UMd ...and merit scholarships...

<p>Many schools, like GW etc.., make it a bit tough to get merit scholarships.
Anyone know roughly what GPA/SAT/ other stuff / is needed to qualify for
merit scholarship(s) at UMd ??.. Thanks.</p>

<p>depends on what scholarship. this yr they were really random, some ppl with stats off the wall got ok. some with eh stats got great b/k scholarships. of course amazing students still got a lot. no1 really knows a formula at umd. look back at this forums previous posts for merit schoalrships there is a list of ppl's stats and their scholarships. keep in mind some departments especially engineering give good scholarships</p>

<p>Agree that it was really, really random this year.</p>

<p>I wonder if what major or school you apply to affects B/K, President's, etc. awards. Because I know science whizzes applying as biology majors that got acceptances to places like Berkeley, UPenn, etc. who were only given 4500/2 yrs. Then some people with seemingly lower stats and less talents overall, B/K or 5,000/yr President's. If you apply to the engineering school, though, good kids will consistently get the 12,000/yr award there.</p>

<p>Anyway, random. Very random. Have no idea how they do it :P. My consensus is there's either too many applicants for them to keep track of, or certain departments lobby for a student based on a really specific talent.</p>

<p>my gpa was 3.8 and 4.3 weighted. with 1390 for math and reading. and 4 yrs of football and some other stuff. and i got 1500 a year non renewable scholarship.
and im in state. not sure if that matters.</p>

<p>i'm complete opposite. 3.9 gpa 4.56 weighted and 1350 sat (i have decent ecs with like three leadership positions) and i got banneker/key. so yeah random. it probably really is hollistic.</p>

<p>xtefii what was your essay about?</p>

<p>i did one about where i'm already out and working and i have a mini crisis at my job (i'm like the head marketer or something) and i talk about how my background at maryland and all the people i met there that i still talk to help me get through the crisis. and its happy at the end. i also talked about the stuff i did to hang out at campus.</p>

<p>i'm guessing SAT's played a big part in the presidential scholarships. i got 8,000 a year (out of state) with 3.85 Weighted, 1470/2150 SAT, one ap, and two honors classes. i got in for accounting at the business school. my extracurriculars and essay were pretty beastly however. i have a friend who got the 8,000 a year presidential, had a worse gpa than me, didnt get in the scholars program, but got a 1530/1600 SAT.</p>

<p>i really think it's holistic. my sat is 1390 and i received $5,000 a year (i'm in-state). my gpa is 3.93/4.59... then again my ACT is 32, which might have made up for my low-ish SAT score. i had two pages of extracurriculars/awards and i worked really hard on my essay.</p>

<p>does anyone know if merit scholarships from the school (not department) are influenced by your major? i believe that it isn't, but my friend supposedly contacted the school and they said that she didn't receive one because her major (psychology) was too crowded.</p>

<p>Holistic? More like random! D's stats: 1460 M+CR, 4.0uw/4.6w, 12 AP's + Calculus III from local comm.coll. All 4's and 5's on AP exams so far.
EC's: Class V.P., NHS, Interact etc. captain of 2 varsity sports, all-county in 1 sport. tons more. Class rank 5/~450, Part-time grocery store cashier.
In-State, AA Co.
Honors, Gemstone</p>

<p>a lousy 4500/yr for 2 yrs!</p>

<p>(College of Charleston- Full Tuition, ECU - Full Ride, UDel., UMiami, both cheaper than UMD!)</p>

<p>Friend who was accepted to Columbia University, Georgetown, etc. only recieved 4500/2 yrs as well. It was def. a "***" moment. </p>

<p>I repeat that awards must be related to your major. Compared to your daughter, TurtlePhobic, I'm plain, but I had significant writing achievements and was applying to the journalism school (got 5,000/yr). Congrats to her for the full rides & getting UMiami and UDel cheaper than MD, though - I bet your daughter prefers to go out of state, anyway! ;).</p>

<p>The sum of all scholarships that I'm getting > the cost of attendance, but I didn't get into a single college other than UMD.</p>