Making the Grade to keep the aid

Parent Cafe
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<p>"Only one-third of students who entered the University of Memphis with the Hope Lottery Scholarship in 2004 managed to keep it by 2006.</p>

<p>That's according to a report compiled by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, who surveyed colleges statewide and calculated that 64 percent of Tennessee's lottery recipients in 2004 lost their awards by fall 2006. </p>

<p>These numbers came as no surprise to the U of M scholarship office, which anticipated that about two-thirds of students would lose their scholarship within two years, according to Patrick Perry, associate director of financial aid at the U of M.</p>

<p>"We looked at the experience in Georgia and anticipated that a large number of students would lose their money," Perry said, adding that since the scholarship was introduced in the fall of 2004, U of M has had a number of programs in place to warn students of those bleak statistics.</p>

<p>While the average high school GPA of incoming freshmen at the U of M is a 3.13, the average GPA of a U of M undergraduate is a 2.82, meaning average students don't meet the lottery's criteria. The current minimum GPA required to maintain the scholarship is 2.75 the first year and 3.0 after...</p>

<p>Perry said grades during the freshman year are often the clincher -- if students can make it through their first year with good grades, they have a better chance of keeping the money throughout college, he said.</p>

<p>The average GPA of a U of M graduate this past year was a 3.03, meaning students who persist to their final year pull up their grades.</p>

<p>Georgia Barry, a guidance counselor at Whitehaven High School, said a drop in grades the freshman year is to be expected -- the adjustment to college means a readjustment of study habits and expectations. In high school, students are given multiple opportunities to bring up struggling grades.</p>

<p>"There are no makeup days and no extra credits in college," Barry said. "Students often have a difficult time adjusting to newfound independence."</p>

<p>Barry warns her graduating seniors to keep up their grades from the get-go because a bad start can be hard to overcome.</p>

<p>"Students also need to have another funding source in mind in case they lose the money," she said.</p>

<p>Losing the scholarship doesn't lead to the end of higher education for the majority of students, according to George Malo of the Tennessee Board of Regents, U of M's governing board.</p>

<p>Malo said 70 percent of the students who lost the scholarship in 2004 returned to campus in 2005.</p>

<p>"The number of people who came back even without the scholarship is surprising," Malo said. "Institutions are looking at ways to repackage scholarships so that students still have the opportunity to attend college." "</p>

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<p>I am so glad that this was published, and that you posted it! I wonder how many other schools have the same statistics! At many private schools, it is not a loss of a few hundred dollars, but may represent a loss of well over 30,000-45,000 (over 3 years) if the family is not given grant money in their financial aid package to replace a 10-15,000 scholarship.</p>

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<p>To piggy back on this, my question is how to see this coming. My S has so far been offered three very nice institutional based scholarships with varying requirements for renewal. But is it OK to ask the college about statistics on students being able to keep the scholarship all 4 years? And if you ask, will they tell you the truth? Or is there somewhere else to look to find this information?</p>

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<p>Depending on the college, students may have one semester to bring up a too low GPA before they lose their scholarship. Taking easier classes or an easier course load generally helps.</p>

<p>I would expect most, if not all, colleges will give you this info. if you ask for it.</p>

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<p>Our friend's son had a full ride scholarship which he lost after the first semester. He had other scholarship offers which were good but not full ride. However they had less onerous requirements to keep them and he would not have lost them. Not something they thought of with him but definitely something they are taking into account with 2nd child. If one is in the fortunate position of having varied offers to choose from this is definitely something to bear in mind.</p>

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<p>orjr, This is a very good question! Personally, I think it is most definitely okay to ask, and I did make those calls. I did not feel comfortable with the answers that I got when trying to get this information. I called a few schools to ask specifics. One school actually wrote to my son when they offered him a large merit award and told him that they have every confidence that he would reach the required gpa and keep his award. That school had poor financial aid IMO, so if he lost the award, the difference to us could easily be in excess of 40,000 for the remaining 3-3.5 years if he were to finish his degree there. I did not get satisfactory answers. Answers were too vague for me. Most schools told me that most students keep there scholarships. Assuming this is even the case, is that 51% or 99.5% of students that keep their scholarships, or what % inbetween?</p>

<p>swimcatsmom, I agree. I know someone who is danger of losing a merit award at the end of this semester or this year (not sure which). This is an excellent student, but a serious unexpected illness has caused a drop in grades. The school is working with her b/c they are aware of it, or it would have already been lost. The school is still ready to pull the money at the end of this semester or this year, and the illness is still ongoing. She is a first semester sophomore, and is thinking of changing majors now, so it may take 5 years to finish too. The parents regret their decision to send her to such an expensive school, as well as a school so far away b/c of her illness, and possible loss of scholarship. They will not qualify for much in the way of financial aid.</p>

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<p>My S has a merit scholarship to our large state u. In talking to the head of the dept. that awarded him his scholarship, I was told that students have the most truble keeping the required gpa through the first two years but the ones who make it that far usually have no trouble keeping it through the last 2 years. His gpa is reviewed on a yearly basis rather than by semester. If he has the required gpa at the end of the school year, then the scholarship is renewed for the following year.</p>

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<p>Schools do vary widely about the requirements to keep merit aid. This is something that we did consider in choosing our son's school, as it would have been REALLY difficult for us to afford him attending without his merit aid (we don't qualify for any need-based aid).
All the kids from his HS have not had problems keeping their merit aid from this school & they give kids a one year grace period if they have problems keeping up their grades. So far, S has done very well -- his U grades are higher than his HS grades were.
I did ask some of the other schools how kids did with retaining their merit awards. One school said that if he missed 4-6 days in a quarter, they'd ask him to withdraw from school & lose all aid (this is a kid who has missed TONS of days of HS). Two of the schools that offered full-rides admitted that many kids do llose their scholarships based on grades.</p>

<p>It is definitely reasonable to ask how many kids lose their merit-based scholarships, what leeway/probationary period/grace period/appeal the student can use if the grades dip below the requirement, etc. The more info you gather, the more informed a decision the student & family can make. Schools should willingly share this info or I'd be very hesitant to attend the school.</p>

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<p>
[quote]
But is it OK to ask the college about statistics on students being able to keep the scholarship all 4 years? And if you ask, will they tell you the truth?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Gosh yes. Everyone needs to ask. Then ask by department if you know your kid will be in a particular department or school. You may find that not that many lose them but the ones that do are all science majors </p>

<p>And find out exactly about probationary periods, and when the GPA is calculated and how it is calculated. All of these things are different at each school. A kid at D's school was "concerned" because she thought she was required to have the required GPA every semester with no probation :eek: when in fact it was cumulative and was only checked at the end of each year.</p>

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<p>One of my son's scholarships requires a 3.5 cumulative gpa to continue, with a one semester probation period. Ouch! I just emailed the scholarship department asking what percentage of engineering majors keep this scholarship each year. Believe me, this is something you want to ask and get clear answers to! :eek: My DD's U requires a 2.8 to retain scholarships - oh so lovely for those students taking risks and taking some hard classes!!!!</p>

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<p>People have to realize that a merit scholarship is like an athletic scholarship. Payment is premised on continued performance. Kind of like the real world -- how about that?</p>

<p>A seven-foot ball dribbler would lose his scholarship if he never came to practice. If your kid is in the top echelon of admittees with a merit ride, good grades are going to be necessary to keep it.</p>

<p>When you accept a merit scholarship, it is a bargain. You become part of the school's "talent" that wealthy parents of less-talented kids will pay full price for, for the privilege of having their kids in class with you. If, for whatever reason, you are not delivering your end of the bargain, so sorry, you're toast.</p>

<p>Now some posters above are worrying how hard will it be for Jr. or Princess to keep their merit award? If your kid has a merit ride, by definition he or she is capable of making all A's if they can get their stuff together right away and rise to the occasion. </p>

<p>So, can your kid do this? You should know the answer. Ask yourself: how disciplined will your kid be when he or she is out of your reach and sight? Some kids, you just know will be fine. Others, maybe not given much of a leash in high school, or borderline already while still living at home, you just know might fall victim to the distractions offered a college freshman.</p>

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<p>Kids can also take classes they're less confident about in subjects other than their major on a P/F basis or just audit, if the school allows that option. I agree that it's worthwhile to ask about how many students keep their scholarships by year, by department & school. The U should have info about all of this & should be willing to honestly share.</p>

<p>It can be helpful to double-check with your kids' HS counselors about who well kids from your HS have done at that U as well. Generally they have a pretty good feel for it & can let you know whether kids from your hS have problems with grades & merit awards at particular Us.</p>

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<p>dt123 - your post seemed pretty harsh to me. There could be many factors going in besides the student's willingness to do their best and study. The difficulty of grading at the individual school, an illness - as one poster mentioned, and of course we're also talking about comparing different offers. I agree with you that we are blessed and it is a reward for the student's hard work to have numerous offers on the table to consider, but given that, it still is smart to compare what's available and know what you are agreeing to in your "bargain".
Northeastmom - your experience is exactly what I am imagining and afraid of "Oh, it'll be fine, most of our students do fine with keeping the funds" or some such thing.</p>

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<p>I agree it's harsh, but darn it, it's a harsh world out there. Too many students, and parents I guess, have not figured that out yet. In high school, kids get away with lots of half-baked stuff and are protected from the consequences.</p>

<p>Merit scholarships have quid pro quo built in, and usually plenty of warning and a second chance if they are in jeopardy.</p>

<p>A kid who qualifies for a merit scholarship by definition has the talent to make the grades required to keep it. If "many factors" prevent that talent from being adequately focussed and applied, why should the school keep paying?</p>

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<p>dt123, I will tell you what I believe, and you can feel free to disagree if you like. I think that many private colleges give plenty of mediocre to a bit above average kids big merit scholarships. Some schools might save some of them for middle class/upper middle class families that won't get much in the way of need based grants. There are even community service scholarhips, geographic diversity scholarships that are not even offered b/c of grades in the first place. Some of those may require a 3.0-3.5 (my son actually got one of these). Some requirements to keep them are a bit lower. I believe many of them are really lures, and I think that schools can figure out, and have figured out statistically how many will hold onto that scholarship, and for how long.</p>

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<p>I'll take the bait. Let's start a thread "Big Merit Scholarships for Mediocre Students?" and see how long the list is.</p>

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<p>I was concerned about this last year for son who was starting in engineering - an area well known for very hard classes and relatively lower gpa's. I also wonder whether some folks with merit scholarships choose easier classes in order to make sure gpa is high enough to keep merit money. IMHO, that'd be a rough decision to have to make.</p>

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<p>For my son's engineering, there's really not a whole lot of choices offered to students if you want to get the degree in 4 years. There is minimal choice--if you choose to challenge the calculus by saying what you took in HS was sufficient & take the next level calc class, I suppose you could, but it doesn't seem to happen much (neither my S nor any of his friends did). Similarly, with physics & CS and even economics (where they're using the text he had for AP). So far, he hasn't said it has been too challenging & you only need a 3.0 to keep your merit awards at his school & they have a 1 year grace period if folks have trouble.
Not sure he'd belong in engineering if he couldn't keep at least a 3.0 anyway. We'll see how things go next year, when he has material he's never been exposed to before (the stuff he's had this freshman year was pretty much stuff he covered in HS in his AP courses).</p>

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<p>Just today I emailed a school at which my son received a nice scholarship that requires a 3.3 average to maintain. I asked them if they could tell me what percent of kids lose this scholarship due to academic difficulties. Fin aid wrote back and told me that they don't track that number. How convenient!</p>

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<p>If your child has been offered a merit scholarship based on GPA, you should be aware that some colleges/departments tell their faculty what their average grade should be. This is in response to grade inflation, of course, but the ramifications extend to scholarship holders. If a professor is told that she should aim for a B- average for a given course (or even a B average), then your child will always have to be ABOVE average within the school to retain the scholarship.</p>

<p>This gets tough in schools that have distributive requirements - or for those in disciplines that like to weed out freshmen in introductory courses.</p>