<p>Check out Randolph-Macon; it's great for merit aid. It's going co-ed next year, which may affect financial aid, though.</p>
<p>himom, my counselor's pretty clueless. :-(</p>
<p>It is impossible for anyone to tell you with certainty how much $ you will get anywhere.
You have lots of suggestions from people, go through them, choose a few that would be a good fit for you and whatever you want study. Include a few SUNYs.
Have you visited any schools yet?</p>
<p>If you go to some schools websites, namely lesser schools, they have Merit Aid calculators. You put in your stats, they tell you how much merit you would get. Guaranteed. </p>
<p>However, this should only be used in maybe picking your financial safety, your stats are way too good to want to go to a school like the one I posted above.</p>
<p>Colleges definitely will take your current financial situation into consideration. Don't give up your dreams of applying to a top school just because the money isn't there. Look for schools that are need blind (I'd say most top colleges are). Check out the endowments of the schools you're applying to. Schools with big endowments usually give pretty generous financial aid. </p>
<p>I don't think anyone else has said this, but... It's really not a big deal to take out a few REASONABLE loans. Lots of people do it.</p>
<p>Thanks guys. Yeah Delaware Valley College? Neehhh. I won't settle THAT far.</p>
<p>How about I apply to Harvard? lol Someone on another board seriously suggested it because they are trying to attract low income students and because of all the challenges ive overcome....</p>
<p>The problem Buffaol, is you're not ready to be realistic. In all liklihood you need some merit aid to not put financial stress on your family for the next 4 years. You will get that at a school where your stats are in the top 15% or one of your state schools, not at Harvard even if you could get in.</p>
<p>The bottom line--apply wherever you really want to go, but you MUST include some financial & educational "safeties" that you will be admitted at & be able to afford at campuses you will be happy to attend. If some are rolling admissions, you can get the answer sooner and can pare the list of these safeties.
There are NO guarantees as to who will get what amount of merit or need-based aid at most schools. Many schools count large loans as part of a financial aid package and there are countless students having to turn down schools because the loans they would be forced to shoulder is too huge. Many students graduate from or drop out of college with huge debt.</p>
<p>I disagree with bobby100. If, as you say, your family's yearly income is ~$50000, then Harvard will pay for your education (no expected family contribution). So, if you think you have a shot at Harvard, by all means go for it.</p>
<p><a href="http://fao.fas.harvard.edu/fact_sheet.htm%5B/url%5D">http://fao.fas.harvard.edu/fact_sheet.htm</a></p>
<p>"As a result of our new Harvard Financial Aid Initiative, parents with total incomes below $60,000 are expected to pay nothing"</p>
<p>Buffalo, there are so many good ideas that you are being given here. I think that you and your parents should fill out the financial estimators on the this site to give you a good idea of what a 100% of need school is likely to give you. Aid is based primarily on income of the prior year. You may want to send a copy of your fathers' out of pocket medical expenses that year, as they are unusual expenses, if they are not itemized as deductions on their tax forms as of that year. You should take a look at the USN&WR Ultimate Guide, researching those colleges that interest you, since that guide tells you the average financial aid packages each college gives out and the breakdown between loans and grants.<br>
An excellent post for you to read is <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=148852%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=148852</a>) where a mom tells of her strategy in getting full rides for her children. Schools you come up with using her methodology should be included on your list.
Also, as many posters have said, the SUNY schools are a good bet for you with your Regents money, your likelihood of getting TAP money and because your stats are high enough to get a nice scholarship from those schools to bring their already relatively in state cost down very low. My son does not have the stats you have and he is at SUNY at Buffalo on a nice scholarship given by the uni itself. Also, despite the fact that your father is on the mend now, you may want to stay nearby in the event other health issues arise. Usually it is not a situation where someone has a big illness, gets better and that is the end of it. My father, though he did well after his surgery and treatment, had his ups and downs even when he was "recovered". I have a son who is a cancer survivor from 10 years ago, and I still keep an eagle eye out for him, and he does need special tests for things that a person without his medical history would not need. When someone has been seriously ill, their health is not on the same level playing field as everyone else's. There would be benefits for you to stay nearby for that reason, especially with a major uni right there that will probably give you a goodly amount of money.</p>
<p>Have you looked at Case Western? They are big into marketing that they give LOTS of merit aid, and Cleveland isn't too far if you need to get home...</p>
<p>Can I assume that SUNY buffalo is out of the question based on the username getouttabuffalo? It's a good school, and since you're in-state, the tuition would be pretty low. SUNY binghampton is another one to think about as well.</p>
<p>I heard storys of people getting not only free tuition but GIFTS(in one case a car) for attending schools for sports.Now I know you aren't a future NFL quarterback but the idea is schools DO give out free money and many but not all can if they want to.You're ranked 7....you have GREAT EC activities...awesome GPA...you are by no means lacking in credentials I honestly think there are schools out there who would be more than willing to pay your way through college.I don't know if your choice schools will but there are definitly some out there.</p>
<p>^^ i've been told this alot mikey...the trouble is i havent been able to find that school yet. and its not like im not trying either!! ive been at this for 2+ years. now its the grind.</p>
<p>btw, i will be willing to take out SOME loans but not a ridiculous amount since i'm going to grad school after.</p>
<p>dude,</p>
<p>sometimes life just doesn't go perfectly. you have to be realistic - you will likely get good merit aid (if not full scholarships) if you apply to tier 2 and 3 schools. However, you don't seem like you want to "settle" (even though there are tons of really good tier 2 and 3 schools), therefore you're just going to have to pony up and take out like $100,000 in loans to go to the best place you get into. Unfortunately you're grades arn't good enough to get merit aid at top 50...espcially top 25 schools. Of course - you could actually look at the 2 schools i've suggested...cooper union and berea...they are free and are very good schools. I know you're limited in what you can do at cooper union, but if you have any interest in engineering/architecture there is no better place to go.</p>
<p>Realize that if you have no money you probably won't be going to grad school straight out of college - especially if you take out loans for ugrad. You're probably best off taking out loans to go to a better undergrad school, then getting a job and working for a bit. many jobs will offer to pay for some or all of grad school if you commit to go back for a few years.</p>
<p>Buffalo, you need to decide if you want a full ride. If you do, you'll get one by applying to tier 3 and 4 schools the links given to you on the parent's board will take you to. If your parents can pay something and/or you're willing to take loans, then you can look at tier 1 and 2. The very best financial aid is at the very top schools and those are a longshot for you but heck throw in an application or two. But it might make gret sense to graduate from a tier 3 school debt free having done really well which will set you up for a good grad school.</p>
<p>^ so where are some of these tier 3 and 4 schools? bowling green is the only one i could find that would give me a 100% free ride.</p>
<p>ive also decided to include SUNY albany now.</p>
<p>Buffalo, I don't know of any school that will tell you right off the bat that they will give you a free ride, much less any gifts and extra $$$. If you found one such school, go for it. Schools want to see what's out there this year before they start spending there money, just as you want to see what's out there before you commit to going. The only way to meet up is to put the apps in and spread out your risks, hoping that one of your numbers come up as a jackpot. The SUNYs look pretty good to me in terms of chances, and for the rest of the schools, you have to search.. You might want to send a message to the poster of that free ride school, and perhaps she'll share the names of the schools that offered good packages to her kids. But you should do the intensive search yourself. You don't get something for nothing and you do have to work to find the college $$s. There aren't that many free rides that I have heard about, and I've been hearing stories for many, many years now. Lots of talk but it rarely comes down to real dollars, full ride. Even the top schools with the most money want to see some student contribution.</p>
<p>For the most part, the only guaranteed free rides I'm aware of are for those students who are National Merit Finalists & list the school as their 1st choice. There are not that many of those schools & seem to be fewer all the time.
I agree with the other posters that you need to do your own research & I'm glad you're adding a SUNY back onto your list. You can get a very good education at many SUNYs. Cornell also has lower tuition for residents, so you should also look closely at them.</p>
<p>lewis and clark college gives out 10 full scholarships a year.
university of rochester offers full scholarships - though i doubt you'd receive it.
creighton university offers full scholarships.
university of pittsburg offers full scholarships.
st. peter's college - full scholarships.</p>