V1236

So who got invited to compete for a scholarship? I wonder how many are going.

3bbbmom

My daughter received a letter to compete yesterday. We are thinking about it.

mrsref

I would take the "compete" for a scholarship very loosely. D attended last year. There were about 200 students attending, they each went for an interview (~20-30 minutes) with a faculty member. While the students were off at the interviews, the Dean of Admissions assured the parents that these were the students that Ursinus really wanted and almost everyone in attendance would be offered something of a merit scholarship. (later I heard that the range was 8-16K per year).

Since each faculty member interviewed only a handful of students, there couldn't have been a fair way of comparing 200 students for a real "competition".

I think Ursinus uses "Scholarship Day" as a way to gauge interest in the college. Someone who is no longer interested in attending Ursinus will probably not bother attending; those who make the effort to attend are still interested. If you don't attend scholarship day, Ursinus will probably not offer merit aid. Results of the scholarship interview are probably only one piece of the merit aid determination.

pumpkin65

My D got an email 2 days ago...she absolutely can't attend on the day she was invited. So, she's going to write them a note, explaining the situation. It is very short notice, but I can understand why they do it this way.

I imagine this will negatively impact any merit award she might have been considered for, but she says she can live with that. She is content with her other choices.

3bbbmom

mrsref
Did your daughter decide to attend? If so how does she like it?

mrsref

Yes, D1 is a freshman at Ursinus. She is very happy there. There are little things that bother her, but she agrees that they are annoyances not real issues (she doesn't like that her dorm room is in the basement, the pizza at the dining hall isn't very good...).

She's a math/chemistry kid and a varsity athlete...feel free to PM me if you have specific questions.

Plainsman

"I would take the "compete" for a scholarship very loosely. D attended last year. There were about 200 students attending, they each went for an interview (~20-30 minutes) with a faculty member. While the students were off at the interviews, the Dean of Admissions assured the parents that these were the students that Ursinus really wanted..." - Mrsref

If that's true, then I guess my D needs to rip up her acceptance letter and go to Penn State-UP or Cornell. She didn't get one of those Scholarship Day invitations, so she must not be one of the people Ursinus really wants.

robbia613

My D didn't get an invitation to Scholarship Day either, despite acceptances (and money) to Dickinson, Washington & Jefferson, Hobart & William Smith. Her GPA is a 3.6 (out of 4.0) with APs, honors, etc.

I just honestly don't know what they are looking for. She comes from a good private school, is taking a college level course, sang in Symphony Hall/Carnegie Hall, plays lax and is varsity captain. She even interviews well.

All I can think of is her standardized test scores are only mid-range? Pretty funny for a school that is supposed to not count that much on standardized test scores?

I'm disappointed with this outcome. I would have loved to see her there but without some scholarship it may put them out of the running ...

Plainsman

robbia613: Your D is already admitted to Dickinson? Was she EDII or maybe Early Action? My D is still waiting to hear from Dickinson.

robbia613

My D applied to Dickinson EA. I believe she heard back around the beginning of Feb. I hope that helps.