<p>My daughter just received a letter for Presidential Scholarship. I found this from the 2006 thread:</p>
<p>"For the first time ever, Trinity will begin offering merit scholarships to incoming first-year students. Approximately 100 students will be offered scholarships and Trinity is expecting to enroll about 20 of them. A Presidential Scholar will be offered full tuition for four years of study and a Summit Scholar will be offered half tuition for four years of study."</p>
<p>"Right now, the Presidential Scholarships are being targeted at the top five percent of students that are offered admission. This amounts to approximately two percent of the entire applicant pool. The students offered scholarships will be selected through a holistic approach that mirrors the standard admissions policy. Some things that will be considered are test scores, grades, difficulty of classes, and personal qualities such as leadership, ability to overcome disadvantage, and concern for others. Presidential Scholarships will be offered without regard to family resources, as the intention is to attract the best possible students."</p>
<p>Apparently last years was the first year that the scholarship was offered. I would like to get some feedback from the class of 2010's Presidential Scholars. Are you getting special attention from the school? Do you like the program? Did you make the decision to go to Trinity because of the money or because of the special mentoring your would receive from the school? Are you happy with your decision? We are trying to decide between Trinity and Tufts. We are not eligible for financial aid, so we would not get any money from Tufts.</p>
<p>My name is Jack Love and I am a freshman and a presidential scholar. As presidential scholars we have gotten a little special attention. We had an ice cream social with the president and some of the faculty as well as went on a trip to a museum to meet the creator of the children's "I SPY" books. We have also been invited to special forums about the upcoming election as well as had a meeting with the highest ranking studentsw in the senior class and had an open forum about issues on campus. I think it has been great in trying to get us involved in some enriching activities, but day to day it really isn't a big part of my colleeg experience. There wasn't any specific guidence for the scholars, but it did introduce us to some faculty in different fields, which was nice. I personally was deciding between Trinity and Hamilton, and the money did make my decision easier, but I loved Trinity even without the scholarship. Tuft's is a very good school too, and its always tough to judge how large a part money should play in the decision making process, but Trinity is great. Go bantams!!</p>
<p>I love it here at Trinity. I think jack pretty much summed up the extra perks presidential scholars get. The nice thing about Trinity is the small school environment. I have gotten to know three other presidential scholars very well and together we started a new discussion group on campus. This was very easy and faculty/deans were very helpful in this process. I personally had to decide between here and Stanford. I live in california and love it there so I had a real tough decision. Like your daught I was not eligible for financial aid so the full tuition scholarship was nice at Trinity as apposed to the 47,000 bill at stanford. I feel like I made the right decision going to Trinity. I made my decision to come to Trinity based on three things. The small school environment, the money/personalized attention, and the fact that I was accepted into the Interdisplinary Science Program here and would be able to do undergraduate research as a freshman. Med school has always been my plan after college and it will be nice getting the first four years of my education free. Also, I feel like the small school environment of Trinity will help give me a more personalized college experience as apposed to a larger institution.<br>
But in the end it all boils down to what your daughter is looking for in a school. If she really loves Tufts and thinks it fits her best I say go with it. But if not then go with Trinity because it is a great school and she will have an awesome college experience here.</p>
<p>We are coming up for the VIP day. Maybe she'll get a chance to speak with you(we have asked the College to arrange meetings with some current scholars). She has also applied for ISP. She wants to major in economics, math or engineering, and go to a business school after 2 years of work. She has been in a small private school (125 graduating seniors) all her life. She thinks she may want to go to larger school. She is a dancer, so both Tufts and Trinity would meet that criteria. How do you like your classes? Are you challenged? How do you like the ISP? How is the social life? Do you stay on campus or do you go to Boston/NYC? Thank-you for your feedback.</p>
<p>Hey I'm Alden Gordon, I'm also a presidential scholar in ISP. About how much travel everyone does, I would say the majority of students spend most of their time on campus. Recently a group of my friends and I spent a day in New York, and earlier this year some of us were just outside of Boston for a weekend. Unfortunately the trip to New York was pretty expensive, so it's not something you would do too often. Other than that, Hartford doesn't have as much for college students to do as other cities, so most people spend their time inside the walls. </p>
<p>In case you're interested, Jack and I are going to be on campus doing research during VIP days, assuming it's still in mid-June. If you want us to show you around or answer any more questions I'm sure one of us would be happy to. </p>
<p>Hi, I'm was also offered the presidential scholarship and am deciding between here and NYU (which isn't offering me any money). I'm also hoping to get into the ISP program, which is what I want to ask about. Is it really as good as it sounds in the brochure and online?
I don't know, I was really excited to go live in New York, but then the presidential scholarship letter came in, and now I'm not so sure. I'm not sure living in the city is worth sacrificing the individual attention that I'd get at a smaller college. So Alden and Jack, what are the ups and downs of Trinity, especially of studying science at Trinity?</p>
<p>My name is Whitney and, like Jack, Alden, and Jake, I received a presidential scholarship and am a member of this year's ISP at Trinity. I definitely agree concerning the small liberal arts environment and personalized attention. Additionally, my college decision hinged even more on whether or not I received merit money (My family's income wasn't enough to qualify us for financial aid, but my parents don't make enough to pay the full $40,000 shot). While I applied to and was accepted by schools like Vassar, Wesleyan, and UPenn, my final decision came down to Rensselaer and Trinity, as they gave me the best merit packages. At that point the ISP invitation helped me make my decision and it was completely worth it. Not only does it get you involved in research right away (and even allows you to continue working throughout the summer) but the pretty intense workload provides you with great preparation for the rest of your classes. I know I would not have been given the opportunities I presently have if I had gone to the larger Rensselaer, even though it is more scientifically oriented.</p>
<p>To briefly answer some of the questions that were asked...
Thus far, I have had very good professors, and I have few complaints about their ability to teach or accessibility outside of the classroom.
In terms of challenging, I definitely have to study more than I ever did in high school. Although I have always been an overachiever and I took all the AP classes as a junior and senior, the classes during the fall semester took some getting used to.
I definitely don't get off of campus as much as I would like right now, but I am told that improves once you are able to have a car as a sophomore.<br>
Socially, I have a great group of friends, although very few are fellow ISP members or presidential scholars. </p>
<p>I can't make it to the VIP days, which is really annoying. Are any of you guys free to talk on Thursday the 19th by any chance? I never actually took a formal tour of campus, so I might take the 1:30 tour, but if I could meet and talk with some of you that would be really helpful, if you're free.</p>
<p>My name is Greg and I am also a Presidential scholar. It was a really tough decision for me to choose where to go to college. In the end, it was between Brown (which offered no aid) and Trinity. Saving more than $30,000 a year is definately worth it, especially if you're planning on going to grad, med, law school afterwards (those bills do pile up eventually). </p>
<p>The personal attention I've received at Trinity is amazing and I don't believe I'd get the same attention at a larger school. Through one of the professors on the board that selects the Presidential Scholars, I've received invitations to the Human Rights lecture series, in which I attend lectures and have dinner with the speaker afterwards. Just the chance to speak with these distinguished scholars in their academic fields was in itself worth the decision to attend Trinity. Additionally, two of the professors that select the scholars hold weekly lunch sessions in the faculty dining hall, which is great because students can talk to professors outside of the classroom. </p>
<p>For any future political science majors, the political science department here at Trinity has been very helpful in guiding my class selections. I'm planning on being an American Government major and the professors are very accessible and willing to help in any way possible.</p>
<p>I will be in the Admissions office on Monday, April 16th after 1 PM to answer any questions that future Presidential Scholars may have. I hope to see some of you there! My email is <a href="mailto:GregLorenz.Amarra@trincoll.edu">GregLorenz.Amarra@trincoll.edu</a> if anybody has any questions.</p>
<p>Thank-you all for posting. You have been very nice to make your emails available for prospective students. We are very much looking forward to our visit. My daughter has asked for a scholar as her host. My daughter is serious about her study, but she is also one for partying too, unfortunately the sleep over is Mon night...</p>
<p>We had a great VIP day visit, even though the weather was not very cooperative. She enjoyed her lunch with the director of ISP and was very impressed with the economics department. She is trying to figure out if she could manage Engineering and a BS degree in economics. </p>
<p>Last night she went to a creative writing class for 2.5 hours with her host. I thought it would have been the end of Trinity because writing is not her forte, and for 2.5 hours... She later told us that she really enjoyed the class - the professor and size of the class. </p>
<p>She told me that she may have met some of you and now you know who I am. My daughter said there wasn't much of social scene on Mon night, because everyone was studying. I didn't see anything wrong with it.</p>
<p>Thank-you again for your time today. Maybe we'll see you this fall.</p>
<p>My daughter has just received an offer of a Presidential Scholarship to Trinity, which provides a full four-year tuition grant. Obviously this is a wonderful opportunity for her. She has also been accepted at Smith and Mount Holyoke but with no financial aid. I found this thread going back two years, and I would love to get feedback from current Presidential scholars with another year's experience in the Program. Has it lived up to its promise? My D was also asked to apply to the Cities Program and the European Civilization guided studies program, and I'd be curious about student expereience with these programs as well. Thanks for any guidance you can provide.</p>
<p>Hi I’m a current sophomore at Trinity. As far as I know, the Presidential scholarships are awarded to a handful of top incoming first year students. The scholarship recipients are chosen by the Admissions committee and no applications are needed. Good luck to you, maybe23!</p>
<p>^^Janele is right. The Presidential Scholarship is now about six students per year. No application is needed as it is compeletely at the discretion of admissions based upon college needs. It is only for the most exceptional students in the applicant pool.</p>
<p>Was part of the first class of presidential scholars (2010). Had an amazing experience at Trinity and have no doubt that I made the right choice attending Trinity over the other schools I got into. The small school environment was a huge perk. I really got to know my professors. Had the opportunity to study abroad, pursue athletics, volunteer…wasn’t any interest I felt I didn’t have an opportunity to explore. Made some great friends who challenged me…coming out of Trinity was a very competitive candidate for grad school - set me up to receive other scholarships/fellowships for my post grad studies. currently a second year in med school at uc davis. If you have any questions feel free to email me at <a href=“mailto:jdgire@ucdavis.edu…absolu”>jdgire@ucdavis.edu…absolu</a>tely love the school and never mind talking about my Trinity experience.</p>