Tuition is just part of the CoA. Having a scholarship(s) is nice, but what is critical is the remaining cost. In my D’s case, her tuition at an in state flagship is pretty much covered by scholarships and grants. The remaining R&B and living expenses in CoA is around $13k-$15k a year (no travel cost). I would not count other living expenses that are not additional due to attending school. So there is little incentive to graduate one semester early as her major is not possible to graduate in 3 years due to class schedule. On the other hand, each semester after the 4th year would cost us ~$16k. So graduating in 5 years would increase the cost by near 60%. Aiming at merit aid is a good strategy, but it would not replace careful planning in other aspects also (e.g. choice of school, area, AP/IB/DE credits, major, etc).