<p>I've narrowed my choices down to FSU and IU, but I just don't know which to choose. Please help? I'm coming down to the wire on deciding and any opinions would be fantastic.</p>
<p>FSU:
Good-
-Near state capitol which is good for internships and good for public relations/political science.
-I qualify for scholarships that would make it possible for me to get through college with (hopefully) little debt to pay off.
Bad-
-I'm not a big fan of Florida (weather, general atmosphere) after living here for a year.
-I wasn't impressed by the campus or town
-Reputation(?)</p>
<p>IU:
Good-
-Much better reputation (?)
-Strong Political Science program
-I absolutely loved the feel/vibe of the campus and could really see myself going there
-I like Indiana a lot more than Florida
Bad-
-I qualify for some scholarships and in-state tuition, but it would very likely be a bit more expensive than FSU.
-Not as close to a state capitol for internships and the such</p>
<p>Reputation will be regional. Outside of their respective states, they’re probably similar. If you don’t like Florida, FSU’s Florida reputation advantage isn’t useful.</p>
<p>IU seems like the better choice for you, depending on how much “a bit more expensive” is. Thousands, or tens of thousands? Only you can make that choice, but it’s easier to give advice if we know what kind of money you’re talking about.</p>
<p>I got an estimate for up to $3,800 in Pell Grants from my FAFSA. I qualify for Bright Futures which would covers 100% of the tuition for FSU. At IU, I qualify to get 50% tuition paid for by scholarships. That would just leave me room&board, etc for both of them. My mom has offered to pay $5,000 per year and my dad has said somewhere around $2,400. That would leave the cost somewhere around $7,989 per year for IU and somewhere around $4,040 per year for FSU (neither accounting for possible Pell Grants since we don’t know the exact number yet and I don’t want to count my eggs before they hatch, so to speak). Those costs would fall solely on me in the form of students loans and all that.</p>
<p>If the difference is $4,000/year, that’s not very much. I know you don’t want to count your Pell grant money yet, but I just want to take a look with that. If you got your estimate at both schools, then it would be around $4200/year vs. $200/year. You’d have to pay that with loans/jobs. FSU is virtually free, and IU would leave you with around a $16,000 total gap for four years. If you vastly prefer IU and would rather work around Indiana (or at least not closer to Florida), then it’s probably the better choice, if you’re comfortable with loans/working it off.</p>
<p>My long term goal is to work for a non-profit or to get into policymaking. IU is generally ranked a better school, but would it be better to be closer to internship opportunities in Tallahassee? (IU is about an hour and a half away from Indianapolis versus FSU being in the capitol) Also, would the reputation be more important in getting jobs outside of the regions around IU and FSU or would the lower student debts be more helpful in actually getting started in new towns? I don’t really plan to live in either Florida or Indiana once I graduate from college.</p>
<p>You qualify for instate tuition in TWO states? Are you certain of that? Have you checked?</p>
<p>If you can go to IU, then go there. Work during the summer to help with costs, but be aware that if you earn too much (like over $4k) from a “non-work study job” then your EFC will get affected. Earnings from W/S do not count.</p>
It is NOT common by any means. Where you graduate from HS and the state of residence for your primary parent in MOST cases defines your in-state schools.
IF you qualify as a Hoosier you still have to pay $12.7K for half tuition, room and board. If you are OOS, that goes up to $22K. The cost of FSU would be $8.5K for room and board.</p>
<p>What makes you think you would be considered in-state for IU?</p>