My kid got merit from a number of schools. We were not seeking it – it was an incentive from those schools to enroll. And it was a thumb on the scale as he was deciding.
While we had saved enough over the years, I agree that the conversation about “chasing merit” was not one we were hearing. There were, however, many opportunities to learn more about need based FA.
We did not submit FAFSA. He did complete his service enrollment form.
As for fair, schools are building communities and need all types. Parents tend to prioritize what their kids have achieved as most important - not surprising! Even on the academic front, there are needs for AIME winners as well as future Latin scholars. This isn’t a trial for a 4×100 relay where there is one factor that determines which 4 get chosen. If you want merit at a school, you will need to have a higher academic rating than most students admitted and bring something to the community it needs. The latter part will be impossible for you to assess, but it doesn’t mean it’s unfair. Just not the rules you would have chosen!
Questions unique to your situation are best served in its own thread. Additionally, please don’t respond to hidden posts; they were hidden for a reason. Also refrain from espousing conspiracy theories.
You can be a 40 year old man trying to get a security clearance (and not just for government jobs- many jobs in industry have sensitive government contracts and require clearance) and be rejected because you did not register back in the day.
Whatever conspiracy theory you hold- you can’t anticipate what your future self is going to want to do professionally. “opting out” is a dumb option. As long as it’s on the books, register. The likelihood that the draft is coming back seems smaller than the likelihood you will be hit on the head by a meteor when you go out to lunch today.
Yes, but isn’t that because they have much higher student to teacher ratios and no guarantee of housing after the first year (and sometimes not even then?)
