My D has been awarded a base merit package at a LAC. She has also been invited to a scholars event where she will compete for a full ride. She wondered how you compete and we figured it was something like “Hunger Games” LOL
Seriously -they know her stats already -is this just a prolonged interview ? A way to gage interest? Thanks!
Mine went to one and it was two-pronged. 1) was a prolonged interview and 2) was a sales pitch to get those top students to matriculate. Lots of it was geared to the parents too.
I suspect everyone who was invited was destined to receive a minimal award already.
Mine has been invited to a similar event. In the letter he received it states that there will be an essay to write and a dialogue with 2 members of the college. I’m sure every school is different so I’d google the scholarship name and the school and see what you come up with. Or she could e-mail her adcom and ask.
To some degree it is a way to gauge interest and to sell the school. But it’s also a way to get a personal look at the top stats kids and figure out which ones have the total package as opposed to looking great on paper but falling flat in person.
The one D attended had students attend an Honors lecture, and then write a paper based on prompts related to the lecture. This provides an unedited writing sample and shows how the student can process information in a short timeframe - as opposed to essays students have had months to polish and have reviewed.
There also was a personal interview, to see in person which students showed the enthusiasm and personality traits indicating they have potential to be major contributors.
Every student invited had already received some level of scholarship dollars, but at this particular school the largest scholarships are awarded as a result of the competition weekend.
It’s not that different from the job process - I’m not going to offer lots of money to a candidate who has a great resume and strong job recommendations until I have a chance to meet with them in person and do additional evaluation.
The school does have Skype and other fallback plans for kids who absolutely can’t get there, but it likely puts them at a disadvantage to not be there in person.
I am a big fan of these events. In my opinion they level the playing field by allowing the colleges to actually meet the person and determine if they would be a good fit for the school and match up to they types of individuals they wish to attract. The same as a job application. You can look great on paper but if you cannot present yourself appropriately or communicate properly then you might not be a good candidate for a top school. College is so much more than just academics.
Between two kids, I’ve been exposed to a few scholarship weekends.
One was just to gauge interest and recruit I think–they awarded all the attendees a larger scholarship and there was no interview at the weekend. I think the scholarship decisions had already been made based on the application and an interview prior to being invited to the weekend (it was a phone interview for my kid), and if you made the effort to show up, the larger scholarship was awarded.
Another was a competition–listen to a lecture and write an essay. The scholarships were awarded based on this essay as well as what information had already been submitted with the application. Attendance was required, so I think it was a way of gauging interest as well.
The others involved interviews at the scholarship weekend. One school paid to fly the kids in, and attendance was mandatory to remain in consideration–500 applicants, 30 finalists flown in, and 10 awards. They even flew in some international students. The other would do skype interviews if kids couldn’t attend, but didn’t pay travel expenses.
All of these were high dollar, competitive scholarships, up to full ride.
At all the schools, the weekend was definitely a recruiting event. Lots of information for students and parents, tours, fun activities, lectures, good food. It was a good chance to get a feel for the school.
Thanks everyone -this is very helpful.
My D went to one of these events. It was similar to the ones described above. There was a chunk of time to write an essay and then small discussion group with some other prospective students. After lunch different departments had open houses and then there was a Q&A session with current students.
I think she found it helpful in her search process
Congrats to your D, Veruca! My D attended two and was surprised to find that the tone was more collaborative than competitive (that may vary depending on the college). She met a number of kids she really enjoyed and saw some of the same ones at both weekends. D felt that the schools were trying to gauge fit and which kids would make a real contribution to the school, since they all were strong students.
I think it is a way to gauge interest and a way to “sell” the school to students they want to attract.
Thanks everyone
My kid was invited to two with interviews and presentations. Give a great chance to get to know the school better and walked away with options for full scholarships. I’d ask how many kids are invited and how many scholarships they award before investing money.
To those who have attended one of these events, what did your son wear?
My son was invited to 3 scholarship events. He wore a jacket, dress pants, button down shirt and tie. One of the events was a weekend long event. For the tours and meeting with the Dean of the program, he wore an Oxford shirt, khakis and a tie.
One benefit of the weekend was the opportunity to see what other students may be attending the school. One of the events was very competitive , the other 2 were collaborative. Each one included group and individual interviews , one also included a writing assignment . One required that he choose one side of an argument to write about, then verbally argue the opposite point of view. I agree that it was also a marketing tool.
good question @smakl70
This should help a little over all…
http://www.theprospect.net/9-dos-and-donts-for-a-scholarship-weekend-14696
thanks @carolinamom2boys and @moscott those both help