Hi, As a parent I am glad that many colleges offer merit scholarships for good students. But what is the true reason for these colleges to be offering scholarships? I thought a college is a business like everything else. Why do they care so much about attracting top students or their rankings? Money is money whether it comes from a student with a 3.9 high school GPA or 3.0 GPA, right? I used to wonder why many colleges go to great lengths ( kudos to them, however ) to offer full rides to NMFs and the like. It almost seems like some colleges are bribing their way to go up the rankings.