<p>Also, I know for schools like Carnegie Mellon - I believe that they allow you to use the first $7,000 scholarships as you see fit without reducing their aid to you and then additional scholarships would be split half and half. So that is not a bad deal.</p>
<p>From their website:</p>
<p>If you receive an annual total of $7,000 or less in outside scholarships (other than state or federal grants), Carnegie Mellon will NOT reduce your need-based Carnegie Mellon undergraduate grant/scholarship funds. If you receive more than $7,000 annually in outside scholarships (other than state or federal grants), your need-based Carnegie Mellon undergraduate grant/scholarship will be reduced by one-half the value that exceeds $7,000.</p>