The 2020-21 CU Boulder Scholarship Application opens Nov. 1

The CU Boulder Scholarship Application allows you to apply for multiple scholarship opportunities with one general application. Scholarships are available for incoming freshmen, continuing undergraduates, transfer students and graduate students. The application is available year-round, with the majority of scholarships being available November 1 and most applications due between February 15 - March 13. Deadlines, eligibility criteria, award amounts and application requirements vary for each scholarship and are listed within the application.

Scholarship Selection & Notification

A scholarship committee evaluates submitted applications and selects recipients. The selection process is highly competitive. Applications are reviewed holistically and selection criteria may include, but is not limited to, your academic record, leadership experience, community service, employment, and in some cases, financial need.

Students selected to receive a scholarship will be notified by:

Early April - Incoming freshmen
Mid-April - Continuing students
Mid-July - Transfer students

Graduate students may contact the Graduate School for specific award notification dates.

If you do not receive notification of an award by May 1, you most likely did not receive a scholarship. Notification will vary for recipients of "recommended" and external scholarships.

How it Works

General Application

You will be prompted to complete the general application first. This application is used for multiple scholarships and requires information about extracurricular activities, community service, work and an essay.

Recommended Opportunities

After you submit the general application, additional recommended scholarship opportunities may display. These opportunities require writing a special essay, submitting reference letters, or documenting eligibility.

Other Opportunities

Within the application, you can browse through additional external scholarships. Eligibility and application requirements for each scholarship vary and are listed in the scholarship details within the application.

Application Deadlines

  • The general application is due March 13 with some scholarship applications due as early as February 15.
    • The deadline to complete your application is 11:59 p.m. Mountain Time on the date stated for a particular scholarship.
    • When a scholarship deadline is reached, a snapshot of a student's submitted application will be taken at that time, for that opportunity.
    • You will be able to access and edit the application after each deadline; however, changes will not be reviewed unless you are applying for another scholarship with a later deadline.
  • Any scholarship that has financial need as criteria for eligibility also requires completion of the 2020-21 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by the scholarship deadline. Many scholarships are due as early as February 15, so we highly recommend completing the FAFSA before then.

How to Apply

Application Tips

Recommended Opportunities

  • Recommended scholarship opportunities only appear after the general application is submitted. These additional opportunities typically require an extra essay or reference letters. If you wait until March 13 to submit your general application, you could miss out. Be sure to submit early! You can revisit and edit your submitted general application until the deadline.

Reference Letters & Supporting Documents

  • Requests for reference letters are made through the application. If a reference letter is required, the system will send a request to references listed in your application. Confirm email addresses for references prior to submitting. Email addresses cannot be edited or changed after a request is sent.
    • We strongly encourage you to request references (as necessary) at least one week before the application deadline. Reference letters submitted after the deadline may or may not be considered for review depending on each scholarship's review timeline.
  • Submit all supporting documents by the scholarship's deadline.

Troubleshooting

  • The CU Boulder Scholarship Application supports the following browsers: Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari
  • If you experience issues, clear your browser cache before continuing.