Freshman Merit Scholarship
$8,000
- Published requirement
- 4.0 GPA (scale as the school published it)
- Renewable
- Yes, per the school
| 4.0 | $8,000 | $32,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
13 scholarships Northern Illinois University publishes, each with the amount, what the school says it takes, and the sentence we read it in. This is what the school states, not a list of every award it offers.
These are the awards the school ties to stated GPA and test bars. No separate application is listed for them.
$8,000
| 4.0 | $8,000 | $32,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
$7,000
| 3.90-3.99 | $7,000 | $28,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
$6,000
| 3.70-3.89 | $6,000 | $24,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
$4,000
| 3.50-3.69 | $4,000 | $16,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
$3,000
| 3.25-3.49 | $3,000 | $12,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
$1,000
| 3.00-3.24 | $1,000 | $4,000 |niu.edu (read 2026-07-07)
$8,000
GPA Range 4.0 Dollar Amount per Year $8,000 Total Dollar Amount $32,000niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
$7,000
GPA Range 3.90-3.99 Dollar Amount per Year $7,000 Total Dollar Amount $28,000niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
$6,000
GPA Range 3.70-3.89 Dollar Amount per Year $6,000 Total Dollar Amount $24,000niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
$4,000
GPA Range 3.50-3.69 Dollar Amount per Year $4,000 Total Dollar Amount $16,000niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
$3,000
GPA Range 3.25-3.49 Dollar Amount per Year $3,000 Total Dollar Amount $12,000niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
$1,000
GPA Range 3.00-3.24 Dollar Amount per Year $1,000 Total Dollar Amount $4,000niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
$1,000
Qualifying students receive the $1,000 award in their first year at NIU when enrolled full-time.niu.edu (read 2026-07-02)
Cost of attendance as published: tuition, fees, housing, and food for one year. It is the sticker, before any of the awards above and before need-based aid.
Where Northern Illinois University lists its scholarships
MyScholarships (AcademicWorks) — NIU's campus-wide scholarship application system at niu.academicworks.com; login-walled (NIU z-ID/SSO), so individual opportunity detail pages (amount, full eligibility, renewability) are not reachable unauthenticated.
Every amount on this page was read off a Northern Illinois University page on the date shown. Schools change award tables, so check the school's page before you count on a number.