I know there’s scholarships and FA, but there’s only so much to go around.
Most good colleges cost 40k+ annually.
My family alone lives off of 30-40k.
I make good grades, I take hard classes, but I feel like I have to go to a community college just to avoid debt.
Are loans hard to pay? How does any of this workkkk? #-o
Well, you’ll need to apply to schools that will either give you HUGE financial aid (meets need) or HUGE merit scholarships for your stats.
What is your home state?
What are your stats?
Do you have a non-custodial parent?
<<<
I’ve never thought much about college until recently - and I’m a junior in high school.
I live in Texas and would like to be an Engineer or something of the sort, but I don’t know where to start
I have an unweighted GPA of 3.75 and a weighted GPA of 5 something. I’m taking 6 AP classes this year.
Do I have to take the ACT and SAT to apply for colleges?
I think I’m in the top 10%
I heard Rice was good. What are the chances of me going there?
What do companies look at when they hire you from college?
What do colleges even look at when they think about admitting you?
HELP!
Also, how important is driving in college? I don’t know how yet TYYYY!
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
Yes you do need to take the ACT or SAT …but take both. Get fee waivers for those tests…ask your GC since you’re low income.
Are you taking the PSAT in October? Ask your GC.
You don’t need to drive in college.
I live in Texas. My stats? What’s that?
Yeah, I have a non-custodial parent.
I think I’m going to take them. I’ll try to talk to my counselors, but they’re kind of mean and unhelpful.
Get the PSAT practice booklet from your guidance counselor as soon as possible. You have one shot at this particular test. It is in about 1 month. Top .5% scores could lead to scholarships for college.
Stats means GPA and SAT/ACT scores.
For schools like Rice, your non-custodial parent’s income and assets will also get looked at to determine aid. Will your NCP help pay for college? Does he pay your mom child support?
Politely ask your GC if you’ll be taking the PSAT in October. That’s a simple yes/no question and they shouldn’t be mean about it. ALSO…while there, ask about getting SAT and ACT fee waivers so that you can take the exams for free.
Do you receive free/reduced lunch? If so, I think that means you qualify for fee waivers for college applications (for next year), but also SAT and ACT testing fee waivers.
Listen and follow the advice of these posters, they know how to guide people through the process.
I think the Texas public univs do not require NCP info, so be sure to apply to several…UT…TAMU…UT Dallas…Texas Tech…and a few others.
With that income, you likely qualify for a federal Pell Grant.
The state of Texas also gives aid.
If your test scores turn out well, then there are Texas publics that should give you an excellent aid pkg…a combo of “need-based aid” and “merit scholarship”.
Texas Tech has good scholarships that combine with federal and state aid. Since you’re interested in eng’g, that could be your “safety” school depending on your scores.
If your GPA ends up putting you in the top 7%, then I think you’ll be an auto-admit to UTexas…and UT is trying to give very good aid to low income students.
When your school offers “college nights” or similar, go to them.
Ask questions here on the CC forum. We can help you form your app list so that you’ll have affordable choices.
This student - high GPA, high class rank, 6 APs are a junior, very low income - is the type of students Questbridge is interested in.
@RequiredUser :
1° Look at what your HS library offers in terms of SAT prep and prepare very seriously. The PSAT is a huge scholarship competition. If you score very high, you get automatic scholarships.
2° Questbridge guarantees lower-income students it’s selected a 4-year full ride. No loans.
http://www.questbridge.org/
They have a program for juniors that helps you prepare your college applications to colleges that meet 100% need. You apply in the Spring.
http://www.questbridge.org/for-students/cps-college-prep-scholarship
this this amount before or after taxes? (there is a difference between what they earn and what they have to live off of after taxes).
Who do you live with; both of your parents or just one parent?
If you only live with one parent, where is your other parent (the non-custodial parent is the parent who you do not live with)?
If your parents are not together, have either one of them remarried?
Are either of your parents self employed or own their own business?
Does your family own real estate outside of your primary residence?
Do you have any siblings currently in college?
we need to get a better idea as to how to assist you.
Take the above advice seriously. Merit scholarships look very closely at SAT and/or ACT scores. A lot of people recommend trying both since some people find one easier than the other. Most schools will accept either test. You need to prepare for these tests by studying the material and doing sample tests under the same time constraints as the actual test. These tests have a set format and type of questions that you should be familiar with before you take the test. Being familiar with the test format will definitely improve your school.
Also the SAT format has changed recently. Make sure that you are using preparation books that are for the current test and not the older version.
If you get free/reduced lunch you are entitled to waivers for 2 sittings each of the ACT and SAT. You’ll also be eligible for the common app fee waiver and the CSS Profile fee waiver.
If you get 2 sittings for each ACT and SAT, then choose dates wisely. Take one of each spring 2016, but study for them first. Then, work on improving weak areas, and take them again Fall of senior year.
You also get 2 “free” sittings of SAT Subject tests. Take two in May or June, after you’ve finished with the class but while the content of the subjects is still fresh. There’s no requirement to choose any one subject, so choose the two subjects you feel you’re the strongest in.
Then in the Fall, retake the one subject where you got the lowest score (unless both May/June scores were 700s!) and take another one, typically a foreign language (in November if a heritage/native language, in December if not - this is very important!!!)
Each time to take the SAT (Reasoning or Subjects), you can send all your scores for free to 4 universities. Take advantage of this since otherwise, sending the tests costs $11 per test and it adds up quickly.
Don’t send your first junior year scores, unless your practice tests consistently show you score in the mid to high 600s or higher (or 29-30 on the ACT - those don’t correspond but practice tests tend to be skewed for the ACT because the science section is much harder on the actual test.) Always take the ACT with writing (few universities accept it without it.)
Once your May scores are in, prepare well for the next tests; use this opportunity to send your SAT Reasoning + Subject when you take the test in June (unless May went horrible of course)… and do so strategically:
SAT June results= sent to state school safeties/matches;
ACT September results= sent to matches; SAT October results: sent to 2 other matches and 2 reaches;
November or December SAT results= sent to 4 reaches (if your ACT is higher, you may have to pay to send your ACT results, unless your school organizes mandatory/free ACT tests Spring Junior year as some schools do, so that you’d have the “free, mandatory” ACT junior year and 2 free for September and December senior year, sending December results to reaches.)
The assumption is that your scores will go up, so even if your May+June tests weren’t too good, they’re good enough for your in-state, public safeties. Then as your preparation increases and the scores go up, you send them to increasingly more selective schools.
DO NOT take any standardized test without preparing seriously for several months ahead of time. Register for “question of the day” on each website, use Khan academy every day, start working with whatever material’s available in your guidance office and school library or town library, etc.
Your school doesn’t prepare you for those tests so you need to check if there’s any “free prep workshop” at the library or at a community center. If so, sign up immediately (places go quickly).
It’s important to answer Sybbie’s questions. If you are low-income without businesses, step parents, outside assets, there are schools and programs that you should look into. Your choices are different if, for example, your parents are divorced and one has remarried someone who is wealthy.
Actually 2 sittings of SAT Subject tests as well. But as I recall no free score reports for the ACT other than the ones that you get with the test when you sign up (before you know your scores). SAT gives 4 I think, in addition to the ones that are included. So 4 once you know the scores.
SAT gives 4 for each time you take the SAT Reasoning (so, 8 total) and 4 for each time you take SAT Subjects (so 8, total, and they include Reasoning alongside the subject scores, unless students tell them not to).
I think ACT sends 4 free scores per sitting.
Yeah but you only get 4, total after you know your score.
yup… hence the “strategy” developped for low-income students, for whom the $11 per test sent are onerous, in order to optimize the “free scores” sent.