<p>Brandeis is an example of a school that requires students to submit the CSS PROFILE to apply for merit-based aid.</p>
<p>[Brandeis</a> Admissions | Costs/Financial Aid | Financial Aid](<a href=“Applying for Financial Aid | Affordability | Undergraduate Admissions | Brandeis University”>Applying for Financial Aid | Affordability | Undergraduate Admissions | Brandeis University)</p>
<p>D1 goes to Ursinus College. We were required to submit the FAFSA and CSS/PROFILE to me considered for merit scholarships at admission. They are not required for subsequent years; D1 has a minimum GPA requirement to keep the scholarship. We recieve no need-based aid, and would be full-pay without the merit scholarship.</p>
<p>I thought this was an odd requirement, but I guess if you want some of the school’s money you have to follow their rules. My theory of why they require the FA forms is that they have a finite pot of money, some considered need-based and some merit-based. If they are interested in luring a particular student, they will offer money. If the FA forms show need, the rules allow the money to come from the “Need” pool. If there is no need, the money has to come from the “merit” pool. So (maybe – I’m guessing here) a student with D’s stats but financial need would’ve gotten a need-based grant worth the same amount as the merit aid offered to D?</p>
<p>Oh, as a full-pay family that has earned our money and saved significantly for our two D’s college expenses, I find the statement below almost offensive. I prefer to make the decision on our charitable contributions, thank you very much! </p>
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<p>Re post 375: Please do not assume that just because a family is not eligible for need-based aid they are “wealthy,” or that they don’t have to borrow to cover part of the cost of their child’s education.</p>
<p>EDIT: cross-posted with mrsref.</p>
<p>fallenchemist, I think you will find many schools ask for FASFA/CSS information before awarding merit aid. There are a few true merit scholarships out there, but really, merit aid often has a financial aid component, or at least a financial analysis component. Schools study the demographic and financial data available to them. Then, probably with some complicated algorithms (or maybe just magic wand waving) they try to come up with the minimum merit/financial aid offer they think it will take to get your kid in the door.</p>
<p>BerryBerry - In response to your Post #340 why do you assume that a scholarship that includes “room and board” requires you to live in the dorm. I can understand the dorm=room argument, but most colleges have some sort of meal plan which would equal “board”. Why could it not mean that you at least get a free meal plan? I agree that many of these issues could be resolved by “simply asking the question”, but you have to <em>know</em> that it is a question. In law school it is known as “issue spotting” and if you can’t spot the issue, you can’t try to resolve it. BTW, <em>I</em> knew the answer to the question, but I will guarantee you that from the looks on the faces of other parents that it had never occurred to some of them that there was an issue.</p>
<p>I think this thread stays much cleaner if it sticks to what the colleges describe/do or don’t do regarding FA/merit.</p>
<p>Different policy views of who should qualify FA/merit surely leads quickly and understandably to fireworks and would be better on a thread where people know they are wading into that hot mess (probably already a thread of that type here somewhere).</p>
<p>I think we need to stop thinking of financial aid as an entitlement. If you can pay for college with earnings, savings, merit aid, and outside scholarships take pride in that. When it is not possible to cover the cost after these are taken into consideration be grateful that colleges will help make attendance possible with financial aid.</p>
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I can’t speak to their level or depth of knowledge, but PM MaineLonghorn if you’re serious; I know that she paid a college consultant to complete all financial aid forms. If some do the forms, then I’m guessing that they would be able to provide guidance on such things as merit-in-need as well–the trick is to find the competent people in a largely unregulated industry.</p>
<p>tennis83 - Sigh. I think we resolved the entitlement debate five pages ago (by my lengthy 12-page display).</p>
<p>momm-three,</p>
<p>I have not entered this thread until now, I, like momofthreeboys and mrsref do not agree with your post #375.</p>
<p>My D knew that we would not get any FA, but that it would probably be impossible to get out of college w/out loans unless she got merit aid, so she did her research and only applied to places she wanted to attens AND where she would likey be able to earn merit money so no loans were necessary. In the end she had 4 choices of the 14 she was accepted to. According to your post, she should not have done this? She would still have gone to college, but you seem to say that since she TRULY didn’t NEED Fa she was wrong.</p>
<p>Did I misunderstand you? We worked hard to save uor money for her education.</p>
<p>Yes, Brandeis does require PROFILE and FAFSA. And here’s one that really confounded me.
UNC-CH also wanted the PROFILE. I couldn’t imagine why, but after the acceptance/FA (none) letter came, we learned the PROFILE was only to determine if she had qualified for a laptop grant. What a joke!</p>
<p>OK, so these schools (Brandeis and Ursanis) are giving merit scholarships, but only if the student needs them is what I get out of this. A full pay student with the same or better qualifications as a need student won’t get anything from Brandeis and Ursanis is what it sounds like. Personally I would call that a grant, since I think true a true merit scholarship would be need-blind, but I don’t want to change definitions in the middle of the discussion. If they are using merit as a component of deciding if it is a loan or “free money”, I can agree that as this discussion has considered it that is a merit scholarship. I would just point out that virtually all schools call those grants, once need is taken into account. Macalester, for example, clearly differentiates the two. Most do.</p>
<p>Speaking of Macalester:
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<p>Just goes to show the danger of using “IIRC” postings as proof, clueless. You had a great rationale, it just was about something that doesn’t exist, apparently. I mean, doesn’t it strike everyone as outrageous that a school would kick someone out because their family had a reversal without even trying to give them the same consideration as an incoming freshman? Seems most unlikely, but maybe there are examples. Just none yet.</p>
<p>Ok, maybe my post wasn’t clear. D1 receives a merit scholarship from Ursinus. According to FAFSA, we have no need (EFC is > COA). So the merit scholarship is truly a merit scholarship.</p>
<p>Well, I did preface with IIRC. However, I distinctly recall an LAC mentioned on the parents 2010 thread by a full-pay parent deciding whether to submit FA forms for her entering freshman. She decided to submit them because one school on her D’s list had the “must apply as a frosh” policy. Will post if I recall the name.</p>
<p>Also IIRC, Brandeis requests FA forms for merit scholarships BECAUSE they want to give the scholarships to “borderline full-pay” families; those with an EFC around 50-60k, for instance.</p>
<p>I know for Smith you HAVE to apply for FinAid your freshmen year or you cannot apply again until you have 64 credits through them</p>
<p>mrsref,</p>
<p>Your post was perfectly clear, but according to momm-three, you and I (our children) were wrong to accept the merit, because the need wasn’t there. I don’t get that at all.</p>
<p>BTW, congrats to your D. She deserved her award.</p>
<p>Keil - I wasn’t faulting you for posting an IIRC, but for someone else using it as an example of “proof” without doing any checking.</p>
<p>Keilexandra, my asking about an expert in FA wasn’t for someone to fill out the forms. It was more along the lines of someone who would assess a family’s financial situation, and then make strategic suggestions about how to approach the application and aid situation. For-hire college counselors do this on the applications side alone: positioning yourself, choosing wisely where to apply, tweaking essays. The FA side can be equally complex, but there are no professional jungle guides. At least not that I’ve ever seen mentioned. Let alone trust! :)</p>
<p>fallenchemist, others here have mentioned specific names of schools, or have read posts similar to what I’ve read on CC in the past. Evidence enough for me to check on this, along with many many other things, as my kids go through the cycle.</p>
<p>gloworm - I guess momm-three likes that famous quote “From each according to their ability, to each according to their need”. That worked out so well, didn’t it?</p>
<p>SlitheyTove - Exactly. Check on things. A great concept. Why didn’t I think of that?</p>
<p>fallenchemist, you’ve misunderstood me. Checking things with colleges when my kids apply: yup, I’ll do that. Checking things because someone on a forum wants to win an argument: not so interested. </p>
<p>I’m going to go hang out with the stupid people now. :D</p>
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<p>Fallen, I didn’t even care about the issue, much less present it as “proof”. Just directing your attention to a prior post on point responding to your request. Please, take a chill pill.</p>