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They certainly do offer scholarships to undergrads. They're trying to be more inclusive these days, so they use their scholarship money to that end.
RE: the bolded, the OP said he was "gifted", a category that does tend to win that scholarship. However, it's moot, at this point, since the OP has posted that he's already in college.
The financial aid at Ivies offered to undergraduates is called grants. Basically they have high admission standards, so you aren't getting scholarships (scholarships are awarded to you based on the merit of your academic work) they are getting GRANTS (based on the financial NEED of the student).
I don't think they are trying to be that inclusive. As research universities they get federal and state funds and therefore they can't admit all rich kids. So at the undergraduate level they will let in some students who get fully funded through grants, but make no mistake the overall student body as a whole is extremely wealthy and there are many students paying in CASH.
At the masters level there are almost no scholarships, grants, or fellowships and students are paying in CASH or they have good credit (graduate plus loans actually perform credit checks on you).
This is from Harvard's website. The other Ivies are more or less comparable.
Quote:
Once you are admitted to Harvard, we work closely with your family to ensure you can afford to come here. Because we seek the best students regardless of their ability to pay, we are committed to meeting 100 percent of demonstrated financial need for all four years. International students receive exactly the same financial aid as Americans. In fact, approximately 70 percent of our students receive some form of aid, and about 60 percent receive need–based scholarships and pay an average of $12,000 per year. Twenty percent of parents pay nothing. No loans required.
I can add from experience working in my own Ivy league school's admission office that a big chunk of the one third whose parents pay full freight are international students.
To be blunt there aren't many scholarships for being "average", below average, or for not having good grades.
If you truly are "gifted" (score well on tests, but average grades) have considered taking the ASVAB. If you are truly gifted you will score in the top percentile of this test and that will open doors for education through the military. The better your asvab score the more options for jobs (career path) you have in the military.
While "luck" might play a part in the life of all people there are many students who face adversity who are still able to work hard, study harder, pay attention in class, ask for help when needed and EARN good, great, and excellent grades.
If you lost your pell grant it could be because one of the following...
you didn't fill out your FAFSA this past spring,
you aren't earning enough credits towards your degree,
or
your are not meeting the school requirements (grades/units) to receive the grant.
If that's not the case then contact your school FA office directly, it is a waste of time to contact the DOE it is literally just a switchboard.
You working full time (plus) combined with the parent contribution (even if there isn't one) could also have affected your award. I know this makes no sense and I encourage everyone to write your reps about this issue if you care about it but back to topic... that could be a reason.
The only issue with this is you should've already known this when you got your notified about your award (which now days happens before the current school year even ends). Then you have the entire summer to work more (since you wouldn't likely be taking summer classes) and while I know $7 an hour with the extra 12-20 hours you'd have a week (not going to summer school) won't scratched the surface for the $6-10k pell grants, at the very least it's something. Hopefully being so close to OKC you'd find something more than min wage.
Our campus actually has 3 students attending public universities in Oklahoma (yours, ECU, and OSU) at various stages including a sophomore at ECU (which is in Ada). So, I am slowly but surely learning the ropes of OK higher ed, a state I had zero working knowledge of prior to the last 5 years.
I know someone already mentioned that many schools offer freshman only scholarships.
At most schools, when you apply for work study it basically says that you're eligible. All 3 of my former students do work study out there. The minimum wage is lower so their checks are a couple hundred each but it's a little more than $400 a month and is very helpful to them, plus one of them works in library and studies 50% of his shift. I don't believe they were notified, I am pretty sure they had to go and physically apply. Where I used to adjunct, certain jobs on campus give priority to work study applicants. The point is you still have to apply to on campus jobs for "work study". I think work study also ensures you get 20 hours.
There are a few things that don't add up for me but I'll PM you about those...
Either way good luck. It sounds like you are trying which is more than some people do. I really hope you're able to get everything in order and find a way to finance your education that doesn't send you to a black hole of debt. I wish you the best.
You are correct on the work-study. While I went to school eons ago, my school had a big work-study job fair at the beginning of the semester where eligible students could apply for opportunities. I think they were guaranteed a certain number of hours and then if those jobs didn't fill first with work-study applicants they could then be advertised to non work-study students.
As for the Pell, if there was some improvement in the EFC calculation for this year, then you would not it. There's no way of telling why this could be, but that could be an issue as well. Since you are calculated with your family at your age, that are many factors that might go into that.
Is there any scholarship(s) that a "gifted" person who's always been really poor , and always dealt with adversity would be likely to get? If so, please share. It seems that pretty much all scholarships that go to poor people go to someone who's from a "racial minority" and/or someone who was lucky enough to have the opportunity to earn good grades in high school, and I don't meet either of those criteria.
The bolded doesn't make sense in relation to the title. Scholarships, a word that literally has the word scholar in it, is for students who earn good grades. And how exactly does someone EARN good grades through luck?
You aren't being ignored. As previously stated, I'm very poor. Very poor people are often in adverse situations, beside having low income. I don't have internet access at home, and have to use the public library's. I also work 55-63 hours a week, and am a full-time college student, so I'm left with only brief periods of time where I can use the internet.
As for my definition of "gifted", its very broad, so I'll limit it to the contexts in which it applies to me. Gifted means displaying functions of higher intelligence on a regular basis, e.g. being able to solve complex algebraic problems in my head, in addition to multiplying/dividing large numbers in my head with in 2-3 minutes and nearly always having the correct answer, frequently using good photographic and echoic memory, displaying good inductive reasoning ability in various contexts (having good common sense, farsightedness, on-the-spot and split-second judgment). This is only a summary, and I'd be happy to explain in as much detail as anyone would like.
My grades in school were above average, with an unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.47 when I graduated high school. I had an ACT score of 26. I took it once and didn't study for it. This academic performance wasn't (mostly) out of laziness, it was because of what my situation outside of school was, in addition to health problems.
Why would you need the internet for the vast majority of school work? Are you claiming your school doesn't have computers for you to use at lunch?
I applied for work-study, and never heard from anyone about a job. As far as my financial need goes, I was given ~~$4500 per semester last year by Pell Grant, which has been completely cut off this year, with no explanation.
You haven't posted recently. I'm hoping you come back and give us updates . Have you spoken to financial aid at your school? The max for a Pell grant per year is approx. $5700. There is no way you could have gotten 4500 per semester.
Is this a for profit school?
I applied for work-study, and never heard from anyone about a job. As far as my financial need goes, I was given ~~$4500 per semester last year by Pell Grant, which has been completely cut off this year, with no explanation.
I missed this before. When I've had work study, once I had my work study grant, I had to find the job myself, no one contacted me to assign me to one. There were lists available, or you can check with places like the library, campus store, dining halls, etc. as they typically hire work study students.
The bottom line is that only the financial aid office at your school can explain what is happening with your financial aid package.
As for my definition of "gifted", its very broad, so I'll limit it to the contexts in which it applies to me. Gifted means displaying functions of higher intelligence on a regular basis, e.g. being able to solve complex algebraic problems in my head, in addition to multiplying/dividing large numbers in my head with in 2-3 minutes and nearly always having the correct answer, frequently using good photographic and echoic memory, displaying good inductive reasoning ability in various contexts (having good common sense, farsightedness, on-the-spot and split-second judgment). This is only a summary, and I'd be happy to explain in as much detail as anyone would like.
My grades in school were above average, with an unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.47 when I graduated high school. I had an ACT score of 26. I took it once and didn't study for it. This academic performance wasn't (mostly) out of laziness, it was because of what my situation outside of school was, in addition to health problems.
Quote:
Originally Posted by germaine2626
There was an article in my local newspaper a few years ago about a student who was graduating with tip-top grades, academic honors, many scholarships, etc.
It was discovered that she and her family had been homeless for several years. She had earned those tip-top grades while living in homeless shelters, sleeping on the floor or the couch of friends & relatives and even studying and doing her homework by flashlight during the periods that her family lived in their car.
Now, that was someone gifted who lived with adversity and deserved great scholarships.
I have two things to say and I'm going to be a bit blunt about it:
1) Colleges don't care if you're gifted or not. They really don't. No one takes an IQ test when applying to college because colleges don't really care about where you fall on the scale.
They care if you can do the work, if you can pass the tests, keep up in class, and go one to do big, grand things that will earn you enough money/esteem that it will come back to them via alum donations and credit. Being gifted only counts if you can parley that into a spot at a good high school (especially the sort of schools that are considered "feeder school" for the Ivies) or it shows through your high school GPA, test scores, and other activities (e.g., how many instruments can you play, how many languages do you know, etc).
As germaine pointed out, there is no shortage of gifted, talented students living a hardknock life who still manage to keep their grades up. These kids end up in the news when they get accepted to all the Ivies or win nearly $1 million in scholarships. Being gifted and have a tough life is one thing; being gifted, having a tough life, and excelling despite the odds is clearly another and the rub is, it's the latter sort of students that get the big bucks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zeppelin0129
The only way to receive a scholarship is through academic achievement. In HS I had a 3.8 GPA (we did not weight GPAs, and I took several honors/AP classes) and in college I have maintained a 4.0 for three semesters running. As a result? I receive $2,000 a semester specifically from my department (Accounting). If you want to receive scholarships, you need to put the produce.
Financial aid is a separate story altogether. Your economic situation determines the amount of "financial aid" the school will provide to you.
That's the other rub: the big bucks are often dangled in front of freshmen students in order to get them in the door. Once you're an actual college student, most financial aid comes from loans, grants (including government grants), outside scholarships, and internal scholarships. Internal scholarships tend to be small, rarely more than $5K/semester (more often <$3K/semester).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Timemachineman
Had a Pell Grant last year. For no apparent reason, it was denied this year. My Dad and I made repeated attempts to contact the Dept. of Edu., in addition to me filling out the form online. This was all well before the deadline for accepted applications. So now I'm stuck paying for all this out of pocket. Oh, I forgot to mention that my school took away the small scholarship they had given me upon entry to the school as a freshman, also with no explanation. Student of University of Central Oklahoma.
Quote:
Originally Posted by brocco
Go to a school with a strong financial aid program
Brocco brings up a very good point. What is the financial health of your school? What about your state? For example, when I was in undergrad, Illinois had a MAP grant that gave Pell grant recipients extra money. From what I hear, the MAP grant isn't an option anymore as IL continues to grapple with its budget.
You may have to consider transferring to a different school, or even moving to a different state, if your school or state doesn't have the money. Funny thing is, with many cities and states struggling to balance budgets, somethings a private school is cheaper than a public, state run school (I know that I was paying less money and getting more financial aid going to my private college than people I knew going to UIC, a public school). I know that may cause other issues with housing and work, but it's something to maybe consider. Get your GPA above 3.5, get on the good side of some professors in your major and hope they can give you a LoR, and try checking out some other schools.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Timemachineman
Also, I'm probably going to change my status as a student to part-time, so I can make good grades in the smaller number of classes that I do take, since right now I realistically can't keep up with the other full-time students who don't have to work as much.
Careful: it may end up costing you more money to go to school PT than as a FT student. Most of the aid out there is only for FT students. Also, many schools offer a discount for FT students that can translate into a few class (e.g., tuition is the same either you take 12 credits or 16 credits), making it possible to graduate in 3 years, or even pick up a valuable/fun minor. If it takes you longer to complete your degree, you'll end up paying more money in the end, especially if tuition takes a hike.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Timemachineman
I applied for work-study, and never heard from anyone about a job. As far as my financial need goes, I was given ~~$4500 per semester last year by Pell Grant, which has been completely cut off this year, with no explanation.
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm74
I missed this before. When I've had work study, once I had my work study grant, I had to find the job myself, no one contacted me to assign me to one. There were lists available, or you can check with places like the library, campus store, dining halls, etc. as they typically hire work study students.
The bottom line is that only the financial aid office at your school can explain what is happening with your financial aid package.
Yup, you have to be the one to apply for jobs, they aren't given to you just because you qualify for work-study. Check into your school's tutoring center and see if you can work as a math tutor (note: some schools require you take and pass an additional course to become a tutor. My school did, but we also got paid a bit more than other work-study students).
Honestly, I don't understand the reliance on getting a work-study job when you're already working over 40 hours/week. You work schedule may be the reason why your financial aid packet is different. Add in the fact that it sounds like you're applying as a dependent student, and I'm surprised you got a Pell Grant at all last semester. If you're a dependent student (and no, it doesn't matter if your parents can't afford to help you, unless you fall under very specific conditions, you're considered a dependent student) and you're working full time hours, schools will not see you as being poor enough to qualify for most aid and I can't imagine how you could get an EFC low enough to even qualify for a Pell Grant.
You would be better off cutting back on hours at work than dropping down to PT status at school. Otherwise, you may as well drop out of college entirely, work as much as possible for a couple of years, quit work, and pay for school out of pocket while devoting 100% of your energy to your studies to keep your GPA high.
Had a Pell Grant last year. For no apparent reason, it was denied this year. My Dad and I made repeated attempts to contact the Dept. of Edu., in addition to me filling out the form online. This was all well before the deadline for accepted applications. So now I'm stuck paying for all this out of pocket. Oh, I forgot to mention that my school took away the small scholarship they had given me upon entry to the school as a freshman, also with no explanation. Student of University of Central Oklahoma.
After I mailed a parent-signature sheet, I was sent a letter from the Dpt of Edu stating that there was no application for the Pell Grant on record. That signature sheet was supposed to complete an application that I'd already filled out online. His attempts to contact them were so that they could help him set up a FSA account, so that he could try giving an electronic signature instead. Assuming he wasn't lying about this, he was hung up on every time he tried to call them. Also, he doesn't know what his FSA ID is, nor does he know the answers to the security questions he made.
I actually managed to get in contact with the dpt of edu once, and one of the possible ways of fixing this that I was given was to make a whole new application. I had my dad's tax papers before, but lost them like a complete idiot. He's also nearly impossible to get paperwork from, or even get a signature from.
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