<p>My D is a HS junior and interested in GW. I know the school gave merit scholarships in the past, but I can't seem to find any info on what the current amounts are, how many are awarded,etc. I am finding articles that say GW has reduced the number and amount of merit scholarships in favor of giving more need based aid. As one of those families in the middle who can't afford $50,000 a year but are squeezed out of need based aid, that is bad news. It may have to come off her list.</p>
<p>I can’t say for sure how much GW is slashing their merit aid, but I’d really, really suggest that your daughter apply next year and see what she gets. You’d might be surprised that even though you consider yourselves to be in the “middle,” GW could still give you significant need-based aid (even most “upper-middle class” families look poorer in comparison to the millionaires who send their kids to GW ). Additionally, merit and need based awards are made at the time of admission or shortly thereafter, so you will have plenty of time to see what you get in comparison to other places.</p>
<p>My parents got a letter back in November that talked about FA. I pulled it out of our file and besides talking about GW’s fixed tuition plan they talk about the most recent average FA for admitted students was $26,0534. Of those students awarded need based assistance, over 94% received grant aid. GW offers a guaranteed grant too for up to 10 consecutive semesters. Did anyone else get this letter? Does anyone know if the FA office changed there assistance since this letter came out?</p>
<p>GW still has “Guaranteed Grants” for students who qualify (a grant given in your need package your first year that is guaranteed to not be reduced in subsequent years). The university has NOT cut back on need-based aid; they’ve actually increased it because of the financial crisis. You’ll receive notice of your need-based aid package shortly after being offered admission.</p>
<p>I noticed that not too many of the ED’ers mentioned merit this year as well. I did see a couple somewhere though…I think in $10K range and one person that got $15K for the school of Engineering. </p>
<p>Maybe a good thread to start Mid April when most students will have received their FA awards. We are uppper middle class and I am wondering what will happen too. I did see someone post on the Tufts board that they got nothing but loans (at 8% that won’t help most people in today’s economy).</p>
<p>got into GWU last year, but deferred and eventually withdrew admission. You could check your admissions decision online, but it did not indicate any scholarships. Your school’s counseling dept was notified of who was accepted and who got merit. I remember this b/c my counselor kept telling me how good it was that i got merit awards but i thought she was crazy as i had been told about none. Then the mailed package comes with the merit aid information.</p>
<p>I got 15,000 a year provided i maintained a certain gpa of course. I was also offered placement in the Dean’s scholars program in globalization even though i didn’t apply for it. as such, my guess is they don’t offer a whole lot more than 15k in merit based aid. no idea what the deal is with grants and need-based assistance.</p>
<p>GW financial aid has a form that they can mail to you that outlines how GW calculates need. One big issue is that GW does not have a stated cap on home equity, which could be a problem for a lot of middle income families in some parts of the country. It looked like we probably wouldn’t be eligible for much if they really consider all our home equity available and decide that we can use 5% a year of it towards school, but when I asked GW’s financial aid officer about that I was told that it would still be good to apply. It appears to be an “it depends” kind of school, so we’re not too optimistic at this point. (Kudos for GW in both having the form and in having FA officers that very promptly respond to email questions.)</p>
<p>i got $15,000 as an incoming freshman in the college class of 2012. I had pretty good grades and test scores, but it wasn’t like I got into everywhere I applied. My family didn’t qualify for financial aid, so perhaps you could get merit and financial aid…</p>
). Additionally, merit and need based awards are made at the time of admission or shortly thereafter, so you will have plenty of time to see what you get in comparison to other places.</p>