3
3 years ago
Admissions Advice
[edited]

When is a good time to start thinking about and looking for merit-based financial aid/scholarships?
Answered

Hi,

Right now I am in freshman year at a high school in California. I was wondering when was a good time to start thinking about merit-based scholarships and when I should begin looking for them?

I am no expert but I know (or I think I know) that individual colleges have their own programs for these types of financial aid, but if anyone could tell me of any major merit-based scholarship programs that are not college-specific, I would really appreciate it!

Thank you!

classof2024
scholarships
freshman
financial-aid
3
3
🎉 First post
Let’s welcome @jswagx to the community! Remember to be kind, helpful, and supportive in your responses.

Earn karma by helping others:

1 karma for each ⬆️ upvote on your answer, and 20 karma if your answer is marked accepted.

1 answer

6
Accepted Answer
3 years ago

You should start looking at Merit-based scholarships in 11th grade.

You can't apply to any until starting in the Spring/Summer prior to your 12th grade anyway but you should have a list of where you want to apply to.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/slideshows/things-to-know-about-merit-aid-scholarships

There are different kinds of Merit Scholarships.

1. National Merit based on your PSAT scores

2. Corporate Merit based on where your parents work

3. College Merit based on the individual school you are applying to (e.g. William and Mary 1693 Merit Award Or UVA Jefferson Scholarship)

4. Merit based on Private Scholarship orgs. like Jack Cooke Kent,

5. Merit based on nonprofit community orgs. like the Elks or Masonic Lodge.

6. And there are many misc. merit awards that don't fall into a specific category.

Trying searching on merit scholarships and you will find a vast array of articles, posts, and lists.

Good Luck.

6
What are your chances of acceptance?
Your chance of acceptance
Duke University
Loading…
UCLA
Loading…
+ add school
Your chancing factors
Unweighted GPA: 3.7
1.0
4.0
SAT: 720 math
200
800
| 800 verbal
200
800

Extracurriculars

Low accuracy (4 of 18 factors)

Community Guidelines

To keep this community safe and supportive:

  1. Be kind and respectful!
  2. Keep posts relevant to college admissions and high school.
  3. Don’t ask “chance-me” questions. Use CollegeVine’s chancing instead!

How karma works