Do I have a chance of getting any merit aid?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Ohio State University
1

<p>Hello everyone. I am a US permanent resident born and raised in Bangladesh and I will be applying to OSU for the fall 14 session with an intended major in electrical engineering. My stats are pretty good and given OSU’s generous acceptance rate, I am quite confident of getting accepted here. However, my EFC is very low and so I need some merit aid to make an OSU education affordable for me. According to the university website, maximum consideration for scholarships is given to those who apply within Nov 1. That stated, does it make one’s chances of receiving merit scholarship very bleak if he/she applies after this deadline? My initial target was to apply before Nov 1, but my high school might not be able to provide me with transcripts and recommendation letters by then. Besides, I am not yet done with my commonapp essay yet and have serious doubts as to whether I can finish it within the next 5 days. So I believe its not going to be possible for me to send my application before the Nov 1 EA deadline. Do you guys think I might still have a shot at some merit awards? </p>

<p>Here are my stats :</p>

<p>SAT - 2140 ( CR- 640, Math- 740, Writing- 760 )
Class rank - 1 out of 285
GPA - None. My school in Bangladesh doesn’t follow GPA system. But I have really strong grades in high school. Here are my GCE A Level (high school leaving exams in 11th and 12th grade) grades:</p>

<p>Maths : A*
Physics : A*
Chemsitry : A
Accounting : A*</p>

<p>I have greater than 90% marks in almost all the exams.</p>

<p>As for ECAs, I have a lot of volunteering activities. I am member of 4 different clubs/organizations and co-founder of a club related to environmental
causes. I played cricket for a year, can play the guitar and write as a freelancer in some local magazines and newspapers. There are some other minor ECAs I have but nothing that stands out. So I’m a little worried about my ECAs. </p>

<p>Recommendation letter will be really good as my teacher likes me a lot and has a really good impression on me. I’m not very optimistic about my essay, though. It may or may not be good.</p>

<p>Considering the aforementioned stats and given that I will be applying after Nov 1, do you guys think I have a good chance of getting the National Buckeye or other scholarships? I know these things are unpredictable, but I would love to have your opinions.</p>

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<p>I think you need to apply by Nov. 1st for scholarship consideration.</p>

3

<p>Agreed. Check the school’s website here: </p>

<p>[url=&lt;a href=“Merit-based scholarships - The Ohio State University”&gt;Merit-based scholarships - The Ohio State University]Scholarships[/url</a>]</p>

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<p>But the website states that the Nov 1 deadline is for “priority” consideration. Doesn’t this mean that those who apply after Nov 1 might still have a chance of getting the scholarships? Have any of you heard of any previous applicants who got merit scholarships from OSU even after missing the Nov 1 deadline?
I’m getting very anxious here. Please reply.</p>