shanvan Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 (edited) b/c it would affect Merit need based aid? I am researching right now and I have read that sometimes the school will allow the student to apply the scholarship toward a loan amount. Trying to figure out if it will be worth it to spend the time on scholarship applications. Corrected to state need-based aid. Edited January 28, 2016 by shanvan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 We have not opted out, but we have opted for selective applications. Our sons apply for the 4-H scholarship ($2500 in our county so a nice chunk of change, and the competition for it is reasonable so they have good chances of getting it which makes the time spent applying and writing essays worth it), and a few others that are similar. There are many scholarships in the $500-1000 range that average many, many thousands of applicants - usually corporate scholarships instead of charitable institutions and education organizations - and there is a plethora of them. These we do not consider to be worth the time because it would just be a huge amount of paperwork and essays for the tiniest of chances of receiving the award. The institutions they have applied to allow stacking so outside scholarships can add up to or exceed tuition/room/board and be used for textbooks and such. But, if they meet full need this way - never, ever happened to us- institutional merit aid is reduced. Mostly we use judicious scholarship applications in the hopes of reducing student loan indebtedness and parent contributions. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 It won't affect merit aid, it will affect need-based aid. So, if the school is offering $5,000 in merit aid and $8,000 in need-based aid, then a $2,000 outside scholarship will lower the need-based aid to $2,000. So, same effect to a certain extent, but if two schools are offering roughly the same amount in aid, the one that offers more in merit definitely gains points. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 (edited) Any scholarship DD would have won would have reduced the need based aid she receives from the college by that amount. So there was no point in applying for anything. I have not heard of outside scholarships affecting merit aid. Edited January 28, 2016 by regentrude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 I never applied for any for the reasons stated. If you are getting the aid already why? And for some odd reason it's not always a one to one reduction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Although yeah why would it affect merit aid? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted January 28, 2016 Author Share Posted January 28, 2016 (edited) I'm going to double check on the merit aid. I might have mis-read info from one of the schools. I thought I read one that mentioned merit aid--but I may been tired! ​ETA: Yes, I neglected to finish reading the sentence. 'if the scholarships total more than the cost of tuition'. So it is need based that would be affected. Edited January 28, 2016 by shanvan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted January 28, 2016 Author Share Posted January 28, 2016 Ds's situation is that he will qualify for significant need-based aid b/c of dh's unemployment and much lower salary at his new company. There are a total of about $5000 in scholarships available to him from about 4 clubs who are falling all over themselves to give him the money. So far, most of the schools do not stack. I had read somewhere that you could try to convince the school to apply the outside scholarship to a loan amount (assuming there is a loan). I am just trying to decide if I want Ds to spend time on these essays. I would like him to focus on finishing out the year well and maybe, just maybe, have some time to enjoy himself (he works part time). People from the clubs with scholarships are reminding me a lot though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 (edited) On 1/28/2016 at 11:46 AM, shanvan said: Ds's situation is that he will qualify for significant need-based aid b/c of dh's unemployment and much lower salary at his new company. There are a total of about $5000 in scholarships available to him from about 4 clubs who are falling all over themselves to give him the money. So far, most of the schools do not stack. Biggest concerns to me would be is if no stacking is allowed, which scholarships are renewable and which are one-time awards? And more significantly, if the financial situation of you and DH changes in the next 1-2 years so that there is a higher salary, that could significantly affect any need-based aid. In contrast, any scholarships that were awarded on merit-only with no need-based component would NOT be affected (as long as the student keeps up the GPA and credit load required for the scholarship). I would hate to turn down renewable merit aid from a university that would NOT be affected by any potential changes in family income, in favor of one-time awards, and/or need-based scholarships that could go away as soon as family income changes. On 1/28/2016 at 11:46 AM, shanvan said: I had read somewhere that you could try to convince the school to apply the outside scholarship to a loan amount (assuming there is a loan). I am just trying to decide if I want Ds to spend time on these essays. I would like him to focus on finishing out the year well and maybe, just maybe, have some time to enjoy himself (he works part time). People from the clubs with scholarships are reminding me a lot though. I have never heard of this. Doesn't mean that it hasn't happened, but it frankly sounds like wishful thinking. But you never know… Absolutely need to get that verified by the specific university that DS ends up attending and get it in writing that the college agrees to do this (and for all 4 years)(and that the outside money will NOT have any impact on how much the college decides to award). I would NOT rely on the advice of people from the clubs on this one. I would be very concerned about being told one thing by one university financial aid officer, and then when the school year started, be told "That's not our policy and we don't do that. But here's a loan agreement for you if you need more funds for college…" BEST of luck in trying to sort through all of the options -- and hopefully you'll be able to find a school that allows stacking so that you can take advantage of both inside and outside scholarship monies! ? Warmest regards, Lori D. Edited September 17, 2018 by Lori D. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 (edited) Nope, not worth it, imo. 95% chance they will just reduce need-based aid by $5,000 if is wins that much. Just thank them for the reminder and move on! No need to explain. If you really feel pressured, you and/or ds can say that he hasn't gotten around to it bc his schedule is so full. Can't let those senior year grades slip! Edited to add that the only way I would consider it is if he will be eligible for these scholarships in following years. If your dh's salary is likely to go up, it could be good to be a recipient up for renewal. If it's a one-time thing, then probably not. Edited January 28, 2016 by katilac 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Thankfully this wasn't an issue for us--scholarships did not affect need-based aid at all. I think I'd be frustrated by schools not willing to stack, honestly! How often does EFC + aid actually equal the costs of tuition, books, room & board? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 I have heard anecdotally that there are schools where outside scholarships will reduce any merit aid by that amount rather than reducing need based aid or reducing the cash amount owed. I have no proof for this, just stories. Perhaps one could engage directly with the relevant financial aid office(s) to find out how they handle this situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted January 29, 2016 Author Share Posted January 29, 2016 (edited) I have heard anecdotally that there are schools where outside scholarships will reduce any merit aid by that amount rather than reducing need based aid or reducing the cash amount owed. I have no proof for this, just stories. Perhaps one could engage directly with the relevant financial aid office(s) to find out how they handle this situation. Yes, I think this is what I am going to have to do b/c the more I read online, the more confused I get. I did find on College Confidential that a poster was saying that the amount they needed in loans was reduced b/c of outside scholarship, and another who said merit aid was reduced. Clear as mud. The scholarships Ds is eligible for, he is almost certain to get, and the one club is definitely renewable. The other I want to say is only renewable in sophomore year--but I'll have to double check. Edited January 29, 2016 by shanvan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted January 29, 2016 Author Share Posted January 29, 2016 Okay, I found a pretty good explanation of how it would work if the college does not 'stack' scholarships. This is copied from College Confidential: Even if the schools "stack", they will not reduce your contribution with outside scholarships below your EFC (only internal, merit, scholarships will do that!). So COA - Merit - EFC = max outside scholarship $ that will NOT reduce your merit $. Since your EFC is high, the Merit scholarship is the best you can do. Sharing in case it helps someone. You still have to check with specific schools, but this is a help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 I have heard anecdotally that there are schools where outside scholarships will reduce any merit aid by that amount rather than reducing need based aid or reducing the cash amount owed. I have no proof for this, just stories. I think this is just because people are constantly confusing merit aid with need-based aid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 (edited) Any scholarship DD would have won would have reduced the need based aid she receives from the college by that amount. So there was no point in applying for anything. I have not heard of outside scholarships affecting merit aid. It did for my dd. Caused a mess of a problem for a while. Her swim coach suggested applying for an additional academic scholarship which she ended up being awarded. When we received her financial packet, they had deducted the amount of the scholarship from the merit aid (she had no need based aid) she had been awarded. I had to fight the school to have it reversed back to merit aid and give up the scholarship award. Taking the scholarship award made no sense. She would lose it if her gpa fell below a 3.5. The merit aid gpa requirement was a 3.2 (and very rarely actually ever taken away unless the student was not trying according to the financial people at the school) plus never based on a single semester's performance. The merit was for 4 years. The academic scholarship for only one. Why would anyone take the academic who was already receiving top merit aid? (Those who were not top merit earners could add scholarships until they reached the top aid allowed which was equal to the top merit aid.) They only canceled the academic scholarship when we told them she would not be attending the school after all. I think the exploding swim coach in their office might have had something to do with their decision too. It didn't hurt at least. Personally, I don't think scholarships should change merit aid amounts. I understand it lowering the need based awarded. If the need is met by outside sources, it is no longer needed. I also understand not applying for those scholarships because of this, especially if it has higher requirements in order to keep the aid.Need based is determined yearly though, isn't it? (At least through fAFSA...) Edited January 29, 2016 by Lolly 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted January 29, 2016 Author Share Posted January 29, 2016 Personally, I don't think scholarships should change merit aid amounts. I understand it lowering the need based awarded. If the need is met by outside sources, it is no longer needed. I also understand not applying for those scholarships because of this, especially if it has higher requirements in order to keep the aid.Need based is determined yearly though, isn't it? (At least through fAFSA...) Thank you! I looked at Ds's individual school policies and I DID find at least one that actually states that outside scholarships can affect merit aid, and for that school it's a huge merit scholarship, so you are right--makes no sense to bother with outside scholarships in that case. It's all so tedious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 I think this is just because people are constantly confusing merit aid with need-based aid. The stories were quite specific. The kids in question had applied for further scholarships to reduce the amount of their student loans or EFC. Instead of lowering loan/EFC amounts the outside scholarships reduced merit aid. Not the effect they had intended with their applications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 The stories were quite specific. The kids in question had applied for further scholarships to reduce the amount of their student loans or EFC. Instead of lowering loan/EFC amounts the outside scholarships reduced merit aid. Not the effect they had intended with their applications. I believe it. Ds is going to call the financial aid offices of the schools he has received merit aid from and see if he can get a definitive answer from them about outside scholarships. I will report back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpedIntoTheDeepEndFirst Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 I believe it. Ds is going to call the financial aid offices of the schools he has received merit aid from and see if he can get a definitive answer from them about outside scholarships. I will report back. Dd has a couple schools she is going to revisit before decision time. I have planned to meet with financial aid to have a similar conversation. I think these sorts of decisions vary greatly by school so I want to avoid confusion or assumptions and ask the experts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*LC Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 One of the outside scholarships that my college kid was in a check addressed to her. It was to be used for books and other expenses. Another one came to her, but it was endorsed to the college. She brought the check to the school, and then they deposited the amount in our bank account since she didn't owe anything. Since you know the groups giving out the scholarships, I would ask how the money is to be used and how it will be written. Every bit helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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