<p>The schools meet need as they determine it-- and your circumstances are unusual. You have to realize that your numbers aren’t typical (your family has a lot in assets for its income level), so you are adding an element of unpredictability into the equation. So one school may determine you have very little need (met by a loan and on-campus work) and another school may determine you have enough need to give you a grant. </p>
<p>You also have to realize that you have no idea where your brother will go to school. He may attend a school that doesn’t meet need and your parents may have to fork over additional money for him.</p>
<p>I know Michigan, Purdue and Illinois don’t guarantee to meet full need. Does CT guarantee to meet full need for instate students? That leaves USC and Vanderbilt. Ok, now you have some homework to do (unless you already know this): ask them if they cap equity in a house when they count for assets, ask them how much they expect you to earn per summer and per school year and how much they package in loan amounts. Tell them that your parents have an income just under $100K but they have assets close to $1million and want to know how the school will see it. You do not have to give your real name but you do need to listen carefully. (It may be better to do this via email if they’ll respond.) </p>
<p>Vandy has a no-loan policy (which is great) but what we found was that schools that say they don’t package loans usually estimate higher contributions in summer and school year work from the students. So listen and run your numbers. The advantage to Vandy is that your loans would actually lower EFC since they don’t include them in the package.</p>
<p>I realize you think we parents are all telling you to play this very conservatively. We are. We hope the best situation comes true: you get in to all these schools and they give you generous merit or grant money. But the truth is that we parents have learned to hope for the best and plan for the worst. </p>
<p>If you absolutely hate RPI and won’t go there, then don’t include it on the list. But you need to try to find one or two schools where you are almost certain to be accepted, that you would attend and that you can definitely afford.</p>