What are the chances of receiving either one of these scholarships and how many incoming freshmen receive these?
Vanderbilt consistently states that less than 1% of their applicants for admission are awarded merit scholarships. Their 3 main merit scholarships require separate applications. Cornelius Vanderbilt is the largest (2015 - 156 granted from 5400+ applicants), then Chancellor’s (2015 - 42 from 775 applicants), the Ingram (2015 - over 800 applicants, and I believe 1-2 dozen granted). From the Vanderbilt website:
“The level of competition for merit-based scholarships has increased greatly in recent years. Recipients of these awards are usually in the top 1 percent of their high school class while enrolled in rigorous academic programs. While recipients typically score in the mid-1500s on the SAT Reasoning Test (not including the writing section) and/or above 34 on the ACT, only approximately half the applicants with test scores in those ranges will receive merit-based scholarship offers. Additionally, merit-based scholarship recipients exhibit strong leadership or exceptional talent outside the classroom. Merit scholarship recipients in the Blair School of Music earn outstanding audition scores as well.”
If you apply, good luck!