Robertson scholarship, University of North Carolina @ Chapel Hill and Duke

Hello, I was curious about what it takes to win this kind of scholarship. Is it all about grades and tests? How much do these really matter? What is the selection process like? Do I have a chance if I haven’t done something wildly incredible? I am really looking for any helpful information at all!
Thanks!

It’s a VERY competitive scholarship. VERY.

You would need tippy top stats, and everything else would need to,be exemplarary as well.

Right now…you have a 1290 SAT, 30 ACT and 4.0 unweighted GPA. Your GPA is fine. In my opinion, your SAT or ACT score needs to significantly improve to be competitive for this scholarship. Add to,that…you are out of state…so UNC acceptance is iffy…as it acceptance to Duke with a 30 ACT.

I’m not sure…but you might need to be nominated by your HS…someone more familiar will know for sure.

I don’t think you need to be nominated… the application opens in August and to the best of my knowledge anybody can apply. The colleges can also nominate students as they read through the general applications in the fall.

Getting into UNC as an OOS student is very difficult - getting this award in addition to an acceptance… is incredibly competitive. You need top grades, scores, accomplishments, leadership, curiosity, etc.

If you plan to apply to these schools you need to retake the ACT/SAT.

I read your activities… You are not giving yourself enough credit.

Thank you, that is very much appreciated! I have heard/read of many other people my age who have accomplished a lot, and sometimes I lose perspective. @twogirls

I will not lie… The scholarship is very competitive… but you already know that.

UNC meets full financial need for all students.

As far as getting in as an OOS student… Retake your tests, focus on your essays and get exceptional letters of recommendation from teachers who know you well. Look at the YouTube videos about UNC essays. I think your activities are very good!

I received the Robertson and I would say it’s personality through the essays. Interviews are huge if you make it that far. My scores were slightly below yours (I’m OOS) but my extracurriculars were very unique. The staff says the criteria is that you’ve can gain acceptance to UNC then it’s the potential that they see from your application. Spend time on both your UNC and Robertson application essays. Submit them then focus on other applications. I’d almost forgot I applied until I received the email I had been chosen as a semi-finalist. Look at other school’s merit aid program at W&L, UVA Jefferson etc. If you have specific questions, I can try my best to answer.

Thank you for responding so thoughtfully! I am considering applying, but I do need to keep in mind that I will be pretty busy with classes and other applications. I do have a couple more specific questions! Are test scores significant factors in the process? Would you consider the application process a huge time consuming process? Is UNC that hard to get in to OOS? Do you think I should give it a shot, I’m applying to the Jefferson even though my odds are very slim for both? Sorry for bombarding you with questions, feel free to answer any or none of them! I may pm you at some point too if I end up doing this (if that’s okay) @Indigoraccoon4 Thank You!!

I again would say no for Robertson. My roommate and I both had 29 ACT and came from out of state and received Robertson. THe process was not that time consuming since I had written so many essays at that point I was able to crank out essays pretty efficiently. Last years application require 3 full-length essays. It did require two recs to be submitted directly to the application. The college process, in general, is time-consuming, particularly, if you are looking for Merit aid so be prepared for that. Do as much essay writing as you can before school starts. UNC really is that hard to get into out of state the acceptance rate is around 15% OOS. Scores matter but not as much as essays, gpa/rank, activites etc. I know people at my school with higher scores who did not get in. I suggest going for it because if someone had “chanced” me they might have said dont bother given my stats but I went for it and it worked out. This is is all based on my experience but I hope it is helpful.

Do you have any advice for the essays?