the whole college application process is an ordeal for everyone these days, especially for HS students!
You are one of only 100 or so applicants out of 64000 to USC to have been awarded a Trustee Scholarship!
That is HARDER to achieve than getting into HYPS ! Only 1.5% are awarded Trustee’s !!!
DS loved some of the other colleges that he was accepted to. But not having to ask Mom and Dad to pinch pennies in order to send him to a great college was a blessing for both him and us!
Congratulations!
So I got into Harvard today. I obviously have a lot of thinking to do and decision making. But, in the rare chance, if I ulitmately choose to attend a school that’s not Harvard, could my acceptance sweeten the deal at other schools?
Harvard does not provide merit aid. Were you offered any/enough need-based aid by Harvard to make it possible?
Well…did Harvard give you sufficient need based aid to attend? That school does have deeper need based aid pockets than your other schools?
Is it affordable…or not?
Harvard gives only need based aid…and is very generous. I seriously doubt you will get a school with less generous need based aid policies to give you more money.
And there is no question…the need based award, or an acceptance at Harvard, will have NO impact on changing merit awards anywhere.
Just a curiosity question, I met a girl who got Presidential at USC, she told the school she needed full tuition to attend, and got 27k more in merit money to supplement it, I’d call that a crossover between need based and merit, for those of you who say it never happens. I didn’t get any need based from Harvard- I’m going to ask them to reconsider. The issue is my dad had an extraordinarily great year due to some stocks, so my fafsa isn’t reflective of what my family really makes in a year, also my parents are near retiring age and my sister is going to be in college at the same time as me. If all else fails, I think I just have to find a way to go.
If your sister is going to college at the same time…that should already have been noted on your financial aid application forms. There is a question for number who will be in college.
Did you put TWO? If so…that is already factored into your aid. If not…you goofed.
And if you did already put TWO for number attending college…and you got zero dollars in aid from Harvard, which is VERY generous…you clearly have extremely high family income…extremely high.
And adding again…your acceptance to Harvard is NOT going to convince some other school to increase your MERIT aid.
That girl who got full tuition at USC…I believe you probably don’t have the full story. For example, if she is a NMF, she would be in the running for a full tuition award at USC…which is not guaranteed. Maybe she got THAT. @menloparkmom right?
P.S. the Presidential is merit aid…and the girl got $27k more in MERIT aid. How is that a crossover beteeen need based and merit…when BOTH are merit awards?
I know what I’m talking about, she said she needed more money financially to attend, you don’t get merit scholarships because you need it to attend. And yet she did because she asked. You’re also wrong about NMF, they’re in the running for presidential, google it.
Your guys logic is that schools have standards for merit aid and if you don’t get it the first time around, its over you don’t get it. And yet, here is a prime example of a person who didn’t get the merit scholarship they wanted, contacted the school saying her family can’t afford it unless she has full tuition, and she got two more MERIT scholarships. She didn’t have to appeal to FA or anything. It’s not impossible, things like this happen all the time.
So ask USC for more money. Have you done that?
What YOU keep asking here is if your merit awards at other colleges will impact USC decision…and most folks agree…it won’t. Or if you can get more merit at other colleges because of your merit at USC. Probably not.
And getting accepted at Harvard won’t change their mind either.
Regardless…your friend got additional MERIT aid. USC determined they wanted to give this to her.
If you want more merit aid…ask them. Maybe you will be lucky too.
Have you asked the other colleges for a reconsideration of your merit aid.
The best thing you can do is ask your colleges directly if they will reconsider your merit awards. Maybe they will…maybe they won’t.
Your sister going to college should have already been included in your financial aid applications.
Your parent retirement age IS considered for FAFSA purposes…with more of an asset protection allowance the closer to retirement you get.
In terms of the stock issue…your parent will need to be able to provide documentation that this is a ONE time event that won’t repeat…and even with that…the schools could ask “so why didn’t you put some of that extra money aside for college?”
It sounds like you are hoping that CMC or Duke will give you more merit money…based on your award at USC…and that you got accepted to Harvard. So…if that is the case…present your request to Duke and CMC…and ask.
@menloparkmom Thank you for your posts…we’re in a similar predicament: Pomona vs. USC (Iovine and Young Academy) with Trustee Scholarship. Comparisons say 80% of people pick Pomona over USC…so we’re having a hard time, fearing what she’ll miss out, and if USC is just so huge compared to her small Palo Alto high school…
"You’re also wrong about NMF, they’re in the running for presidential, google it. "
dead wrong.
USC gives NMF’s a 1/2 tuition National Merit scholarship, which happens to be the same $ amount as the Presidential Scholarship. NMF’s are NOT “in the running for Presidential”.
If you are offered one you can’t receive the other. period.
They dont stack 1/2 tuition Presidential and National Merit awards.
Your friend at USC may have been awarded more merit scholarships, and or grants to sweeten the pot, but that is because she asked for it. She DID appeal. Have you?
I thought this OP already had the Trustee scholarship which is full tuition.
It sounds like he is expecting his other colleges to match the USC offer…or something.
And that is just plain unreasonable.
It’s a MERIT award…and each school has its own bar for awarding merit awards.
And getting accepted at Harvard isn’t going to get some school to increase their merit award either.
@menloparkmom I know they automatically get half! exactly what I meant… and no I haven’t appealed because everyone in this thread has told me not to. My original question was how I could go about appealing, I just thought that negotiation included disclosing other offers. I don’t think that other schools will just match what I’ve been given, I just know that people appeal for more merit aid, and came here asking how to do so, and if that included disclosing other scholarship offers.