University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee: merit scholarships by GPA
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee awards automatic merit aid from a published grid keyed to GPA — the ACT is not used. Awards start at a 2.0 GPA and reach $3,000 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.
Read this first
The figures here are UWM's combined totals — the Black & Gold award already includes the Chancellor's Merit amount, so they must not be added together a second time. The Midwest column is larger than the Wisconsin one at every rung because it adds a Milwaukee Advantage award. The GPA is the unweighted final high school GPA, locked by an August 1 transcript deadline. Domestic students only, Milwaukee campus only, and full-time enrolment is required — losing it rescinds the award.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — a 3.60 GPA
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage
$2,000 a year combined / year
About $8,000 over four years, if it renews.
UWM 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 UWM merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s own pages for the current cycle. Nothing here is estimated: where the school states a benefit rather than a figure, that is what the table says.
Illinois, Minnesota and Midwest state residents
The largest column, because it adds a Milwaukee Advantage award on top. Covers Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio and South Dakota.
$3,000 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage
No score needed
$2,500 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage
No score needed
$2,000 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage
No score needed
$1,500 a year combined
Black & Gold with Milwaukee Advantage
No score needed
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage | — | $3,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage | — | $2,500 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage | — | $2,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Milwaukee Advantage | — | $1,500 a year combined |
Source: Black & Gold Scholarship — combined award tables · verified 2026-10-24
Wisconsin residents
The only column with a rung below a 3.00. Smaller than the Midwest column at every shared rung.
$2,000 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit
No score needed
$1,500 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit
No score needed
$1,000 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit
No score needed
$1,000 a year combined
Black & Gold Scholarship
No score needed
$500 a year combined
Black & Gold Scholarship
No score needed
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit | — | $2,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit | — | $1,500 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit | — | $1,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold Scholarship | — | $1,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold Scholarship | — | $500 a year combined |
Source: Black & Gold Scholarship — combined award tables · verified 2026-10-24
Residents of all other states
Matches the Wisconsin column at the top three rungs and pays less at the bottom one. No rung below a 3.00.
$2,000 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit
No score needed
$1,500 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit
No score needed
$1,000 a year combined
Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit
No score needed
$500 a year combined
Black & Gold Scholarship
No score needed
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit | — | $2,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit | — | $1,500 a year combined |
| Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit | — | $1,000 a year combined |
| Black & Gold Scholarship | — | $500 a year combined |
Source: Black & Gold Scholarship — combined award tables · verified 2026-10-24
Does UWM superscore for scholarships?
Not stated, and it would not matter — the tables read no 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 UWM’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.
UWM scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Final high school transcript — GPA locked | August 1 |
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 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s own published pages, linked below with the date we last confirmed them. We do not estimate a missing band or interpolate a value.
- Black & Gold Scholarship — combined award tablesverified 2026-10-24
- Chancellor's Merit Scholarshipverified 2026-10-24
- New freshman admissionverified 2026-10-24
- A 4.0 from a Midwest state is worth $3,000 a year; the same 4.0 from Wisconsin is worth $2,000.
- The Midwest column adds a Milwaukee Advantage award, which is why it exceeds the in-state one.
- Wisconsin is the only column with a rung below a 3.00 — $500 from a 2.00.
- On the Wisconsin table the Black & Gold component is $1,000 at a 3.00-3.39 and $500 at a 3.40-3.74; the combined total still rises because Chancellor's Merit makes up the difference.
- The figures here are combined totals — Black & Gold already includes Chancellor's Merit.
- The GPA is the unweighted final high school GPA, locked by an August 1 transcript deadline, so senior-spring grades count.
- No table reads an ACT score.
- Domestic students only; international, Bridge, transfer and Flexible Option students are excluded.
- Full-time enrolment at the Milwaukee campus is required, and losing it rescinds the award.
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 University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at UWM?
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee publishes a merit aid grid keyed to ACT score and GPA. See the tables on this page for the current bands.
Is UWM test-optional?
The policy is stated per year rather than permanently, so an applicant should confirm it for their own cycle. For merit aid the answer is different: both award tables are keyed to the unweighted final high school GPA with no score anywhere. A student with no ACT reaches the top rung at a 4.0 exactly as a 36 would. 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 UWM?
On UWM's published grid for the current cycle, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Illinois, Minnesota and Midwest state residents — Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit and Milwaukee Advantage at $2,000 a year, about $8,000 over four years if it renews; Wisconsin residents — Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit at $1,000 a year, about $4,000 over four years if it renews; Residents of all other states — Black & Gold with Chancellor's Merit at $1,000 a year, about $4,000 over four years if it renews.
Does UWM superscore the ACT for scholarships?
Not stated, and it would not matter — the tables read no score.
When are UWM scholarship deadlines?
Final high school transcript — GPA locked: August 1. 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 UWM scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee'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
UWM awards on GPA — but the ACT still decides what you're worth elsewhere.
Most schools in this comparison are score-keyed even though UWM is not, so the same test still moves the money everywhere else on the list.
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