<p>@momrath, I’ll certainly look into those schools! To be honest, if money becomes a worry, I would plan on attending UW-Madison. It’s not my dream school, but I think I can do well there and enjoy myself. I talked to a local professor, and he said that ultimately applying to graduate school comes down to GPA, not the undergraduate school. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, I am not female. I was devastated after learning that Barnard was a woman’s college! </p>
<p>My parents said that they would be able to contribute about $20,000 a year, and the rest would be up to me. For a school like Rice, I’d personally have to deal with $12,000 or so. I don’t think that’s too terrible, especially because I believe that I would love it there. I can always work on the weekends and on breaks and over the summer. And I expect to graduate with some sort of debt. I see it as an investment. </p>
<p>Does this clear it up a bit? I think I need to find some more match/lower reach schools similar to Rice University. I like that it’s a small university very very much.</p>