<p>Hey all-</p>
<p>Im a junior in Minnesota, looking for somemore colleges to apply to. Right now, Im planning to apply to Brandeis, Fordham, Loyola New Orleans, Saint Olaf, and Elmhurst College as a safety. I like to have a wide range of options, so Im curious if anyone has any ideas of any other colleges similar to these. Im interested in a small/medium sized liberal arts college with a good music program. Thanks for the help!</p>
<p>Skidmore (NY) and Muhlenberg ¶. Best of luck!</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions! But isn’t it true that Skidmore doesn’t give out non-need based aid? How would you go about paying for college if you don’t qualify for need based aid?</p>
<p>Lawrence University?</p>
<p>Are you looking for merit aid? Why didn’t you mention in your OP if that were the case? What are your stats? What can your family afford for school?</p>
<p>I’m not sure how much exactly my family can afford for college (probably should look into that) but we definitely will be relying on financial aid, four other kids in my family are also going to college at the same time. I don’t think we’ll qualify for a lot of need based aid though. My stats right now:</p>
<p>3.6 UW GPA
27 ACT (retaking this month)
and pretty strong extracurriculars</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions so far!</p>
<p>I thought I read that Brandeis no longer gives out merit aid.
Check out all the schools’ websites to confirm, then you may have to take them off your list. </p>
<p>Remember that even with a school that may give you merit between $15,000 & $20,000 per year, if the cost of attending is about $55,000 annually, that is still a big chunk of change for your family to come up with for all 4 years.</p>
<p>Well according to the Brandeis website they still give out merit aid, but I think you may be right about the big sticker price. What is a typical aid package from a college like these?</p>
<p>Brandeis University:</p>
<p>Financial Aid Rating: 77
Freshman receiving any financial aid: 55%
Undergraduates receiving any financial aid: 58%
Average Percent of Need Met: 92%
Average Total Financial Aid Package: $32,260
Average Freshman Total Need-Based Gift Aid: $30,543
Average Undergraduate Total Need-Based Gift Aid: $2,777
Average Need-Based Loan: $4,338
Average amount of loan debt per graduate: $21,351
Undergraduates who have borrowed through any loan program: 70% </p>
<p>Bear in mind the colleges report these numbers, no one checks up on them!
These are from Princeton Review.</p>
<p>Thank you! Very helpful stuff</p>
<p>Intparents’s suggestion of Lawrence is a good one and they are supposed to be good with merit aid. Lake Forest (IL), Knox (IL), DePauw (IN), Wooster (OH), Wittenberg (OH) and Ohio Wesleyan are all supposed to be good with merit aid.</p>
<p>You will have four students in college at the same time?? Wow. Run your numbers through the FAFSA forecaster. With that number of students your EFC may not be as high as you think. There are some good schools in the Midwest Student Exchange which will offer reduced tuition. [MHEC</a> : MSEP Participating Institutions (52)](<a href=“http://www.mhec.org/MSEPParticipatingInstitutions]MHEC”>http://www.mhec.org/MSEPParticipatingInstitutions) I don’t know about their music programs.</p>
<p>OP, confirm 4 students in college at same time: grad school for a sibling will not count, having parents in undergrad or grad school will not count. </p>
<p>If all 4 of you are siblings & are all undergrads, then that will affect your family’s EFC.
Also it does depend on if all 4 of you are full-time, half-time or part-time students, who lives at home, etc.</p>
<p>We won’t all be in college at the same time, one of my sisters will have just graduated and two of my sisters will be entering college after my sophomore year. My brother is entering college this year however. How much does that affect my EFC do you think? Thanks for the suggestions!</p>
<p>Look at Oberlin College. I think your EFC will only be taking your brother into account. The following year, when you submit a new FAFSA, your two sisters will make the total 4. Indiana U.- Bloomington is well known for music as well.</p>
<p>maybe washington and lee
its an LAC and i believe it has strong music programs and lots of related clubs and ECs
(they give merit aid, too)</p>
<p>Check these links:
[50</a> Top Colleges](<a href=“http://50topcolleges.com/]50”>http://50topcolleges.com/)
[America’s</a> 25 New Elite ‘Ivies’ - Newsweek](<a href=“http://www.newsweek.com/id/39401]America’s”>America's 25 New Elite 'Ivies')
[America’s</a> Best Colleges - Forbes.com](<a href=“Forbes List Directory”>Forbes List Directory)</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions! One other sort of unrelated question: There are a lot of great colleges in really small towns. Is there enough to do around if you go to a college in a really small town? I’m not really big on drinking, and I’m curious if more people tend to drink at colleges in small towns? Thanks</p>