Financial Aid

Notre Dame Merit Scholarships and Financial Aid

Notre Dame gave merit aid averaging $16,616 to 43 first-year students who had no financial need, about 4% of the freshmen without need.

Merit aid

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

Average merit award

$16,616

Freshmen who got one

of 2,118 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

$60,952

Average percent of need met

100%

Freshmen with need

54%

1,142 students

The average total aid package, which can include loans and work-study, was $67,264.

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 Notre Dame'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 Notre Dame give merit scholarships?

Notre Dame gave merit aid averaging $16,616 to 43 first-year students who had no financial need, about 4% of the freshmen without need.

How much is the average merit scholarship at Notre Dame?

$16,616 for first-year students without financial need, according to Notre Dame's 2025-26 Common Data Set. That is an average across everyone who got an award, so individual offers run higher and lower.

Does Notre Dame meet full financial need?

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

What share of Notre Dame freshmen have financial need?

1,142 of 2,118 first-time, full-time freshmen, or 54%, were found to have financial need.

Source: Notre Dame’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.