<p>I'm seeking to take advantage of my likely NMF status (I'm a junior but I have the PSAT, SAT scores, and grades) by looking into schools that will offer me big money for it (as in, full tuition or full rides). I have few of the conventional dichotomies and preferences, and see finances as the way to go. My older sister went to Purdue and joined a co-op which is basically a sorority where the residents cook and clean. On the whole, it sucked and was filled with exactly the inside-the-box, superficial people I don't want to associate with too much. However, my mom is convinced (in a larger part due to this experience than she'll admit) that a lot of the large public schools I'm looking into won't provide a redeeming college experience; we previously planned a spring break trip around UF-Gainesville but she basically ignored it until it died. I am in Terre Haute in western Indiana and despite doing well in school with little stress and considering myself quite happy, I find most people around me to be vacuous and unengaging, and as a result, my social life is very minimal compared to most people my age. I have friends that I hang out with sporadically and enjoy being around but I feel unlike them and that our scope of discussion topics is limited. She's worried I'll fall into the same problem at these large publics and that I'll withdraw and spend my days browsing on the internet like I do now. </p>
<p>The way I see it, these schools are so big, you can't really go wrong with finding someone you can connect with in a meaningful way. She's telling me to screw the finances and chase this "perfect school for me" idea, which is just BS and jacking up everyone's tuition because they won't respond to the forces of the market. No one really wins but the pigs at Sallie Mae. She could see me at Macalester which is why we're going there for spring break instead, but the pressure is ridiculous with tuition the way it is; basically, make a mistake and it cannot be erased. This is not in line with American ideals at all, but I imagine it'll get a lot worse before it gets better. I'm worried about finances; not necessarily that I won't endure, but that we're talking tens of thousands of dollars and that I might like that money in my own hands. I'll apply, but I'm just wondering what other people's views on this are.</p>
<p>I mean this kindly. For a high school junior, you certainly seem very confident in judging and labeling people. Perhaps you would have better social relations if you had an attitude adjustment? If you carry your negative attitude with you, it won’t matter where you go to college; you will still be unhappy with everyone around you. Stop worrying about whether people and situations live up to your exalted expectations and try to find value and interest in the world. </p>
<p>RE the money vs. fit issue: has your family filled out the FAFSA or a financial aid calculator that gives a rough idea of your EFC? Is your mother willing and able to pay full freight at a private? Can she give you an outside maximum amount that she is willing to provide? What are your post-undergraduate plans? Are you assuming that you will be going to graduate school? How much debt can you afford to take on? The college choice is always a balancing act between fit and cost. If the cost results in ruinous debt or reduced post-graduate options, it is never worth it, even for the most perfect school in the world. </p>
<p>You are doing the right thing by looking at various types of colleges. If you continue to make visits and research funding options, your options will clarify themselves by the time you have to make a choice.</p>
<p>I’m not going to give you a lecture about your attitude, you may be right. I know several teenagers that operate on a different intellectual level than the rest of the kids in high school. Perhaps you haven’t found your people, college is your chance to find them. Macalester is a great school that has very bright engaged students, and they are generous with financial aid. </p>
<p>There are many threads that have circulated about whether fit is all that important, and in your case it might be. College, at it’s best, is about being involved, with your studies and your peers. If you find yourself without real friends in college, your experience could be much less satisfactory. Many privates give merit aid as well as need based aid, so it’s worth putting the application in to see what they offer. All of them have different “personalities” so it’s important to do some reading and visit if you can.</p>
<p>Be realistic about your GPA and SAT scores so you know your chances of acceptance. Don’t put all your hopes on a school that is a high reach. Have a few that you can be happy attending.</p>
<p>Large state universities can be a great experience and they do allow more social mobility, on the flip side they also require the student to go out and find their like-minded peers, whereas a small LAC might have an entire campus full of them. I guess the question to ask yourself is whether you will go out and work at making friends or whether you tend to sit back and isolate. Only you can answer that question. </p>
<p>I can understand where you’re getting this from in my post, but I guess I don’t really see myself as having a negative attitude. I can appreciate differences in people I associate with, but there comes a point where you are too different from a person to connect with them through anything but small talk or a shared experience of some kind. Most people just seem like that to me. There are things I would enjoy discussing but never get the chance to discuss because they would be conversation killers with nearly everyone I know. I’d rather be by myself than to be talking about / doing something uninteresting, which I guess feeds into the whole isolation deal. The Internet has filled in that gap for me for a long time, and my family is generally insightful as well. It’s difficult to phrase that without seeming like I have some sort of grudge against them or some sort of self-hatred, but I don’t see it.</p>
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My dad filled out the FAFSA for my sister and my mom but didn’t know our EFC. I put it through a calculator and with an income around $75k and 3 people in college it would probably be somewhere around $4-6k. My entire college fund is in stocks currently valued at $12k or so. So yeah, I’m not in a great position as far as that and will likely have to take out loans if I don’t get lots of financial aid. I have no particular plans for grad school, but I imagine I’ll do any grad school while I’m working full time so I only have to take out the minimum. Thanks for the response.</p>
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<p>Thanks for validating everything I’ve heard/seen about Macalester. I could see how fit would be more important for me than for others in terms of a “vibe” and student culture. I’ll try to check a few more out. Compared to what I’ll be paying later, it doesn’t hurt much at all to apply to a lot of different places and see how it shakes out. Thank you both for responding.</p>
<p>Cocteau, you sound like a bright nice kid with deep thoughts. Hang in there. What are your specific interests, and preferences as far as environment? If we know that, we can make more suggestions.</p>
<p>OP, I appreciate your response. I have personal experience of bright, alienated young people who decide that hating the world and everyone in it is a sign of intellectual sophistication, and that attitude is so self-defeating. From what you’ve said that does not apply to you at all.</p>
<p>With your stats, you will have a good chance of institutional merit scholarships at some interesting and well-regarded privates, in addition to possible eligibility for National Merit awards at a wide variety of places. From the info you’ve provided, your family will probably not be able to afford full freight at a private college. You should not take out large loans to attend school. Search for colleges you like where you would be in the top 25% of admitted students based on test scores and grades. Fortunately for you, the Midwest is chock full of interesting and excellent liberal arts colleges with great opportunities for merit aid (because the coasts have not yet realized they are there). That is to your advantage. Do apply to several places and do not fall in love with any one school. I think you will have some decent options.</p>
<p>If you want to move far away, consider USC, which pays NMSF’s to attend. 'SC also offers good need-based aid and with several siblings in college at the same time, it just might be as affordable as the instate public.</p>
<p>But the broader point is to seek out colleges that want high test scores and are willing to pay for them, i.e., discount their tuition, based solely on high test scores.</p>
<p>You are absolutely correct that a good academic and social fit that is not also a financial fit is not a fit at all. Just because your sister had a miserable experience at Purdue does not mean that you would. In fact, Purdue might be perfect for you!</p>
<p>OP, make sure you read the National Merit forum under the Financial Aid forum. Especially the “NMF Scholarships” thread referenced by happymom (go to the last page for the most up-to-date list). Incidentally, Macalester currently offers NMFs $5k/year guaranteed. </p>
<p>You should also look for schools that offer merit aid to high stats students even if they don’t offer NMF money. Pitt is one of my favorites to recommend, but there are many others. </p>
<p>Co-op culture varies widely from school to school, and from co-op to co-op. For example, I can assure you that the co-ops at Berkeley are absolutely nothing like sororities. :D</p>