<p>When a scholarship says it is "both need and merit-based," does that literally mean that applicants must demonstrate BOTH need and merit in order to be considered for the scholarship? I would not qualify for a need-based scholarship (my family is high income), but I would for a merit-based scholarship. Is it worth applying to one of these scholarships, or should I focus only on purely merit-based ones?</p>
<p>Yes –</p>
<p>For example, the CIA has some fabulous merit scholarships, but they are limited to students with family incomes below (I think) $80,000. </p>
<p>Some other schools have scholarships where you get some nominal amount ($1K or $2K) if you don’t have financial need, but much larger amounts if you do have need.</p>
<p>I’ve seen lots of institutional and corporate scholarships with both need and merit based components, or other criteria (first generation student, student from XYZ county) that combine with need and merit to decide who gets the scholarship.</p>
<p>Thanks for your response. So if the scholarship website says it is “both need and merit based,” but doesn’t give any specific income requirement, need is definitely a requirement for that scholarship? So those types of scholarships aren’t worth me applying to?</p>
<p>It can mean different things, Dfinch. There are colleges that give no grants to those who do not qualify for financial aid. At such schools, any merit awards would go to those who qualify for financial aid. For some that can mean more grant money and less self help in a financial aid package. </p>
<p>There are other schools that use a combination of merit and financial need. Bu comes to mind. If your stats are at a certain level, your family income can be at a higher level to qualify for their aid packages. If your family income is low, your stats can be lower to get the same aid. So there is a matrix of sorts of merit and need that qualifies students for funds.</p>
<p>There are also merit scholarships that have need as a component of what is examined when awarded. That does not necessarily mean that someone with no need is not eligible for the award. Some sort of point system might be awarded and if someone has financial need, he gets points towards getting the award, that someone who does not have need would not get. However, depending on how heavily the aid portion is weighted in the formula, it is entirely possible that kids with no need who have other attributes that get lots of points will get awards. If the situation is such that kids are equivalent in qualifications, the financial need would be the determinant. I have seen many awards of this sort. </p>
<p>If you have no need and a scholarship is described as need/merit based, you should ask if there has to be a need component. If that is the case, then you should not waste your time applying. It’s always good to know who has been getting the awards in the past. If every single kid is in the heavy need category, that is a good indicator as to how much needed is counted in the formula. You may also see non need kids who get a small amount, and if those amounts are not going to make the difference for you, it is something to consider.</p>
<p>Thank you for the clarification. Very helpful.</p>