This isn’t always true. There are lots of schools that give merit scholarships to almost everyone. It makes them feel good. Take Oberlin College as an example. The had 863 first year students. 509 of them had need that was 100% covered. Of the 509, 494 of them received a non need based award as part of their package. Of the 354 that didn’t receive and financial aid, 354 got a non need based award. So nobody pays full price and 848 of 863 could say they got a “merit” award.
1 Like