Scholarships, Grants and Aid
You’ve worked hard to get to where you are. We're here to help you access the financial support you deserve. Scholarships, loans, grants and other forms of financial aid make your CMU Online education even more affordable.
Explore the options
Financial aid for students comes in a variety of forms. Some types of aid, like scholarships and grants, are awards that you don’t have to repay. Others are loans that you’ll start repaying after you’ve earned your degree. Most students receive more than one form of assistance in their financial aid packages.
Here’s an overview of the types of aid available to students at CMU.
Scholarships
CMU Online scholarships are funds that you don’t have to repay. They're based on a variety of criteria, including financial need, grade point average, your academic program, where you live and military status. Here are some of the options.
Departmental Scholarships
If you are interested in a specific program of study, diversity, equity and inclusion, study abroad, or have a parent or a grandparent who graduated from CMU, we have scholarship opportunities for you.
Scholarship Universe
Connect to even more scholarships with Scholarship Universe! Answer a few initial questions, and we'll match you with the opportunities you qualify for.
Open to admitted CMU students. Scholarship Universe connects you to donor-based internal (CMU) scholarship opportunities.
Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship
The Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship awards $1,000 per year, totaling up to $3,000 over three years, to new transfer students who are Phi Theta Kappa members. To qualify, students must have a minimum 3.5 cumulative college GPA and at least 12 earned credits. The scholarship can be renewed for up to three years by maintaining full-time enrollment and completing at least 30 new CMU credits each academic year. For a third-year renewal, students must maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA and earn at least 30 new CMU credits each year across the fall, spring and summer semesters.
To apply for this scholarship, email your Phi Theta Kappa Membership Certificate to apply@cmich.edu before your first semester at CMU begins.
Transfer scholarship quiz
Online student scholarships
Transfer Online Scholarship
- $1,200 per year / $3,600 over three years
- Available to new transfer students admitted to Innovation and Online/CMU Online with a minimum 3.0 cumulative college GPA and 12 earned credits
- Can be combined with the Phi Theta Kappa Award for eligible students
- Can be renewed for up to three years by maintaining at least half-time enrollment and earning at least 15 new CMU credits each academic year
- Third-year renewal requires a minimum 3.0 GPA and at least 15 new CMU credits each year through the fall, spring and summer semesters
The Innovation and Online Staff and Faculty Award
- Open to admitted students who are pursuing a degree through CMU Online
- Preference is given to students admitted to or enrolled in their first semester
The Joan M. and Clarence E. Mills Annual Award
- Open to admitted CMU Online bachelor’s degree students in their junior year or higher (56+ earned credit hours)
- Minimum GPA of 3.0
- Must be employed full-time by a publicly held electric utility
Program-specific scholarships
Joseph Cooley High Ebenezer Scholarship
- Open to admitted CMU Online students with an interest in studying business and a minimum GPA of 2.8
- Preference is given to first-generation college students who have a history of supporting minority causes, who have graduated from a historically black college and to single parents
Yvonne Robertson Price Annual Award
- Open to admitted CMU Online students pursuing a degree leading toward a career in education
- Minimum GPA of 2.5 for undergraduates
- Minimum GPA of 3.0 for graduate and doctoral students
- First-year students may be eligible if they earned the minimum GPA for the highest degree earned
- Preference is given to students with a history of supporting minority causes
Loans
Federal loans with low-interest rates can help you pay for your education. You’ll have to pay them back, but borrowing can ease your upfront costs.
Federal Direct Subsidized Loans
- Available to undergraduates with financial need who are enrolled at least half-time
- The federal government pays the interest on this loan while you’re in school, for the first six months after you leave school and during deferments
Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans
- Available to undergraduate and graduate students with and without financial need.
- You are responsible for paying the interest on this loan even while you’re in school.
Federal Direct PLUS Loans for Parents
- Available to parents with good credit history
- Based on need
- Parents can borrow up to the total cost of education minus other expected financial assistance
Grants
Based on financial need, grants are gift funds that you don’t have to repay. Grants are available from CMU, the federal government and other sources.
Federal Pell Grant
Up to $7,395 per academic year. Available to full-time undergraduates who:
- Have not received a baccalaureate degree
- Have an expected family contribution (EFC) of $5,846 or less
- Have not received a Federal Pell Grant for more than the equivalent of 12 full-time semesters
- Meet the general eligibility criteria
- Apply by submitting a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or a Renewal Application
Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG)
Up to $4,000 per academic year. Available to undergraduate students who:
- Are enrolled at least half-time
- Qualify on the basis of need
- Recipients must have a zero EFC in order to be eligible for the SEOG
- Have applied for financial aid by CMU’s priority deadline date
- Apply by submitting a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
Learn more about Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant
