<p>I was reading one of the threads that one might possibly get a full ride from this...I tried looking it up but I couldn't find anything but by how many people knew about it, I figure it has to be true. If anyone knows anything about could you please tell me?</p>
<p>Thanks,
Wes</p>
<p>Harvard and all the other Ivies do not give any merit aid. The other thread mentioned a scholarship from a third party, not Harvard itself</p>
<p>One could certainly get a full ride from it, but as stated above, only if dictated by need - generally by having an annual family income < $60,000.</p>
<p>let’s just make this really clear for people since there seem to be a bunch of threads popping up on this lately:</p>
<p>A. Universities have three major sources of funds that they can provide to students:
<p>B. Ivy League universities cannot and do not provide #1 and #2. However, they do provide #3. </p>
<p>C. Need-based financial aid (as implied by the name) is calculated based on the financial need that a family has. Colleges can give you a package that is a combination of any of the three components. Sometimes they can provide you with a financial aid package that is 100% grants (i.e. straight money that you do not have to pay back). </p>
<p>D. Sometimes the university decides to gives the grants it offers “special” names. At Harvard, one of these is called the “Harvard National Scholarship.” There is another, for example, called the “Faculty of Arts and Sciences Scholarship.” Other times wealthy benefactos who donate money to a university will have a grant named after them (for example the “Bradford Remmington Snobington XII Esquire Scholarship” which i just made up :)) </p>
<p>so technically, if your family has significant need, Harvard can give you a great financial aid package comprised entirely of grants with special names…is it still a free ride? YES. Can anyone get it? NO. only those with need.</p>
<p>Okay then do you know how to get this grant with a “special” name?</p>
<p>1) You apply for financial-aid.
2) Harvard determines your financial need.
3) Harvard decides that you have significant need and provides you with a financial aid package comprised entirely of grants - here is where they will probably provide you with a named grant.</p>
<p>So its not based on your stats or anything?</p>
<p>“Harvard National Scholarship” is merely the title given to the need-based financial aid grants directly from Harvard’s endowment. It is not a fixed quantity; the allocation is dependent on the determination of financial need. As per Harvard’s financial aid policies, it is not a merit scholarship so the monetary award is irrelevant to one’s grades, SAT scores, or similar measures.</p>
<p>absolutely not…although the name has a “prestige” conotation it is entirely based on your financial need. It’s not like this is something that you’d throw on your resume or anything (you could add it and try to spin it as something prestigious but most people familiar enough with the ivy league will know that you are just BSing them). </p>
<p>So if your family has significant need then you have a chance of getting this…if not then end of story.</p>
<p>Way back in the 80s I received a Harvard National Scholarship and I distinctly remember the cover letter saying that it had been awarded on a competitive basis to 75 applicants that year. That was before the big antitrust settlement, however, when the Ivies used to meet and agree to provide jointly admitted candidates the same financial aid packages so no one would “pay” more for top candidates. While there were not academic scholarships per se, the more desirable candidates got all-grants, while less desirable candidates were awarded a mix of grants, loans and work study…</p>
<p>[A</a> brief history of overlap and the antitrust suit - MIT News Office](<a href=“http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/1992/history-0903.html]A”>A brief history of overlap and the antitrust suit | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology)</p>
<p>Take it from a Harvard national Scholar, class of '88, that these MERIT BASED awards do exist. However, NO application is available for them because they get awarded in a need-blind fashion during the admissions process. the point here is to lure people away from Yale (which they did). So while most of my classmates got a packet with their acceptance, a National Scholar (and there are approx 70 in each entering class), will get an actual Award and a separate letter. The letter is thin- so when I opened it I had a heart attack because I thought I was being rejected (rejection are letters are a single page). But the letter was announcing the National Scholarship which covered everything even though my financial aid award would NOT have done that. Lots of schools have these ways of luring the best candidates- because these people get accepted pretty much everywhere. There was even a reception for the dozen or so National Scholars at the NY Harvard Club, because quite a few of them were from NYC. This fund is a lifetime endowment and gets applied to any further studies. It is also completely separate from National MERIT Scholarships, which have open criteria.</p>
<p>Evalana, I think the whole point that is being made here is that, in current times, those Merit Based awards no longer exist after the antitrust suit was settled.</p>