Help me find an academic/financial safety!!!

Parents Forum
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<p>Hey guys. I've posted my stats on here several times so I'll just give a rundown</p>

<p>3.4 uw GPA
2000+ SAT
decent extracurriculars with some leadership (school paper, volunteering for political organizations).
I've taken 4 APs so far (including this year). On the one I took last year, I got a 5.</p>

<p>I'm a 0 EFC, first-gen student in Virginia. The big thing is babysitting my sibling. I do it every day for hours while my mom goes to work (she and my dad are separated. My dad is unemployed). </p>

<p>The problem I'm having is mainly this: If I find an academic safety, it is not a financial safety. If I find a financial safety, it is not an academic safety! I can't seem to find one of both!</p>

<p>I'm open to anywhere in the country, although transportation costs could add up so I'd prefer somewhere between the Great Plains and the East Coast. I'm not ruling out the West Coast, so if there's an option there, mention it!</p>

<p>A city would be nice, but again, I'm not really in the position to be picky so feel free to suggest things not in the city.</p>

<p>Thank you!</p>

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<p>Wittenberg is Ohio is very generous with merit aid. So is Washington and Jefferson in Pennsylvania.</p>

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<p>Have you considered your flagship, large state university?</p>

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<p>Where are you already applying?</p>

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<p>This thread might be helpful: </p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>You’ve got any number of great state schools to choose from.</p>

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<p>I’m a Junior, 2college.</p>

<p>MD, my state flagship is the University of Virginia and I don’t think I have the stats to get in there.</p>

<p>Thank you, Sabaray!</p>

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<p>Virginia has numerous fine state universities in addition to UVA. Go online and look at the merit scholarships at your other state schools to see what you think you qualify for before going out of state.</p>

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<p>CIA, I think you’re wrong about UVA. Properly presented I think you would have a strong application. The guaranteed transfer agreement is also another great option. </p>

<p>See how you do on your SATs. Also check with guidance. Make sure they know your financial circumstances. They are prone to assumptions there at times.</p>

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<p>Have you thought about Questbridge?</p>

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<p>I often hear that on CC. “Properly presented”, “if presented correctly”, etc. What does that mean exactly?</p>

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<p>you should ABSOLUTELY look into Questbridge.
[QuestBridge</a> Home Page](<a href=“http://www.questbridge.org/]QuestBridge”>http://www.questbridge.org/)</p>

<p>in addition questbridge has scholarships that help students prepare for college admissions AND THE DEADLINE IN MARCH 29. </p>

<p>[QuestBridge</a> College Prep Scholarship - Overview](<a href=“http://www.questbridge.org/cps/info.php]QuestBridge”>http://www.questbridge.org/cps/info.php)</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>An application that needs to be “properly presented” is not a safety. </p>

<p>In your case, if you have 0 EFC, you may not be able to find both an academic and a financial safety. Nonetheless, you are likely to find a school that will make it possible for you to attend, your stats are pretty decent. You may have to apply to a spectrum of schools to maximize your chances of finding an academically appropriate school. </p>

<p>I agree with those who say to go for Questbridge, I think that should be your primary focus for now. </p>

<p>There are certainly other state schools in Virginia besides UVA worth applying to. </p>

<p>Also, just because a school isn’t needs blind doesn’t mean they won’t award full demonstrated need. At [Free</a> College Search | Scholarships | College Admissions Requirements](<a href=“http://www.collegeboard.com%5DFree”>http://www.collegeboard.com) when you look up a college, they indicate how many kids needed aid and how many received full demonstrated need. Look for schools where that fraction is pretty high. </p>

<p>For example, compare Wittenberg (suggested above) with University of Richmond</p>

<p>Wittenberg: </p>

<h1>Number who were judged to have need: 376</h1>

<h1>Number who were offered aid: 376</h1>

<h1>Number who had full need met: 120</h1>

<p>University of Richmond</p>

<h1>Number who were judged to have need: 486</h1>

<h1>Number who were offered aid: 486</h1>

<h1>Number who had full need met: 441</h1>

<p>For example, you seem to be competitive with University of Richmond. Is it a safety? Probably not. Is it a match? Probably.</p>

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<p>OP stated he didn’t have the stats to get into UVA. I should have been clearer that I disagreed with that statement. I would not consider UVA a safety for most people.</p>

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<p>“they indicate how many kids needed aid and how many received full demonstrated need.” the HUGE caveat is that the NEED could be made up primarily of LOANS[ which have to paid back], not grants [ free money]. Going into thousands of dollars of debt to finance an education is not a good way to start out ones adult life.</p>