Is your family eligible for need based aid? If not, please don’t expect to get aid from Northwestern which provides need based aid…not merit. You aren’t going to get $200,000 in merit aid from Northwestern….it’s not going to happen.
So are you saying your parents will pay whatever it costs for you to attend college?
My parents are against funding college as they don’t think college is worth it; however there is a small yet hopeful chance that they would pay for it as it is more an issue with their personal and political beliefs instead of their monetary abilities to pay for it. When I go to discuss colleges with them in a year or so there is always room for change. I would be perfectly fine paying back any of the money they have gave me( so basically a loan). It’s extremely difficult to explain the situation on an online forum. I would just like to entertain the possibility.
Well…really…with your solid stats so far, hunting for a great merit offer is a far better choice than assuming hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt for your undergrad degree…in my opinion.
So…please keep an open mind.
And since finances are a significant consideration…I personally think it would be better to be able to consider multiple acceptances and net costs…which you can’t do with ED. Please consider that as well.
Thanks, See you all in around another year when I’m ready to apply. Probably best not to focus on colleges yet for my anxiety levels.
I agree 100% with @thumper1. It does not sound like ED is the best course for you. Please do more research and come back when you would like suggestions for colleges that offer merit for your stats and are a fit for your preferences and career goals. Keep up your grades junior year and enjoy your ECs!
Junior year PSAT is not released until early December.
I agree with others who raise the concern that a 3.7 unweighted is typically not top5%, though your school could have very strict grading. Talk to your guidance counselor about where your general rank is. Schools that do not “rank” almost always send colleges a school profile that indicates a general range of gpas in the class, with some listing a median or highest gpa, or the %above a certain cutoff. Hence, colleges will be able to approximate your rank. Your guidance counselor should be able to provide you with a copy of the current senior class profile and at least that will give you some idea, in addition to asking where you stand now.
Thank you, but this misses my concern. I am looking for confirmation from the OP that the OP has an actual SAT score. Another poster wrote that taking the SAT before the PSAT is not uncommon. I am aware of situations where this is common, but want to her from OP. Earning a 1560 as a sophomore would be a very impressive accomplishment.
@publisher…scroll up. The OP wrote this:
“ Yeah that’s correct I took sat before psat”
Above average chance for an offer of admission to Northwestern University if you apply ED is my best guess. Tailor your application essays to particulars regarding Northwestern.
But, as much as I am a huge fan of Northwestern for hard-working brainiacs, I do not want to encourage you since you plan to assume massive debt. Better to attend Northwestern-Kellogg for an MBA if you want an entree to the top management consulting positions. Don’t assume more than $60,000 of personal debt for an undergraduate degree. Although there is substantial value in an undergraduate degree from a top 10 National University such as Northwestern, I advise against taking on significant debt at the undergraduate level.
FWIW There are schools for which up to about $80,000 of debt is justifiable for those targeting high-demand, lucrative majors such as CS. Northwestern University would be among those schools especially if planning to earn one of the Kellogg Certificates available to high achieving, hard-working undergraduates especially if targeting management consulting.
You can take the SAT in both August and October at the beginning of your junior year and then take the PSAT in October (after the SAT date) of junior year.
Thanks; I’ll see how my finances play out by the time I’m ready to apply.
In the words of Yoda…“Careful you must be…debt is a path to the dark side.” OK, I made up some of that. But, you get what I’m saying 
The federal loan maximum is $27,000 for a 4 year degree. Your parents pay the rest, or co-sign it in the form of private loans. If you have to co-sign it, you can’t afford to go there. It’s that simple.
I don’t want to discourage you, but at the same time, a dream school will become a nightmare with a mountain of debt. I would definitely check out other private schools too. They vary considerably on how much financial aid they offer. For us, Vanderbilt and University of Chicago were more generous on their respective calculators.
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