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Top 20 Catholic Scholarships in January 2023
According to research from Pew, there are over 50 million Catholics in the United States. This makes Catholicism one of the most common religious denominations in the country. This also means that there are many Catholic scholarships out there to support Catholic students!
In this guide, you will learn about private Catholic scholarships, as well as some of the top Catholic colleges and universities that offer merit scholarships to prospective students.
Keep on reading to learn more about the top Catholic scholarships, including eligibility, award amounts, and application deadlines.
Jump ahead to…
- Top scholarships for Catholic students
- Top scholarships at Catholic colleges
- Frequently asked questions about Catholic scholarships
- Additional scholarship categories
Top 20 Catholic Scholarships in January 2023
The Scholarships360 Research Team reviews all scholarships individually and strives to exclude any scholarship where any of the below applies:
- The scholarship requires a fee to apply
- The scholarship provider’s privacy policy allows for the misuse of student data
- The scholarship requires paid membership in an organization (with certain exceptions for reputable trade organizations and others)
- Student are required to sign up for a site or service to apply*
- The scholarship seems primarily used for lead generation** or idea harvesting purposes***
- The scholarship website has many grammatical errors and/or advertisements
- The scholarship or scholarship providing organization seem untrustworthy
- There is no evidence the scholarship was previously awarded
- The scholarship has not been awarded in the past 12 months
- There is no available contact information
If you believe a scholarship has been published in error, please reach out to [email protected] and we’ll take a look!
* There are certain exceptions to this, for example if the sponsoring organization is a major corporation or nonprofit with its own scholarship application system.
** Lead generation scholarships will require students to sign up for an app or website and require minimal (if any) application requirements.
***Idea harvesting scholarships will require students to submit blog posts or other materials that companies may use for marketing purposes.
$10,000 “No Essay” Scholarship
Scholarships360 Exclusive
Easy scholarship open to all US-based high school, college, community college and graduate students.
$2,000 Nitro College Scholarship – No Essay
Sponsored
Easy scholarship open to all high school, college, community and graduate students.
$25,000 No Essay Scholarship
Sponsored
Open to high school and college students, as well as anyone looking to attend college or graduate school in the next year.
Newman Society Essay Scholarship Contest
Offered by The Cardinal Newman Society
Open to Catholic high school seniors who write an essay about why they want to attend a Catholic college.
Briana Tigue Medina Nursing Scholarship Fund
Offered by Catholic Community Foundation
Open to Arizona high school seniors planning to pursue an undergraduate degree in nursing.
Emmett J. Doerr Memorial Scout Scholarship
Offered by National Catholic Committee on Scouting
Open to Catholic high school seniors who are involved in their community, the Catholic Church, and Scouts.
ICF First-Year College Scholarship
Offered by Italian Catholic Federation (ICF)
Open to Roman Catholic high school graduates entering their first year of higher education who have a connection to ICF.
Charles W. Riley Firefighter and Ambulance and Rescue Squad Member Scholarship Program
Offered by Maryland Higher Education Commission
Open to active firefighters (including volunteers), ambulance, or rescue squad members who are seeking a fire-service-related degree.
ARFORA Helen Muntean Education Scholarship for Women
Offered by The Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America
Female, Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America members who have completed their first year of an undergraduate education program.
ARFORA/Martha Gavrila Scholarship for Women
Offered by The Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America
Open to women of The Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America who have completed a college degree and been accepted for graduate studies.
$25k “Be Bold” No-Essay Scholarship
Sponsored
Easy scholarship open to high school students, college students, community college students, and graduate students.
Annual Catholic College Scholarship
Sponsored
Open to students who are a current high school freshman, sophomore, or junior interested in attending a Catholic university or college.
COF Fraternal Scholarship
Offered by Catholic Order of Foresters
Current and incoming Catholic college students who host a "Feeding God Children's" event and participate in COF's "Alternative Break."
The Pour Over Scholarship
Scholarships360 Exclusive
Open to Christian students who want to stay on top of the news. By applying, you’ll subscribe to The Pour Over and receive unbiased news from a Christian perspective.
Catholic United Financial Post-High School Tuition Scholarship
Offered by Catholic United Financial
Open to Catholic United Financial members of any age who are pursuing a degree, diploma, or certification.
This scholarship might not currently be accepting applications. Most scholarship programs only accept applications a few months ahead of their annual deadline. We’ve estimated this deadline based on last year’s deadline in order to help you plan out your scholarship applications.
Apr 30, 2023The National CCAA First-Year Scholarship
Offered by The National Catholic College Admission Association
Open to college-bound high school seniors who will be attending one of the National NCAA member institutions in the fall after graduation.
This scholarship might not currently be accepting applications. Most scholarship programs only accept applications a few months ahead of their annual deadline. We’ve estimated this deadline based on last year’s deadline in order to help you plan out your scholarship applications.
Apr 4, 2023$10,000 CollegeXpress Scholarship
Sponsored
Annual $10k scholarship from CollegeXpress open to all high school students.
Niche $2,000 “No Essay” College Scholarship
Sponsored
Easy scholarship from Niche open to all high school, college, and graduate students.
Top scholarships at Catholic colleges
In addition to private scholarships, Catholic students should consider Catholic colleges and universities. Institutional financial aid can include generous merit scholarships, as well as need-based financial aid.
Some of the top Catholic Colleges are:
Boston College (Chestnut Hill, MA)
- Boston College only offers one merit scholarship program, the Presidential Scholars Program, which is a full tuition scholarship that 15 students per year will receive.
University of Dayton (Dayton, OH)
- The University of Dayton considers all accepted students for merit scholarships. These awards range from $59,000 to $109,000 over four years.
Fordham University (Bronx, NY)
- Fordham offers a variety of merit scholarship programs ranging up to the Cunnliffe Presidential Scholarship which is a full ride scholarship that includes tuition, room, board, other fees, and up to $20,000 over four years for academic enrichment.
- Since Fordham is a test-optional college, students do not need to submit the ACT or SAT to be considered for merit scholarships.
Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.)
- Georgetown does not offer merit scholarships, but does meet 100% of demonstrated financial need for all admitted students.
- To receive financial aid from Georgetown, students must submit both the FAFSA and the CSS Profile.
College of the Holy Cross (Worcester, MA)
- While most of Holy Cross’ financial aid budget is focused on supporting need-based aid, there are some merit scholarships available (many of these merit scholarships also have a need-based component).
Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles, CA)
- Loyola Marymount offers merit scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $25,000 per year. All students who apply and are accepted to LMU are considered for these scholarships so no additional application is needed!
University of Notre Dame (South Bend, IN)
- Notre Dame offers the Notre Dame Scholars Program, which is a renewable scholarship worth $25,000 per year that 20 students will receive per year.
- Notre Dame also offers the Stamps Scholarship which is a full tuition scholarship that also includes $12,000 of additional funding for students.
University of San Diego (San Diego, CA)
- University of San Diego considers all applicants for merit scholarships that range from $18,000 to $25,000 per year.
- Since USD is test-optional, ACT and SAT scores are not required parts of the scholarship review process.
Santa Clara University (Santa Clara, CA)
- Santa Clara merit scholarships include awards that are full ride, full tuition, and half tuition.
- There are also specific scholarships for legacy students, as well as for students talented in theater, art, and music.
Villanova University (Villanova, PA)
- The Villanova Presidential Scholarship is a full ride scholarship for high-achieving students who are also leaders in their communities.
- Villanova’s other merit scholarships also have a need-based component, so the only pure merit scholarship is the Presidential Scholarship.
Frequently asked questions about Catholic scholarships
Does the Catholic Church give scholarships?
The centralized organization of the Catholic Church does not offer scholarships. However, individual churches may offer scholarships, which would receive funding from the Catholic Church. Many of the scholarships on this list, such as the Young Christian Leaders Scholarship, are available to students who are members of the Catholic Church.
Do Catholic schools offer scholarships?
Most Catholic schools do offer scholarships. They might be need-based, merit-based, or a combination of the two. One example is Fordham University’s most generous scholarship opportunity: A full ride, plus a $20,000 budget for academic enrichment.
