Starting in fall 2025, Oberlin is granting all incoming admitted students from the Midwest an automatic $25,000 per year scholarship. The Midwest Merit Scholarship aims to recognize talented first-year students from the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Oberlin’s campus is predominantly composed of students from the U.S. coasts, mainly from New York and California, and Midwestern students like me are generally few and far between. Oberlin hopes to increase its number of applicants from Midwestern high schools through the Midwest Merit Scholarship program — but the College and Conservatory ought to also make an Oberlin education more affordable to the Midwestern students that are already here.
It’s very likely that the new scholarship program will increase the Midwestern population of the student body. More admitted Obies from the rural midwest will get the opportunity to experience the privilege of an Oberlin education. Coming from a small town 70 miles away from Chicago, very few rural Midwestern high school seniors can fathom — or even want to consider — attending a private liberal arts institution. Rural Midwestern high school graduates like me who choose to attend a liberal arts institution are sparsely scattered. For some, it’s simply far too expensive, and for others, higher education does not outweigh the value of working right out of high school. The former group of high school seniors will greatly appreciate the Midwest Merit Scholarship in addition to need-based aid.
When I first heard the news of this scholarship program, I had mixed feelings. I feel that the scholarship is a great asset for Midwestern students who want to attend liberal arts colleges, but I thought of my Midwestern peers at Oberlin and myself who will not be receiving the aid. The Midwest Merit Scholarship is an additional $15,000 to the $10,000 Commitment Scholarship. That’s an additional $60,000 in aid for four years at Oberlin simply for being from one of the 12 states listed in the scholarship’s description. Why not extend the scholarship to current Midwestern students who also share the intent to remain in the Midwest after graduation?
The moment I found out about the Midwest Merit Scholarship after reading the Campus Digest, I felt a bit cheated. Tuition at Oberlin keeps increasing with little to no adjustment to my financial aid reward. I’m paying for my Oberlin education primarily through student loans, and an additional $25,000 per year would save me a lot of money after graduation. I would not have felt as disheartened if the scholarship had merit-based elements — but given that incoming Midwestern students each year beginning next fall are going to automatically receive these funds, I felt robbed.
So, I took my disgruntled Illinoisian self to my laptop and emailed the Office of Financial Aid. I told the office that the Midwest Merit Scholarship would alter my life for the better and that I hope to work in Chicago after my time at Oberlin. As Oberlin’s website page for the new scholarship explicitly states, the aid is for incoming students, I did not have high expectations for their response to my email. Much to my surprise, they were willing to help me out, and matched the scholarship for my fall 2025 financial aid reward.
If the office was willing to grant me the scholarship with no questions asked, can’t they do the same for the other Midwestern students who make up about 19 percent of the current student body? The Midwest is by far not the wealthiest region of the U.S., and Oberlin is very aware of that — hence the launch of the Midwest Merit Scholarship — but the wealth disparity between the Midwest and other regions of the country is not anything particularly new. The current Midwestern students at Oberlin make up a relatively small portion of the student body likely for this reason.
The most plausible reason as to why Oberlin did not initially include current Midwestern students in the Midwest Merit Scholarship program is that it would be too expensive. According to the Oberlin College Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Planning, as of Fall 2024, 19.5% of students, including returning students, are permanent midwestern residents. That 19.5% translates to 568 total midwestern students currently at Oberlin. Giving all of those 568 of us the eligibility for the program would cost Oberlin about $8.5 million for this school year. That’s a hefty portion of Oberlin’s funds being given to students solely for coming from the Midwest.
Yet, Oberlin will be spending an even heftier amount of money for the duration of this seemingly permanent program throughout the years. I believe Oberlin can afford to extend the program to the Midwestern students who are already here. If you are a Midwestern Obie and are concerned about the growing expense of your Oberlin education each year, contact the Office of Financial Aid. Financial aid concerns aside, I am very excited to see more Midwestern faces around campus, and I am incredibly hopeful that more rural Midwestern students will be able to experience a liberal arts education over time.
