Hi, I am currently a junior and I’m trying to add more schools to my search. My dream school is USC (lol) but I’m also currently looking at Penn State (in-state). Penn State isn’t known for decent financial aid, and I’m paying for my own education, so financial aid is definitely a factor. I’d prefer to stay away from small schools, but at this point in my search, I’m open to anything.
For reference:
1350 SAT (680 EBRW, 670 M) I’m hoping to get this up when I retake in May
4.48 weighted GPA
3.9 (approx) unweighted GPA
Small public high school (most students from my school go to local colleges or straight into the workforce)
Hispanic
First gen
ECs:
Newspaper (President)
Debate (no leadership but very dedicated)
Volunteer at local cat shelter
Major: journalism
Thank you in advance for any suggestions!
Syracuse and if your SAT goes up a bit Northwestern
I second Northwestern which has an amazing journalism school (Medill) if you can get your SAT over 1400 or so. If you can, take the SAT again in both May and June as the curve is often less harsh for the June exam (as many kids are on summer vacation or are taking Subject Tests. Northwestern also has improved their financial aid in recent years. USC and Syracuse are also great choices.
Also, check out UMissouri, Emerson, Boston U and George Washington (but I’m not sure how financial aid woud be at those schools. Good luck.
Are you considering Pitt? My sense is that they have good FA for high achieving students like you.
@wisteria @londondad @gardenstategal thank you all for your suggestions! I thought I had a school list but I realized I was being pretty close minded so now I’m trying to expand it. I’ll definitely look into these schools!
What is your family income?
Have you looked at LACs? With a higher SAT score you could get merit aid.
Penn State is providing in-state tuition/costs, however, so you will require lots of aid elsewhere (Syracuse ~$30,000). That’s tough to pull off with a 1350 SAT (29 ACT).
Your SAT/ACT will be important to fetch large financial aid. It’s probably better to take the ACT next. If your ACT score proves significantly better than a 29, you’d be wasting your time with the SAT. If the scores are similar, then take your pick for a re-take.
Also, some of your best fin aid will come from LACs, so bite the bullet re size and start looking at them. You don’t have to study journalism to become a journalist.
@intparent it’d be nice if I knew! My parents won’t discuss finances with me even though I am financing my own education. I’d just like to know if I should expect any financial aid or not, but I guess I won’t find out until I fill out the fafsa.
FAFSA isn’t really going to help that much. Schools have their own processes for figuring out what they want you to pay. FAFSA is usually the minimum of what you have to pay, but you very well may have to pay more. Each school has something called a net price calculator on their website. If your parents put in your family information, then you can get a sense of what kind of aid you might get.
Can you ask them to help you run a few of those? Not every school meets need (and it is their definition of need - schools don’t care if your parents will pay and just don’t want to, or choose to spend their money some other way like helping relatives).
If you can get your SAT scores up, you have a good shot at some schools that meet need. But it would be a waste of your energy and admission fees if your family income makes it unaffordable.
See if you can get your parents to run a few of these. Just use the most recent years’ tax return to get a sense of where to focus your efforts. Maybe run Northwestern, USC, Hamilton (small school but strong writing program), and University of Missouri (great journalism). And Penn State, since it is your in-state option.
One thing that happens sometimes is that parents who think they should just leave their kids on their own to pay for college get sticker shock, and realize that maybe they can help out a bit (I know more than one set of parents personally that this has happened to). But just ask if they can help you with this so you have a better idea of where to focus your search.
If they do make too much for you to afford these types of schools and won’t/can’t help out, then you know you need to change your approach completely to a hunt for merit aid, community college/transfer, or state directional option.
Add BU to your list. Even without knowing financial parameters, your stats + Hispanic + 1st Gen will make you attractive for admissions + preferential packaging/merit. I majored in journalism there and I loved the program. Sign up for their info list/show interest and you’ll have a great shot. You may also do well with Northeastern for merit.
Also for journalism, look at Mizzou.
Look at Alabama b/c of automatic merit scholarships. Sounds like you need to chase merit (I came from your fin-aid thread). You should also consider Questbridge, though you will need your parents’ financial info for that.
Ivies will be a long shot (they are for everyone, and you are light on ECs) BUT I would choose one to apply to because if you get in, it can be the best deal financially. URM + 1st gen will give you a small boost. I’m going to recommend you check out UPenn, specifically the Kelley Writer’s House. Get in touch–they recruit for writers. (when you contact them, you can ask questions about KWH and submit some of your writing. If they like you/think you are talented, they can advocate for you in admissions)
There are lots of other options, especially if you’re going to chase money, but start here.
@proudterrier I actually have a visit to BU scheduled for next month! I’ve heard good things about that school, so I’m excited to visit. I have seen that Mizzou is good for journalism, so I will have to finally look into that. I’ve also started to look into smaller, less selective schools where I will likely qualify for a good amount of merit, so although I would rather attend a bigger school, I would definitely be able to sacrifice size for a low-price college education.
In your other threads you said your parents ran a NPC and learned their net cost would be $30k, but they don’t intend to contribute at all. Have they changed their minds? What state are you in? Can you commute to a state school?
@austinmshauri they have not changed their minds. I can’t blame them because they really cannot afford to contribute much, but at the same time, I wish I could get at least $5k a year from them. I live in PA, so our state schools are expensive. None of the colleges that I would be able to commute to offer what I want. I am going to try to get financial aid from my top schools, but I am going to need to find some financial safeties in case none of my other options are affordable.