Merit-based scholarships on the rise as economy struggles
As parents and students work to find ways to pay for the growing costs of a college education, new data shows that the number of merit-based scholarships granted to students is on the rise. Research by the National Center on Education Statistics found that the percentage of undergraduates that were granted merit aid during the 1995-96 and 2007-08 school years more than doubled, reaching 6 percent and 14 percent respectively. The amount of aid also rose between the two years in question, reaching an average of $4,700 in 2007-08. In 1995-96, the average merit-based scholarship was $4,000 (in constant 2007 dollars).
“In 1995–96, need-based institutional grants were more common than merit-based grants in both private nonprofit (43 percent vs. 24 percent) and public 4-year institutions (13 percent vs. 8 percent),” reads one of the key findings of the report. “In 2007–08, the proportion of merit aid recipients exceeded that of need-based grant recipients at public institutions (18 percent vs. 16 percent) and was not measurably different at private nonprofit 4-year institutions (42 percent vs. 44 percent). The prevalence of merit aid was higher at private nonprofit 4-year institutions than at public 4-year institutions in both years.”
The study also found that students in the nation’s Southeast region benefited the most from state merit-based scholarships, with the area doling out aid to 24 percent of students. That is more than twice the national average of 10 percent for such financial aid.
Students hailing from wealthy families received merit-based aid at higher levels during the 2007-08 academic year. According to the report, “The proportion of dependent undergraduates receiving any grant aid who were in the high-income group was larger in 2007–08 (18 percent) than in 1995–96 (13 percent).”
During the 2007-08 school year, need-based aid also rose when compared to 1995-96 and is likely attributable to the economic downturn. In 2007-08, 37 percent of students received need-based aid, while 32 percent got such assistance during the 1995-96 academic year. The amount of aid went up as well between the two school years, rising to $4,000 from $3,600 (in constant 2007 dollars).
