As we move from waiting for admission decisions to waiting for financial aid packages, we need to look at the factors that will make a big difference in bringing down the cost of attendance (that darn sticker price) down for our kids. Like everything else in this journey, the rules cannot be the same for each school. That would be too logical and simple! One of the questions that many who are going through this process for the first time (like myself) assumed was that scholarships (merit, talent, independent/outside the university) are stackable. Well, as many of us have learned, this is not always the case! Some schools allow this, others make you chose the higher of the two. If you have shown financial need and the school gives you money for that, an outside scholarship may be seen as decreasing your “need”; and thus, lowering the amount the school was going to grant you by the amount of the scholarship. Yes, this seems unfair, but it happens every year much to the dismay and and disillusionment of families everywhere. So, I thought it would be helpful to start a list where we can start listing (as we find out) what schools allow the stacking of scholarships (merit/talent/outside), and which do not.
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guarenteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guarenteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guarenteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
Our experience at Northwestern University would be that it depends.
Outside Scholarships which were paid directly to D (for example her YoungArts money) did not impact the school’s evaluation of financial need, even though they were definitely made aware of the award money, so you’d call it Stackable. However, all of her outside scholarship money which was paid directly to the University did impact their financial aid numbers, so that was not-Stackable, as was all inside Talent scholarship money that our kids have been awarded by NU. In our experience Talent Awards only go to kids with demonstrated need (both of our kids got large named Talent awards when both were enrolled), but there might be exceptions for some Music majors (no firsthand experience with that)? Not sure how to add this to the list, but if someone can figure out how go for it.
Point Park’s scholarships both within and outside the university are stackable. Outside scholarships will not affect FA package. Merit and Artistic scholarships guarenteed for four years, but must keep up a 3.0 gpa. Tuition and room and board NOT guaranteed for four years.
As of a few years ago, Hartt offers Talent Awards only, Students are not eligible for academic merit scholarships. This is a big bummer to our family. 
Adding the info for Otterbein:
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University --talent, merit, and needs-based all stack. Academic merit aid clearly outlined on school website.
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guarenteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
A note about PPU though - we were unpleasantly surprised to find that the automatic merit aid numbers are much lower for COPA than other majors at PPU AND the tuition is higher.
^Good point–we did notice that at several of my son’s schools (not the one he’s attending) there would be a surcharge for all performing arts classes, often adding up to $500 or more per semester.
Adding info for UArts:
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University --talent, merit, and needs-based all stack. Academic merit aid clearly outlined on school website.
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of the Arts - Talent and academic/merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years (if GPA is met). I don’t know about need-based awards.
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
Adding pointer for NU information:
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University - see post #4
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University --talent, merit, and needs-based all stack. Academic merit aid clearly outlined on school website.
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of the Arts - Talent and academic/merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years (if GPA is met). I don’t know about need-based awards.
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
wow! Thanks everyone for your contributions. The list is coming along nicely. Such practical information to have. Please keep adding to the list!
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State, stackable, talent usually only 1k a year. BFA get a partial OOS waiver
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University: Stackable, must maintain 3.0., 4 years
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guarenteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
One thing I would mention, I think the schools play a bit of a game with merit aid. For instance, if getting a talent scholarship, they may come in a bit lower on the academic. I found this to be true with my son. I brought all of his awards to admissions and negotiated more. And got it!
Very good point, @winnieroot ! Many schools will negotiate scholarships and give a bit more if one only asks. Others just don’t have it to give.It is all so relative. I also can tell you that my D just got called by the head of a program to find out where that school ranked for her. When she told that the school ranked #1 artistically, but not financially, she was given the highest talent scholarship that school has been known to give (we have friends that attend said school) on the spot. Other admitted students have yet to receive their scholarship offers to the same school. No idea why. So, if your kid is very excited about a school he/she was accepted at (like mine), don’t be shy about letting them know! They want to hear you are excited to go there, and if money is the only reason you are holding back, then they just might be able to find some more for you.
Adding UArts info back in:
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State - stackable, talent usually only 1k a year. BFA get a partial OOS waiver
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University - Stackable, must maintain 3.0., 4 years
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University - see post #4
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University --talent, merit, and needs-based all stack. Academic merit aid clearly outlined on school website.
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of the Arts - Talent and academic/merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years (if GPA is met). I don’t know about need-based awards.
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
Why no University of Michigan?
Alphabetical…
American U
Baldwin Wallace
Ball State
Baylor University
Boston Conservatory
Cal State Fullerton
Carnegie Mellon.
Central Michigan
CCM (U of Cincinnati)
Coastal Carolina University -Talent and merit are NOT stackable, pick which ever is greater. I don’t know about need based.
Drake
Elon
Emerson
Florida State - stackable, talent usually only 1k a year. BFA get a partial OOS waiver
Indiana
Ithaca
JMU
Long Island University - Stackable, must maintain 3.0., 4 years
Marymount Manhattan
Middlebury
Montclair
Nebraska Wesleyan
NYU_Steinhardt
NYU-Tisch
Northwestern University - see post #4
Ohio Northern
Oklahoma City University - Talent and Merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years.
Otterbein University --talent, merit, and needs-based all stack. Academic merit aid clearly outlined on school website.
Pace University
Point Park
Rider
Roosevelt CCPA - Talent only, no academic or need-based award. T guaranteed all four years.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
Shenandoah - Financial and either merit or talent are stackable and T&M guaranteed for 4 years. Can only get either merit OR talent.
SUNY Buffalo
Temple
Texas Christian University - Financial, Merit & Talent are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
Texas State University
Hartt (University of Hartford)
University of the Arts - Talent and academic/merit are stackable & guaranteed for 4 years (if GPA is met). I don’t know about need-based awards.
University of Michigan
University of Northern Colorado
University of Oklahoma (OU) - Financial,Talent & Merit are stackable. T&M guaranteed for 4 years.
University of Utah
Viterbo
Wagner
Webster
Wright State (Ohio)
I know this isn’t applicable to those only seeking a BFA in MT, but it could be to some MT students who are open to an acting program with MT elements. So, in case this is of consequence to anyone-
Theatre students at DePaul are not eligible for academic scholarships. The theatre school offers separate scholarships to their students that are determined on the basis of talent combined with academic record. Sounds like a bummer, but it isn’t so bad!! The scholarship I was offered was larger than the largest purely academic scholarship available, and I know this is the case for many students of the theatre school.