Uncommon Scholarships

There are several unique scholarships. The scholarships cannot be stacked, but you might qualify for one:

• Alumni Scholarship
• SHRM National Convention 2021 (proof of conference attendance required)
• Christian Community Scholarship (employees of Christian churches or schools)
• Academic Community Scholarship (employees of a Preferred Education Partner district or school)
• Business Community Scholarship (employees of one of our corporate partners)

In fall of 2018, Concordia announced the first of the opportunities, the Alumni Scholarship program, open to all alumni of Concordia University Ann Arbor and Wisconsin. In addition to alumni, scholarships are now available for employees of Christian churches and schools, as well as Concordia’s official business and academic/preferred education partners. If you think you might qualify for the scholarship, please note that you must fill out an application.

Please note that the scholarship application must be submitted before the first day of the class you are applying for. A new form must also be submitted each academic year for the duration of your program, as long as you are still employed by a qualifying organization.

Please carefully review all policies and procedures provided on this page below.

No. The scholarships cannot be stacked even if you qualify for more than one.

Yes! The tuition discount has been phased out. The Uncommon Scholarships were announced in fall of 2018 and offer expanded opportunities for scholarships unlike ever before.

The scholarship application remains open all year. You may apply after you have been admitted to a program you are seeking.

Uncommon applications are due before the course(s) begin. For example; if you fill out the scholarship form after a class has already started, Financial Aid will not be able to apply for the award for that course, however; it will be applied to future courses moving forward.

You can apply for the scholarship once you have a F00 (student ID number). The scholarship application remains open all year. If you begin a program halfway through the academic year, you can fill out the scholarship mid-year to have any approved scholarships applied for future courses. In addition to other policies and procedures outlined on the Uncommon Scholarships page, there are two critical date-related policies to be aware of.

1. The first is that you must fill out a scholarship application before your course(s) begin. If you start a course, are two weeks in, and then remember to fill out the scholarship application, financial aid will not be able to apply the award.
2. The second is that you must fill out a new scholarship application each academic year before the start of that upcoming year.

Always be sure to submit an application for each academic year before courses begin. Scholarships cannot be awarded to past courses, or to courses that have already begun. Academic years begin the first week of July each year and run July through the end of June, as follows:

• 2023-2024 Academic Year: July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024

Your program may follow an 8-week schedule, a 6-week schedule, or another term schedule. Please review your individual course deadlines and submit a scholarship application before your course begins.

Academic Calendar

Once awarded, your scholarship will automatically renew as long as you stay actively enrolled in your program. However, if you have been out of school for more than a year, you will need to reapply.

Should your employment status change after applying for the Business Community Scholarship, Christian Community Scholarship, or Academic Community Scholarship, you must submit a new application, specifying your updated place of employment.

• Business Community Partners
• Academic Community Partners: Michigan, Wisconsin
• Christian Community Partners: Employees of Christian schools and churches 
• Alumni: Concordia University Ann Arbor, Concordia University Bronxville, Concordia University Chicago, Concordia University Irvine, Concordia University Nebraska, Concordia University Portland, Concordia University Selma, Concordia University St. Paul, Concordia University Texas, Concordia University Wisconsin
  

1. For a full list of qualifying programs, scroll down to the Scholarship application portion of this webpage.
2. Select a Scholarship Program from the drop-down menu.
3. Select your Degree Type
4. The drop-down will list the qualifying programs.

Within 7 days of submitting your scholarship application, you will hear, via email, official response about the status of your scholarship application.

If granted, Financial Aid will apply this scholarship to your account by the first week of your first class in the academic term, based upon your overall term registration at that time. Please be sure to fill out the application each academic year for the duration of your program, as long as you are still employed by a qualifying organization.

If this scholarship is not granted, Concordia University still strives to make our tuition affordable to all, and we encourage you to apply for other scholarships outside the university.

The scholarship does not extend through family members. In order to be eligible for this scholarship, students must be accepted to an eligible program and fit one of the qualifications for Uncommon Scholarships.

You qualify if you are an employee of any Academic Community Partnership (also known as Preferred Education Partner) districts or schools.

Absolutely. We understand planning a budget is important for your success in a program and are happy to provide assistance in your financial planning. We created an estimation sheet for this very reason. Each person’s program is different, so we recommend filling out a personalized Uncommon Scholarship estimator by using the Uncommon Scholarship estimation sheet. If you feel confident in your own estimate, we are glad it was of use! If you would like to talk this over with a financial aid counselor, please feel invited to call financial aid. Please have that sheet available with your F00 number (student ID number), and a counselor can pull up your information to help review your estimate.

• Uncommon Scholarships Estimate Sheet
• Graduate Tuition and Fees
• Accelerated Tuition and Fees

Once all qualifying measures are met for the academic year and the scholarship is approved, the scholarship will be awarded by financial aid based on the current number of credits the student is enrolled in each semester, during that academic year. The scholarship will be adjusted for any increase or decrease in enrolled credits during each semester of that academic year. Scholarships awarded will be applied to your student account and will be reflected on subsequent billing statements. (No cash releases are issued for this scholarship.) If you have specific questions, we invite you to contact the financial aid or billing offices.

After submitting your application, if approved by one of our qualifying officers, the Financial Aid office will receive notification. You will generally receive a Financial Aid offer with your uncommon scholarship within five business days. Scholarships will be disbursed to your student account within one week of receiving your first assignment for a specific semester.