Merit Scholarships: Are They Accessible For All Students

Abstract

Higher education should be accessible to all who reach for it. However, it is often out of reach for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds largely due to the cost barrier. Merit scholarship programs help make education more attainable for these students by eliminating this barrier. To understand the challenges underrepresented students face when applying to these scholarships, research was conducted on different merit scholarship and honors programs in the nation. Findings revealed that focus on social justice programming, service learning, holistic admissions, varied recruitment practices, and improved state merit aid programming can all be used to increase the number of underserved students receiving merit scholarships. The negative K-12 experience for low-income/ rural students including lack of extracurriculars, lack of transportation, limited access to standardized test preparation, and working longs hours also contributes to decreasing the access of merit scholarships for underrepresented students. Interviews were conducted with merit scholarship directors to discover practices they use to increase diversity and inclusion within their programs.