> To the contrary, since colleges care about student quality, they give larger "scholarships" to better students, and those students disproportionately come fro

> To the contrary, since colleges care about student quality, they give larger "scholarships" to better students, and those students disproportionately come from more affluent families. As a result, rich families often receive more aid on average than poor ones. My experience at a state flagship is that if you have a 100% EFC (called SAI now, supposed to represent what you can afford), you don't really get considered for any aid regardless of merit, except for a very extremely selective programs with their own applications and outside committees. However, that could also be because with in-state tuition, someone whose EFC is around the size of a private school would already be paying only a fraction of that. > Johnny's parents and grandparents proudly tell their friends about "how much money Baker gave to Johnny," and Johnny chooses to attend Baker over Able. I can't stand the newspaper articles that talk about how someone applied to 20 colleges they were likely to be accepted to and got "$X million in scholarships." Aside from the author's point that some of them would be expected, totaling them all up is pointless since they are mutually exclusive.