<p>It doesn’t hurt to apply to some Profile schools, but know that the financial aspect may not work out. DO apply to schools known for merit, because you would be in as good a position as anyone to receive merit scholarships.</p>
<p>I agree! </p>
<p>Apply to some Profile schools just to see what happens… you may get surprised. :)</p>
<p>Also apply to some schools with competitive merit (Kelsmom recommended some).</p>
<p>BUT…also apply to some schools with ASSURED HUGE merit for stats because even if you’re awarded good merit from Vandy or WashU, you have no idea how much they’ll still expect your family to pay.</p>
<p>USC has a guaranteed half tuition scholarship for NMFs. That is very nice…worth about $20k per year. 
However, if they also determine that you have no need except for maybe Pell (because of FAFSA formula), they’ll still expect your family to pay the other $25-30k+ per year…which doesn’t sound possible.</p>
<p>So, be sure to protect yourself by applying to a couple of REAL financial safety schools which will give a free ride or very close to it. With your likely NMF status, that is possible. If one of your goals is to get out of Nebraska, then relying only on NE-L as your financial safety school isn’t a good idea.</p>