The college admissions and funding processes may be difficult to negotiate. The quantity of paperwork is mind-boggling, your fate is in the hands of Admissions and Financial Aid Officers, and their judgments do not always make sense to an outside observer. Families may often feel out of control.
You may now be wondering if you can negotiate for more financial assistance or support (or a funding offer, if you did not receive one). The answer is YES. Indeed, many graduate students successfully negotiate their stipends, financing packages, and benefits.
Tips for Negotiating College Scholarship after been accepted into a Master’s Program
Here are a few basic tips and guidelines that can help you during the scholarship negotiation process.
1. Prepare your negotiation pitch.
If you are requesting more scholarship funds, you must be able to substantiate your request. Allow yourself ample time to organise your thoughts.
Scholarships can be awarded on the basis of merit or need. If your profile is in the top 20-25 percentile of the incoming class, the school has an incentive to make their class profile appear excellent as well.
You should be able to emphasise anything that distinguishes you from the competition. If you can demonstrate how you will offer value to their programme, you may be eligible for further scholarships depending on your profile strength. However, before you begin the process, you must be extremely clear about how you intend to go and be well-prepared.
If you contact the school about need-based scholarships, you must give facts and statistics to back up your claim. Demonstrate your commitment and enthusiasm. Inform the school that you are eager to be a part of their course.
Discuss your financial status, highlighting trouble areas and how additional financing may make a significant impact, bridging the gap and allowing you to participate in their programme.
2. Demonstrate Interest
Colleges will be more ready to negotiate with you if they feel that a small amount of more financing from them can assure your enrollment, so demonstrate interest in the institutions on your list. Visit campus, participate in optional interviews, access their student portal, and, please, open the emails they give you. (Yes, many schools can and do track this information.) A college is likely to believe that you have no intention of enrolling and are simply using any offers from them as bargaining chips with other institutions if you haven’t exhibited any interest. This is not the message you intend to convey.
3. Put it in Writing
If you phone or walk into a college Admissions Office, the individual you speak with is unlikely to have the authority to amend your scholarship offer—certainly not on the spot—and such demands are frequently greeted with firm resistance. Instead, send an email to the Admissions Office, wait for the letter to be routed to the appropriate person (these requests may need to go to a committee), and then follow up with a phone call a week or two later. This method permits the Admissions Officer to act as your advocate rather than your adversary during the negotiation process.
4. Follow up
If you haven’t heard back from them in a fair amount of time, make it a point to follow up. But don’t go too far in this direction by constantly nagging them for more money.
A little reminder will suffice to keep you on their radar. The college would have its own scholarship fund. If there are admitted applicants who have not accepted their offers, you might be able to get some more funds.
5. Apply early
Applying early can always boost your chances of receiving a scholarship or negotiating the scholarship amount, as opposed to applying late when multiple scholarships have already been awarded.
6. Use diversity and differentiation to your advantage
Many schools have a bias toward encouraging diversity by boosting the number of entering female students, who are under-represented in the field. They also have an edge in terms of scholarships, as there are grants specifically for female candidates. Read about what schools are trying to recruit female students.
Other scholarships for under-represented groups are based on ethnicity, residence, or being a native of a specific nation. There are few scholarships available for students seeking degrees or careers in certain disciplines.
If you haven’t been able to increase your scholarship amount via your institution, you might check for scholarships offered via independent external organizations. Conduct an extensive study to investigate all possibilities so that no opportunity is lost and applications are submitted on time.
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