There’s an excellent thread by a dad of a URM hockey player with top stats who found out that URM wasn’t a golden ticket to full tuition and full rides, which is what you are telling the OP. I’m speaking from experience and advising numerous students on scholarships.
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No speculation. The Ole Miss chart is quite clear that the highest SAT score needed is 1450. OP’s family member earned a 1440.
@itsgettingreal21 What schools would you suggest?
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Florida A&M has (had?) some nice scholarships. Some courses can be taken at FSU so that really opens up the course catalog.
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I’m not talking about auto merit. I’m addressing your statement that the student is competitive for major scholarships based on being URM.
Many scholarships consider diversity.
Vanderbilt University Chancellor’s Scholarship specifically focuses on diversity:
OP, I recommend focusing on auto merit and HBCUs, and then add some full rides/full tuition scholarships at lower ranked schools. Sure apply to a few reach scholarships (WashU, Vandy, Duke eg diversity scholarships), but don’t have that as the focus as they are extremely competitive.
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Ole Miss is auto merit for OP’s family member.
You are missing the point. That and similar scholarships are big reaches for a student with this student’s stats. Their URM status does not make them competitive for them, which is what you indicated.
Does the student have any PSAT-based status (National Merit or College Board Recognition)?
These may result in scholarships at some schools (e.g. Arizona State University “National Scholars” scholarships).
This is getting tiresome. URM status is a factor considered by many competitive scholarships (Vanderbilt’s Chancellor’s Scholarship is an example).
I encourage folks to try. Standardized test scores are not the only factor considered. UNC’s largest scholarship is another example as is Wash & Lee’s full ride (Johnson, if I recall correctly) which is awarded to 10% (about 44 incoming students each year) of each entering class.
OP’s family member is a reasonable candidate. At the very least, OP has a right to know of the existence of these awards & then it is OP’s option whether or not to pursue further any particular scholarship.
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@itsgettingreal21 What factors do you recommend looking at in determining which schools to consider?
Ole Miss is ranked 160 and according to the common data set, the 75th percentile for SAT is 1230. I know dd’s 1440 is low for those who frequent the forum, but I would have assumed based on these numbers that she‘d be at the top of the applicant pool for Ole Miss.
Another example, University of Arkansas is tied in ranking for 160 and has a 75th percentile SAT score of 1280. It offers around 80 competitive full ride fellowships beginning at a minimum 1430 SAT.
How would I go about ascertaining whether or not dd has a decent shot at one of these?
What factors should I consider in my analysis of which schools to pursue? What schools would you consider low ranking?
She didn’t take PSAT.
I know a student who got a free ride at U of Delaware. Oh just saw home schooled, not sure how that affects things.
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You can look at the scholarships at https://finaid.olemiss.edu/scholarships/#8 . 3.0+ / 1440 gets the second highest scholarship (another 10 SAT points is worth $1,218 more per year); based on the cost of attendance, the net price would be about $12k the first year (costs may go up later years).
For admission only, the requirements are listed at https://admissions.olemiss.edu/apply/freshman/#requirements . There are automatic admission criteria for Mississippi residents, but not for non-residents, although the non-resident automatic scholarship criteria suggest that the competitively-determined non-resident admission criteria are not too difficult.
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You may want to see if the alternate entry method using her SAT scores may get her to National Merit:
https://www.nationalmerit.org/s/1758/images/gid2/editor_documents/alternateentry2022.pdf
For College Board Recognition, scoring 3 or higher on 2 or more AP exams in 11th grade or earlier is another way:
Apply for the 40 Acres, super competitive but if she gets into UT and her essays are
good, you never know.
TAMU offered my son merit that made it really affordable so apply and see if you get some money.
Oklahoma also have a diversity scholarship that she would qualify for, I forget all it covers because my S was not interested.
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I know someone that got awarded a full tuition scholarship at Vandy with a lower score.
If your daughter is up for completing all the applications then encourage her to apply to some of competitive scholarships at private schools, you never know if she will get one unless you apply. It’s not all about test scores and more about the essays, the resume and the interviews.
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University of North Alabama currently offers $10,000 + housing for 4.0 and 1440. They also give in-state tuition to those receiving the scholarship, so the $10,000 would cover the biggest part of tuition and fees at current prices. They also have other scholarships like leadership that you can apply for and if accepted to honors college that offers a small scholarship as well.
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Also see this post by Changethegame in another thread.
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