An article in the April 20, 2006 edition of The Wall Street Journal touts Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Rensselaer Medal scholarship as an excellent merit-based award that middle and upper-income families can use to get their children good educations at a substantial discount to the Ivy League. According to the article:

At some schools that are well-regarded, though not Ivy League, the discounts can be hefty. At Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, in Troy, N.Y., which costs about $40,000 a year, about a quarter of last fall's freshman class of 1,250 received merit scholarships averaging about $15,000 each.

Offers such as Rensselaer's have "great appeal to the many families that are not eligible for need-based aid -- the only kind offered by Ivy League colleges -- but are squeezed by current prices."

The Rensselaer Medal has been awarded for more than 85 years to "promising secondary school juniors who have distinguished themselves in mathematics and science.... {Its goals are} to recognize the superlative academic achievement of young men and women, and to motivate students toward careers in science, engineering, and technology."

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