Does University of Michigan or Cornell usually offer more merit aid to students?

University of Michigan is more likely than Cornell to offer meaningful merit aid, but neither school is known for giving large merit scholarships to many students. Cornell primarily focuses on need-based financial aid, and merit scholarships are very limited there. Michigan does have merit awards, including some notable scholarships, but they are still competitive and not something most admitted students receive.

For a student hoping strong grades and test scores might translate into a discount, Michigan is the place where that possibility is more real. Its merit scholarships exist at both the university and school or college level, though many are selective, sometimes invitation-based, and often awarded to a relatively small group.

Cornell is a better school to think about through the lens of financial need, not academic merit. If your family would qualify for substantial need-based aid, Cornell may still end up being affordable, sometimes surprisingly so. But if you are specifically asking which school is more likely to reward a strong applicant with non-need-based scholarship money, Cornell is usually not the one people count on.

So the practical answer is this: apply to Cornell assuming little to no merit aid, and look at Michigan as the one with at least some real merit scholarship potential.