Help me find some colleges to look at?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi! I'm Rachel
White female from Alabama
GPA unweighted: 3.95ish I believe on an -/+ scale
ACT: 27 (I've been practicing, hopefully can get this up to a 30)
Extracurriculars:
Theater
Guitar (lessons)
Scholars Bowl
Soccer
Choir
Latin Club
UA Creative Writing Club
I also do a lot of poetry/song writing on my own
Yoga
Key Club
Volunteering
Newspaper
Yearbook</p>

<p>Awards: Various small writing awards. </p>

<p>Other interests/hobbies: I like to read quite a bit. I love languages. I'm a vegan. I more left leaning politically. I love being outdoors and hiking and whatnot. I love traveling.</p>

<p>I need FA, but I doubt I'd get any because of my parents' salaries. Merit scholarships, and no where too pricey please...</p>

<p>What I'd like in a school: I'm not sure exactly what I would like to study, but probably something in the humanities. I would like a smaller school, maybe a liberal arts college- I love the look of places like Oberlin, Sarah Lawrence, Bard, Wesleyan, but the price...plus I don't think I could get in. I'd like a creative, politically charged student body, if that makes sense. My high school is just so...apathetic. And somewhere with a good vegan selection in the dining area would be nice :) I don't really care about rural/urban. I love cities, and I love nature. Either one works. But I don't think Id want suburban- I grew up in the suburbs. Time for somewhere new. O and I would definitely like to study abroad.</p>

2

<p>Hey Rachel! I’m from the northeast, and the way you described yourself made it seem like you’d fit right into a bunch of our small colleges. Plus, if you have that southern accent, some people will absolutely adore it.</p>

<p>I don’t know what classes you took in HS, so it’s hard to say how awesome that 3.95 really is, but regardless your location is probably an advantage. Keep in mind you might get a great financial aid deal wherever you end up applying.</p>

<p>I would definitely recommend looking into UMass Amherst and SUNY Geneseo for starters since I know them personally, but there are a ton more liberal arts colleges that you’ve probably never heard of all over the northeast. US News & World’s list has a neat list that you can run down, but rankings are quite superficial. Admission difficulty varies a lot!</p>

<p>[Liberal</a> Arts Rankings - Best Colleges - Education - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/liberal-arts-rankings]Liberal”>http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/liberal-arts-rankings)</p>

<p>***********<strong><em>.com and </em></strong>*********.com are also both great sites where you can read what the students think about the school.</p>

3

<p>Are you interested in women’s colleges?</p>

<p>Your only real weakness is your ACT score, so you should take a look at schools that are test-optional. There’s a good list here:
[Optional</a> List | FairTest](<a href=“http://www.fairtest.org/university/optional]Optional”>ACT/SAT Optional List - Fairtest)</p>

4

<p>Being from Alabama is a plus when you apply. Its a state that is underrepresented outside the south. Try taking the SAT-some kids to much better on one than the other. You may surprize yourself, especially if you do some prep. </p>

<p>Finally, consider schools that have good merit aid-Grinnell in Iowa for example, if your test score goes up to at least 30. Beloit and Whitman are schools to check out as well. </p>

<p>In general, to get good merit aid, you need to be among the top 25% or so of students that have applied (look at the school’s common data set to get info that tells you where you stand). Schools were you are in the mid-range may admit you, but probably won’t provide any particular inducements to attend.</p>

5

<p>I need FA, but I doubt I’d get any because of my parents’ salaries. Merit scholarships, and no where too pricey please…</p>

<p>*GPA unweighted: 3.95ish I believe on an -/+ scale
ACT: 27 (I’ve been practicing, hopefully can get this up to a 30)
*</p>

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>You have a few problems that need addressing.</p>

<p>1) If your parents’ income is too high for FA, then you need BIG MERIT schools. A few thousand here or there is not going to cover the $53k+ per year that your fav schools cost.</p>

<p>2) Your SAT is not high enough to get big merit, even an ACT 30 is not high enough to get big merit at the schools that you’re interested in. Plus, some of those schools you’ve mentioned do NOT give merit at all. Many of those NE schools only give FA to those with determined need based on FAFSA and CSS Profile.</p>

<p>3) You absolutely need to find out these two things:</p>

<p>How much your parents can contribute each year towards your education. </p>

<p>What is your family’s EFC - [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and Financial Aid](<a href=“http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml]FinAid”>http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml)</p>

<p>If your parents EFC is higher than they can afford, you will have a problem. </p>

<p>At this time, there’s no point in creating lists of schools if it’s unlikely they will be affordable. You won’t get aid if you don’t have need. You won’t get BIG scholarships from schools that don’t give them or from those who require high stats.</p>

<p>You also need to apply to some financial safety schools - for “just in case.”</p>

<p>To give you an idea of prices…here are some popular LACs…</p>

<p>These prices do NOT include room, board, books, etc…so you’ll need to ADD $11,000-16,000 per year to their costs.</p>

<p>Tuition & Fees , LAC (add $11k - $16k for room, board, & books)</p>

<p>$34,172 , Sewanee
$35,124 , Davidson
$36,476 , Grinnell
$36,656 , Furman
$36,940 , Whitman
$37,017 , Pomona
$37,278 , Colorado College
$37,758 , Smith
$37,815 , Lafayette
$37,860 , Swarthmore
$38,034 , Bryn Mawr
$38,062 , Wellesley
$38,174 , Macalester
$38,320 , Colby
$38,467 , Harvey Mudd
$38,510 , Claremont McK
$38,650 , Barnard
$38,700 , Scripps
$38,722 , Holy Cross
$38,780 , Middlebury
$38,877 , W&L
$38,922 , Occidental
$38,928 , Amherst
$39,085 , Haverford
$39,126 , Mt. Holyoke
$39,300 , Bates
$39,490 , Williams
$39,760 , Hamilton
$39,777 , Carleton
$39,880 , Bard
$40,004 , Oberlin
$40,010 , U Richmond
$40,020 , Bowdoin
$40,092 , Wesleyan
$40,816 , Bucknell
$40,840 , Trinity
$40,970 , Colgate
$40,980 , Kenyon
$41,930 , Vassar</p>

<p>*In general, to get good merit aid, you need to be among the top 25% or so of students that have applied *</p>

<p>True…but to get the BIG merit (not just $10,000 off of a $55k price), you need to be in about the top 5% or less of the student who applied.</p>

6

<p>Take a look at SUNY Geneseo and St. Mary’s College of Maryland, two public liberal arts colleges. Costs are significantly lower than for private schools, even for out of state students (especially at Geneseo).</p>

<p>The New England LACs generally do not grant merit scholarships (Smith being one exception). Most of the Midwestern LACs do (other than Carleton), but as mom2collegekids suggests, you’re unlikely to get more than $5-10K unless your stats are very high or you choose a less selective school. Several of the schools above Colby on m2ck’s list offer a combination of lower sticker price plus merit scholarships, which may bring the costs as low as you’re likely to get in a private LAC. In light of your preferences, consider: Macalester, Smith, Colorado College, Whitman, Grinnell. Also consider Beloit and Lawrence University. If the cost of these schools (minus $5-10K merit aid) is still unrealistic, you’ll need to re-think your strategy and consider public universities, especially in Alabama.</p>

<p>Alabama is under-represented at many top LACs, so you may get a small admissions advantage for geographic diversity.</p>

7

<p>Hi there!</p>

<p>I agree with tk and mom.</p>

<p>First although your UW GPA is good, you 27 is not. You are really going to have to pull that up. In fact at a lot of the highly ranked schools it’s the ACT or SAT that may be the difference between what you get in regards to merit aid etc… Most of the very top LAC’s do not even offer merit aid. Some good ones that do have been listed, but with most price tags between 48 and 55k you will still have to pay quite a bit if you don’t qualify for need based. </p>

<p>I personally know a couple of kids going to some of the above schools that did offer merit and they got between 5 and 12k, but they had GPA’s in the 3.7-4.0 UW range and they all had ACT above 30. </p>

<p>One thing you do have going for you is that you are from the deep south and there are schools that are very interested in making sure they are well diversified. I would think this might help get you in, but may not help in the money department.</p>

<p>Have you taken the SAT yet?</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

8

<p>Taggart and mom2college provided you with some excellent resources there. I like to tell students not to focus only on price (taking out loans for college is not necessarily a bad thing if you have a plan to pay it off), but mom is right- a lot of those small liberal arts schools are very expensive, and you don’t want to take out so much debt it’ll haunt you for a decade after you graduate. As far as suggestions go: Wofford, Hendrix, Transylvania, Millsaps, Lyon (may be the cheapest of my recommendations, I haven’t looked at their cost in a while but they used to be), and Hanover are some very good schools in your region that are a bit more affordable than some of the others, if you haven’t looked at those yet.</p>

9

<p>Actually, a 27 ACT is well above average, and there are plenty of LACs that will offer merit aid of $5-10K/yr with that score and that GPA, so don’t rule them out or get feelings of despair. You also might want to take the SAT as well. Obviously, you will want to talk to your parents about how much they can pay. I would focus on LACs ranked by US News as numbers 50-100, particularly in the midwest and south. That’s the sweet spot for merit aid with your stats. If you go down further in the rankings, you may get even more merit aid.</p>

10

<p>John good points. I do agree about 27 being above avg., but she was talking bout schools like Oberlin, Sarah Lawrence, Bard, and Weslyan, which are all very highly ranked. These schools have much higher ACT averages and she wants merit money.</p>

<p>I agree she should take the SAT. Some kids do better on one vs the other. My son did much better on the ACT, but it appears my daughter is going to do better on the SAT.</p>

11

<p>Some Northeastern schools to look at near or in cities: Goucher, American, GW, Boston U, Brandeis, Bryun Mawr, Union,Ursinus, Muhlenberg, Drew; Pitt, Carnegie Mellon. </p>

<p>Northeastern rural options: Franklin & Marshall; Juniata, Susquehanna; Gettysburg; Union, Skidmore, Hobart, Wells, Alfred</p>

<p>Best of luck; your geographic diversity and high GPA will get you some very good merit aid offers</p>

12

<p>^^^</p>

<p>That is wishful thinking.</p>

<p>Too many kids have a 3.95 GPA or higher. What “tips the scale” for merit is a high ACT or SAT - in addition to the strong GPA. </p>

<p>Getting $5-15k/year in merit is going to be a minor dent at many LACs that cost $50k+ per year.</p>

13

<p>But a lot of LACs, especially in the midwest and south, don’t cost $50K a year. A $10K merit award is significant when the school costs $40K.</p>

14

<p>^^^John,</p>

<p>That is true too. My son just got accepted to a school in the mid-west and the tuition, room, board, fees etc…is 45k per year. They say books are about $950 So, that is 46K.</p>

<p>A 10k reduction puts you at $35k, which in my state is getting much closer to what the state schools are almost costing with all of the recent tuition hikes. Not to mention that most kids here in California do not graduate in 4 yrs. Many are taking 5 & 6 yrs.</p>

<p>The poster still would have a much better chance getting a 10k scholarship if she can get her ACT well above 27 esp. if she wanted to get merit aid in the higher ranked ones that even offer it.</p>

15

<p>The thing is, though, most kids can’t achieve a significant bump in an ACT score. If she takes it again, what will she get? A 28? A 29? Rather than spend the energy trying to get a one point increase in her ACT, she’d make better use of her time looking for moderately priced LACs in her range that offer merit aid. They are out there.</p>

16

<p>Actually, my sons girlfriend just went from a 30 to a 32 in four months. She did study though.</p>

<p>We still don’t know if the poster took the SAT.</p>

<p>Also, the school my son got accepted to told me directly that bumping your score one point, can sometimes be the difference btwn getting and not getting scholarship. </p>

<p>I do agree based on her stats that she should probably look at moderately priced LAC’s as well. But, she said in her opening post that she was looking at Sarah Lawrence, Weslyan, Oberlin, and Bard. None of those are moderately priced or ranked. Oberlin might be a little bit cheaper. I think she needs to look at the average ACT scores for those schools which I believe between 29-33. </p>

<p>You are right there are good schools like St.Olaf, Dennison and many others that offer great merit and are reasonably priced.</p>

17

<p>*Also, the school my son got accepted to told me directly that bumping your score one point, can sometimes be the difference btwn getting and not getting scholarship.
*</p>

<p>Very true.</p>

<p>I know someone who’s very upset because she couldn’t raise her ACT29 to a an ACT30. If she’d gotten an ACT 30, she would have gotten a 2/3 tuition scholarship. But, since she only got a 29, she only got $2500. Huge difference one point can make.</p>

<p>But, sometimes kids are lucky and to make big increases. My son helped his best friend go from an ACT 26 to an ACT 31 - which meant free tuition at the flagship state. </p>

<p>Can you name any good mid-tier LACs that are going to give substantial merit to an ACT 27? </p>

<p>Hondaveg hasn’t said what her parents are willing to pay each year, but if it’s less than $25k per year, then a $10k merit isn’t going to help if the school costs $40+ per year. </p>

<p>The problem I see is this…Her state flagship Cost of Attendance (COA) is about $20k per year for instate - and that includes the pricey private room suites dorms. With a 27 ACT, she’d even get a small merit scholarship that would lower the price even more. Her parents may be using that price as the amount they’re willing to spend. Many parents use their state school’s total price as their budgeted price and expect the child to cover anything more than that with loans and merit.</p>

<p>Her state flagship also offers an “LAC within a big school” with its Blount Undergraduate Initiative - a living/learning liberal arts community.</p>

18

<p>Good point mom!</p>

<p>The op’s state school is a lot cheaper than here in California. I think we would really need to know what her parents are willing to contribute and if she can take some loans or not.</p>

19

<p>I’ll name a good mid-tier LAC that is likely to give substantial merit aid to an ACT 27: Beloit.</p>

<p>[Prospective</a> Students: Merit-Based Scholarships](<a href=“Tuition & Aid • Admissions • Beloit College”>Tuition & Aid • Admissions • Beloit College)</p>

<p>I’m sure there are others, but Beloit is pretty open about it.</p>

<p>No, a liberal arts college is never going to be as inexpensive as the University of Alabama, but lots of them can compete with big state schools financially, because they HAVE to. A liberal arts college is not for everyone. But usually a liberal arts graduate will graduate in four years, and will always have personal connections with professors. Maybe an honors program in a large university will compare, but for my money, I’ll take the LAC.</p>

20

<p>I would not say that a 27 ACT is “likely” to get substantial merit aid from Beloit. That is a highly competitive scholarship which involves an interview weekend. Considering that the ACT 27 would be competing against the ACT 28-36 students, I would say that she’d be unlikely to get a substantial merit scholarship.</p>