Slater Advising Students Earned $2.1 Million in Merit Aid in 2026

This year, students we worked with received over $2.1 million in merit-based scholarships from colleges. That number gets attention, and it should. But the more important question is how it happened. Merit aid isn’t random, and it’s not just reserved for a small group of students at the very top. In most cases, it’s the result of one thing done well over time: a thoughtful, intentional college list.

Merit aid isn’t about luck

There’s a common misconception that merit scholarships are unpredictable, that a student applies, waits, and hopes something comes through. In reality, most merit aid is tied directly to how a student’s profile compares to a school’s typical admitted student. When a student is toward the top of a school’s academic range, schools are more likely to offer merit aid as an incentive to enroll. When a student is right in the middle of that range, merit becomes less consistent. When a student is below it, merit is unlikely. This isn’t guesswork. It’s positioning.

The college list drives the outcome

This is where most families get it wrong. They build a list based on rankings, name recognition, or general fit, then hope merit aid shows up. By that point, the outcome is already mostly set. Merit aid is heavily influenced by where a student applies. A well-built list includes schools where a student is not just admissible, but highly competitive. That doesn’t mean sacrificing fit or aiming only at less selective schools. It means being intentional about including the right mix of schools where a student’s profile stands out.

Small shifts can lead to big differences

Two students with very similar academic profiles can have very different financial outcomes. The difference often comes down to where they apply. One student might apply to a list where they are mostly in the middle of the pool and receive little to no merit aid. Another student with the same profile might apply to a more strategically built list and receive significant scholarships. That gap can be tens of thousands of dollars per year, and over four years, it adds up quickly.

Planning ahead matters

Merit aid isn’t something that gets figured out at the end of the process. It should be part of the strategy from the beginning. That means understanding how a student’s academic profile is likely to be viewed across different schools. It means building a list with intention, not just preference. It also means making decisions along the way that support both admissions outcomes and financial outcomes, rather than treating those as separate goals.

So what does $2.1 million actually represent?

It represents a group of students who applied to schools where they were well positioned. It reflects families who were open to building thoughtful, balanced college lists. And it points to a process that focused not just on getting in, but on making college more affordable. The number matters, but what’s behind it matters more.

Final thought

Merit aid isn’t guaranteed, but it’s also not a mystery. When the process is intentional, the outcomes tend to follow. In many cases, the biggest financial opportunities come from decisions made long before applications are submitted.