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<p>Regarding publics meeting or not meeting need, that depends on your state of residency. A check of net price calculators for a middle income family found that, for in-state students at the state flagships:</p>
<p>NC, FL, WA: meets need, student needs Stafford loan or some work earnings
VA, CA, MI: meets need, student needs Stafford loan and some work earnings
MN, NY, NJ, OH: does not meet need, student needs to find a few thousand beyond Stafford loan and realistic work earnings
IL, TX, PA: nowhere close to meeting need, student needs large merit scholarships</p>
<p>Of course, the state you live in may cause either 100% or 0% of your in-state public schools to meet need (if all of the in-state public schools have similar need-based financial aid policies).</p>
<p>Private schools that meet need tend to be the more selective ones.</p>