Upcoming changes to the way we log in on College Confidential. Read more here.
Honest opinion of merit scholarship possibilities in Engineering
hosbrook41
9 replies1 threads New Member
I am very new to all of this college stuff, so please be patient. My DD is a senior, wanting to go into Engineering (Mech most likely, Loves Robotics). She got a good score on the SAT (1560: 800 math), an 800 in Math II subj SAT, GPA 94.14 u/w, 97.86w. We are in NY and so far RIT, RPI, Suny Bing, and Lafayette are on the list, along with Drexel, Northeastern, and a few others.
All of my friends are telling me she is a shoe-in for scholarships, full-rides, etc. I am wary to believe that she will get anything: expect the worst and hope for the best mentality. I don't know if I've given enough info, but what ARE her chances of a merit scholarship, and how much? (BTW, CWRU, Northeastern...those price tags scare the heck out of me, so we are not in the bracket that can handle $60-75k/year.)
Thanks in advance!
31 replies All of my friends are telling me she is a shoe-in for scholarships, full-rides, etc. I am wary to believe that she will get anything: expect the worst and hope for the best mentality. I don't know if I've given enough info, but what ARE her chances of a merit scholarship, and how much? (BTW, CWRU, Northeastern...those price tags scare the heck out of me, so we are not in the bracket that can handle $60-75k/year.)
Thanks in advance!
Replies to: Honest opinion of merit scholarship possibilities in Engineering
If you are needing to chase a full ride, look at schools like Alabama, Iowa State, Arizona....
https://www.uah.edu/admissions/undergraduate/financial-aid/scholarships/freshmen/freshmen-non-al-merit-tuition-scholarships
https://financialaid.arizona.edu/types-of-aid/scholarships/freshman-transfer#incomingfall2020freshmannon-residentawards
Full rides BTW where all expenses are covered including room and board and books are very rare and much more likely to be found at less competitive institutions looking to raise their ranking. Getting a significant discount on tuition though should be very attainable.
It is very important to know which schools rely on demonstrated interest. RPI for example needs to be visited officially and emailed to be in the hunt for the amount of money that would make it affordable. Case on the other hand (at least when my son applied) didn't rely on demonstrated interest.
I enthusiastically recommend WPI. Yes it is small, but it is VERY unique. They are working actively to improve their M:F ratio so women tend to get higher awards. It is definitely worth a visit if MA is close enough to home for her. My son agonized over WPI before choosing Cal Poly for ME at the last minute. There's a lot to like there.
Lastly, if Boston and the surrounds are not too far, Olin is also a unique, but VERY small program. Everyone gets 50% scholarship. It's very polarizing as to whether or not it's a fit or not based on its size and curriculum, but for those who do fit, they tend to like it a lot. @colorado_mom has helpful insight on Olin.
Good luck!
Do your own research (as you are) and don't listen to the casual parent scholarship talk. It's mostly inaccurate. Read the scholarship and financial aid websites of each school you are considering very carefully. It's especially rare that big giant scholarships exist that aren't mentioned on those websites. Agree with @eyemgh that tuition discounts are attainable and full rides are very rare.
Best advice: know your own financial situation and what you can afford, whether you are eligible for need based aid and whether it would make schools actually affordable or just less out of reach, and your comfort level with student loans. Make sure you understand the difference between need-based aid and merit aid, and which schools offer what kinds of aid and how it combines or doesn't combine. Run the net price calculators at the schools you are considering to get a basic idea of money at each school. All this will help you and your daughter come up with a sensible list to apply to. Apply early for merit scholarships--there's early deadlines fast approaching for those at many schools.