 $10,000+Housing; 33-36 $12,000+Housing. Housing Scholarship = $4,000/yr for residence halls only (as of June 13, 2025).

  3. Housing Scholarship$4,000Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Housing Scholarship

    $4,000

    Published amountNot 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 Housing Scholarship

    Who qualifies

    Applied to any on-campus residence hall (not apartments); cannot stack more than one housing scholarship

    How to keep it

    2-year stackable scholarship; amount subject to decrease past the scholarship deadline.

    Worth knowing

    $4,000 per year, valid 2 years, for residence halls only. Stackable with academic/leadership awards, but only one housing scholarship at a time.

  4. Cole Honors College Scholarship$1,300Not automaticRenewable
    Published awardOther selection criteria

    Cole Honors College Scholarship

    $1,300

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

    ACT
    ACT 25 or higher generally considered strong; a standardized test score is required for admission consideration
    RenewableCheck the conditions
    Open award details for Cole Honors College Scholarship

    Who qualifies

    Selective admission to the Cole Honors College based on grades, test scores, leadership, service, essay, activities, and work experience

    How to keep it

    First-time freshmen: $650/semester for up to eight semesters. Transfer/current students: $650/semester renewable for four to six semesters depending on time remaining toward the degree.

    Worth knowing

    $650 per semester (≈$1,300/year) automatic for all first-time freshmen admitted to the Cole Honors College, up to eight semesters.

Lights up against North Alabama (UNA)'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

Outside awardsNo published displacement order

North Alabama (UNA)'s policy doesn't specify whether outside scholarships hit loans, grants, or only the COA ceiling. Get a written aid-office answer before chasing private awards.

What makes North Alabama (UNA) different

UNA awards an automatic GPA-by-ACT grid ($2,000–$8,500, rising to $9,000–$12,000 + housing for Presidential) and — unusually — explicitly lets students stack a $4,000 Housing Scholarship, Leadership, and Honors awards on top.

Merit tiers42 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 North Alabama (UNA)'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. Housing Scholarships are stackable with academic awards, but students cannot hold more than one housing scholarship, and the amount can decrease after the deadline.

  2. The $4,000 Housing Scholarship applies only to on-campus residence halls, not apartments.

  3. UNA will not accept unofficial ACT scores (screenshots/self-reports) for official merit awards — scores must arrive via official means (act.org report, transcript, or counselor).

  4. Automatic Academic/Presidential awards require being admitted by March 2, 2026; some scholarships have earlier or later individual deadlines, and amounts are subject to final funding (October 1, 2025) and may decrease after the deadline.

  5. Because UNA allows stacking, eligible students can add the Cole Honors $650/semester award and Leadership/Housing scholarships on top of the automatic grid award.

See costs and school data

Who this school may work for

GPA-and-ACT strong freshmen who want a transparent automatic award — and the rare chance to stack housing, leadership, and honors scholarships on top; top-stat students (30+ ACT) earn Presidential awards plus housing.

Published yearly cost: Approximately $30,650 for 2025-2026. Source

Cost and graduation facts

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

Average annual net price by family income at North Alabama (UNA), academic year 2021-22 — in-state, Title-IV aid recipients only
Family incomeAverage net price paid
$0–$30,000$9,741
$30,001–$48,000$10,127
$48,001–$75,000$11,665
$75,001–$110,000$13,903
$110,001+$14,866
All income levels (average)$12,170

Sticker price vs. what students actually pay

Published tuition & fees (in-state), AY 2022-23
$12,120
Published tuition & fees (out-of-state), AY 2022-23
$22,320
Average net price paid (all Title-IV aid), AY 2021-22
$12,170

That works out to roughly a 49% discount below the federal AY 2021-22 average cost of attendance of $23,786 (College Scorecard — a separate, federally reported figure, not the published cost of attendance shown above).

North Alabama (UNA) 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
55%
First-year retention rate, 2021 cohort
80%
Median debt at completion, 2020–2021 completers
$22,077 (~$234/mo on a 10-yr plan)
Median earnings, 10 years after entry (measured 2020-21)
$45,415
Share of students receiving a Pell grant, AY 2021-22
37%
Share of students receiving a federal loan, AY 2021-22
47%
See other scholarships and cost examples

If your student brings another scholarship

The school does not publish a specific outside-scholarship displacement policy; confirm treatment with the aid office before counting on stacking.

Verified policy language (2026-07-02): Scholarships available for stacking are listed below. Separately, the school's own award-stacking rules: UNA explicitly allows stacking — the freshman page lists scholarships 'available for stacking,' the $4,000 Housing Scholarship is stackable (2 years), and Leadership and Honors awards may be stacked on top of the automatic Academic/Presidential award. Only one housing scholarship may be held. (per https://www.una.edu/admissions/new-freshmen/scholarships.html)

Source

Other North Alabama (UNA) scholarships worth checking

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

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityCompetitive; strong record of leadership and volunteerism plus required academic credentials and a 1-2 page activity resume (grades 9-12)

Applicants for the Leadership Scholarship are automatically considered for additional (Leadership) Housing Scholarships

Source

AmountAmount not publishedEligibilityAdditional/foundation scholarships; also the path for students with an ACT below 20 and a 3.0+ GPA

Separate application; may be stackable

Source

North Alabama (UNA) merit aid FAQ

  • What is the scholarship deadline?

    The priority deadline for most UNA freshman scholarships is March 2, 2026 — you must be admitted by then for the automatic Academic/Presidential awards. Some scholarships have earlier or later individual deadlines.

  • Are UNA scholarships stackable?

    Yes. UNA lists scholarships available for stacking; the $4,000 Housing Scholarship (2 years), Leadership, and Cole Honors awards can stack with the automatic Academic/Presidential award. You can hold only one housing scholarship.

  • How much are the automatic awards?

    Academic awards range $2,000–$8,500/year by GPA and ACT superscore; Presidential awards (ACT 30-36) are $9,000–$12,000/year plus a $4,000 housing scholarship.

  • Does UNA superscore the ACT?

    Yes. UNA uses the highest ACT section scores across test dates to form a super composite for scholarship purposes.

  • What if my ACT is below 20?

    Students with an ACT below 20 and a 3.0+ GPA should complete the General & Endowed Scholarship application to be considered for merit-based awards.

See sources and other schools

How North Alabama (UNA) compares

  • 133 of 749 verified schools in our dataset use unclear or unpublished displacement.

    North Alabama (UNA) is in a recognizable cluster (133 schools share this category). That framing matters when comparing peer schools that may publish the policy differently or not at all.

  • 133 of 749 verified schools publish no clear displacement order.

    North Alabama (UNA) is one of them. The right move is the aid-office email script below, not a guess.

  • 665 of 749 verified schools publish at least one four-year renewable merit award.

    North Alabama (UNA) 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 North Alabama (UNA)’s own published materials. Below is the full reference set.

Compare with similar schools

  • Troy merit aid. Alabama public university — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • UAB merit aid. Alabama public university — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • UAH merit aid. Alabama public university — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.
  • University of Montevallo merit aid. Alabama public university — compare automatic merit, amounts, and stacking.

Keep exploring North Alabama (UNA) merit aid

The next chapter

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