<p>I have found that there is so much information about getting INTO college on this site, but info on financing it is often overlooked by many students in my shoes. Thanks a million!</p>
<p>& Ohio University seems like a pretty good school for writing in general, thanks for the suggestion.</p>
<p>How much will your parents pay each year???</p>
<p>what is your home state?</p>
<p>If books are just telling you to fill out FAFSA to get needed aid, then those books are misleading. there is very little Federal aid, grants are for low income, and loans are very limited.</p>
<p>If you are looking at state schools, then based on my son’s experience (3.49 GPA, upward trend after bumpy 10th grade school change, 30 ACT, all IB/AP courseload) --</p>
<p>Minnesota Twin cities – OOS tuition is below $20k, making it one of the most affordable state schools. We never made it out to visit but until the Illinois and Wisconsin decisions came in, it was looking like most likely choice. </p>
<p>Iowa – admission based on a formula you can calculate on-line; OOS students with a sufficiently high score on that formula get automatic $4700 merit scholarship. My son, with stats very close to yours, got that scholarship and also was admitted to Honors program by petition. Iowa is a hidden gem in my mind – beautiful campus, nice college town, and as a parent – an very well-run administrative organization. </p>
<p>Indiana – our instate option – the average unweighted gpa is 3.6; while they love OOS money, my son sweated out his admission decision. </p>
<p>Illinois and Wisconsin are more like reaches than low matches in this stat range. While my son was admitted to both as an arts and letters kid, not science and technology, it was close and could have surely gone the other way. We felt more confident about Illinois, because the stats for non-science kids are lower and more in his range, but Wisconsin (where, he is freshman) was a hold your breath wild ride. He got darn lucky to get in there. </p>
<p>We considered the midwest LACs -like Kalamazoo, Beloit, Knox, Cornell etc, but he felt he would outgrow the size and course offerings. He is a humanities kid, who wants to explore lots of subject matter areas and then be prepared for grad school in whatever area he focuses on, could be anthro, philosophy, too soon to tell. </p>
<p>Good luck with your applications, and don’t hesitate to submit an extra essay explaining the challenges of your freshman year.</p>
<p>If you’re from Michigan, just apply to Mich State.</p>
<p>Michigan State is good, but I don’t think it would be the best fit for me…the campus is big and spread out, and the student body is HUGE. I think I’d rather have the small, close knit thing going on, but that’s just personal preference. I have a lot of friends enrolled there now, and they LOVE it, though! </p>
<p>Right now I am leaning towards Knox, Kalamazoo College, U Miami (they give a lot of great $$ to kids @ my school), William & Mary (Aunt wants me to go there), and Ohio Wesleyan. </p>
<p>My list is VERY spread out and the colleges are pretty different from one another. I am feeling much better about finances now, too! (That takes a load off my shoulders!!!)</p>
<p>Wm & Mary is very nice. I have a niece there. </p>
<p>But will your parents pay for W&M…you’ll have to pay all costs. </p>
<p>UMiami isn’t going to give you lots of money for an ACT 28. They likely won’t give you any merit money. If you have need, it might give you some need-based aid, but the school doesn’t meet need. </p>
<p>Or do you mean Miami U???</p>
<p>You can’t go by what others get…they may have better scores, or more need, or have some other hook.</p>
<p>You have to be really exceptional to get an OOS admit as a female to William and Mary.</p>
<p>Why not check out U of Iowa - lots of writing activities and an easy to use formula to determine admissions.</p>