Harvard National Scholarship?

Colleges & Universities Harvard University
4

<p>let’s just make this really clear for people since there seem to be a bunch of threads popping up on this lately:</p>

<p>A. Universities have three major sources of funds that they can provide to students:

  1. Merit Scholarships
  2. Athletic Scholarships
  3. Need-Based Financial Aid (comprised by a combination of Grants + Loans + Work Study)</p>

<p>B. Ivy League universities cannot and do not provide #1 and #2. However, they do provide #3. </p>

<p>C. Need-based financial aid (as implied by the name) is calculated based on the financial need that a family has. Colleges can give you a package that is a combination of any of the three components. Sometimes they can provide you with a financial aid package that is 100% grants (i.e. straight money that you do not have to pay back). </p>

<p>D. Sometimes the university decides to gives the grants it offers “special” names. At Harvard, one of these is called the “Harvard National Scholarship.” There is another, for example, called the “Faculty of Arts and Sciences Scholarship.” Other times wealthy benefactos who donate money to a university will have a grant named after them (for example the “Bradford Remmington Snobington XII Esquire Scholarship” which i just made up :)) </p>

<p>so technically, if your family has significant need, Harvard can give you a great financial aid package comprised entirely of grants with special names…is it still a free ride? YES. Can anyone get it? NO. only those with need.</p>