Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarships

Scholarship Sponsored by Arkansas Department of Higher Education

Introduction
The Arkansas Academic Challenge Program awards scholarships to Arkansas residents who plan to continue their education after high school. Largely supported by revenue from the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery, the Academic Challenge Scholarship is open to a wide range of applicants — including high school graduates, students already enrolled in college, first-time college entrants, and individuals returning to college after time away.

Application Deadline
Annual deadline: July 1

Award Amount
Scholarship amounts differ by institution and by the student’s level (freshman, sophomore, etc.).

Eligibility — Overview
Full details and distinctions for Traditional and Non‑Traditional applicants are available in the program’s Rules and Regulations (see the bottom of the program webpage). Basic eligibility guidelines follow.

Traditional Students (recent high school graduates)
To be eligible as a Traditional applicant (planning to attend an approved college or university in the academic year immediately after graduating from a public, private, out‑of‑state, or homeschool program), a student must meet at least one of the following academic criteria:
- ACT composite score (or ACT superscore) of 19 or higher
- Accuplacer: three-section average of 246
- Classic Learning Test (CLT) score of 58 or higher
- High school grade point average of 3.00
- Diploma of Merit

Enrollment and progress requirements for Traditional students:
- In the first Fall semester after high school graduation the student must begin attendance with at least 12 credit hours to be eligible to receive funds that term.
- In subsequent semesters, the student must enroll in at least 15 credit hours each semester to receive disbursements for those semesters.
- This results in a minimum of 27 credit hours required during the first academic year and a minimum of 30 credit hours in each academic year thereafter.
- Students must maintain a cumulative college GPA of at least 2.5.

Special note for first-year college students
A student who did not apply for or qualify for the Academic Challenge Scholarship at the start of college may still qualify as a Traditional student at the end of their first academic year if they were a full‑time, first‑time college student and completed 27 credit hours with a 2.5 GPA during that first year. If the student has fewer than 27 hours at the end of Spring, they may instead apply as a Non‑Traditional student.

Non‑Traditional Students
Non‑Traditional applicants include current college students who never received the Academic Challenge Scholarship and adults who have completed some college credit but have not earned a degree. Eligibility rules:
- Students with some college credit: eligible if they have a cumulative college GPA of at least 2.5.
- Students with no college credit: may qualify as Non‑Traditional if they hold an ACT composite score or superscore of at least 19 (or an equivalent score on a comparable test).

Enrollment and progress for Non‑Traditional students:
- Non‑Traditional students may start with fewer semester credit hours than the Traditional minimums and still receive a prorated scholarship award for that semester.
- They must maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5 and earn the required number of credits each semester based on whether they attend full‑time (15 or more credit hours) or part‑time (fewer than 15 credit hours).

Testing and Score Information (Important)
The Arkansas Department of Higher Education (ADHE) will only accept the official ACT composite or official ACT superscore reported by ACT. ADHE cannot manually omit or add the ACT Science section (or alter any section) for either Legacy or Enhanced ACT score reporting. If you want to pursue an ACT composite or superscore target, coordinate with ACT and/or your high school counselor before taking the test — you cannot change which sections are used after scores are issued.

For complete eligibility specifics, documentation requirements, and the program’s Rules and Regulations, consult the official Academic Challenge materials on the ADHE website.