<p>I'm researching colleges ASAP since I have to begin applying soon. There are some things I really want my college to have..
These are my stats:
2030 SAT
3.45 GPA UW, 3.75 W. (Bad freshman year, perfect soph and junior year. Lots of honors and AP classes).
Mediocre extracurriculars. I haven't been engaged in many activities. I did one semester of tennis, and one semester of book club. So pretty much nothing. But I can write excellent essays explaining why I didn't engage in many ECs.
I'm looking for:
Strong management, business, or economics program,
Price is a concern. I can afford ~45k annually, MAYBE 50k~ if it's a really good school. I'm an international student.
I'd prefer a medium-sized private college. There are some publics I really like, but they're so big. Even though a huge school isn't appealing to me, I'm still considering some of them (UMD, UMN, UW, TCNJ), but I'd still like to apply to some privates.
Urban environment: this isn't really a must. I'd be happy in a suburban environment as well, but a big city (or being near a big city) would make me super-happy. Rural is out of the question though.</p>
<p>I know my stats and my budget rule out most top tier colleges.
The amount I'd need in aid for most top private colleges (around 15k$ annually) isn't huge (I think. is it??) so I'd appreciate it if you could recommend some privates where I'd get decent need or merit aid with my stats. </p>
<p>I also want to apply Early Decision to one college, just to improve my chances a bit. Which school do you think I should spend ED on? Maybe Case Western? It has to have need-based aid, or else I would be obliged to attend and I wouldn't be able to afford it.</p>
<p>You could look at UPenn (Philly), even though that would be a reach. It describes everything you’re looking for. Another one you could look at is Fordham (NYC). I would suggest to work more on that SAT score and what makes you unique from other applicants because of the lack of much extracurriculars. You could also take a look at Northeastern (Boston), Southern Methodist (Dallas), UT Austin (might be bigger than you would like, though), and Drexel (Philadelphia). Also, what state do you live in? You could go through the in-state options there. These schools all have strong financial aid.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, international students find few schools that will offer them financial support. Internationals are expected to be full pay at most schools and to demonstrate ahead of time that their families have set aside the money for their colleges. There is a list of colleges that support intls on the Financial Aid forum.</p>
<p>Other than the privates listed there, your chances at a private are limited to those privates whose Cost of Attendance is less than 45K. There are many, but they won’t necessarily have the prestige international families think a college must have. Urban schools are going to be more expensive than rural schools, generally speaking. The private schools @PAkid131 names are expensive, well over 45K. You can try a SuperMatch search; look for the button in the column on your right and play around with the options there. </p>
<p>Your best bet will remain the less expensive state unis that internationals will recognize that have strong programs in the areas in which you’re interested. Unfortunately, your grades are going to make admission to Michigan, Berkeley, UCLA quite tough. You will have to compromise somewhere if you want a name-brand American degree. One consolation is that your fields of interest are not rare; you can get a good education in these fields at a lot of colleges. Improving your SAT could be the best investment of your time.</p>
<p>Also look into Tulane (in New Orleans) as you might qualify for merit aid there as well. And SUNY schools have very good OOS rates although admittedly they are not in the most exciting cities. (ex. SUNY Binghamton, SUNY Buffalo)</p>
<p>I think most of these schools have non binding EA but you need to check.</p>