<p>Hispanic male with a 2.5 gpa. I work hard, have good recs and have taken honors and some AP courses. My dad is disabled can't help me financially (EFC=0). Do you have any ideas of where I might get in and get money? I live in Maryland. I appreciate all advice.</p>
<p>Maryland has some really terrific community colleges, and your GPA wouldn’t be a barrier. They have financial aid for needy students like you. What county are you in?</p>
<p>I wouldn’t limit my choices to community colleges. If your situation is like you described, I’m sure there would be many Universities that would gladly take you in; you have the personality characteristics to succeed, and difficulties that you had to overcome.</p>
<p>I agree with Lollybo: there are definitely four year options out there for you. We can’t really make suggestions on your GPA alone – if you’ve already taken the SAT or ACT, let us know your scores, and then we can give you some suggestions. </p>
<p>One thing that is important to consider is your own academic readiness for college. If you feel you will need additional support and encouragement in college, then be sure to look for colleges that will provide that support.</p>
<p>On the financial side of things, don’t just submit the financial aid forms if your father has special circumstances, such as medical bills that aren’t covered by insurance. I would encourage you to be pro-active about talking to financial aid directly at different schools because they may be able to take those circumstances into account. Even with an EFC of $0 that may help you get a better financial aid package. </p>
<p>Also, since I know from working with many hispanic students that student loans are an uncomfortable idea, I would suggest you talk with your school counselor about what would be a reasonable amount of loans to take, how much your monthly repayment schedules will be after you graduate, and the consequences of loans if you don’t graduate. This is very, very important to get that knowledge of loans because most financial aid packages will include them. Student loans can be a good investment in your future, but the more you understand about them and how they work, the more likely you will use them wisely.</p>
<p>I’d like to start at a 4 yr school–live on campus and expect to graduate in 4 years without transfer. I’ll take SAT’s but expect to get low 500’s on each.
I’d like to concentrate on schools that would be realistic for me. </p>
<p>I’m hoping for mostly grants because I don’t think I can afford much in loans and my father certainly can’t cover me. I want to be be in a position to help him out financially as he gets older.</p>
<p>CollegeDreamsToo,</p>
<p>I think that you do need to meet with your guidance counselor about this and you need information about what specific services your school district has for you. For example, the Montgomery County public school district organizes a minority college fair every year, and has specific workshops for hispanic families with some of the presentations in Spanish for parents who don’t understand English well. If you are in Montgomery County, you should be attending these events. If you aren’t, but you can get to them, you should make an effort to do so.</p>
<p>In addition, a number of the high schools in Montgomery County have teams of volunteer parents who will help students in your situation every step of the way through the college application process. You need to find out if your school has anything like that.</p>
<p>You may want to consider taking the ACT exam instead of the SAT. Many students find the format easier, and all of the colleges and universities accept ACT scores as well as SAT scores. You can pick up a review book at the public library and take a look at it. </p>
<p>Wishing you all the best.</p>
<p>Don’t write off the community colleges - the education you can get at a good community college will easily rival any you can get at the type of four-year school that would be realistic for you (in fact, if you can go to a really good one, and Maryland has some really good ones, the small class sizes and faculty interaction will put the quality of education on par with some much better four-year schools than the ones you’re likely to get into; the only disadvantage will be the lack of competition from outstanding peers, but that may not be a disadvantage if you’re self-motivated). </p>
<p>If you can get into a four year school that you genuinely like and that can provide you with the financial support you need, by all means go. But if not, if the schools that let you in aren’t the sort you see yourself enjoying and learning well at, go 2-year and use that time to help you improve your record to the point that your high school grades and SATs don’t matter anymore.</p>
<p>That being said, UMBC’s a pretty decent school. You might also consider WVU - they’re not top-tier, but at least a few years ago they were doing quite a lot to attract out-of-staters and I knew several people from my high school in Maryland who got full-ride scholarships there with only marginally above-average academic records. UMCP’s probably out unless you can write a really outstanding admissions essay, but I wouldn’t recommend it all that highly anyway.</p>
<p>I’d say for your “reach” schools, try some large state schools - whichever ones appeal to you the most. They all provide pretty high-quality education. For your “realistic” applications, concentrate on tier 2 or regional state schools like the Cal States, Western Washington, or some of the SUNYs. For your “safe” school I’d say make sure to apply (and send financial aid results to) a community college in Maryland; I highly recommend Montgomery College - Rockville if it’s close enough or if you can get enough aid to live away from home. I don’t recommend PGCC at all unless it’s your only option. You might also want to add some second- and third-tier privates to the mix because they often are able to help a lot with funding, but I really don’t know which ones to recommend.</p>
<p>Best of luck on your SATs. If you can scrounge up any money at all, see if you can get an SAT prep book along the lines of ‘Underground Guide to the SAT’ or some such; you should be able to get a cheap used copy from Amazon. You’d be surprised how much you can gain from simple test-taking strategy. Also, if you have the time, read recreationally as much as you can. Nothing improves SAT verbal scores like reading. If you can even get 600s on the SAT, your options will open up quite a bit.</p>
<p>Try like Florida State. I have seen them take white males with much lower stats so you stand a chance.</p>
<p>I think your stats will make you very competetive for public schools. I know someone who had a 3.0 GPA who got into Georgia State, which is our “average” state school. Someone else had an even lower GPA, a 2.6 I think, and they were able to get into West Georgia.</p>
<p>HOWEVER, both these people are white, and you have URM status and you have something special that you can really touch on in essays.</p>
<p>Pick whichever college that fits you. If you aren’t used to a rigorous academic environment, a lower tiered state school could help you get used to it all. Also, a lot of schools have culture clubs that can help you feel at home.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.</p>
<p>CollegeDreams,</p>
<p>My biggest concern is your need. I don’t know of any schools with easier admissions that meet full need. Your state has some state grants that are quite generous (if you stay instate). </p>
<p>[State</a> Financial Aid Programs](<a href=“http://www.mhec.state.md.us/financialAid/descriptions.asp]State”>http://www.mhec.state.md.us/financialAid/descriptions.asp)</p>
<p>Do your parents meet the requirements for the Guaranteed Access Grant? </p>
<p>[Guaranteed</a> Access Grant](<a href=“http://www.mhec.state.md.us/financialAid/ProgramDescriptions/prog_ga.asp]Guaranteed”>http://www.mhec.state.md.us/financialAid/ProgramDescriptions/prog_ga.asp)</p>
<p>If so, I would file the FAFSA asap in senior year (like Jan-- use estimated numbers). If you get some state grant money and combine it with a Pell Grant, you are likely to get enough aid to cover instate public tuition but not room and board. So your best bet might be a 4year public where you can commute (UMBC, Towson, Frostburg, Eastern Shore) or you can work and take loans for your room and board. A private school within commuting distance might also work (McDaniel, Goucher, Hood) but there’s a good chance you will come up short on financial aid. One other suggestion is to look at HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities). If you would be comfortable there, they usually have lower tuition. That would open up the doors to Morgan State and Coppin State.</p>
<p>2collegewego has made excellent points. In addition to the privates she mentioned, these Maryland schools would be worth a look: Villa Julie and Mount St. Mary’s. As 2collegewego suggests, however, all of the schools we have suggested do not guarantee to meet 100% of need to all students. </p>
<p>If you would like a school with a substantial hispanic population, try St. Peter’s University in New Jersey. </p>
<p>But, really, the place to start is with your school counselor. They can give you fee waivers for both the SAT and ACT, and for application costs as well. So, start there!</p>
<p>Here is a beginning checklist of what you will need to do in order to apply to college:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Talk to your school counselor about fee waivers for the ACT and the SAT. The fee waivers are important because they will also allow you to get fee waivers for college applications, sending your scores to colleges, and, if necessary, submitting the CSSProfile. </p></li>
<li><p>Register to take the SAT in October and/or the ACT/SAT in September or October. You can register, using fee waivers, at [::</a> College Planning Made Easy | Inside Source for College Admissions Requirements](<a href=“http://www.collegeboard.org%5D::”>http://www.collegeboard.org) and [ACT</a>, Inc. : A Student Site for ACT Test Takers](<a href=“http://www.actstudent.org%5DACT”>http://www.actstudent.org) You should register for both at least a month before the test dates in order to get a convenient testing location.</p></li>
<li><p>See if your school library or local public has a copy of the Official Study Guide for the New SAT (published by the college board). Make it a habit to start working through some of the sample tests. Your guidance office will also have some other study materials for both the SAT and the ACT available.</p></li>
<li><p>Try to visit at least a few of the colleges in your local area over the summer. Make an appointment with the admissions office to discuss the admissions process and to take a tour of the campus. It is not a bad idea to visit community colleges too – but make sure you talk with someone in the academic advising office about how the college does with transfers. If you can, try to visit a few schools a little farther from home. The suggestions made here are a good starting point. </p></li>
<li><p>Start researching the financial aid application process, state grant awards, etc. Make a calendar with all important deadlines. You will need to complete the FAFSA after January 1st. </p></li>
<li><p>Keep going in and talking with your counselor. I know it may be hard to do, but persistent students are the ones who get the most help, and you will need help to get the best results. Don’t be shy!</p></li>
<li><p>As soon as you have identified a few colleges you like, get a copy of their application from their website and make a list of what you will need to submit and deadlines for doing so. Make meeting deadlines a priority.</p></li>
<li><p>Keep asking questions — if you have any friends who applied to college this year, ask for their advice. Keep talking to your counselor. Read everything you can find on the [::</a> College Planning Made Easy | Inside Source for College Admissions Requirements](<a href=“http://www.collegeboard.com%5D::”>http://www.collegeboard.com) site. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Feel free to PM me if you need help. I work with many low income hispanic students, and would be glad to chat if you need help.</p>