I need some guidance. We are American expats living in Madrid Spain. I have two sons. The oldest is currently a freshman in West Virginia university. My youngest is a senior (going to an American school in Spain). We are looking at universities now in the USA. He has a gpa of 3.5. Did not do good on his first act (composite score 19) but will retake in sept and maybe in October depending on scores. We do not qualify for any type of financial aid. My youngest will get his American high school diploma and the IB program ( high levels in chemistry, biology snd English). Any suggestions for well priced ( total tuition less than $35,000) and reputable universities in USA? We prefer to avoid hot humid areas as he has enzima and the humidity causes flare ups. He will apply as an American student. Any advice is welcome.
Look at the SUNY schools. With the additional $5500 Direct Loan your son can take, these might come in at your price point
The schools in the west/north west offer nice cool (okay, sometimes downright cold) weather and lower tuition. Wyoming, Idaho (Boise State), Montana (State and Univ of). (and they did pretty good in football yesterday!)
I think the ACT needs to be higher for any home of academic merit aid.
If he can get his ACT score up to a 23, he’d qualify for University of New Mexico’s Amigo Scholarship. Amigo requirements: 23 ACT (1130 SAT) and 3.5 Unit GPA or 26 ACT (1230 SAT*) and 3.0 Unit GPA. The Amigo awards in-state tuition to all OOS applicants.
Right now he’d qualify for the LUE (Lobo Undergraduate Exchange) Scholarship.
LUE requires: LUE: 19 ACT (990 SAT) and 3.0 Unit GPA. It awards tuition at 1.5x the in-state rate.
In-state tuition & fee: $7556.00/year
LUE tuition & fees: $11,334.00/year
room & board: $1090.00/year
@WayOutWestMom is there a zero missing on the room and board costs?
Utah is a good option (and has a great climate) because he can qualify for instate tuition after the first year without parents needing to live there, bringing the total cost down to around $20K (total COA is around $40K the first year). Salt Lake City also has good flight connections though AFAIK no flights to Europe as yet.
Oops! Yes.
Room & board $10,900/year.
Look at Kansas State also. They have some good awards for fairly low stats. If he can significantly get the the ACT up and keep the 3.5 he can easily meet that budget. Even though they have a high acceptance rate is is an awesome school. Very happy students and faculty. S has exema and has had no flare ups there. Great college town and sports. Lots of internship and/or research opportunities, also lots of job opportunities.
Arizona and Arizona State as well. Also Mizzou since OOS students can qualify relatively easily for Missouri residency.
What do his predicted IB scores look like? Is he going to get the IBD? Are you getting him any test prep? His score won’t reflect his abilities if he is getting the IBD, he needs to know the test. Is he studying?
Read this thread…it might be helpful.
Otterbein University (with a 250k+ income, 2 in college, 3.5 gpa, 19 ACT their quick cost estimator returned a net price approx 30k https://www.otterbein.edu/financial-aid/financial-aid-estimator/)
https://www.otterbein.edu/financial-aid/scholarships/
You might try the SAT, my kids did better on that. He can do a practice test (and prep) through the khan academy website for free. You can also look into test optional schools - see the Fair Test org website for current list.
A 35k budget is a healthy budget for a lot of the private schools in Ohio.
Any idea what he wants to study? If it’s an engineering discipline that will be harder to find. University of Dayton (private, catholic) is also fairly generous and offers engineering.
Look at Florida public schools- they reward generously for IB. UCF, USF, FAU…
I assume you mean total cost of attendance < $35k, not just tuition. The SUNYs would work financially and NYS has quite a few colleges to choose from. Look at the SUNY Admissions Quick Facts for targets. If he can get his ACT up a couple points Fredonia, Brockport, Plattsburgh, and Oneonta are academic possibilities.
University of Toledo
$30,589 Direct Costs OOS (tuition, fees, room, board)
http://www.utoledo.edu/admission/freshman/tuition/2018-tuition.html
Merit aid starts at $12,000 for a 3.5 with 20 ACT
http://www.utoledo.edu/admission/freshman/scholarships/2019/out-of-state.html
University of Minnesota Twin Cities is one of those underappreciated, somewhat hidden gems. Very good programs in many areas and a really nice city and people.
Texas Tech gives instate tuition if you get 1K in merit scholarship. 1K for 22 ACT and 3.0 weighted GPA
Ohio University https://www.ohio.edu/admissions/
$34,268 oos (tuition, fees, room, board)