Your Lottery Dollars

Net proceeds from the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery are used to provide scholarships and grants to Arkansas residents enrolled in public and private nonprofit two-year and four-year colleges and universities within the state.

Recipients

We are proud of our scholarship recipients. There have been a total of 64,708 Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships awarded to date, making a difference forever in Arkansas education.

The Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship

The Arkansas Academic Challenge Program provides educational assistance to Arkansas residents in pursuit of a higher education. For information on requirements and to apply, please visit the Arkansas Department of Higher Education’s website, www.adhe.edu, or contact the Arkansas Department of Higher Education’s Financial Aid department: finaid@adhe.edu | (800) 54-STUDY | (501) 371-2050 – Greater Little Rock

Award Amounts

The Arkansas General Assembly sets award amounts annually. Once determined, the amounts will be posted on the Department of Higher Education’s website, www.adhe.edu.
CURRENT AWARD AMOUNTS FOR FOUR YEAR UNIVERSITIES: $4,500
CURRENT AWARD AMOUNTS FOR TWO YEAR COLLEGES: $2,250

Basic Eligibility Criteria:

An applicant must:

• Be an Arkansas resident and U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident
• Be accepted for admission at an approved Arkansas institution of higher education in a program of study that leads to a baccalaureate degree, associate degree, qualified certificate or a nursing school diploma
• Not have earned a baccalaureate degree
• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (although there will be no income cap) Eligibility for the Academic Challenge Scholarship are based on two student categories: Traditional (Current-year high school graduates) and nontraditional students.

Additional Eligibility Criteria for the Traditional Student

An applicant must:

• Enroll in fall semester immediately after high school
• Enroll full-time each semester
• Graduate from high school in current school year
• Meet one of the following criteria:
  1. Graduate from an Arkansas public high school and complete the Smart Core curriculum; and either
     1. Achieve at least a 2.5 high school GPA; or
     2. Achieve a 19 on the ACT or the equivalent score on an ACT equivalent test.
  2. Graduate from an Arkansas public high school before the 2013-2014 school year, but did not complete the Smart Core curriculum, achieve a 2.5 high school GPA; and either
     1. Achieve a 19 on the ACT or the equivalent score; or
     2. Score proficient or higher on all state-mandated end-of-course assessments
  3. Graduate from a private, out-of-state or home school high school and achieve a minimum composite score of nineteen (19) on the ACT or the equivalent score on an ACT equivalent test.

Additional Eligibility Criteria for the Nontraditional Student:

An applicant must:

• Enroll full-tim or part-tim each semester.
• Meet one of the following criteria:
  1. Graduated from an Arkansas public high school and achieved a 2.5 high school GPA or had a 19 on the ACT or the equivalent score on an ACT equivalent test ; or
  2. Graduated from a private, out-of-state, or home school high school or obtained a GED and achieved a 19 on the ACT or the equivalent score on an ACT equivalent test.

NOTE: Students who have completed 12 hours at approved institutions of higher education must have a 2.5 cumulative post-secondary GPA.

Renewal Requirements

Traditional students must enroll in at least 12 hours the first fall semester following high school graduation and at least 15 hours each semester thereafter to receive funding. Traditional students must complete at least 27 hours during the first year and at least 30 hours each year thereafter with a 2.5 cumulative GPA. Nontraditional students may enroll in as few as 6 hours and receive a pro-rated scholarship amount. Nontraditional students must maintain a 2.5 cumulative GPA with continuing eligibility based on enrollment.

How to Apply

Visit the Department of Higher Education’s website, www.adhe.edu, and complete the Arkansas YOUniversal Scholarship Application or download the free YOUniversal app for your smart phone. The online YOUniversal application is your one-stop shop for state and lottery funded financial aid.