With the possible exception of quantitative analytics at MIT, I don’t think ANY undergraduate degree is worth what full pay at Tufts costs. That opinion certainly applies to engineering everywhere, including MIT, Caltech and Stanford.
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Both are not required if you aren’t applying for financial aid.
But if you don’t want need based aid consideration…these forms are not required. But that’s the case for just about every college in the country.
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Guessing she will love the TCU campus.
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He was accepted to Middlebury (ED1) and deferred from Lewis and Clark. No, we’ll never know. It would be nice to know about the deferrals and other reaches, but he’s so happy with his choice to ED and acceptance.
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I assume TO ? No way that makes sense otherwise but even then. You’re right. No rhyme or reason that’s a big get. I think it’s safe to assume he’d be in at L & C too. Maybe deferral is their thing. Congrats!!
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OP:
You should listen to what this poster is saying. It’s very good advice.
Thank you. I also think demonstrated interest may be a part of it. He didn’t show interest for L & C other than applying.
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We were full pay like the OP so we didn’t fill out CSS at all.
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yes, when it comes to good schools, the midwest schools are actually quite good.
They can not be selective because the states just dont have enough students to fill the schools. They are there for the benefit of all the kids in those states. They offer lots of good programs, opportunities, and education. The topography is just not that enticing though. 
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I was super interested in this thread, Olga. I’m foreign born, got my undergrad in my home country, masters in the US. Undergrad was free, masters was paid for (scholarships). So my mindset is completely different from yours. My twins are seniors going through the same process. They chose a few reach options, but mainly targets and safeties. I can afford to pay for them to go to an expensive school, but I won’t consider that for undergrad degree. They took ACT once, 34 and that’s that. With some studying, they could have gotten a higher score but they were fine with 34. They’ve gotten in with merit several schools, incl. baylor, and right now Alabama is their main choice. Their automatic scholarship for 34 act is 28k, honors college. Both want to continue higher education, one wants law the other one medicine. U of alabama is in a southern state with over 50k students from all over the country. It’s a party school for those who want to party. That’s not my kids’ scene but def. Not a deterrant. Alabama has rolling admission so still time for your kid to apply. Best advice we have gotten is get the cheapest undegrad you can, then splurge for some elite school. If i were you, I’d put that cash aside, and have the kid go for merit anywhere she can, esp since bachelors in psych can’t be used much. She will need masters and possibly further education to be in that field. Good luck
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I have a few concerns with the situation. First, I would not recommend that a single mother, even with a solid income, spend 75K a year to Tufts or the like even if she got in. There is no logical reason to get yourself in financial jeopardy. Your daughter may want to go to grad school and how will that get paid? Then you have daughter number 2 heading to college right after that. How do you properly fund your retirement in that situation?
I also believe the college list is a bit haphazard and has a lot of reaches. I never would think Michigan is a safety for any OOS student. Vanderbilt and Tulane have dismal RD acceptance rates. Then you have some northeastern schools which are wildly expensive. Personally, I would look to see what are some good safety affordable schools with 2/1 application deadlines.
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What are career plans/objectives for OP’s D?
Late to the game, and I am sure this has already been stated…
She is in to five colleges. A student needs to understand that a safety needs to be affordable AND the student should be happy to attend if accepted. Anything beyond that is icing on the cake.
Tulane and U Michigan are not matches. Tulane cares a lot about interest. These are both reaches for all, with the exception of instate Michiganders.
Acceptance to a reach is a bonus. She has nothing to worry about because she has five colleges to choose from.
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@OK_tx Didn’t your daughter have a day at Trinity today? How did that go? Hoping she liked it!
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Thank you everyone for even more great thoughts! CC put me into a 10-hr timeout for posting too much, so all I could do for a while is use emoji, but I’ve been reading while waiting on my daughter to finish interviewing at Trinity (which is a lovely school, staff seems very passionate about the students, and she liked it a lot, it has programs she likes, etc).
I will briefly respond to everyone in one post (to make sure I don’t trigger the ban again):
On affording college - true, not the main question I had, but bring it all on! I’m very clearly not as well-informed about the college admissions process as most of you guys, and hearing about more thing we should consider, or more perspectives on schools on our list, is great! Regarding the cost, I can afford more than $50K/yr, I’m just very reluctant to pay any more than that in cash, because I want to have liquid reserves. I have no trouble with financing the extra $$ and paying it off at the end of the year with bonuses, all upon graduation, etc, etc. But it would have to be for an amazing school that gives my daughter what she needs academically and socially for me to justify that to myself. I’m just not sure if any on her list are worth $80K/yr in my opinion. Middlebury and Tufts maybe? It’s less about her undergrad degree and what she’ll earn immediately vs. how it will shape her as a person and shape her confidence/learning style/worldview. What friends/alumni connections she’ll make there. LOTS of my coworkers get business referrals from small private college classmates now. Coming from a large unranked state school undergrad (even having gone to the Honors College there), I don’t.
On RAs: Didn’t mean to confuse everyone, sorry— RA/TA always meant only one thing to me (until today’s Trinity orientation, lol) so I didn’t even think it’s also shorthand for resident advisor (that’s like a dorm supervisor, right?). My daughter is hoping to be a Research Assistant as an undergrad because what she ultimately wants to do is develop early childhood development programs for kids on both ends of the development spectrum- GT kids (like she was in elementary) and spectrum/special needs kids (like the ones she coaches in some of her sports classes now). Not having to wait until grad school to start research and working with subjects is HUGELY attractive to her because it will help her know for sure that’s what she wants to do and get the experience for grad programs.
RE: CSS for second parent: my ex-husband refuses to get a job (long sad story) so while I can never count on his help for either of our children’s tuition, he doesn’t have an income that would mess up net pay calculators for me. Plus, regardless of how you run it, my income/assets will never let us qualify for aid.
Re: track. Oh my god, I’m SUCH an idiot! I didn’t even think about having my daughter reach out to coaches at schools where her times are competitive now, pre-admission. Love the idea! (We did include her track coach’s letter as one of two teacher recs for each school where her times are competitive, and he knew which schools/events when he wrote the letter). But would be is a great way to show interest. And maybe a good thing to mention her new times for the Chicago COI letter, too (also kind of competitive). Problem is that she runs a lot of relays for her school, so fewer individual results on Athletic.com. I think I will have her do it right after her first meet in two weeks and begs the coach to put her into non-relay sprints, so she has some fresh individual times.
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I have seen on some D3 school websites they will have a “recruit me” button, so maybe look for that under the Athletics section. Best of luck to her! Agnes Scott is one that springs to mind with a “recruit me” section, but I know I have seen it on some other schools websites, too.
I think smaller schools often have tighter networks, but I don’t know that it has to be an expensive school to get that.
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What you have to define is “worth it” based on what? They are both good schools, but neither will put her on a path that’s more likely to lead to future career success than the ones she’s already in. What does “worth it” mean to you?
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Just got back a few minutes ago, thank you for asking!
It was great, and I think if Trinity was located ANYWHERE in the Northern US, I could relax and not worry if my daughter gets in anywhere else. But, the San Antonio urban/Texan to the core vibe makes it a harder sell. Still, having visited, I’m less stressed. Won’t know about the full scholarship for another month though.
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It means a place that invests in students, sees them as people as well as “revenue” — where professors and advisors notice if kids are not thriving. A college that wouldn’t let her get lost in the numbers, but instead help her grow as a person, would be worth $80K/ye to me because I know I can trust them to step in if needed when I’m there.
An environment that can build up her self-confidence, her ability to see more than what she’s been exposed to so far, in either our home life, extended family (abroad) drama, or her over-privileged/under-diverse high school. Somewhere geographically (ideally) where open carry isn’t the way of life, women make their own way, and Sunday church attendance isn’t fully expected (not judging, we’re not agnostic, just not comfortable with having mandates).
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Thank you!!! Looking into this tomorrow. So grateful to you and this website.
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