Every student has been told that having good grades is important, but not many know why it is important. Before we can get into more detailed blogs about college admissions and financial aid, we have to build from the foundation of the importance of grades. If you and your student understand why good grades are important, this will motivate them more to be successful in the classroom. And If your child wants to play a sport in college, having good grades makes them much more likely to get recruited.
#1 Covering a Percentage of Tuition
Many colleges will use a student’s GPA to determine how much they would be willing to cover for the cost of tuition. The higher the GPA, the higher of the percentage of the cost of school they would be willing to cover. Colleges have a number of funds they can use to help students pay for school. They build these funds from donations from alumni. Financial aid officers will not talk about these much because they use them for special situations. Special situations are for strong students that can help boost their academic profile. The better the grades your student has, the more willing schools will dip into these funds to cover a higher percentage of your costs.
#2 Merit Aid AKA Academic Scholarships
Colleges have sliding scales where the better your GPA and test scores (ACT and/or SAT) are, the larger the academic scholarship will be. Colleges do consider senior year. Some colleges will add more money onto your scholarship if you do well senior year. And on the flip side, schools can take money away from scholarships if your student gives into their senioritis.
#3 Saves Money for College Coaches
College Coaches have a budget they need to follow each year, and scholarship money is included in this budget. The more money a student can earn through Merit Aid, Grants, and other scholarships, this saves money for the coach. Players with good grades don’t require coaches to offer large scholarship amounts because they are getting money from other places. This makes players more attractive and recruitable to coaches because it frees ups their budgets to use money for other needs for the program.
#4 Showing Good Habits and Responsibility
College is full of distractions. If people are going to invest a large amount of money into your student through scholarships, they want to know they are giving it to someone that will be successful. Having good grades shows that they have good study habits and they prioritize their academic success. It also shows your student is responsible and focused on what needs to be done. Financial Aid offices and college coaches invest in students with good grades because they know their money will not be waisted and will make a difference for a student that really wants to earn a college degree.