Ranked by participation
Top colleges for Rowing scholarships
The 50 U.S. colleges with the largest rowing programs by athlete participation — each shown with its school-level athletic-aid context.
Quick answer
Among schools that sponsor rowing, Stanford University in California tops our list — a NCAA Division I-FBS program with one of the largest athletic-aid budgets and 75 rowing athletes. We rank scholarship-awarding schools (NCAA Division I/II & NAIA — Division III awards no athletic aid) by division tier, then by the school’s overall athletic-aid scale, then by rowing roster size — because EADA reports athletic aid only school-wide (men’s/women’s totals), never per sport.
About these aid figures
The athletic-aid columns below are school-level totals (all sports combined, split men’s/women’s) straight from EADA. They are not the amount awarded to rowing athletes specifically — EADA does not publish per-sport aid. Use them only as a signal of how much a school invests in athletics overall.
| # | School | Division | Rowing athletes | Men’s aid school-wide, all sports | Women’s aid school-wide, all sports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Stanford, CA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 75 | $19,645,560 | $20,055,491 |
| 2 |  Ann Arbor, MI | NCAA Division I-FBS | 78 | $17,359,163 | $13,811,731 |
| 3 |  Notre Dame, IN | NCAA Division I-FBS | 72 | $18,224,011 | $12,830,979 |
| 4 |  Durham, NC | NCAA Division I-FBS | 46 | $15,690,493 | $14,408,801 |
| 5 |  Columbus, OH | NCAA Division I-FBS | 79 | $15,234,454 | $13,816,950 |
| 6 |  Los Angeles, CA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 51 | $15,118,920 | $13,525,051 |
| 7 |  Chestnut Hill, MA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 65 | $14,106,996 | $12,962,005 |
| 8 |  Dallas, TX | NCAA Division I-FBS | 45 | $14,048,800 | $12,058,976 |
| 9 |  Charlottesville, VA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 67 | $14,175,770 | $11,154,557 |
| 10 |  New Brunswick, NJ | NCAA Division I-FBS | 122 | $13,653,780 | $11,643,557 |
| 11 |  Knoxville, TN | NCAA Division I-FBS | 99 | $12,260,488 | $11,447,980 |
| 12 |  Syracuse, NY | NCAA Division I-FBS | 107 | $12,255,855 | $11,189,256 |
| 13 |  Berkeley, CA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 135 | $12,306,273 | $10,832,606 |
| 14 |  Coral Gables, FL | NCAA Division I-FBS | 68 | $11,056,171 | $9,527,348 |
| 15 |  Norman, OK | NCAA Division I-FBS | 89 | $10,356,127 | $9,262,904 |
| 16 |  East Lansing, MI | NCAA Division I-FBS | 89 | $11,243,351 | $8,241,631 |
| 17 |  Bloomington, IN | NCAA Division I-FBS | 63 | $10,607,303 | $8,778,138 |
| 18 |  Los Angeles, CA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 75 | $9,893,320 | $9,235,885 |
| 19 |  Minneapolis, MN | NCAA Division I-FBS | 64 | $9,757,332 | $9,264,581 |
| 20 |  Madison, WI | NCAA Division I-FBS | 193 | $10,704,429 | $7,924,356 |
| 21 |  Seattle, WA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 172 | $10,619,493 | $7,984,481 |
| 22 |  Tulsa, OK | NCAA Division I-FBS | 48 | $10,173,077 | $7,886,717 |
| 23 |  Tuscaloosa, AL | NCAA Division I-FBS | 115 | $9,257,661 | $7,931,284 |
| 24 |  Iowa City, IA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 75 | $7,802,248 | $9,371,272 |
| 25 |  Chapel Hill, NC | NCAA Division I-FBS | 59 | $9,121,336 | $8,028,006 |
| 26 |  Austin, TX | NCAA Division I-FBS | 76 | $8,766,679 | $7,450,570 |
| 27 |  Louisville, KY | NCAA Division I-FBS | 57 | $8,893,178 | $7,003,358 |
| 28 |  Philadelphia, PA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 110 | $8,339,753 | $7,200,812 |
| 29 |  Lawrence, KS | NCAA Division I-FBS | 70 | $7,519,848 | $7,211,641 |
| 30 |  Clemson, SC | NCAA Division I-FBS | 56 | $7,600,229 | $7,089,086 |
| 31 |  Storrs, CT | NCAA Division I-FBS | 45 | $7,415,129 | $6,962,175 |
| 32 |  Amherst, MA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 61 | $6,993,887 | $6,591,712 |
| 33 |  Orlando, FL | NCAA Division I-FBS | 62 | $6,901,925 | $5,141,251 |
| 34 |  Norfolk, VA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 43 | $7,037,143 | $4,832,057 |
| 35 |  Corvallis, OR | NCAA Division I-FBS | 83 | $6,379,566 | $4,862,536 |
| 36 |  Pullman, WA | NCAA Division I-FBS | 42 | $6,432,284 | $4,794,337 |
| 37 |  Morgantown, WV | NCAA Division I-FBS | 51 | $6,613,087 | $4,372,259 |
| 38 |  Ypsilanti, MI | NCAA Division I-FBS | 48 | $5,654,376 | $5,432,341 |
| 39 |  Manhattan, KS | NCAA Division I-FBS | 83 | $5,398,485 | $4,026,127 |
| 40 |  Bronx, NY | NCAA Division I-FCS | 52 | $10,856,856 | $8,738,644 |
| 41 |  Lewisburg, PA | NCAA Division I-FCS | 72 | $9,667,603 | $9,358,235 |
| 42 |  Villanova, PA | NCAA Division I-FCS | 46 | $9,400,582 | $9,556,877 |
| 43 |  Brookville, NY | NCAA Division I-FCS | 19 | $10,169,698 | $8,044,977 |
| 44 |  Hamilton, NY | NCAA Division I-FCS | 53 | $9,728,576 | $7,809,056 |
| 45 |  North Andover, MA | NCAA Division I-FCS | 24 | $9,697,148 | $7,495,356 |
| 46 |  Newark, DE | NCAA Division I-FCS | 60 | $8,359,809 | $8,369,371 |
| 47 |  Bethlehem, PA | NCAA Division I-FCS | 38 | $9,205,275 | $7,140,976 |
| 48 |  West Long Branch, NJ | NCAA Division I-FCS | 40 | $9,039,278 | $6,976,461 |
| 49 |  Fairfield, CT | NCAA Division I-FCS | 68 | $7,791,350 | $7,887,879 |
| 50 |  Worcester, MA | NCAA Division I-FCS | 94 | $8,245,632 | $6,475,741 |
How we ranked this
Schools are ranked by NCAA/NAIA division tier (Division I-FBS and I-FCS first), then by the school’s overall athletic-aid scale, then by rowing roster size (men + women), all reported to the U.S. Department of Education under the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA). Division III schools are excluded because they do not award athletic scholarships. The athletic-aid columns are the school’s men’s and women’s aid totals across all sports, shown for context; they are not allocated to rowing — EADA reports aid only school-wide, never per sport. Only schools that can be matched to a named institution and report at least one rowing participant are listed (minimum 5schools to publish a page). Empty cells (“—”) mean the school reported no value; we never estimate.
Frequently asked questions
Does EADA data show rowing scholarship amounts per sport?+
No. The federal Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) reports athletic student aid only as a school-level total, split into men’s and women’s totals — it does not break aid down by individual sport. This page therefore ranks schools by their participation in rowing and shows the school’s overall athletic-aid totals as context only. We never present a per-sport aid figure.
Which colleges rank highest for rowing scholarships?+
Stanford University (California), a NCAA Division I-FBS program, leads our ranking of scholarship-awarding rowing schools. We rank by division tier and the school's overall athletic-aid scale (athletic aid is reported school-wide, not per sport), then by rowing roster size.
Do all rowing programs offer athletic scholarships?+
No. NCAA Division III and some other associations do not award athletic scholarships at all, while Division I, Division II and NAIA schools may. A school showing $0 in athletic aid in our table typically does not offer athletic scholarships. Always confirm with the program directly.
How are these rowing colleges ranked?+
By the number of student-athletes participating in the sport (men plus women) as reported to EADA — the only per-sport signal the dataset provides. A larger program generally means more roster spots and recruiting activity, but it does not guarantee a larger scholarship.
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education EADA (Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act) · IPEDS · College Scorecard. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.