Could your name get you a free ride to college? See this unlikely tuition loophole

High school students hoping for a discount on their tuition may not have to look further than their last name.

One of the unlikely donations some universities offer is a full scholarship based on a student’s last name – even if there is no relationship to the benefactor.

Derek Gatlin, a graduate of North Carolina State University, told The Wall Street Journal what it was like to learn about the unique loophole in the last name.

A teacher told Gatlin to take his education seriously while he was in high school and that he could possibly earn a college scholarship because of his name.

Although skeptical, Gatlin easily managed to earn a full ride to North Carolina State in 2001.

The school cited two reasons: his last name and strong SAT scores.

“It was the golden ticket, like in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” Gatlin told WSJ. “Then I asked, where is Raleigh, North Carolina.”

NC State University is currently offering a John Gatling Grant, which Raleigh businessman John Gatling established for students with the last name “Gatling” or “Gatlin.”

Prospective students applying for the scholarship are only required to maintain a 2.0 GPA and satisfactory academic progress – in addition to providing a copy of their birth certificate to prove their last name.

The California native graduated from NC State in 2009 and was in the spotlight of the school’s Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MALS) program in 2020.

Derek Gatling, a 1991 NC State graduate and pastor from New Jersey, was also fortunate to receive the scholarship.

The stock market even caught the attention of one Reddit user, who wrote in 2018: “Brb. I’m going to change my last name.’

NC State graduates are just two of likely hundreds of future students with unique last names.

Loyola University Chicago offers the Zolp Scholarship, which Catholic priest Rev. William Zolp established in the 1970s.

Students eligible to apply for the scholarship must be admitted to the school, have the surname Zolp, and be Roman Catholic.

Anyone interested in studying at the University of California, Irvine, and a direct descendant of Miguel Velez’s family, can apply for the scholarship named in his honor.

The Miguel Velez Scholarship provides financial assistance, but recipients must be citizens of a Latin American country with a preference for Columbia.

However, students with the last name Dudley would likely have a good chance of being offered a full scholarship to Harvard University.

The Ivy League university will likely offer a full scholarship to a prospective student who is a descendant of Thomas Dudley, a governor of the Massachusetts Bay colony in the 17th century.

Prospective students who wish to attend a school in the Northeast may qualify for one of 38 scholarships that the University of Maine offers to descendants of a particular individual or family.

While this may be an unusual last name, Scarpinato is the name that could help someone get a scholarship offer from Texas A&M University.

All one has to do is be a student whose last name is Scarpinato, either by marriage or blood relation.

Dudley isn’t the only last name Harvard University considers when reviewing admissions applications.

Prospective students with the last name Downer will likely have an advantage at Harvard University thanks to the Charles Downer Scholarship Fund.

Prospective or current Harvard students whose surname is Downer or are descendants of Joseph or Robert Downer of Wiltshire, England, or members of the Harvard Class of 1889 may apply.

Admissions committees at Yale University and Hamilton College may be excited to receive an application from a high school student whose last name is Leavenworth.

The Leavenworth Scholarship, founded by attorney and politician Elias W Leavenworth in 1882, is offered to students from those two schools in Connecticut and New York if their last name is Leavenworth.

Unfortunately, Leavenworth is a rare surname, and Yale even placed advertisements in an attempt to invite men with that surname to apply to the university, according to a 1938 article in the Yale Daily News.

“It seems there is no Leavenworth among the students and in this embarrassing situation the fair requires advertising,” the article said.

“Any Yalemen considering changing their name to receive this award are cautioned that such a procedure would be frowned upon by authorities, although the legality of the action may be beyond criticism.”

A Hamilton College administrator gave a successful PowerPoint pitch about hosting a Leavenworth family reunion in Kansas nearly two decades ago.

Since then, prospective students with the last name Leavenworth have popped up, and the most recent scholarship was given to a Hamilton individual in 2015.

It was the first Leavenworth scholarship awarded by either university in more than two decades.

Benjamin Leavenworth, a 1994 Hamilton graduate, also received the scholarship, and he revealed to the WSJ that he had known about it since elementary school.

Before Benjamin, his father and grandfather received Leavenworth scholarships to attend Yale.

However, the scholarship, which came with financial aid that covered more than half of his tuition, ultimately played a major role in deciding where he would attend college.