Update that the USC (University of Southern California) National Merit scholarship has been reduced from 1/2 tuition down to $20K.
Well, another one bites the dust. Fall 2025 admits are the last class where Fordham is awarding full tuition scholarships earmarked for NMSFs/NMFs. In the past Fordham gave full tuition scholarships to about 70% of National Merit students as well as to many National Recognition Program students (e.g. Hispanic, African American and Native American National Recognition Scholars.) But now there is just some vague wording about full tuition scholarships available to âtop studentsâ with rigorous preparation.
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Interesting. I wonder if itâs an attempt to draw more students from the tri-state area. The NMSF hurdle is pretty high here (NJ, but throughout the tri-state), so I wonder if theyâre losing out to high-stat students that are willing to go further away - especially south to chase merit.
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My understanding was that Fordhamâs goal has been to have more of a national draw i.e. to recruit from outside of the tri-state area (but I agree that dropping the NMSF requirement gives them more flexibility for the tri-state students they want.)
I suspect the biggest reason is that they can no longer offer scholarships for National Recognition Scholar status because it is race-based. Perhaps also the goal of offering more need-based (vs. merit based) money.
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Bummer. My D2024 is a recipient and has been having a wonderful freshman year at Fordham. So much so that her anti-urban campus little sister was going to look at Fordham if she gets NMSF. 
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Does anyone else have further thoughts on the âvibeâ at UTD?
My D26 will get NMSF. She wants to study UX/UI type stuff â some combo of art and tech and game design. UTD has a good fit major for her on paper â Media Arts and Design. (This is actually harder to find than youâd think â these programs vary widely.)
D26 is artsy and quirky and somewhat nerdy, doesnât care anything about big sports or Greek life. She has a lot of different interests, from anime to crochet to video games to cosplay to making doll clothes.
The one caveat is that sheâs a marching band kid. She initially wanted to march in college, but quickly decided that the schools with giant competitive marching bands were not for her. Sheâd like something chill and low-commitment, and if no marching band, then sheâd like a fun pep band at least.
Does anyone know anything about the pep band at UTD? Is there sufficient school spirit at games to sustain a pep band?
Her top choices right now include RIT and WPI, along with Miami Ohioâs Emerging Tech program. (Miami Ohio is a very different vibe than the other two, and in an area thatâs much more rural and conservative than she prefers, but the program is good, and they do have a marching band.)
None of these other schools would be free, however. 
She does have UAH on her list as a likely, but only because itâs a drive instead of a flight for us â Iâm thinking UTD might be a much better fit.
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UTD was a great fit for both my National Merit boys though they were not band kids. I know UTD has a drum line and a pep band. Pep Band - Bass School of Arts, Humanities, and Technology | The University of Texas at Dallas
If you can manage it, highly recommend a visit during during scholars day! https://enroll.utdallas.edu/visit/events/scholars-day/
If you canât make it during scholars day make sure you arrange your visit though the honors college so they can make sure you learn about all the perks to NM:-)
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Thank you for this! I canât find where a Scholars Day is on the schedule â I will keep looking. The sample agenda did say the pep band would perform for visitors, so that would actually be perfect. I hope they schedule one that we can actually attend! Fall is a little rough because of marching band. 
Did you contact the Honors College directly to schedule a tour?
For sure they will have Scholars Day in October usually a Saturday in late October. Keep checking back on the scholars day page, they should be posting dates within the week. You do need to register for the event and it does fill up quickly. They also usually have another Scholars Day event in April.
If you canât make it to either of those contact the honors college to schedule a tour but make sure you mentioned that you are likely MN, they may direct you back to the welcome center but I would start with them.
You can search my posts but I have 2 NM boys that with FastTrack and their AP/DE credits completed both their BS and MS degrees fully covered by UTDâs generous national merit package. Youngest got a great job which he started as soon as he graduated and oldest decided to stay at UTD for his PhD and was award the McDermott Graduate Fellowship. Weâve been very pleased with UTD. My boys âfound their people,â had great experiences and a great education that led to amazing jobs.
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@SpreadsheetMom they have updated Scholars Day page with one date each in Oct., Nov., and Feb. Scholars' Day
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Thank you for this! I was away for the long weekend, but looking at this now and will try to book a trip!
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