Scholarship Policies

In order to receive scholarships, the student selected must meet specific eligibility criteria. Scholarship criteria often include maintaining attendance at Eastern Illinois University as a full-time student, possessing a certain cumulative grade point average, majoring in a specific area, or having a certain grade level status.

Being selected as a scholarship recipient is an honor, but it's important to maintain eligibility criteria to allow for awarding and renewability. Some scholarship awards include a contract requiring completion and signature prior to awarding, while others require completion of other paperwork prior to awarding. If you have been or plan to be a scholarship recipient, here are a few policies to keep in mind:

1. In order to receive a Foundation-endowed scholarship, the student recipient must complete necessary post-acceptance paperwork online prior to the scholarship being awarded. The student will receive email notification to do so. Please complete the necessary paperwork within two weeks of being selected to ensure timely awarding. For questions, please call the EIU Foundation at 217-581-3313.
2. Full-time attendance at Eastern Illinois University is required in order to receive most scholarships. Less than full-time attendance is not allowed unless otherwise noted in the scholarship criteria. If attendance decreases from full-time to part-time, the scholarship can be revoked and/or become non-renewable. In the case that a scholarship recipient opts to cease attending Eastern Illinois University, the unpaid portion of the scholarship will be forfeited.
3. Some scholarships are automatically renewable. Examples include the Panther Promise and Presidential Scholars Award. Automatically renewable scholarships do not require reapplication; however, they do require the scholarship recipient to maintain eligibility criteria in order to continue receiving the award. Please review renewability criteria on scholarships to ensure requirements are not missed and the scholarship is maintained. Failure to meet eligibility requirements will cause forfeiture of the scholarship.
4. Students may receive one or more scholarships depending on how many they have applied for and were awarded. Should a student receive multiple scholarships in addition to federal loans, the federal loan amounts will be reduced to accommodate the amount of the scholarship(s). By allowing this, a student can essentially pay for education with free money opposed to loaned money that will need to be paid back in the future.
5. Generally, a student cannot receive a combination of federal, state and institutional aid that exceeds the cost of attendance.
6. To review which scholarships have been fully awarded and processed, please review your PAWS account. If there is a scholarship award missing, please contact the Office of Financial Aid & Scholarships at finaid@eiu.edu or  217-581-6405.
7. If a private scholarship check is being sent by the donor or agency that sponsored the scholarship, please request that the check be mailed to: Cashier's Office, Eastern Illinois University, 1131 Old Main, 600 Lincoln Ave., Charleston, IL, 61920. Please include your E number on the check. For any questions, call 217-581-3715. If the check is given to you, please mail or take the scholarship to the Cashier's Office at Eastern Illinois University to be applied to your student account. The scholarship amount awarded will be entered into your student account and will be applied towards your educational costs including tuition, fees, housing, etc. After all educational costs are paid, a refund will be sent to you.
8. Scholarships given to student recipients of Eastern Illinois University are non-transferable. A scholarship amount may not be transferred to another institution for use.