Does anyone know if merit awards are supposed to show up on my total package? I have not heard news from them since I was rejected from honors college. Im getting nervous and impatient as I was accepted on November 2nd and still have not heard back about Merit.
@hailtopitt1787 If I’ve received only a $5,500 loan for the award of my financial aid package, do the decisions for scholarships to be released until March not apply to me? Is this the final offer ruling me out of the merit aid I applied for previously?
Daughters package arrived in email today:
$5500 student loan
$10,000 grant (can’t remember name)
$2,000 Merit from engineering
@tpike12 Wow that’s a nice package (loan excluded). So for engineering you will pay about $7,000 per year after the need based grant and the merit package.
She still is awaiting other decisions right?
@bt1660 not necessarily, the Scholarship Committee is still reviewing candidates and it is not uncommon for students to receive an updated award letter reflecting both a scholarship award and financial aid package. Good luck!
-Pitt Admissions Staffer
@carachel2 - all in cost for in state at Pitt is approximately $34,000,so we are looking at a total cost for our family of $22,000 after subtracting out the grants/merit.
@tpike12 General fees are about $1,000 (I don’t know about extra fees for engineering) and housing/meal plan about $11,000. I think @carachel2 meant after $12,000 in merit and grant there would be $7,000 left of instate tuition. So total direct costs would be around $19,000.
PA students qualify for state grant if income/EFC is low enough. I think you need a FAFSA EFC of under $13,000 for state grant.
@hailtopitt1787 When do they stop sending those letters? 
@hailtopitt1787
If I recieved financial aid, but no decision on merit or my honors college decision, is it possible for my package to change. When will the honors college decisions be finalized? Since I haven’t heard back yet but applied monthes before others who have been admitted should I assume they are on the fence or I am not getting admitted?? Thanks!
Hello!
@Nasagirl, they will stop sending scholarship awards on March 1. The Scholarship Committee meets on a weekly basis so awards will be ongoing until then, good luck!
@2023baby, yes it is possible for your package to be updated if you are selected to receive a merit award. The last of the Honors decisions will be made by March 1. Did you apply before the Priority Consideration Deadline (November 1) or the Regular Consideration Deadline (January 15)? If you applied by November 1, you should know your decision already. If this is the case, please contact our office to make sure your decision letter didn’t get lost: https://oafa.pitt.edu/esm_directory.php
-Pitt Admissions Staffer
Note to future OOS applicants: Pitt may be a good value if you have high scores (SAT 1500+) and wgpa (> 4.5). If you fall in the next tier of applicants and/or have financial need, there are other colleges that are better values.
D’s stats: 1430 SAT, 4.2 wgpa, 9 APs, passed EMT test, named outstanding EMT cadet out of a class of 30, hospital internship, strong ECs, leadership. Pitt direct COA for nursing OOS is $52k. Even with a grant of 7500 (no merit) and Federal loans of 5500, our direct out-of-pocket cost is roughly 39K. In comparison, our direct OOP cost is 25 for UDel, 27 for Binghamton, 26 for UVM, 20 for UNH, 23 for Scranton, 33 for Quinnipiac and 33 for Fairfield. Still waiting on TCNJ (in-state) and UConn. Plus, D offered honors college at the majority.
Run the net price calculators and focus on the colleges that provide the best value for the applicant’s stats and budget. For Pitt, the sweet spot is at the very top of the applicant pool.
@mommdc - you’re right, I guess I like to look at the total cost our family will need to come up with.
When I ran the NPC for Pitt,this is what it looked like:
GRANT = $10,000
PARENT CONTRIBUTION = $19,982
STUDENT LOAN = $5,500
TOTAL COST = $35,482
They came through with the grant plus the $2,000 merit, so the first year we’ll be on the hook for $23,482.
I also made some future estimates using 2.5% growth in the Total Cost of Attendance, so if that is accurate, four years at Pitt will be $147,340. Subtracting the $12,000 per year we are getting in grants/merit ($48,000 over four years) and I am estimating the four year cost for the family will be $99,340.
@hailtopitt1787 ,My daughter received her merit award, honors college acceptance and her financial aid package with the panther pride award. Is everything she received separate from any Chancellors nominations? Does it mean getting the above excludes her from getting a Chancellors nomination? Any advice and information will be much appreciated. Thank you.
Hi @asr712
Your daughter is not excluded from consideration for the Chancellor’s Scholarship. Interview notifications will be sent in early-February and interviews will take place throughout the month of March. Only those candidates invited to the on-campus interviews will be notified.
Good luck to her and congratulations on all of her accomplishments so far!
-Pitt Admissions Staffer
@hailtopitt1787, thank you so much for the information. Appreciate your prompt reply. Hoping for the best.
So thrilled that S19 got an email yesterday notifying him he is a finalist for the Chancellor’s Scholarship. Love Pitt! Although odds of getting seem tough: Up to 80 finalists invited to interview, but only about 10 will receive it. Nonetheless, we are over the moon!
@CollegeOdyssey2001 , congratulations! You should be happy and proud. Please post stats of your son and his ec’s, if you may. Thank you!
@hailtopitt1787 do all the email invitations for the Chancellor’s Scholarship get sent out at the same time or might there still be some more emails this week?
Hi @IsItDoneYet,
I am under the assumption that there won’t be any more invitations coming out this week.
-Pitt Admissions Staffer
@hailtopitt1787 Do you know if the GAP interview notifications will be coming out today? Thanks!