Is it your test scores like a good ACT score will get you a scholarship. Is it your GPA? Or Extra Curricular?
Or do they look at the whole thing?
Can someone explain to me how the whole scholarship thing works
Depends on the school…
Often high test scores are needed to be considered. A gpa that isn’t good enough will get you eliminated.
If the scholarship is highly competitive, then other factors are considered.
For many schools that are trying to raise their profile, it works like this…
There is a HUGE pool of kids with high GPAs (this is due to grade inflation, easier curriculums, etc).
There is a smaller pool of kids with high TEST SCORES.
There is an even smaller pool of kids with BOTH high test scores and high GPAs. These are the kids who typically get the merit awards.
however, there are some over-priced schools out there (particularly some privates that need warm bodies in their seats), who will flatter virtually every applicant (no matter how dismal the stats are) with a merit scholarship. Their marketing plan is, “who can resist this nice offer”? When really they were over-priced, and the reduced cost is their real cost.
Some schools also place high emphasis on class rank.
I think you can look at common data sets of colleges and see how important different parts of an application are to them.
But that might not be whole story. Usually for very competitive scholarships, EC, LOR, essay are also important, and diversity (URM, geographic).
What are the requirements for getting full scholarship in Columbia University, NYC? What helps in getting full scholarship that includes room, tuition fees and all?
@BurgerJunkie Columbia doesn’t offer merit scholarships. To get full financial aid, you have to be low-income; even then, it’s likely they’ll use non-gift aid (loans) to help meet your need.
@CourtneyThurston What requirements does Columbia search for while accpeting students? Do they not look at ECA?
Columba does not use loans to meet need:
https://cc-seas.financialaid.columbia.edu/how/determine-need
It depends on the school and the level of scholarship. For top scholarships at top schools, you not only need to have great score and GPA but also a very good CV.
Courtney is right, Columbia doesn’t give scholarships. None of the Ivy League colleges do. Just need based merit aid. So if you are accepted and you have 0 EFC they will meet all your need including tuition, fees, room and board.
And then of course there are many scholarships offered outside of the colleges. Many of those in addition to excellent academics will require other things to make you stand out such as EFCs and essays. My son has racked up over $10k of just those so far. The problem here is that most are only one time awards and geared towards freshmen.