My D received a full tuition scholarship from
University of Arizona and admission into the honors program. Wish she would have decided to attend as it would have meant zero debt at graduation.
Is there a list of automerit schools somewhere on here? I cannot find.
as far as I know, i havent seen a recent list of auto merit schools. Everything has changed so much since we first started looking for our '15 & '16 grads. 2020 was different; and it sounds like 2021 even more so! Iâm going to just keep reading and looking around here for info I guess.
Rowan Universityâmy son received a full merit scholarship that covers his tuition ($14,000).
1 Like
Was this recently? I thought Rowan capped merit at $10,000.
2 Likes
yes he received the full $10k along with an additional $4k in other scholarships âfriends of Rowanâ and something else, which are renewable as long as he keeps a 2.5 gpa
1 Like
Do they offer out of state students in state tuition with a merit award?
UT Austin does not offer good merit aid. They do have a decent need- based aid program.
2 Likes
Wofford is right up there with almost 90% receiving aid. Aid can be granted around 30K or so depending on the childâs achievements. The Wofford Scholars program in recent years has been competitive for kids with around a 3.75 (non-weighted) or better and an ACT score range over 28.
Finally, even if they do not receive this scholarship, Wofford is very generous with other merit aid and financial aid. The aid also stacks.
https://www.wofford.edu/admission/scholarships/wofford-scholars
1 Like
that is interesting, as I thought at this point most of the âtalking/communicating/bargeningâ should be coming from the students not the parents.
1 Like
I think it would be highly unusual for a student to be doing financial aid/merit aid negotiating. My kid was in no way qualified or confident enough to handle such a thing at age 17. Plus, it was our money, not hers, that was at stake.
8 Likes
I agree that it was MY money at that point and I took over. I did make them go in and ask about aid.
Even my daughter with an athletic scholarship asked me to do the talking as I was the one who knew about all the types of aid she was getting and how much she needed. I should have involved the kids more, but it is so difficult to do so and things move pretty quickly. Sometimes I was talking to schools while at work because those are the times of the day the FA officers are available (daughters were in school).
I have a daughter in grad school now and she is doing her own FA talking, but she asked me the other day âWhat should I ask?â Sheâs got a fully funded TA position, but I told her to ask if they were giving money to those who filed FAFSA this year* sheâs not taking loans so didnât file), and sheâs looking for grants for summer travel and research. She gets paid tomorrow but has only $43 in her checking account today. Every penny helps.
2 Likes
I agreeâif the system was supposed to be for students to handle alone, they wouldnât require my tax information and ask so many questions about my money. We could explain the DDs financial situations in a few seconds⊠Thereâs a lot of value in honest family conversations about money and what is available for college, but I donât know many 17 year-olds who are ready to represent the family financial situation solo.
4 Likes
In general, If a student has a very high GPA but a relatively low SAT score, is it better for a student to apply test-optional for merit? I know there are schools like Miami U and U Arizona where GPA drives automatic merit. However, it seems like the majority of schools that offer automatic merit have SAT requirements.
Youâd have to research the requirements for each college your child is interested in (via their scholarship page). Some (University of South Carolina comes to mind, and possibly UTK) developed merit scholarships specifically for test-optional applicants. Others require test scores in order to be considered. Merit awards without test scores may be more likely at colleges that have committed to being test optional (or test blind) for the foreseeable future.
1 Like
Thanks. I am in a unique situation. Through my business, I manage directly or indirectly several hundred people. We started a scholarship funding program several years ago. In addition to helping financially, I have kind of become a de facto college counselor.
Some of these families are first-generation college and donât have much or any experience in selecting and applying. Also several of the high schools locally donât offer many AP or honors classes and not a lot of resources for SAT prep. Sometimes as a result you end up with a student with a strong core GPA and lower relative test scores.
1 Like
Heads up - to be considered for Emoryâs Scholar Program application and all requirements are Due Nov 15
Merit aid for their scholars program goes up to -
full tuition, fees, and on-campus room and board, plus mentoring, research ops, etcâŠ
2 Likes
My daughter volunteers and is on the executive board of a non-profit that helps these types of students navigate the college process. They apply to the program before junior year (strong core GPA is one of the things they look for) and once admitted, they spend time after their regular school day getting tutored for the SAT/ACT, assistance with their high school course selection, help with college selection, arranging visits and filling out the applications, scholarship apps & FAFSA. They also receive college essay tutoring & feedback. The non-profit has strong corporate support (which is how my daughter found out about the program).
4 Likes
Not sure where else to put this but I would STRONGLY encourage parents of students with great scores and plenty of APs to look to the UK, Europe and Canada for college.
Because those schools have great merit aid?
1 Like