@belknappoint True, but for an international student that makes it overly complicated. Schools like Alabama that offer merit scholarships don’t offer need-based aid. They package the federal grants/ loans which an international student will not qualify for. So for them, there is a huge difference between the distinction between merit scholarships and need-based aid.
Only schools which offer institutional grants combined with scholarships combined with federal grants/loans is there really a blur between what is what.
FWIW, many schools that offer large merit scholarships do not require any financial info to be provided at all. So it isn’t really part of a FA package. It is simply a merit award.