<p>
</p>
<p>$250,000 is still a very high income. Even after paying income and payroll taxes and $60,000 of college costs, that still leaves double the median pre-tax household income for that family to spend on other things.</p>
<p>I am a single parent and will have 2 kids in college, at least for his freshman year. I just ran the EFC calculator and it says I can afford to pay A LOT less than the 12k I am currently paying for his sister.
Her numbers were based on a good job I got laid off from last year, and my new job pays significantly less. Factor in 2 kids in college and that account for the big drop I guess.
It’s starting to look like the ivies will be our best bet.</p>
<p><<<<
It’s starting to look like the ivies will be our best bet
.>>>>></p>
<p>Well, you cant count on the ivies since the chance of admittance is very low. Also, the ivies will consider the income of their father and any new spouse of his. Will the father provide his household financials and also pay?</p>
<p>Since the ivies are a LONG shot, be sure to include 2-3 schools that FOR SURE will provide huge merit and will be affordable.</p>
<p>is your child a likely NMF?</p>
<p>@alr1628 </p>
<p>I suggest as Sybbie has to run those numbers through the NPCs for a number of schools on the list and also to run them without the sister in college since need based aid will be reduced drastically when that sibling in college finishes. Also if her is a non custodial parent in the picture, unless a waiver can be granted, that will also factor into the need formulas for many of the PROFILE schools. A waiver has to be done for EACH school; schools tend to have their own criterion for these NCP waivers. </p>
<p>RIT is very generous with aid and merit. Not something one can expect at many schools. Friends of ours are paying less than half for RIT for their son. As shown on commondata:</p>
<p>Need-Based Gift
Received by 1,965 (94.8%) of aid recipients, average amount $18,500
Need-Based Self-Help
Received by 1,846 (89.0%) of aid recipients, average amount $5,300
Merit-Based Gift
Received by 599 (28.9%) of aid recipients
Merit-Based Gift 390 (14.6%) of freshmen had no financial need and received merit aid, average amount $12,000</p>
<p>PROFILE schools often are not so generous in need formulas. Sounds great that they meet full need, but they get to define that need and if you own a house, a business, there is a NCP in the picture, their idea of need might diverge widely from FAFSA EFC, let alone your own definition of it. </p>
<p>So cast a wide net MIT, Princeton, Cal Tech, JHU are all certainly possibles for OP’s son, and the aid is as good as it gets from most of that group of schools, but as others have said admissions is no sure thing. Friend’s DD got rejected from Duke as a legacy with a 35 ACT and a great list of accomplishments, a shock to the family. These are lottery tickets for admissions If money is an issue, make sure that some sure things are on that list Rutgers, Alabama, any number of the schools on the stickies up top of this sections are some things to consider.</p>
<p>“be sure to include 2-3 schools that FOR SURE will provide huge merit and will be affordable.”</p>
<p>Exactly, hence my original question. He’s going to apply to Princeton and Cornell.
He likes Hopkins A LOT, he’ll get legacy aid at RPI and is going to apply to U Col. Boulder. </p>
<p>Now I’d like to find a few that are absolute shoe-ins, just in case (he hated Rutgers. That would have been an easy solution). The fact that he wants research and an Aeronautical concentration is complicating things because it seems only the top schools have that.</p>
<p>Oh yes, I only answered half your question. His father is not part of the equation, and he scored well enough to be a NMF but I don’t know what the other criteria are so I don’t know how limey it will be.</p>
<p>Lafayette College in nearby Easton has a good engineering program and good fin aid</p>
<p>Looks like a full ride at NJIT. <a href=“http://www.njit.edu/financialaid/typesofaid/scholarships/meritbasedawards.php”>http://www.njit.edu/financialaid/typesofaid/scholarships/meritbasedawards.php</a></p>
<p>NCSU is ABET for engineering and with your son’s stats he would be eligible for the Parks Scholarship.</p>
<p><a href=“About - Park Scholarships”>http://park.ncsu.edu/about/</a></p>
<p>Four-year scholarship valued at $98,000 in-state and $166,000 out-of-state, including tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, travel, and personal expenses
Computer stipend
Grants to fund professional and personal enrichment experiences, such as research projects, service activities, and conferences in the United States and abroad.
Early course registration
Guaranteed invitation to join the University Scholars Program for all Park Scholarships finalists.</p>
<p>Duke’s engineering program is also ABET, they meet need and award merit. The Robertson scholie for example. My son also did very well financial aid-wise at Penn’s M & T program, the Jerome Fisher program (BS in engineering and a BS in econ from Wharton in just 4 years), his initial award was better than Princeton’s and MIT’s. He also had a very low EFC and we’d like to think he was rather bright!</p>
<p>UNC-Chapel Hill is now offering a biomedical engineering degree with NCSU and UNC does award some rather prestigious merit awards along with meeting full need.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.</p>
<p>Kat</p>
<p>.>>>
Oh yes, I only answered half your question. His father is not part of the equation, and he scored well enough to be a NMF but I don’t know what the other criteria are so I don’t know how limey it will be.</p>
<br>
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<p>He will also have to take the SAT and send scores to NMCorp…code 0085
his grades are fine, and i doubt he is a discipline problem at school, so he just needs to submit the essay, etc and send scores.</p>
<p>His father may not be in his life, but if he is alive, then you need to apply for NCP waivers, which may or may not be granted. if granted, then his info will not be reqd. If not granted, then no aid would be given.</p>
<p>Alabama will give him the following for NMF</p>
<p>National Merit or Achievement Finalist Package</p>
<p>Value of tuition for up to five years or 10 semesters for degree-seeking undergraduate and graduate studies</p>
<p>One year of on-campus housing at regular room rate* (based on assignment by Housing and Residential Communities)</p>
<p>A $3,500 per year Merit/Achievement Scholarship stipend for four years. A student must maintain at least a 3.3 GPA to continue receiving this scholarship stipend. If a corporate-sponsored scholarship from the National Merit Corporation is received, the total value cannot exceed $3,500. (For example, if you receive a corporate-sponsored scholarship of $2,000 per year, UA will contribute $1,500 per year to reach the total stipend amount of $3,500.)</p>
<p>One-time allowance of $2,000 for use in summer research or international study (after completing one year of study at UA)</p>
<p>iPad</p>
<p>** PLUS…as an engg or comp sci major, he gets an add’l 2500 per year.**</p>
<p>I am not prying, just stating a fact that though YOU may say his father is not part of the equation, if the father is alive, he may be part of the equation in that a waiver has to be requested. Just something to be aware of. If truly not an issue, good for you and him, as it simplifies things greatly.</p>
<p>Many of the state schools that are not as well known have great research opportunities. Ohio University, Purdue, are some that seem to have focus in Aeronautics, but the Purdue program is no safety. If you have a safety or two in place, then you can apply away to any and all schools with impunity.</p>
<p>So NJIT looks like a safety (assuming he doesn’t hate it).</p>
<p>If National Merit, then Texas A&M has a good scholarship for that.</p>
<p>NJIT is in a REALLY, REALLY bad part of Newark. People get killed in that neighborhood.
But this has been incredibly helpful. Thank you all so much!</p>
<p>Here’s our list as of now…
Stretch:
Princeton, Cornell, MIT</p>
<p>These, get in and see what they offer:
Hopkins
RPI
U Col, Boulder
VA Tech
Syracuse</p>
<p>Safety:
Alabama, University at Buffalo</p>
<p>I have heard Hopkins is not in the safest of area of Baltimore either. DS’ friend is a sophomore there and she says Hopkins is great as long as you don’t leave the campus area. VA Tech – very good engineering school and a nice college town. </p>
<p>I lived in Baltimore for 4 years and believe me, there is no comparison. It’s too bad, really.</p>
<p>Central Florida would be a good safety if NMF - automatic full ride.</p>
<p>The undergrad Hopkins campus is very nice. The medical school? Not so much.</p>
<p>@BobWallace has a great site for NMF scholarships: <a href=“http://nmfscholarships.yolasite.com/”>http://nmfscholarships.yolasite.com/</a></p>
<p>UT-Dallas is close to full-ride for an NMF (and is evidently seen as the 3rd best public in TX by many there).</p>
<p>Is there some way (besides test scores) to assess his chances of being an NMF?</p>