Opportunity Scholarship Information
The Opportunity Scholarship was created by the North Carolina General Assembly in 2013. Scholarships are awarded based on a family's household income and can be used to pay the required tuition and fees to attend an eligible private school.
Recently, significant changes have been made to the program for the 2024-2025 school year, including:
• removal of the income cap for families to receive the scholarship; now, all North Carolina students in kindergarten through 12th grade will be eligible for the scholarship regardless of income.
• Prior public-school enrollment is no longer a requirement for eligibility for the scholarship.
• A student's scholarship amount will be based on household income.
• Scholarship amounts will range from approximately $3,000 to $7,000.
We encourage all current and prospective families to apply.
Visit the NCSEAA site to apply and get more information.
Application Window is February 1 - March 1
Add student(s) to your MyPortal parent account and complete your application(s) by March 1st. Parents applying for more than one student should submit a separate application for each student and enter the same household size and income for each student.
Eligible applications submitted between February 1 and March 1 will be awarded based on household income, starting with Award Tier 1. Scholarships will be offered to families in Award Tiers 2-4 as funds remain available. For more information, see the Awarding Process page.
Families that apply after March 1 will be waitlisted.
Education Student Accounts (ESA+) Program
North Carolina's Education Student Accounts (ESA+) program is available to meet the needs of students with disabilities. Funds may be used to pay tuition and fees for eligible private schools, and for expenses such as speech therapy, tutoring services, and educational technology.
• $9,000 annual award; students with certain designated disabilities may be eligible to receive $17,000 a year
• Familiies may choose from a variety of learning environments, including private schools, home schools, or co-enrollment
• Eligibility based on documentation of a disability and other program requirements