“Merit-based” scholarships are offered to students based on their academic and athletic profile, but the student’s financial situation is taken into consideration before the university makes an admission decision. Think of it like any other private business. If you are looking for a long term supplier of goods or services, chances are that this supplier is going to review your financial situation before making a decision whether to sell you the products or services or not. The same rationale is applied to the university world. Most of them want to ensure that you, your family or anybody willing to sponsor you, is capable and willing to pay for your university cost of attendance. A typical requirement that universities make is for the person supporting you to provide bank statements to prove that there is enough money to cover at least one year worth of university costs. Assuming that you are able to meet the university’s financial requirements, there are different factors that contribute to the amount of scholarship you will receive.  But remember, your family income will not be used by the majority of the universities in the U.S. to decide how much scholarship amount you receive.