<p>I've looked at the scholarship page on Whitmans' website, and it leaves a lot of unanswered questions. Some merit scholarships, say they will be awarded based on need. Does anyone have experience with scholarships at Whitman? Are they stackable?</p>
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<p>I don’t quite understand this sentence. Whitman gives out merit scholarships, I don’t think need is factored in to these awards. They also give out need-based assistance and yes, it is stackable. If you are awarded a merit scholarship and after that is factored in you are still eligible for need-based assistance then you could be awarded that also.</p>
<p>Whitman gives out a few scholarships (called Presidential Scholarships) on the basis of merit which give a few thousand dollars to students without financial need but ensure that Whitman covers the whole of that students calculated financial need with grants–not loans, not work study. This is a particularly good deal because Whitman calculated need differently than other colleges in a way that for some families more realistically portrays what they can pay. </p>
<p>But yeah, that Whitman site is crazy confusing. I didn’t understand those scholarships until I got my financial aid package in the mail and they explained it.</p>
<p>Some of the merit scholarships, such as the Penrose, are completely separate from financial aid. I believe the Penrose is a 4-yr commitment on the part of Whitman, and continues at the same rate as the award for the first year. Whitman gave my daughter a Penrose, then put together a pretty fair package that now includes both Stafford and Perkins loans, and a certain amount of financial aid grants.</p>
<p>The people in the financial office are easy to talk to, so if there are any questions you can just call them. You can also appeal their award and they are very friendly about that; if you give them appropriate paperwork they will usually make a favorable change. Just before my daughter’s senior year we had a change in circumstances and needed more financial aid. Whitman was extremely generous with an additional percent in the form of a grant. So my impression from dealing with the Whitman financial aid office for three years is that they are understanding and very reasonable and they value their students in good standing. Don’t assume things can’t be worked out, just pursue it.</p>
<p>There is plenty of opportunity for work-study as well, but my advice about that: apply for a work-study job asap when the semester starts, since Freshman have to scramble a bit to find a job on campus. However, they don’t appear to limit the hours students can work, and my daughter had 3 jobs during part of her junior year, which enabled her to pay her own rent and board. One of the big advantages of going to school in a small town in a rural area: rents are relatively cheap off campus. The same room in a house might cost $900 per month in Brooklyn, $700 in Berkeley, $500 in Santa Cruz, and $350 in Walla Walla.</p>
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<p>Mine shares a 4 bedroom (but one bath!) house a couple of blocks from campus. Total rent $1000 , so her share is $250. They cook fancy organic vegetarian stuff and host dinner parties, but are frugal with the utilities, don’t have cable. $700/month is more than enough for everything. Dorm room and board is about $950/month.</p>