<p>Thank you for your guys replying my questions.
From last years post I saw many students got all sorts of merit scholarships, so I just hope some merit scholarships should be given to in-state students.</p>
<p>@aairplanes. Do you mind sharing how much is “sizable?” I’m trying to figure out how generous Michigan will be this year. Thanks.</p>
<p>Wildwood, I don’t think I’d characterize the handful of students who received substantial (eg. 10k, not 1.5k) merit aid last year as “all sorts of.”</p>
<p>However, don’t overlook the fact that for IN-STATE students, Michigan mostly meets need. So if a student’s EFC is low-ish, he or she will pretty much end up with costs covered in part by GRANT (need-based), plus standard fed student loans, plus your parental contribution etc.</p>
<p>If you have a high EFC in-state, then no, your family may not receive “discounting” aid per se. At UMich, the body of students is increasingly and almost uniformly performing at an exceptionally high level in terms of statistics. So it will take more than top stats to produce merit.</p>
<p>Merit is used to attract different types of people with different profiles to meet the objectives of admission in terms of creating a well-rounded class. It is not given for stats alone the way merit is given at some schools for “automatic scholarship.”</p>
<p>And NOT receiving merit does not necessarily mean a student won’t receive a generous package – it is possible to receive a generous need-based package IF the family earning are low enough to warrant high need aid ;)</p>
<p>BUT, since UMich is taking longer to process its applicants these days, it’s also entirely possible that it will take longer to distribute what merit aid is available.</p>
<p>Thank you for the explanation.</p>
<p>Got an estimated FA package. Very disappointing. My D is OOS with exceptional stats. I wasn’t expecting a full ride. But what we got was basically a slap in the face compared to other schools. Too bad. We really enjoyed our campus day and Mich was no doubt a top 2 or 3 choice for D. We’ll see if we can make it happen, if this is what she chooses - but man, is it worth it?</p>
<p>@giterdone
Same here, there is one time scholarship $1500 only, the rest are work study and loans.</p>
<p>Yea. And you’re IS right? so a little more palatable. We got some great offers from some safety schools which probably raised my expectations a little too high. I love Mich and all it offers, but from where we stand? being OOS? I’m having a tough time getting over the sticker shock.</p>
<p>Yes, in-state. But it still shocks.</p>
<p>On my aid package, I just have “Michigan Grant” for around $17,000. I’m OOS. Is that pretty generous? Seems like it, but I also didn’t get much in federal loans, which would’ve been kinda nice (Better than a loan from the bank anyway.)</p>
<p>Also, is there any more detail to my award than just “Michigan Grant”?</p>
<p>I guess your family income is high (for not getting much loan), but the grant is nicer than loans.</p>
<p>@RodneyMcKay</p>
<p>The Michigan need-based grant amount is 7000. Most of my aid comes from merit scholarships though.</p>
<p>@wildwood888</p>
<p>Nah man, that’s the thing. Combined, my parent’s income is just under 70k. I’m pretty surprised I didn’t get many loans tbh. And at this point, with all thing considered, I’m still about 18k/year. Ouch.</p>
<p>Are there still scholarships being handed out…? There were no scholarships when I checked my estimated fin. Package on my wolverine access</p>
<p>aairplanes</p>
<p>If you don’t mind could you share your stats and what high school you are attending</p>
<p>Thx</p>
<p>
The Regent scholarship IS a merit based scholarship.</p>
<p>I know regent scholarship is merit based, but that came almost same time with the admission decision. I think it just bases on student’s stats, not actually probing further merits of the students.</p>
<p>While the UM Regents Scholarship is technically classified as a merit award, it is my understanding that the only thing a student needs to to do “merit” the award is be a graduate of a Michigan high school. It is a one-year award only, and we will miss it next year :(</p>
<p>Jawbreaker, just for the record, a Michigan Grant is FREE MONEY – it is only given to need-based students. It’s the equivalent of getting a 17,000 a year gift or scholarship.
Indeed, even if you are OOS, it is still a generous award.</p>
<p>Umich does not package parent plus loans unless you ask. So the only loan money you’d be eligible for is FEDERAL loans – there are no other loans. There is a $6500/year ($7500 jr. and sr. yr) cap on those.</p>
<p>Is attending Michigan viable for families out of state with $70k a year income? Probably not, unless your folks have saved a good sum for your college education. But you cannot expect a PUBLIC school in another state with a high stat population to give you much more than it has. It is NOT a meets-need school for OOS students. AND YET it has given you HALF the cost of OOS tuition free. </p>
<p>Does that give you some perspective? Your cost of attendance with that package would be only a little more than Wildwood’s in-state cost of attendance. But Wildwood is paying the taxes that ostensibly (but not truly) support the school ;)</p>
<p>BTW, Wildwood, my son received an IS scholarship starting in '09 and he actually was notified at the same time as acceptance. But that was before admissions swelled so much and caused such backlogs of deferees, etc. – so it’s possible more scholarships are still coming, but my direct experience is that in terms of merit, that pretty much comes with the offer.</p>
<p>and re:
</p>
<p>That is such a hard question to answer, and so very relative to one’s income, and at the same time, so vulnerable to future unknowns 
My son absolutely loves UMich and cannot picture himself anywhere else. His other choices for his program (a talent-based portfolio admit) were NYU, Indianna, USC – in other words, expensive private schools (except Indiana, which back then was about $24k tuition OOS, so considerably less than the others.)</p>
<p>If we had been OOS for UMich, despite all the wonderful things about UMich, I don’t think I could have agreed to the pricetag, even knowing what I know and saying without reservation it is both excellent and an excellent fit. OOS fees are just too high for average earners.</p>
<p>My son has had a few friends who’ve had to leave after a year or so due to changes in family circumstances and subsequent affordability. I think it’s fair to say that is an issue best avoided if possible. So unless you have the cash in the bank and it would not need to be redeployed elsewhere in case of emergency, you’d be reasonable to encourage your d to select a more financially viable option.</p>
<p>@kmcmom13, </p>
<p>Actually Jawbreaker will pay ($18,000 according to him/her) much less than my son will if he choose to go to UMich according to my son’s the financial estimate (net cost is about $2,3000 ). By any mean, my son is not a mediocre applicant.</p>
<p>Yes hopefully, more merit scholarships come soon.</p>