<p>Son asked me which colleges give free rides. He noticed that his HS valedictorian two yrs ago recvd a 'free ride' at U of C and he wondered what other schools had this type of deal. He is kinda-thisclose to that valley this yr.</p>
<p>The inevitable question is: “for what?”</p>
<p>There are some good opportunities for National Merit [Semi-]Finalists: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1064662075-post289.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1064662075-post289.html</a></p>
<p>Very few schools have full rides anymore (defined as full tuition, room and board). However, there are a number of full tuition scholarships out there. You might want to look here: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html</a></p>
<p>Two older threads on this topic are:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/148852-what-ive-learned-about-full-ride-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/148852-what-ive-learned-about-full-ride-scholarships.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/291483-update-what-i-learned-about-free-ride-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/291483-update-what-i-learned-about-free-ride-scholarships.html</a></p>
<p>The specific scholarships may no longer exist, but the research strategies should still serve you well.</p>
<p>It’ll be important for your son to consider whether he wants to be the top student within a population of peers who look to him for challenge and inspiration rather than challenging and inspiring him. There’s no inherent right or wrong answer - different students feel differently about it - but to get a full ride to a university, you typically have to be the type of student that that university doesn’t otherwise land.</p>