Financial Aid

Carleton Merit Scholarships and Financial Aid

Carleton gave merit aid averaging $2,000 to 16 first-year students who had no financial need, about 7% of the freshmen without need.

Merit aid

Scholarships Carleton gave to first-year students who had no financial need.

Average merit award

$2,000

Freshmen who got one

of 518 in the class

Share of those without need

who received merit aid

Need-based aid

For first-year students the college found to have financial need.

Average need-based grant

$66,762

Average percent of need met

100%

Freshmen with need

57%

293 students

The average total aid package, which can include loans and work-study, was $72,667.

How to read these numbers

Merit aid is awarded for grades, scores, or talent. Need-based aid is awarded for family finances. A student can receive both.
The merit figures count only students with no financial need, so they show what a family that will not qualify for need-based aid can expect.
A grant does not have to be repaid. A package can include loans, which do.

Email me Carleton's aid numbers

A link to this page, plus the merit aid comparison for every college we track.

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Frequently asked questions

Does Carleton give merit scholarships?

Carleton gave merit aid averaging $2,000 to 16 first-year students who had no financial need, about 7% of the freshmen without need.

How much is the average merit scholarship at Carleton?

$2,000 for first-year students without financial need, according to Carleton's 2025-26 Common Data Set. That is an average across everyone who got an award, so individual offers run higher and lower.

Does Carleton meet full financial need?

Carleton reports meeting 100% of need on average for first-year students who were awarded need-based aid.

What share of Carleton freshmen have financial need?

293 of 518 first-time, full-time freshmen, or 57%, were found to have financial need.

Source: Carleton’s own Common Data Set 2025-26, Section H, for first-time, full-time freshmen. Last checked 2026-10-08. These are averages for one entering class, and some colleges report the prior year’s class in this section. Your own offer depends on your family’s finances and your application.