My daughter sings and is part of the choral conducting mentorship program. They may just meet!
I just asked the admission counselor for my daughter. She is actually an Assistant Dean of Office of Admission and Financial Aid.
Anyone seen if the assigned admission counselor changed? Some schools switch counselors from the region specific to the program specific ⊠if this happens to your children, that is a good sign 
I noticed that at another school (not Davidson)âŠbut didnt know whyâŠgood sleuthing!
Oh great. Another thing I need to start obsessing about on portals.
Just received rejection. Good luck to all.
No here as well. Oh well. The letter was very complimentary. Iâm sure we all get the same one but it was still a class act from Davidson.
Sorry for the âNosâ received thus far, but there is still hope for other scholarships. My D did not progress with the Belk, either, but still got merit money from Davidson. Good luck to everyone.
@katespeare thanks for the encouragement. S applied for Pepper Art Scholardhip too. Are there other unnamed merit possibilities that are just based on the kidsâ overall apps? Itâs not super clear on the website.
I noticed a couple âCompetitionâ scholarships that admissions selects finalists forâŠtwo of them that are geared towards leadership and service. Looks like those finalists are notified separately from Belk and go to campus 4/4-4/6.
My daughter isnât home from practice yetâŠand I wont let myself read her email. First sentence that shows up doesnt give anything awayâŠ
Ah, what a roller coaster! We also got a no for the Belk, and will wait to see what RD brings. I love that our kids want this kind of schoolâŠone with honor, integrity and purpose. Congratulations to those that will go on in the process <:-P
My DD is third year at Davidson and does have a merit based grant. I can honestly say that we have been 100% impressed with the school during her time there, so much so that my DS, who is a senior in high school, has it at the top of his list.
@BPart1030 Are you a semifinalist (I am curious because I know you were admitted to Harvard)? I am not
We are also a âno.â Deeply disappointing but not entirely unexpected. She still loves Davidson, so her dad and I will crunch the numbers if she gets accepted via RD. But it is what it is. She will do great no matter where she ends up!
My daughter also got a ânoââŠstill hope for an acceptance in RD.
My D did not progress last year but accepted RD with generous need aid. Weâre a bubble family so didnât expect much but got a flat out grant (no loans or work/study) that put the college only $8k a year (factoring in travel) more than other LACs where she got 1/2 tuition merit scholarships but no need aid (other than loans and work/study)! Today sheâs a very happy Wildcat!
Of course the Belk would have been amazing but the odds were so so so slim. Anyway, point being donât assume anything â you might be surprised with merit or need aid down the line!
Last thing Iâll add is that Feb can be rough with these almost impossible big full rides (my D didnât progress on two others either) but remember good news in March is around the corner!
Good luck everyone!
Just out of curiosity, what kind of student do you guys think gets these types of awards? Do you think they need to pursue academic interests outside of school and excel to the point of national awards? Our S chose to be a three season athlete and doesnât have time for another big commitment. Every day, itâs practice until 6:00, dinner and shower and homework until 11:30-12:00. Summer running is required for this team. Every day except for two weeks in August. Heâs an artist and we even had to sneak around the coaches for him to get to his weekly art classes - he had to join the adult art class on Sunday mornings because his teen class meets on Tuesday afternoons so he wasnât allowed to go. Heâs won some awards for his art but nothing on a national level.
He had to choose other ECs that interested him that he could work around running year round. He is a peer leader at school, on the board of a community group that raises money for different local charities, took classes at The Art Institute during the summer afternoons and scored high grades, won a state wide writing contest. Heâs NMF with a 740/800 EW/Math SAT and all 5s on his APs.
Is he just âaverage excellentâ as CCâers like to call these kids?
He could have bagged running and competed in academic competitions. In fact, our school tends to win state and go far in national competitions for a good handful of math and science ECs, Mock Trial, and Forensics. Honestly, he probably could have done well in any of those groups.
I was hoping his intellectual rigor would come through in his recs. These teachers have said things to me along the lines of him being one of their best students ever, a leader in the classroom, highly curious, etc. But he didnât do anything to show that outside the classroom.
Iâm proud of him and I really donât wish that he had done anything different. Heâll find his spot. Iâm just curious about the kids who got these semifinalist spots and what their apps look like.
Who knows, but my theory is these big full rides really value some sort of exceptional community engagement /service / leadership role. And often one theyâve created themselves. Being a local (or even national) social media influencer on a topic, creating new spaces for new voices, advancing the needs of a specific group or cause, etc.
Of course top notch academics too. But itâs the truly exceptional community leadership that I think makes students stand out for this type of scholarship.
I canât answer your question @homerdog but here are some Belk scholars discussing their experiences https://www.davidson.edu/admission-and-financial-aid/john-belk-scholarship/belk-scholars
Of course we donât know all their stats, etc, but still interesting
@Mwfan1921 Thanks. Iâve seen them. Of course these students are impressive but I bet a big percentage of the kids nominated could bring just as much to the table and contribute to the school just as much as these kids do.