The Impact of Merit Scholarships

Parent Cafe
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<p>Opie, you've got it exactly backwards. Merit money makes a difference only to the family that does not qualify for need based aid. As MADad noted, if you do qualify for need based aid, the merit money is deducted from that need based aid. Unless it's a full-ride scholarship, the merit aid does not change the family's Expected Financial Contribution, whether calculated by the FAFSA or the institution. And this is true whether the school claims to meet 100% of calculated need or not. So whether Johnny gets $20,000 in need based aid or $10,000 in merit and $10,000 in need doesn't make a damned bit of difference - the family still has to pay the same amount.</p>

<p>It's only people like me, who are deemed too wealthy for need based aid, who benefit from merit aid because it reduces the amount we are actually expected to pay. And that can make all the difference in the world.</p>

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<p>corranged, you are characterizing my comments correctly with your own. And Chedva, thanks for the clarification of how merit money is applied as part of a larger financial aid picture.</p>

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<p>When one school found out my D was a Nat. Merit finalist, they added 5K more of merit--and removed 2K of need-based.</p>

<p>Merit doesn't reward hard work in HS--just replaces need-based aid, in our experience.</p>

<p>Have become very cynical about this whole process.</p>

44

<p>In some situations, merit can help reduce the loan amount necessary to meet costs. That's a good thing. It all depends on the individual situation. And yes, chevda, it makes the most difference to those who "could" afford to pay full freight. You did a good job explaining that! </p>

<p>I am just feeling a bit disappointed that the kids who work hard on a ballfield can go to school for free/almost free, regardless of family financial situation --- while those who work hard in the classroom have less opportunity for such a reward. I am not looking for a debate about what sports "bring" to the school ... I am just sad that the rewards for athletes are more plentiful than the rewards for scholars. But life is full of irony.</p>

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<p>Psychologically its very different--I do think merit $ matters to child and family more than need based aid, even if $ the same amount.Merit $ does reward hard work, ECs, etc. It does make someone feel special. Earning merit awards while in college is another boost</p>

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<p>"Opie, you've got it exactly backwards. Merit money makes a difference only to the family that does not qualify for need based aid. As MADad noted, if you do qualify for need based aid, the merit money is deducted from that need based aid. "</p>

<p>Or it's combined along with other scholarships to pay for school. It's going to depend on the school. Some do combine them. The only time grants are reduced is if the student will end up with more money from all sources, and even that is not true in all cases. It's going to depend on the school. At least what we've experienced.</p>

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<p>If we assume that students aren't charged the full cost of their educational "experience" we could argue that even students who don't qualify for need based aid, are receiving a "scholarship", by being admitted to a college that only offers need based aid, because they don't feel that they need to "entice" students to attend.</p>

<p>Everyone is getting an award by getting * chosen*:D</p>

<p>But there also are a few schools, that offer small merit awards- while still being mostly need based. I have know kids who really wrestled with deciding between one school that offered a small merit award, but was just a touch less desirable. Even though still a very good school, but maybe out in * [Northfield* for example- instead of the pleasure of Providence ;)</p>

<p>I don't think that accepted students at Carleton are any less of a student than one who is accepted to an Ivy, however when it comes to deciding, a merit award, may help make the decision easier if they were leaning that way anyway.</p>

<p>I also have a suspicion, although unfounded, that schools who really want someone have * tweaked* the financial aid data, to find that they do qualify for some grants.- Or maybe that is just why they want so much information.
I also don't know if this is common knowledge, but I have read about schools that are need aid only, who have merit aid- outside merit aid- but still merit aid, for attending students.
There may be some need identified at some time, but from college websites it seems that they are merit awards.</p>

<p>For very strong students- I would also suggest, that state school honors programs may be basically free. At least that is what the counselor at my daughters school was telling parents tonight. For students who stay in Seattle and attend UW honors program, they can do so at no cost.</p>

<p>Now I didn't believe this- so I went to the website. It is true I think he was exagerating just a hair, but there are many scholarships ( including full )attached to honors, and since so many students from her school are being lured to * those* schools ( Harvard and Stanford are coming to her high school tomorrow for the 2nd time this school year for example) the UW is making a special effort to keep them in Seattle perhaps.</p>

<p>I think merit aid is important- it helps students keep their loans lower & in the case of honors colleges, can give students an LAC experience, for low or no cost , in a setting with the resources of a research university.</p>

<p>But schools generally have limited merit aid- or at least it seems so. Need based aid for those who qualify seems more widespread among private schools.</p>

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<p>I was surprised by kids liking colleges better because the school wants them enough to give them $$$. My feeling is that when schools go after you with merit aid, chances are you will be relatively exceptional at that school. In essense, they need you more than you need them if all things v($$) were equal.</p>

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<p>If I'm deciding which friend to hang out with and find them both interesting, I'm going to choose the one who has shown that she appreciates our friendship and wants to go out with me over the friend who would be just as happy going out with someone else. I don't really think that's unusual. As someone said earlier, people like to feel wanted, like to feel valuable. The situation is shifted a bit if it's a lower choice school offering you the scholarship (then you're kind of deciding between the cool kid who doesn't care all that much if he hangs out with you and the slightly annoying kid who's perhaps too eager to laugh at your jokes). Thankfully, my merit scholarship was from one of my top choices. Though I recognize that often isn't the case, when all the schools are on a similar level, I don't think it's all that odd to like the school that has shown it likes you, though I certainly understand your points.</p>

50

<p>In most cases the schools are not on the same level. And while HYP don't have to go shopping for great students, schools that use merit $$ as a vehicle to improve their stats to raise in the rankings are doing just that. They target high stats kids who will get into better colleges and "bribe" them. Many families simply can't afford to say no. Everyone is happy in some cases, in others the kid/family wish they could afford the better school. But the college always gets what they want. </p>

<p>It's a game and colleges have been open about their merit $$ strategies. Dangling things before your kid is a calculated attempt to get your family who take the $$. I felt like a pawn.</p>

<p>So cooranged, to use your analogy, would you go with the friend you know is great though they have not done cartwheels trying to win your friendship because they are popular and have lots of great friends or the less respected friend who needs you so much they offer to pay for everything.</p>

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<p>"Many families simply can't afford to say no."</p>

<p>bingo. </p>

<p>"I felt like a pawn."</p>

<p>Not so much. I felt like my kids could go anywhere, do anything and be anything they wanted. Much different than I had at state U working my career around offices and then hoping the school works out. I felt like a rook? ;) In our case we could choose where the best for us was.</p>

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<p>I would hope that students and families put a great deal of thought into selecting schools.
Not that they are picking schools wily nily that the student wouldn't want to attend if accepted.</p>

<p>Sure students are likely to have a favorite or two- but they should all be reasonable choices- otherwise the choices were made too hastily.</p>

<p>Why would I apply to a school that I felt had to bribe me to attend?</p>

<p>Money can make the choice much more affordable- but if it was a school that I would consider attending, only because they "paid" me, that puts me in mind of other people, who do things they wouldn't do- just for the money.</p>

<p>And I don't think you need a college degree to have that job ;)</p>

53

<p>In my high school, most merit scholarships were at the students' top choices. This could have been a phenomena of my school or the students or just a strange happening. I was one of the lucky few to get a merit scholarship at a school that I don't believe is inferior to Harvard, Yale, or Princeton. My friends who got merit scholarships did at schools they would likely end up at, anyway. Most of these schools aren't the most elite, and many aren't first tier, but they were schools at the general "match" level at which the students were applying. Perhaps students at my school were attractive to certain colleges with which my school had a relationship, or perhaps with so many applications to all of the schools, students are now categorizing their "match" schools a little lower than they did previously and not getting accepted to reach schools, meaning that their pessimism about the process has helped them be happier with the results. I'm trying to think about everyone in my class (it was a small school), and I can't think of anyone who had to face that difficult decision of passing up a favorite school for one that provided merit aid. The "average" students in my school tended to get merit aid at schools with which they were very happy. Again, I realize that the problem you talk about does exist, and it makes a lot of sense. For some reason or another, I just haven't observed it in action in my personal experiences.</p>

<p>I cross posted, but EK4 brings up a very good point. With a good list of schools, the applicant should be happy at any of them, and none of them should be on the list solely because of money.</p>

54

<p>Some students/families enter the process in search of merit aid. For these families, the $$ offer is always a signif factor and may even be dispositive.</p>

<p>For other families, unanticipated merit awards don't factor into the selection process - - often b/c, unlike corranged scenarion, the merit awards are from safety schools in which the student has little interest.</p>

<p>(Friend's D who wanted Wes, rec'd very generous merit $ from Wooster, a sch in which D had no real interest and to which D had applied only to appease g/c. The family would consider a similar offer from Kenyon or Oberlin, but only if D is rejected from Wes.)</p>

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<p>Mini,</p>

<p>I think the two primary factors that colleges who practice enrollement management use are admissions and need based aid. Giving out just enough "need based aid'" to induce students whose families might be willing to pay most but not all of the costs to enroll. Merit aid is actually a pretty blunt instrument for practicing "enrollment management". The purpose of merit aid is to upgrade the yeild from the high end of the applicant pool.</p>

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<p>Emeraldkity,</p>

<p>By that reasoning one should always live in the nicest most well located house, even if it costs many millions, rather than another house that you are "bribed" into living in by a price you are more comfortable with.</p>

57

<p>*Emeraldkity,</p>

<p>By that reasoning one should always live in the nicest most well located house, even if it costs many millions, rather than another house that you are "bribed" into living in by a price you are more comfortable with.*</p>

<p>CUrious- how do you figure?</p>

<p>this was my post</p>

<p>
[quote]
I would hope that students and families put a great deal of thought into selecting schools.
Not that they are picking schools wily nily that the student wouldn't want to attend if accepted.</p>

<p>Sure students are likely to have a favorite or two- but they should all be reasonable choices- otherwise the choices were made too hastily.</p>

<p>Why would I apply to a school that I felt had to bribe me to attend?</p>

<p>Money can make the choice much more affordable- but if it was a school that I would consider attending, only because they "paid" me, that puts me in mind of other people, who do things they wouldn't do- just for the money.</p>

<p>And I don't think you need a college degree to have that job

[/quote]
</p>

<p>exactly which part do you disagree with?</p>

<p>The part where I said that out of the (hundreds and hundreds of schools available)- I would hope that the process of narrowing down choices to 5 or 6 to apply to was a careful and well thought out one.
Taking into consideration your own criteria.</p>

<p>Depending on your criteria, you might have 6 schools of equal weight, or a couple that you aren't madly in love with, but like enough to apply to them, instead of one of the other 2362 schools.</p>

<p>I don't know anyone who would argue that there is only one person on earth who they could live with, and I don't know anyone who honestly can say that the only schools where they can get an education aren't affordable.</p>

<p>"nice" and " best location" house are subjective.</p>

<p>For instance- * since you brought it up* ;)</p>

<p>When we first we married, we lived just a few blocks from where Bill Gates would build his compound. A very "nice" neighborhood- beautiful house- fantastic yard. I loved being able to walk to the lake and it is a very peaceful community.
However</p>

<p>After we started thinking about where we wanted to live to raise our children, we decided to move to the city. I didn't want to live in the burbs* I was raised there*- I really wanted to be close to the water- but I preferred* salt *water- & I also wanted to be closer to my grandparents who lived in the city to help them out- </p>

<p>Living in neighborhood of deeluxe homes- wasn't a priority.</p>

<p>We had weighted criteria- and as for us- costs were actually more expensive to live in the city- money wasn't the top criteria.</p>

<p>Ease of access ( to shops/parks etc) on foot/bike,
More community gathering places
& lots more to do, were considered as well.</p>

<p>Its not the only place we could have lived- but I was pretty sick of looking at houses- I wanted a place we could afford as our income fluctuated & at the time we lived on the eastside- it was fairly lily white.
I didn't want to raise my kids in that environment.</p>

<p>So you can see what is "best" depends on what you are looking for.</p>

<p>When I was 18, I lived on a lake with my boyfriend and his roommate.( & their dogs)
I loved it- :D
It is one of my favorite times ( being 18 didn't hurt either)</p>

<p>But to live there as a family- having to drive for an hour or more into the city every day for work- having to drive everywhere for soccer practices etc- having to drive into the city everytime you wanted to go to a concert or out to dinner- that would suck. ( when I lived there Woodinville was rural & it actually wasn't that bad going into the city 30 years ago- but now I couldnt even contemplate it)</p>

<p>It isn't that hard to find a range of schools- this is getting away from merit aid
but ...I'll come back to it.
D allowed me to help develop criteria- to help smooth the process
for me it was fun ;)</p>

<p>Transportation/distance- availability of transportation and type to and from home as well as in the surrounding area was one</p>

<p>Location- typical weather- urban/rural activities available- another</p>

<p>Cost- in state/out of state- do they gap? merit aid?</p>

<p>Size of school- is it large? problems getting courses? limited courses?</p>

<p>Student body-friendly? emphasis on Greeks? emphasis on cuttthroat? </p>

<p>Academics- will she be challenged? supported? can she use the art studio even if no art classes? Whats the library like? ( and if I knew then what I know now- does the library allow you to sleep there?)</p>

<p>Dorm life- are dorms required? available? whats the food like? are the vegan options a sulfite laden salad bar? Pets?</p>

<p>Intangibles- did she step onto campus and say * these are my people?* or did she refuse to get out of the car?</p>

<p>Well you get the idea</p>

<p>Then I weighted each criteria as to how much emphasis we thought it should have.
Having our own criteria in advance- rather than being swayed by *a cute girl leading the tour :rolleyes:
* or really great food in the cafeteria- helped a great deal in making a final list of schools to apply to, although deciding on what school to attend, was close.</p>

<p>For a student who really wants to get as far as possible-Distance might be weighted strongest.</p>

<p>A student whose family doesn't have money for college, but their EFC is $99,999, is going to have to either find a school with a lot of merit aid- or another way to reduce costs.</p>

<p>If when picking where to apply, they knew that financial matters should be weighted strong, but instead they decided that in making a list, they weren't even going to pay attention to money and instead focus on schools with top rated football teams- they shouldn't be surprised when their list reflects their criteria.</p>

<p>We have choices in everything.
Its up to us to make the most of them.</p>

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<p>I guess I am being too subtle. As with any purchase, choosing to go to a school, whether a safe, match or reach school, is partly a matter of price. Price matters to almost everyone. The people to whom price would not matter are the same people to whom price would not matter for the purchase of a house or a car or a vacation or anything else. Somone who goes to a school because it is less expensive rather than another school that they would have preferred, if it were the same price, is just acting rationally. Why would you introduce the pejorative notion of "bribery"? Is a person taking a "bribe" when they pick a Camry over a Lexus? Are they taking a "bribe" when the shop at an inexpensive jewelry store rather than Tiffanys? It is just a totally inappropriate choice of words. I am not saying that you should always go to the cheapest just that it is only rational to take price into account.</p>