<p>Does UMD give out a lot of merit based sholarships? How much are they usually worth?</p>
<p>If you go the financial aid site of UMD, you can get the details of all the merit scholarships that are offered. They range from small amounts to full-rides (Banneker/Key).</p>
<p>The reality for us was that our son received more money in scholarships at other colleges/universities than he did at MD. YET, he really felt MD was where he wanted to be. So he is now finishing up his freshman year at MD and the difference of money offered by MD as compared to money offered elsewhere will be more than made up with his internship he received this summer. I am not sure he would have had the internship possibility at such an early stage of his college life at a different school. I guess what I’m saying is that when comparing the financial packages between schools, it is also helpful to compare internship,… possibilities.</p>
<p>I was kind of wondering about UMD and their merit programs. We hit send last night on the app. I’m confident for an acceptance son has the stats, top 2.5% ranking, 4.0 GPA very strong courses (AP GT etc.) 2170 on the SAT, strong EC. My question is what experience do others with similar stats have in receiving merit $$. FA is out of the question with salaries but you just feel like a hard working kid deserves recognition. Just wondering what others have gotten. And no offense meant to anyone, we do not fall into any special groups.</p>
<p>I’ve been following the U Md boards for months, and what I’d like to see is some merit winners post their stats/profiles, particularly for the Banneker/Key winners…I’d like to know what the spectrum looks like. Anyone?</p>
<p>Phersdad</p>
<p>My kid (IS) had similar qualifications as your child, [3.9 UW GPA, 12 APs (4s/5s), and 2190 SAT] and he received a Presidential Scholarship [$5000/yr] to Maryland COE. He chose not to attend UMD receiving no aid to where he is attending now. There went my retirement home on the Chesapeake</p>
<p>I am a full B/K. My stats (as they appeared at the time of application) are posted here:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/894548-official-harvard-university-rd-decisions-class-2014-a.html?highlight=2014+decisions[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/894548-official-harvard-university-rd-decisions-class-2014-a.html?highlight=2014+decisions</a></p>
<p>post #14. </p>
<p>In general, if your kid is competitive for admittance to a top 20 college(which you can determine by browsing decision threads), then you are in the running for top merit aid at Maryland. Being nominated and the interview process for b/k was a wonderful experience. I wish you all good luck.</p>
<p>Thanks
Peter maybe your child will get a big time job and pay you back
plumazul, so how do you like it? any regrets?</p>
<p>@phersdad</p>
<p>Quite frankly, I love it here. I can’t think of a single regret, which I probably would not have been able to say if I had chosen to attend one of the top schools to which I was accepted (WashU, Duke, etc.) A large research university has opportunities that cannot be matched by a smaller one. The classes and extracurricular opportunities are so widely varied that it’s nearly impossible to think of a subject that is not offered in some way. UMCP accepted more AP credits than any other university to which I applied, which is allowing me to take advantage of all the opportunities without being worried about CORE
(GenEd) requirements. Additionally, the difficulty of your course load can be whatever you want it to be, unlike at a smaller institution that may have more of a one-size-fits-all approach.</p>
<p>…I’ve been on a lot of student panels at open houses, so I’ve gotten pretty good at praising UMCP. Basically, it’s a wonderful environment. If you do receive a large scholarship, you can feel confident that you will get the education you want, and have plenty of money left over for graduate/professional school!
Best of luck.</p>
<p>Phersdad</p>
<p>No regrets whatsoever. I grew up in and when to college/graduate school during much different times than what’s happening today. Both my wife and I were able to get our degrees and not go into debt – clearly not the case these days. It was a tough decision for my boy. He worked very hard during HS taking full load of AP courses. UMCP is a top-rated university in the area that my boy is majoring (Engineering) but the decision was his and he is now going to a Midwest school</p>
<p>Thanks guys, I’m sure he’s made the right decision for the right reasons, His not mine" top rated for my major, (Math) lots of EC like clubs and intermural sports, strong school pride for team sports, nice campus, I can live away but not too far) A lot of people dont give UMD enough credit for being a quality school but they fail to research it and see that it is rated in the top 20 in the nation in most areas and outrank most of the big names in certain areas.<br>
Plumazul, you have impressive stats no wonder you are B/K. I appreciate you sharing them. I would like to hear from others that got merit aid and waht their stats are. A lot of people are telling us that MD is tight with the merit $$</p>
<p>Just rying to keep this thread alive! Any other sucess stories with merit scholarships? Like to post your stats please</p>
<p>S graduated HS in 2008 and like plumazul is a B/K scholar that was accepted to duke, WashU, UNC etc. etc. picked UMCP and has had an incredible experience. He is a graduating senior now majoring in Math and econ. D graduated 2010 also a awarded B/K and also was accepted to other top schools. She chose to take a gap year and teach English in Nepal. One gap year turned into two and she now finds herself going through the entire process all over again. We’re wondering how things will turn out this year.</p>
<p>Wow 2 B/K students thats something to be proud of! Can you share their stats from HS? Thanks</p>
<p>Here are stats on a current B/K full scholarship recipient:</p>
<p>Objective:</p>
<ul>
<li>SAT I (breakdown):800/800/750 (one time only)</li>
<li>ACT:NA</li>
<li>SAT II: math 2 (790) physics (760) lit (700)</li>
<li>Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.86, but this GPA mostly from local university classes taken during High School</li>
<li>Weighted GPA:none</li>
<li>Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):homeschooled</li>
<li>AP (place score in parentheses):chem(5) bio(5) physC(4) US His(4-took in 8th grade) calc ab(5) calc bc(5) us govt(5) comp gov(5) EngLang(5) EngLit (5)</li>
<li>IB (place score in parentheses):</li>
<li>Senior Year Course Load:Organic chemistry level 350/351 (A) at local university, AP statistics, AP mandarin, Global History, Ethics</li>
<li>Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Senior Senator to Boys’ Nation, US Constitutional Oratorical Contest National Participant (Won State Level), National Merit Scholar, National Merit Finalist, US Presidential Scholar, Study of Exceptional Talent (SET) member</li>
</ul>