<p>HImom...USC grant is need based. I think I fell through the cracks somewhere as I got no merit aid at all...I am #1 in my class, 4.0 UW, 4.6 weighted, currrent 5.0 w/4 AP's and I've had so many AP's I can't even count. I applied by the scholarship deadline but never heard one way or the other...when I went to one of the open houses the fin aid counselor said to call immediately. When I finally got through, I had a huge need based grant but nothing merit at all. But I am a semi/finalist for lots of outside scholarships...so I would just ask them to put it in writing? Won't they give me a hard time about that? Do you think I can negotiate to keep SOME of these outside scholarships? I still can't decide what to do....go with the money or go to USC, where I really want to go? I can go to the other two schools for free....but neither one really has both of the two majors I want to study.</p>
<p>I think you need to explain that you need a clear idea of what your family can expect their 4-year commitment to be & need it in writing so you can compare offers with other schools. If you have something in writing from the other schools which allows you to reduce your loans by outside scholarships, that would be helpful--being able to keep at least a % (maybe like 50%) of our outside scholarships can be a win-win situation, since it allows USC to pay less for your education while still giving you incentive to pursue & get outside scholarships. Having your folks participate in working with FAid is also reasonable, since they will probably help shoulder much of the bill anyway.</p>
<p>My child can also go to several schools for free but he prefers USC, so we're going with his choice.</p>