<p>... or no?</p>
<p>I just received a letter titling me a "Thomas H. Eliot Scholar", granting me a 20K scholarship for lovely Wash U. Needless to say, I'm psyched. Anyone else got the scholarship? It came with my financial-aid package today.</p>
<p>yes, i did too… :)</p>
<p>I’m a little unclear on the whole special/not special thing. Do you get $20K in the mail often? Sounds pretty special to me. Congrats.</p>
<p>Thanks 
I wasn’t sure if this was something that a lot of ED candidates get, or if this was something more exclusive. I didn’t want to just pop in here and proclaim that I’m “super special” and have some random CC’er tell me that it’s not so special after all. Anyway, I’m guessing quite a few qualified ED candidates get this scholarship?</p>
<p>(And, congrats, FutureDoctor!)</p>
<p>The need-based awards consist of a scholarship that is named after an individual + work study + subsidized and/or unsubsidized loans. The use of a name for the scholarship makes the award feel more like a merit-scholarship, than need-based (and makes the recipient feel great!) It is not the same as the merit scholarships, though everyone who is accepted at Wash U. deserves some sort of merit recognition…</p>
<p>Ah, well that makes sense! I still don’t feel any less special, though :-D</p>
<p>you are special! it was harder than ever to get into Wash U ED this year. The school likes you so much, they are bending over backwards to give you financial aid (who cares merit or need?)</p>
<p>NUgraduate, you sound like you know a lot about this. My daughter only got $8400 for her needs-based scholarship (not called the Thomas Eliot, tho). Do you know whether we can up that amount? She got $20,000 from Tulane (but, of course, with ED at Wash U, she’s going there), but that was merit-based. Any help here would be appreciated!</p>
<p>You can’t really compare merit-based scholarships to need-based scholarships… </p>
<p>ED puts you at disadvantage in that you can’t compare fin aid awards from different schools. You are also not in a position to “bargain” because you are bound by ED contract.</p>
<p>However, if you feel that your need was miscalculated in some way, you should contact the school and ask – it certainly can’t hurt.</p>
<p>I don’t think that a kindly-phrased question can hurt… Ask why the dollar amount was so much less than you received from Tulane? The amounts are different enough that it sounds as though you provided different information to each school. Wash U is “on your side” and wants to provide fair help to deserving students.</p>
<p>As to why the different scholarship names? They are different for each school. The name for the Art award is different than Business, than Arts & Sciences, etc…</p>
<p>NUgraduate, if Tulane’s was a merit scholarship, it may not depend on “demonstrated need”, which could explain the difference in amounts…</p>
<p>Tulane generally offers larger merit scholarships than most similar schools. They are aggressively trying to attract well-qualified students, especially since Hurricane Katrina devastated the school and their students had to go elsewhere.</p>
<p>My daughter applied ED last year and was accepted. We were not given any financial aid. We contacted financial aid and explained our situation (self-employed; properties tied up for retirement, etc). Then they awarded her an Eliott Scholarship plus work/study and loans. Initially, we did not feel it was enough to allow us to afford the school. We supplied further documentation and the school was very generous and doubled her initial Elliot reward, allowing her to attend her first (and only) choice of schools. She is a freshman and LOVES it there. It truly is an outstanding school! If you have concerns or questions about your financial award, don’t hesitate to contact the Financial Aid office and talk to them. You may be pleasantly surprised like we were!</p>
<p>I’m a little worried…WashU didn’t offer me any financial aid…and there’s little to no chance that my parents and I can afford tuition without almost half of it covered. any suggestions on what to do? my parents are contacting the financial aid office to appeal our case.</p>
<p>Thanks NUgraduate! I only hope that my financial aid profile isn’t counted as “inaccurate” because my parents had originally stated that our household had two incomes. As of now, though, we will only have one primary income (my dad resigned his job; he gave his two-week notice on Monday) and our total income before taxes will be lower. Should we tell them about this? Or should we just keep what financial aid they gave us?</p>
<p>And, JewCrew08, I think your parents are doing the right thing by contacting the financial aid office. My parents didn’t set up a meeting with them, but they did contact them and asked them to consider our family for financial aid after we forgot to send in our financial aid package in on time. They were really really nice about it and very quick, which was major brownie points in my parents’ eyes. I’m sure they’ll help you out! Like andioleary said, you may be pleasantly surprised! :-)</p>
<p>Yes, Shelbz_soccer. You absolutely SHOULD contact the admissions office and tell them about your change in circumstances. Why wouldn’t you? Particularly now that your financial situation is tougher? If your parents feel bad about calling, you should call for them. It’s not easy paying for college… every bit helps, and even with help… it’s not easy paying for college.</p>
<p>The Elliot is a combo need/merit award given to top candidates, with the amount being based on need. It is sometimes combined with the merit awards listed on the WashU website. For info about financial aid, the following is from the WashU website:</p>
<p>Helping You Meet the Cost of Education</p>
<p>Once you’re admitted to Washington University, we do all we can to make your enrollment a reality:</p>
<p>This year, our undergraduates are receiving nearly $60 million in scholarships and grants from the University.
Many financial assistance awards equal or exceed the cost of tuition.
Exceptional candidates for admission can apply for academic scholarships regardless of need. Last year, about 200 academic scholarships were awarded to freshmen based entirely on their academic promise.
Parents can spread their share of the costs over time using our interest-free payment plan, or they can benefit from our competitive fixed interest rate borrowing options, take up to 10 years to repay, and freeze four years of costs at the entering-year rate.
Call Student Financial Services if you have special circumstances we should consider, or if you have questions at any time. We’re here to help. Call: (888) 547-6670 (toll-free), or (314) 935-5900.</p>
<p>Okay, I will definitely contact them then! I just felt a little bad since they gave me so much, but I suppose we could really use it at this point.</p>
<p>ST2: Thanks! And by the other merit scholarships, you are talking about the John B. Ervin and various others, right?</p>
<p>My s is a freshman and was not awarded any scholarships last year. He was offered some loans though. However, we had to pay the difference of about $41,000. After reading this thread I regret that we never contacted the school to see if they could help us with any scholarship money. I did not realize you could appeal. Is it too late since s is already a student there? Our income dropped dramatically from 2005-2006 (down $58,000) and from 2006-2007 probably dropped, although we won’t have exact figures until after the first of the year. However, since our income was around $160k in 2006 I did not think they would offer us aid. It will be a struggle for us next year.</p>
<p>Yes, though your son did not receive aid in the past, a change in circumstances is just that. Explain your problem/issue, and they will try and accomodate. There’s nothing to lose!</p>