<p>Right now, the only colleges I know I'm applying to are Scripps and Madison. I don't think I have enough volunteer stuff to get a scholarship there, however, and I'm not very exceptional in other ways. I have a 34 ACT, and I think I'll get a national merit award. Madison is my safety school, in-state and cheap, but I'm not really sure I want to go there. What I really need are liberal arts schools I have a good chance of a scholarship at. I also participate in music activities and varsity swimming.</p>
<p>Go to the financial aid forum and look at the sticky notes at the top. There are a number of excellent schools listed.</p>
<p>emerlus, If you have the grades to match that ACT score then you’ll be a person of interest to many selective LACs. Small LACs like kids who are multi-faceted and a combination of academics, music (or any of the arts) and sports are the trifecta. Volunteering or community service is always good, but not necessarily a deal breaker.</p>
<p>Tell us more about what you’re looking for in a college: location, environment, character. E.g, urban/suburban/rural, sports, politics, fraternities/sororities. There are hundreds of LACs that would be appropriate, but their personalities vary widely.</p>
<p>If you are willing and able to swim on a college level you should be contacting coaches now. If you will continue participating in music related activities, plan to submit a tape that showcases your talent, even if you don’t intend to majorin music.</p>
<p>As for the money, you need to establish whether your family will be eligible for NEED based financial aid or if you will have to get MERIT aid. To determine NEED based aid, ask your parents to use an on-line calculator to get an idea of how much they would qualify for. If this is sufficient then you could apply to a wide range of colleges, as most offer reasonably good NEED based aid.</p>
<p>If, on the other hand, you are looking for MERIT based aid your list will be very different. There are many good colleges that offer MERIT aid, but many of the best known do not so you may have to do some digging. </p>
<p>The first step is to understand your financial position clearly.</p>
<p>I’m looking for a left-leaning college, anywhere but the south and the southwest. I don’t really care about setting, as long as its not rural.I don’t care about sports or sororities. I’m not quite good enough to swim in college. </p>
<p>Thanks for the advice about music. I didn’t think of that.</p>
<p>I don’t qualify for need based aid. I am absolutely positive about this, especially because they factor in second homes as assets. </p>
<p>My problem is that my parents will contribute the cost of Madison, so I need to get the cost down to something that I can reasonably pay for myself, especially since I plan to continue onto law school. (So, more debt.)</p>
<p>Check out this thread of LACs with good merit aid:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/219357-usnews-top-100-liberal-arts-college-merit-v-need-only.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/219357-usnews-top-100-liberal-arts-college-merit-v-need-only.html</a></p>
<p>Knox sounds good.</p>
<p>Try Mills in Northern California.</p>
<p>Smith College is worth a look.</p>