<p>We have filled FAFSA and will complete all CSS by this weekend. After that, we have completed everything we need to do for our first college application process. DD has also done interviews for all the schools that offer one.</p>
<p>In Feb, DD will attend a scholarship competion at State U for more merit $$. She will be checking e-mails every day to see if there is communication about scholarship interview. She is also doing an application to a State park summer program that gives State U credits. She is in the academic team that has won all their matches so far and DD is organizing the science olympiad. </p>
<p>Here are couple of questions for those who have experienced.<br>
Recently, DD has received three nominations for awards/scholarships because her community service activities. These are like one per HS type of thing, one is a city wide award and the other two are national. Do we need to let the schools she applied/pending know about these?</p>
<p>Duke/WashU/Vandy scholarships, do they contact you for interview in Feb? If we hear nothing from these schools in Feb, does it automatcially mean DD will not get any large scholarships from these schools?</p>
<p>BTW, DD's mid term report has all As, as always.</p>
<p>Dad II,
Yes, I would let the schools know about her awards. An email to her regional rep at the school is fine, or a brief letter faxed to Admissions. It’s a good time for her to talk about what she’s been doing, awards, and how much she’d really like to attend X, and asking by the way, is there anything else you (the admissions rep) can suggest to help me qualify for merit money!</p>
<p>Re Vanderbilt: The admissions office has posted a blog entry with some answers to questions about merit scholarships:</p>
<p>vandyadmissions.blogspot.com (look for entry from Heather, dated Jan. 25)</p>
<p>VU Engineering just sends a letter in early March to scholarship winners; there is no interview or campus visit required. The Cornelius Vanderbilt finalists who have applied to A&S however, will be notified that they should come to finalist weekend in March (see blog entry). The Ingram nominees have already been contacted, and I believe those who have not made semi-finalist have also been notified.</p>
<p>Wash U: in the past, those who have not received a scholarship have not been notified, but I have no idea if that is still true.</p>
<p>Dad II - I really understand what you are going through. We went through this angst when the ED date was approaching (S got deferred). Somehow, everyone seems relaxed at our home nowadays. S has been accepted to his safety (honors college with some merit money), expects to hear from his other safety this week and he seems to be devoting his free time to his well-loved ECs, and not really thinking much about acceptances.</p>
<p>I would definitely let the schools know about her awards. My S sent a letter to the regional rep at his ED/deferred college and got a nice, personal letter back. The schools do want to hear about major awards/achievements.</p>
<p>I am sure you will have wonderful news in the months to come. Based on other CC parents’ experiences, it all works out.</p>
<p>I think the national award nominations sound newsworthy, and I’d inform her schools about those particular awards. Personally, I’d wait until she receives the local awards before informing the schools about them.
My understanding is that at Duke no invitation means no scholarship consideration. It’s different at Vandy, or has been until this year. Students have been awarded 3/4 tuition scholarships without making the cut for their scholarship weekend in the past (my d in 2005, for instance). </p>
<p>Vandy has made some recent changes to its scholarship program, so you might want to carefully check out their website if you haven’t already. With a 30 percent rise in applications, I’m sure the scholarship committee has to manage things somewhat differently this year.</p>
<p>The problem for waiting to receives the awards first is that it will be too late for any good. To me, a nomination from a top 50 HS with many excellent students is already an achievement. DD’s HS has already had about 10 kids got into the most elite schools (Harvard, Brown, Cornell, etc) via early or likely letters. </p>
<p>I will suggest to DD to write an e-mail, saying some thing about mid term report card, her desire to that school, and her new honors etc. It will be up to her if she will do it or not.</p>
<p>Vandy has revamped its scholarship programs, so this may not be the case anymore … but last year, some applicants didn’t know they were even being considered as a scholarship finalist … they just received notification of their scholarships with their acceptance packets.</p>