<p>If someone recieves a merit scholarship from an individual college do they simply offer you less finaid. i.e. based on need you would get 12,000 from them but if you have a merit award of 8,000 you would only recieve 4,000. Someone without the merit would recieve 12,000. I'm assuming that is how it works but hoping it is not. Does anyone know how this works?</p>
<p>Your merit scholarship would be part of your financial aid package for that school which still may have your parent contribution, student contribution, loan other scholarships</p>
<p>Arizonamom, it really depends on the college. First of all does the college tend to give 100% of demonstrated need? If that is the case, a merit award is usually used to reduce the loans and work study part of the package first. In schools that do not give 100% of need, it can really vary as to what they do. Especially if the college is doing an all in one deal where the package is presented after all of the offsets are done. You really can't see what you would have gotten, had you not gotten the merit award. There is a huge variance in what the schools can do, and it can depend on how much that want you as well. If you are "hot", you can get right up to need, and sometimes even more as there are sweetners for "summer study", "gracious living", you name it that can go above and beyond need. Those amounts over tuition are taxable income, by the way.</p>
<p>Thanks jamimom, She has a number of merit awards but only 1 early action fin aid package so I was trying to predict what would happen with the rest of finaid. Guess we will wait and see and hope for the best</p>