11+ scholarship bait and switch

[ThatsABitMean]

Writing this in the hope that it is useful to people either this year or in future years.
We based our decisions about which schools to apply to at 11+, like many people on tight budgets, on affordability. A key consideration was the scholarships available. DC excels in an area where scholarships are often awarded. We targeted most of our efforts on 2 schools where we could afford it if the advertised scholarship was awarded. DC was offered a place and the "maximum" % scholarship in both schools.
But in school A the scholarship remittance is stated as a fixed number, no longer a % of fees. So as fees go up and e.g. VAT gets added to school fees, the scholarship remittance stays fixed and the percentage remittance gradually erodes over the 7 year period.
In school B the % has been very significantly reduced from what was (and is still) advertised as available on the school website. (the offer letter makes it clear the scholarship is the max available, so it's not a case of a school advertising scholarships of "up to X%" but this particular scholarship being Y% where Y<X ).

These are basically two variants of a bait and switch scheme, which "occurs when a prospective buyer is enticed by an advertised deal that seems attractive but the advertised deal does not exist or is inferior in terms of quality or specifications. The practice is considered unethical."

So, despite being awarded the maximum scholarship at the schools we thought we could afford (based on what they advertised) , school B is now unaffordable and school A would initially be just about affordable, but will quickly become unaffordable e.g. if VAT is added. As a colleague whose daughter had been offered a couple of scholarships several years ago put it : "great - they've given us half a bus ticket, but we still can't ride the bus".

In short: don't assume the generous percentages currently on a school website will actually be awarded, even to an exceptional candidate. Do assume that, averaged over the 7 years, you'll be paying the vast majority of full fees, and with VAT on school fees looking likely it's safest to assume that even with a scholarship, you'll be paying equivalent of current full fees.

i pay 15% of the fees

i sure as heck won’t have paid paying the vast majority of full fees, after 7 years (3 years away) 😂

Hey, have you applied for any bursaries in parallel. You might be eligible to a small % bursary that would help paid the rest of the fees?

@bestmoment so your award was made 4 years ago. Before a lot of schools removed their scholarship schemes entirely or reduced them to nominal value. I know a few kids who are/were on 50% scholarships but these were awarded 5 or more years ago. All the schools involved don't award scholarships of that size any more. We applied to the last few schools within commuting distance that advertised anything above 20%.
Times have changed - the point of my post was mainly to warn people applying next year. But thanks for your smug, unhelpful and irrelevant contribution to the thread.

Did the letter mean it was the maximum available, or the maximum available to you, though?

As in, this is the maximum that we are prepared to give your DC, so don't bother trying to negotiate it upwards?

There is obviously a sliding scale of percentages awarded depending on exam performance and/or musical/sporting etc ability. A child would have to be absolutely exceptional at something to get 40%/50% - for example a friend's son was told he was the most talented person on a certain instrument that the head of music had ever come across at that age, and he was offered 40%.

I think more and more schools scholarships are nominal amounts these days as schools move more towards bursaries.

A scholarship is rarely awarded at the full amount, for example a sports scholarship may be stated up to 30% but majority are awarded at 20% or less. If one has changed to a fixed amount rather than % that should be clear on the website. Sorry if your dc did not get offered what you needed and you felt misled.

Can you not speak to the schools about it?

I think there can be two different maximum scholarship amounts: 1) the maximum per type of scholarship. So for example the max academic scholarship may be 20%. 2) the maximum aggregate scholarship which is potentially available if one child gets two or more types of scholarship. The maximum overall could be 30%, comprising for example 20% academic and 10% music.

Is it possible that these websites are referring to the maximum aggregate scholarship amounts and you misread it as meaning the maximum for a single type of scholarship? So you have focused on getting the max for that type but now you are disappointed it’s not the max aggregate amount?

If school A would be only just affordable at first it sounds like it wouldn’t have been affordable anyway.

Did you apply for a state school as well?

i have been thick and apologies

this was a bursary not a scholarship

But thanks for your smug, unhelpful and irrelevant contribution to the thread.

although… bit twatty of you! 😂

I also think “bait and switch” is a bit unfair. Schools award scholarships in order to attract top students, not to make the school affordable for those who cannot afford it - that’s what bursaries are for. And schools have to be able to change things as the world changes (like the VAT threat) - what’s on the website is not a set in stone contractual offer.

If budget is so tight that school is affordable with a 25% scholarship but not a 20% scholarship, or a 20% scholarship but not a flat £5k scholarship, then that sounds too tight anyway in reality, given all the associated expenses of a private school and the unpredictability of school fees and other life costs.

Did you also apply for bursaries? I do appreciate there is a tricky middle income area where school fees can be just out of reach but income is not low enough to qualify for a bursary.

Our school have reduced scholarships on exactly this way to plough more into bursaries which are means tested and therefore widen access. Have you applied for a bursary? Would you be eligible for one?

My best friend’s son was awarded a scholarship which his parents then negotiated upwards (he is very skilled at one thing- and in Y7 already one of the best in the school). They spoke to several schools (he had an offer of a 50% scholarship at one) and asked their preferred school to match that and after a week or so they did.

Their second choice school upped their offer from 10-30% as well.
I am not in the UK but without the 50% at their preferred school they would have then opted for the grammar school where he also got in.
I am aware this is unusual though- he is an exceptionally talented boy who is also academically bright. But I say this to make the point that the scholarship offer can be negotiated.

This is true, scholarships are at a nominal level and bursaries to help pay for school fees for those requiring financial support.