Research · Scholarships · October 2026
Scholarships in Colorado: the 3 state programs and what each asks for
As of October 2026: Colorado has 3 state scholarship programs for students who graduate from its own high schools. The table says what each one pays, who qualifies, and when it closes, in the state's own words.
The table holds every state-funded award we could confirm for a Colorado high school graduate going to college. It does not hold federal aid, or a scholarship that comes from one college rather than from the state.
Analysis: Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach, highschoolreach.com), October 2026. Figures and the table may be quoted with attribution to Test Prep Gurus.
The findings, in plain English
Colorado state aid is need-based, not merit-based. None of the state programs on this table turns on a GPA or a test score. They ask about family income instead, through the FAFSA. Colorado Promise is the exception.
The state's own pages are the only place these rules live. Every row links to the page the state publishes for that program. The rules and the dollar figures move from year to year, so the page is the thing to read, not a summary of it.
What this table does not tell you. 1 program publishes figures for an earlier award year (2025-26), and the state has posted nothing newer we could find. The table says which year each one describes. The state agency's own page names 1 more program in a second table below. Some of those pages give no award figure at all, so those rows carry the name and the link only.
Every state scholarship in Colorado
Read the row, then open the state's own page before you count on a figure.
| Program | Merit or need | What it pays | GPA it asks for | Test score it asks for | Who qualifies | Deadline | Renewable | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado Promise | State award | up to two years, or 65 credits, of college paid for at any public postsecondary institution in Colorado | 2.5 or higher term GPA each semester to continue receiving the award | — | must qualify for in-state Colorado tuition; must complete high school (or GED) after January 1, 2024, or already have been enrolled in a Colorado public college in fall 2024; must start attending within two academic years of high school graduation; complete the FAFSA or CASFA every year, before January 15; begin each semester with fewer than 66 completed college credits; complete at least 6 credits each semester | submit the FAFSA or CASFA before January 15 each year | renews each semester if the student completes at least 6 credits with a term GPA of 2.5 or higher and has fewer than 66 cumulative college credits | Source |
| Colorado Student Grant (CSG) | Need-based | a need-based grant; public and non-profit institutions award funds under their own institutional policy within the student's financial need; students at proprietary institutions are awarded within set levels of $300 to $5,000 (the page describes the 2025-26 award year) | — | — | Colorado resident; demonstrate financial need via the FAFSA (federal methodology Student Aid Index); must meet general state financial-aid student-eligibility rules (citizenship/immigration status, good academic standing) | — | — | Source |
Every row is a state-funded or state-administered award for a Colorado high school graduate going to an undergraduate program, as of October 2026. A scholarship from a single college, a private foundation award, a federal program and a graduate-only award are all left out. A blank cell means the state's own page does not state it. Dollar figures and GPA floors change every year.
Other programs the state names
The agency's own page lists these too. Where its page gives no award figure, the row carries the name and the link only.
| Program | What it pays | What the page says | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado Opportunity Scholarship Initiative | — | Need-based, for a Colorado resident enrolled as an undergraduate at a Colorado public college | Source |
These rows come from the Colorado agency's own index of programs. A blank award means that index does not state one, not that the program pays nothing.
How to read a state scholarship
State awards come in two shapes. A merit award asks about grades, a course list, or a test score, and it does not care what a family earns. A need-based award asks about income and assets through the FAFSA, and it does not care about grades. Some awards ask about both, and the table calls those merit and need.
The deadline column is the one families miss. For most need-based state aid the deadline is really the FAFSA deadline, and it falls months before a college asks for a decision. A merit award more often has no application at all: the state or the high school nominates the student from records it already holds.
What a family should do with this
Open the official page in the last column for the one or two programs your student plausibly qualifies for, and write down two dates: the state aid deadline and the FAFSA deadline. Those are the two that close. In Colorado the earliest date on this table is the one to put on the calendar first.
Then look past the state. A state award is usually the smaller half of an offer. The college's own merit grid and its net price for your family income move more money than any state program on this page, and both are published.
Questions parents ask
What scholarships does Colorado offer?
Colorado has 3 state scholarship programs for students who graduate from its own high schools. The table says what each one pays, who qualifies, and when it closes, in the state's own words.
Does Colorado have a merit scholarship?
None of the state programs on this table turns on a GPA or a test score.
How do I find the rules for a Colorado scholarship?
Every row links to the page the state publishes for that program. The rules and the dollar figures move from year to year, so the page is the thing to read, not a summary of it.
Method & sources: Programs come from the Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) and the agency's own program pages, read in October 2026. The population is a student who graduates from a Colorado high school and enrolls as an undergraduate. A scholarship offered by one college, a private foundation award, a federal program and a graduate-only award are all out of scope. A value the agency's own page does not state is left blank rather than filled from elsewhere, and a page that could not be read drops every figure.
This brief as data: /research/scholarships-in-colorado.json. Free for editorial use with attribution to Test Prep Gurus (High School Reach).
Related: Merit scholarships by college · State scholarships in every state · High schools in Colorado · Scholarship deadlines