Central Washington University: merit scholarships by GPA
Central Washington University awards automatic merit aid from a published grid keyed to GPA — the ACT is not used. Awards start at a 3.0 GPA and reach $18,600 a year. Because the bands are steps rather than a slope, a hundredth of a GPA point is worth nothing inside a band and the whole step at the edge of one.
Enter a GPA below to see which band it actually lands in, what that band pays, and what the next band needs.
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The same 3.0 threshold is worth $4,000 in total to a Washington resident and $74,400 to an Idaho or Oregon one, because the non-resident awards are tuition discounts rather than cash. The resident award also runs for two years only and requires a CWU residence hall contract each of them, so a commuting Washington student receives nothing from it. Whether the GPA is weighted is not stated.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — a 3.60 GPA
Pacific Northwest Scholarship
$18,600 a year, up to four years and $74,400 in total / year
About $74,400 over four years, if it renews.
CWU awards this on GPA alone, so an ACT score does not change it. A higher score can still matter for admission, for honours programmes, and at other schools on the list — but not for this award.
The ACT doesn't move the money here — but it still decides admission, honours eligibility, and what they is worth at the other schools on the list, where most awards are score-keyed.
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The published CWU merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from Central Washington University’s own pages for Fall 2026 entry. Nothing here is estimated: where the school states a benefit rather than a figure, that is what the table says.
Idaho and Oregon residents
The largest award on the page — a tuition discount, awarded automatically from admission and residency data.
$18,600 a year, up to four years and $74,400 in total
Pacific Northwest Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pacific Northwest Scholarship | — | GPA 3.00 | $18,600 a year, up to four years and $74,400 in total |
Source: Out-of-state scholarships · verified 2026-10-24
Residents of the other 47 states
Also a tuition discount, with no separate application.
$15,000 a year, up to four years and $60,000 in total
Destination Central Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Destination Central Scholarship | — | GPA 3.00 | $15,000 a year, up to four years and $60,000 in total |
Source: Out-of-state scholarships · verified 2026-10-24
Washington residents
Two years only, and conditional on a CWU residence hall contract each year. First-time college students only — Running Start does not count against that.
$2,000 a year, for two consecutive years and $4,000 in total
Crimson Scholarship
No score needed · GPA 3.00
| Award | With a score | No score | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimson Scholarship | — | GPA 3.00 | $2,000 a year, for two consecutive years and $4,000 in total |
Source: Merit-based scholarships · verified 2026-10-24
Does CWU superscore for scholarships?
Not stated, and it would not matter — no award reads a score.
With nothing published, plan for the stricter reading: look up your best single sitting in the grid above, work out your superscore as well, and ask CWU’s financial aid office which one they read before you count on the higher band.
Comparing schools? See which colleges superscore for scholarships — 66 of 501 commit to it, 52 say they do not, and the rest never say.
CWU scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Confirm admission | May 1 |
| Crimson housing contract | July 1 each year |
| Priority application for Fall 2026 | January 31, 2026 |
Scores take roughly two to four weeks to arrive, and official reports sent to schools can take longer, so the last useful test date is several weeks before the printed deadline. Check which test dates still make it.
Where these numbers came from
Every figure on this page was read from Central Washington University’s own published pages, linked below with the date we last confirmed them. We do not estimate a missing band or interpolate a value.
- Merit-based scholarshipsverified 2026-10-24
- Out-of-state scholarshipsverified 2026-10-24
- First-year admissionsverified 2026-10-24
- The same 3.0 is worth $4,000 in total in state and $74,400 to an Idaho or Oregon student.
- The non-resident awards are tuition discounts, which is why they are so much larger.
- The Washington resident award lasts two years, not four.
- Crimson requires a CWU residence hall contract both years, so a commuter gets nothing from it.
- Crimson is for first-time college students only; Running Start credits do not disqualify a student.
- No award reads an ACT score — a submitted score is used for class placement.
- Crimson's renewal bar is a 2.75 CWU GPA, below the 3.0 that earns it.
- The Wildcat Promise award needs demonstrated full financial need and specific eastern Washington counties, so it is not a band here.
Check before you rely on it. Grids change by entry year and schools update them without notice. This page is a reproduction with a date on it, not a guarantee, and it is not financial aid advice. ClutchACT is not affiliated with Central Washington University.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at CWU?
Central Washington University publishes a merit aid grid keyed to ACT score and GPA. See the tables on this page for the current bands.
Is CWU test-optional?
A submitted score is used for course placement rather than for admission or for money. For merit aid the answer is different: neither the resident nor the non-resident scholarship page names a score. The only criteria are a 3.0 high school GPA and residency. Being admitted without a score and qualifying for money without a score are two separate questions.
How much is a 30 on the ACT worth at CWU?
On CWU's published grid for Fall 2026 entry, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Idaho and Oregon residents — Pacific Northwest Scholarship at $18,600 a year, about $74,400 over four years if it renews; Residents of the other 47 states — Destination Central Scholarship at $15,000 a year, about $60,000 over four years if it renews; Washington residents — Crimson Scholarship at $2,000 a year, about $8,000 over four years if it renews.
Does CWU superscore the ACT for scholarships?
Not stated, and it would not matter — no award reads a score.
When are CWU scholarship deadlines?
Confirm admission: May 1. Crimson housing contract: July 1 each year. Priority application for Fall 2026: January 31, 2026. The application and the official score report are both due by that date, and ACT scores take roughly two to four weeks to arrive — so the last useful test date is several weeks earlier than the deadline suggests.
Is this CWU scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from Central Washington University's own published pages and last verified on 2026-10-24. The sources are linked at the bottom of the page with that date. Grids change by entry year, so check the source before relying on a figure for a decision.
Other schools to check
What to do next
CWU awards on GPA — but the ACT still decides what you're worth elsewhere.
Most schools in this comparison are score-keyed even though CWU is not, so the same test still moves the money everywhere else on the list.
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