<p>are there any top colleges that give merit scholarships to deserving students not based on what FAFSA says you can afford?</p>
<p>[Lafayette</a> Academic Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.lafayette.edu/admissions/marquis/]Lafayette”>Lafayette College)</p>
<p>Marquis Scholars receive an annual minimum award of $20,000 ($80,000 over four years). Financial aid applicants who are designated as Marquis Scholars, and whose financial need exceeds $20,000 will receive a scholarship up to demonstrated need minus a campus job of $2,000 and a loan depending on family income (no loan for incomes under $50,000; a $3,500 loan per year for incomes above $50,000).</p>
<p>Merit scholarships are, by definition, not based on FAFSA affordability. If your child is named a National Merit Finalist there is a host of schools that give good scholarships: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/national-merit-scholarships/649276-nmf-scholarships-updated-compilation.html?highlight=keilexandra[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/national-merit-scholarships/649276-nmf-scholarships-updated-compilation.html?highlight=keilexandra</a> If not, there is a set of schools that offer guaranteed scholarships based on scores and grades: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html</a> Take a trip over to the financial aid forum for more discussion: [Financial</a> Aid & Scholarships - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/]Financial”>Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums)</p>
<p>A number of the midwestern LACs give merit aid. Grinnell gives excellent merit aid, thanks to their huge endowment. Consider checking out Macalester, Beloit, Rhodes, and Hendrix as well. Look at schools where your kid’s stats are all in the top 25%-grades, test scores, class rank, etc…</p>
<p>Also check out this thread, which compares statistics for non-need merit aid based on information from the Common Data Sets for many colleges. This thread also contains information on how to figure out this information for colleges not already on the list. If you do so, it would be a contribution to the CC community to add your college as well.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/696637-merit-aid-percentage-common-data-set-4.html?highlight=merit[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/696637-merit-aid-percentage-common-data-set-4.html?highlight=merit</a></p>
<p>*are there any top colleges that give merit scholarships to deserving students not based on what FAFSA says you can afford? *</p>
<p>Many/most of the top/elite schools do not give merit scholarships. They only give financial aid.</p>
<p>there are few merit scholarships from top schools. There are schools like Vandy and WashU that give some merit scholarships, but they tend to give them to students that they want for one reason or another…URM status, from an unusual state, etc. Some insist that these schools won’t give their good scholarships to those who apply ED. </p>
<p>USC has some merit scholarships that they also give out to students that they want. They also give half tuition scholarships to NMF students (but that will still leave about $35k per year to pay for room, board, half tuition, etc)</p>
<p>So, apply to a few of these schools and see what happens. </p>
<p>**
However, if your student needs to have a big scholarship in order to afford college**, then he/she needs to apply to some schools that will give assured merit scholarships for stats. These are mid-tier schools that are good schools. Those can be the financial safety schools since you’ll know ahead of time how much you’ll get and how much will be your responsibility.</p>
<p>Duke gives a few.</p>