Do I have a realistic shot at a full tuition/full ride scholarship?

Paying for College
1

Hello.

I have been considering various full ride/tuition merit scholarships. I would really appreciate advice about the process as well as what I can do to prepare. Are my chances of receiving a full-ride/tuition scholarship reasonable based on my profile? I would appreciate recommendations of other scholarships that may be worthwhile for me to apply for as well.

My list is as follows:

Robertson (Duke/UNC)
Cornelius Vanderbilt (Vanderbilt)
Danforth (Washington University in St. Louis)
Jefferson (UVA)
Morehead Cain (UNC)
Presidential/Stamps (Georgia Tech)
University Scholars (Northeastern)

Profile:

Major: Biochemistry or Molecular Biology, possibly a minor in Economics.
Race/Ethnicity: Asian
Graduating Year: 2017

GPA (UW): 3.97
GPA (W): 4.9
Rank: Top 5%
SAT I: 2310 (730 CR, 780 M, 800 W)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 800 Biology M, 770 Chemistry

AP/IB: Both not offered at my school. I attend an school where I take dual-enrollment classes for the entirety of my junior and senior years, and I graduate with an Associate in Science degree after 4 years of high school.

Courseload:

Junior: Trigonometry, Honors English IV, Writing and Seminar, Psychology, General Biology I, Statistics I, Calculus I.

Senior: Calculus II, Calculus III, General Biology II, General Chemistry I, General Chemistry II, American History I/II (equiv. of APUSH).

Extracurricular Activities:

Science Olympiad:
-A whole bunch of medals at regional/state competitions.
-Vice President (11th grade)
-President (12th grade)

Key Club:
-250+ hours.
-Vice President (11th grade)

HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America):
-National finalist (10th grade)
-State finalist, National Qualifier (11th grade)

National Honors Society:
-100+ hours.
-Vice President (12th grade)

NIH Research:
-Doing biomedical research this summer, going to compete in Siemens and Intel competitions this fall.
-Will be presenting a poster summarizing research, possible publication.

Thank you in advance.

2

What is your home state?

I don’t know about the other competitive scholarships you posted, but I think you have a good chance for full tuition at University of Pittsburgh, a very good research university. Application opens in July and scholarship committee starts meeting in October I think so you might know before Thanksgiving where you stand.

3

To get a full tuition/full ride scholarship at the schools you list is a reach but you are in the range. The Pitt recommendation above is a good one.

4

It’s a reach at the schools listed but you could get full tuition and full ride awards at lots of schools. http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/

5

Yes, definitely look at the list Courtney posted for some automatic scholarships. Apply to some of those schools.

Are you a possible NMF? I think that would increase your chances at Northeastern.

6

@mommdc @TomSrOfBoston @CourtneyThurston

I’m from NC, hence my interest in Robertson/Morehead Cain. I scored high enough on the PSAT to possibly qualify for NMF, so hopefully that will help. I will definitely look into Pitt.

I will probably apply to an automatic full ride or two, but I’m not sure I’d want to attend some of the schools on that list.

To be completely honest, I want to attend the best possible school I can (top research, any location, medium-large school) and spend as little as I can. That kind of rules out Alabama State, etc. (nothing against these schools, they just don’t fit my interests). Schools like Pitt, UNC, NE, etc. are the type of schools that I want merit aid at, if that makes any sense.

7

You have the potential to get merit aid at University of Alabama…and possibly a good amount of it…automatically based on your stats.

How much can your family pay annually? UNC-CH meets full need for all accepted students.

If you are low income and have financial need…are you looking at schools that meet full need? Or is it that your family income is high enough that you wouldn’t qualify?

I would suggest you read many of the links in this thread…which has a lot of scholarship info. Verify by checking each college website.

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1678964-links-to-popular-threads-on-scholarships-and-lower-cost-colleges.html#latest

8

You would have to visit University of Alabama to judge for yourself, it attracts lots of OOS students. You would be in the honors college and have access to great opportunities and research.

As NMF you would have more possible full ride opportunities at U Delaware, UCF, U Kentucky.

Tulane, Case Western Reserve University and U Rochester are also schools where you might get merit.

9

In the past, UPitt required the student to be top 2% of their class to get the full tuition (along with very high test scores.)


[QUOTE=""]
That kind of rules out Alabama State <<<

[/QUOTE]

It is not “Alabama State” …that is a different school.

I realize that you want the “best school,” but if you need huge merit, then The University of Alabama could be a financial safety for you. You should visit. You may be VERY surprised.

You have a 1510 M+CR.

Why are you looking for a full ride? How much will your parents pay? Are THEY expecting you to get a full ride?

Frankly, you’re an ORM, so your chances of getting one of those prestigious full rides are going to be lower.

What is your career goal?

10

Yes, but Alabama State is on the list @CourtneyThurston posted, so OP may have actually been referring to Alabama State, not the University of Alabama even though it is the oft recommended full tuition scholarship.

So it sounds like Alabama State wouldn’t fit into this, while the University of Alabama is pretty good in all those categories.

11

@thumper1 @mommdc @mom2collegekids @elliebham

I was referring to Alabama State as an example (of a school that doesn’t have the programs I am looking for), not University of Alabama, which is a completely different school and fits the categories I was looking for.

I would not qualify for need-based aid, but I also would not be able to pay for full tuition. My goal is to complete college without being a financial burden on my parents (hopefully through merit aid, part-time jobs, internships, etc.). Basically, I want my parents to pay as little as realistically possible for my education.

My goal is to become a physician scientist. Obviously this may change in the future depending on my interests.

I’ve added the Park scholarship (NCSU) to the list.

Thank you for the informative advice.

12

@mom2collegekids @thumper1 @mommdc Does the fact that the OP will have both a high school diploma and associate degree affect eligibility for full tuition/full ride scholarships?

OP, as part of the dual-enrollment , once you graduate are you eligible for a full tuition/full ride scholarship from the
university where you earned the degree or is the degree from a community college?

13

I know I’ve seen that question asked about associates degrees and overwhelmingly the answer (definitely at University of Alabama) is that if it was earned before or concurrently with high school graduation, the student still applies as a freshmen and can get those scholarships.

14

@imwiththeband @mom2twogirls

The degree is from a CC. I still do apply as a freshman though.

15

If the student is taking community college courses to satisfy high school graduation requirements, the student is not considered a transfer student.

But this student might have some college credits that will apply to their bachelors, and might be able to graduate in less,than four years.

The student would be applying as a freshman, not a transfer student.

16

As far as I know dual enrollment classes while in high school would not affect merit at Pitt. They might not accept all credits for your degree though. You can call and make sure.

Yes, it’s not a given that you would get full tuition at Pitt, but it’s worth a try.

You could add Temple to your list as a safety along with UA.

17

The Danforth and Jefferson Scholarships are nominated scholarships; so you will have to be nominated by your school for those (typically 1 person from a high school gets that nomination). Getting a nomination for one of those scholarships is something to discuss with your high school’s guidance counselor.

Statistically, the chances of getting a Jefferson Scholarship are about 1%; I presume that the odds of getting the Danforth Scholarship are about the same.

18

@imwiththeband No, that has no effect.

<<
My goal is to become a physician scientist
<<

Then consider UAB as well.

If you want academic medicine then you’ll want the highest GPA possible.

19

Op and others thanks for the clarification. In the midwest, these are called early college H.S. Many of these students gain admission and substantial merit funding from top colleges. OP, make sure you let your guidance counselor know about the schools that you are interested in and their full tuition/full ride programs. Similar to my state, there may be some sort of agreement or special review or special funding in place among the NC colleges/universities for students who come out of this type of H.S. program.

20

@gandalf78 @mom2collegekids @imwiththeband

I have discussed this with my GC already, and from the looks of it, I will be getting nominated (nobody else in my school is even applying to WUSTL or UVA).

I will definitely look into UAB as well.

I don’t think there are any special funding programs between my school and NC colleges, but there is an articulation agreement with several colleges.

Thanks for the advice.