<p>I was accepted to UMD as a scholar, not honors. However, I have high scores (1480 SAT 35 ACT) and an average GPA (3.7) but with a great upward trend (4.0 past 2 years)... could I still be considered for B/K? I haven't heard anything yet...</p>
<p>It appears to be only for Honors College students</p>
<p>B/K does seem to be exclusively for Honors College students. </p>
<p>But there are other merit awards at U MD. Not sure why everyone fixates so much on the B/K. Is it the pretty envelope the invite arrives in? Or because the website says it’s ‘prestigious’? Sure, there are lots of them awarded, and it means you are definitely going to get a decent discount on your costs - but I see several others on U MD’s website.</p>
<p>So don’t get too bummed if you don’t receive that special envelope. Maybe you’ll get your scholarship(s) without the extra work of the B/K interview!</p>
<p>I’m not sure there are any other scholarships given by Maryland that tangibly rival the Banneker/Key: full tuition; full room and board; an allowance of over $1,000 for books. As well, one receives guaranteed housing for four years.</p>
<p>"…and it means you are definitely going to get a decent discount on your costs…"</p>
<p>The full Banneker/Key eliminates one’s costs of going to Maryland. It makes attendance at Maryland no more expensive than living in one’s parents’ basements, and in that your parents really don’t have bear the primary burden of feeding you, probably works out cheaper, especially if you don’t have significant travel costs. All you need is pay for your own pretzels and beer.</p>
<p>We don’t know how many full B/K scholarships are given, but I would say from the wording on the website that there are not many. Most will be for partial costs, I think a minimum of around $8K for IS students. Probably a lot of those. </p>
<p>I was looking at the Regent’s Scholarship, which is the highest level of scholarship. I’m noticing now, as I look at it again, it is offered to a small sub-group of the B/K scholars. I think this is the group with the full costs covered.</p>
<p>There are also President’s Scholarships, which, from the looks of last years threads, maxes out around $8K for IS students.</p>
<p>So I agree, the B/K’s hold the potential for the highest awards, and if you get a full one it is a very sweet deal. But realistically, truly full rides are few and far between. And not getting one doesn’t mean all hopes of a nice merit scholarship are over. Though it does mean you’re going to wait longer to hear about it.</p>
<p>Notjoe (hi - good to “see” you again - LOL to your last comment) is correct that B/K is unparalleled. However, you absolutely can get merit scholarships. Remember, not everyone invited to interview for B/K receives a “full” B/K - some awards are “partial,” so no guarantees of a full ride even for those that interview. </p>
<p>My freshman, like you, had high stats and was placed in Scholars instead of Honors and was awarded a Presidential Scholarship, which can be up to $12,000 per year, renewable for all 4 years. Being invited to Scholars does in fact mean you are not eligible for B/K.</p>
<p>LizzieT,</p>
<p>“We don’t know how many full B/K scholarships are given, but I would say from the wording on the website that there are not many. Most will be for partial costs, I think a minimum of around $8K for IS students.”</p>
<p>Actually, a fair number of Banneker/Keys are offered each year. Last year, the number was over 350. The folks at the interview day told us most would be full scholarships. So, around 200 full scholarships are offered each year. Roughly half the Banneker/Keys offered are accepted each year. That’s pretty darned good.</p>
<p>“I was looking at the Regent’s Scholarship, which is the highest level of scholarship. I’m noticing now, as I look at it again, it is offered to a small sub-group of the B/K scholars. I think this is the group with the full costs covered.”</p>
<p>The full Banneker/Key Scholarships are just called Banneker/Key Scholarships. Regents scholarships are university system-wide merit scholarships which, I’ve heard, at UMCP are sometimes awarded to Banneker/Key partial scholarship winners to boost their scholarships to full. The Banneker/Key is restricted to UMCP students, and specifically, to those accepted to the Honors College. Regents scholars who weren’t also awarded the Banneker/Key are automatically admitted to the Honors College, if they hadn’t been already.</p>
<p>The Regents is not quite as financially good as the Banneker/Key, in that the book allowance of the Banneker is greater than the $1000 per year stipend of the Regents, and the book allowance is increased each year to approximate the rising cost of books. The $1000 stipend of the Regents is not.</p>
<p>“But realistically, truly full rides are few and far between.”</p>
<p>Not really. The university aims for something like about 1,000 students admitted annually to the Honors College, and around 8% - 10% or so will go on a full Banneker/Key.</p>
<p>There is a somewhat better, more prestigious version of the Banneker/Key which is the Stamps Banneker/Key, which, in addition to all else, includes a stipend of $5,000 for additional educational opportunities. This is actually a fairly rare scholarship. I think only a handful were awarded last year, and I think three of the students thus awarded actually went to Maryland last year.</p>
<p>Hi, notjoe, thanks for all the information. Some of what you’ve said conflicts with what is now on the U MD website. And some conflicts with what we’ve been told in the last year in financial aid presentations made for the class entering Fall 2013. I can’t find my notes from scholars day this year but your estimate of about 350 B/Ks to be awarded is what I remember from that presentation.</p>
<p>It’s extremely helpful to hear what you were told last year, though. We’ll see what happens this year soon!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Like what?</p>
<p>Hi, plumazul - one easy example, there’s a U MD website page that states that the Regents Scholarship is awarded to B/K recipients. Yet the Undergraduate Catalog 2012-13 and other webpages do not state that. As the webpages are undated, it’s hard to know what is current.</p>
<p>But I think that this isn’t the place to pursue this. If others are interested, they should start another thread, as we have answered the OP’s question sufficiently.</p>
<p>Hi, maryversity. Good to see you, too!</p>
<p>LizzieT,</p>
<p>I see no conflicts between what I wrote and what’s on the University of Maryland websites. The “conflict” you cite isn’t actually a conflict. If you were told something different from what I’ve written, it would be good to get to the truth of it, as none of us wants to disseminate false information on these threads.</p>