<p>Not sure what Northwestern’s policy is concerning true merit aid. Spiritmaster states that S rec’d both financial aid and merit aid. Since they did qualify for financial aid, their merit award may be based on the fact that they demonstrated need. Even though the aid rec’d is titled both financial and merit, the “merit” part might not be available as merit aid to someone who does not file a Fafsa or someone who does file and shows zero need. That is the question that needs to be asked of each school so that your expectation for rec’d aid is realistic.</p>