OP, if you are truly interested in competitive academic awards, you will get increasingly better results as you move lower in college selectivity. This is the strategy my son will be using this fall. With his “above average” stats and EC’s he will not get merit-aid from a top tier school - he just wont. But he has a very good chance of getting money from middle-tier and lower-tier schools where he will also have a very good chance of succeeding and thriving.