<p>I'm a senior in HS and plan to apply at UMass but not sure I can afford it since I'm from VA. 3.9 unw gpa, 27 act, in top 10% of class (about 350 students), rigorous coursework (throughout high school career 7 APs and the rest honors except one class). </p>
<p>Why not chk their website to see if they even award money to OOS applicants. </p>
<p>A 27 ACT won’t do much to raise the school’s avg. </p>
<p>There are MANY instate public universities in VA that will be much more affordable to you than UMass Amherst. Why UMass?</p>
<p>You do know that there are families that actually relocate to VA prior to high school because of the wealth of public colleges there.</p>
<p>Ah yes…the grass is always greener.</p>
<p>You’re OOS and your ACT isn’t high enough to warrant a merit scholarship from UMass.</p>
<p>Merit scholarships are typically given to those whose ACTs are in the upper quartile for the school. For UMass…the upper quartile is an ACT 30-36. So someone with an ACT 32ish, would likely get a nice merit scholarship.</p>
<p>An ACT 27 is average for the school.</p>
<p>You have plenty of excellent schools in your home state. Choose one that you like and is affordable.</p>