<p>Senior year will be starting in about 13 days for me, and I was hoping to have a better idea of where I was going to apply. </p>
<p>I'm looking for schools that are moderately close to my home state of Louisiana, and are generous with Merit Based aid, preferably aid doled out by numbers and stats over marvelous essays and whatnot.</p>
<p>My Stats:
35 ACT (E:36,M:35,R:31,S:36,W:<em>9</em>)
SAT Subj. Tests: BioM:800, Chem 790, Math 770. (all first time)
AP: Bio 5, Chem 4.
I'm still debating whether to retake Math SAT Subject test and something else or to take the regular SAT... Feel free to advise about this as well.
GPA: 3.70 UW Freshman-Junior year
Quite Rigorous Senior Year schedule</p>
<p>In summary, I'm looking for schools that give out quite a bit of merit aid that are out of state yet not too far. I already plan on applying to LSU (which should be damn near free, if not downright lucrative) and Tulane (which has a terribly high sticker price).</p>
<p>I plan on majoring in some sort of Biology or Engineering.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help, and feel free to ask additional questions.</p>
<p>Do you by any chance know how the ACT essay component is used by their admissions departments?
A 9 is the 88%tile on the essay component while one point higher, a 10, is 97%tile. For that reason alone I've considered retaking the ACT, since it's such a huge jump.</p>
<p>You could probably get merit aid at Tulane. Southwestern University, just outside of Austin, TX gives merit aid based on scores/GPA. It would be a safety for you. I don't think you need to retake any standardized tests or add the SAT. Vanderbilt and Duke give merit aid, but they're both very competitive. SMU in Dallas gives merit aid. Hendrix in Arkansas may also be a possibility.</p>
<p>Following up on prefect, you would DEFINITELY get a lot of merit aid from Tulane, and there is a full ride Dean's Scholarship that you could apply for.</p>
<p>dg5052, the problem with the dean's honor scholarship is that it seems to be more of a "let's see how creative you can be with this little piece of paper!" rather than awarding based on true academic merit. I have intent to apply, but I just can't see myself doing well with it.</p>
<p>You guys have convinced me to definitely apply to Rice and Emory; before, it was simply a "maybe."</p>
<p>I'll look into the others as well, especially Vanderbilt.</p>
<p>The problem with scholarships based on ranking (U Miami) is that I've been taking waaay harder classes than most, and consequentially, I've got quite a few Bs. Last year, we had 16 valedictorians with 4.0 UW. I'm not sure how big my graduating class is, though, but i can tell you it's definitely not 1600... which is how big it would have to be to be considered for the Tuition scholarship at U Miami. Actually, now that I think about it, I don't think we rank. Any idea how that would play into the U Miami scholarships?</p>
<p>Also, does anyone know how Rice, Tulane, and Emory factor ACT writing into admissions/scholarships?</p>
<p>you'll probably get a ton of aid money from tulane with those stats, they have a very generous financial aid department. for what it's worth, tulane and emory were my top 2 choices and tulane offered a much better financial aid package</p>
<p>@ LakeWashington: I'll definitely look into those schools.</p>
<p>@ MonStar: Thanks for the first hand info. I'm not sure whether I should apply to Emory at all; Tulane loves Louisiana students and from what I've heard (from you and others) Tulane's pretty generous. I guess there's no harm in applying to both.</p>
<p>Where did you see anything about needing 1600 students? I've never heard of that and I have a scholarship... my HS had 200 students. But, I'm not really sure how it works if your school doesn't rank. Sometimes when schools "don't rank," they will at least give an approximate percentage that you're at. If they don't even do that, then I really have no idea. Sorry that I'm not much of a help hah :(</p>
<p>First of all, congratulations on your achievements - your SAT/ACT scores are excellent, and I would suspect that you also have good ECs. Being from Louisiana gives you an admissions advantage at some of the most selective schools in the country. Is there a reason why you are limiting yourself to schools that are relatively close to Louisiana? Are you looking for a large school or a small liberal arts school. Do you want to be in a city or in a rural area? There are many schools that are relatively far: USC - the one in California, not the one in North Carolina; University of Arizona, Arizona State, Pittsburgh, and a host of LACs that would give you merit-based aid.</p>
<p>BTW, I have heard good things about the LSU Honors College - which I suspect you would qualify for.</p>
<p>I "second" University of Pittsburgh, Tulane (I personally do not recommend schools below the level of Pitts/Tulane as you are fully capable of receiving merit at these institutions). Rice/Emory merit aid is obviously much more competitive.</p>
<p>It would be an egregious mistake to surround you with students of lower calibur than Pitts/Tulane. (In my opinion)</p>
<p>Also check out Boston U, and UIUC (realize proximity issue). Vanderbilt and WashU also offer merit aid.</p>
<p>I suppose I can expand my search geographically; the problem is that my mom is more or less against any school that's not a day's drive there. She's not particularly happy with something even as far as Atlanta, but I really have no preference (and would actually enjoy the experience outside of Louisiana).</p>
<p>Now that you ask, her argument is moderately weak anyway--I'm pretty independent. </p>
<p>I don't think I'm looking for a lib arts school, but I have no reason not to, I suppose, beyond that I'm considering engineering.
I think I'd also prefer at least a moderately sized city... approx 100K or more.</p>
<p>And don't worry... LSU Honors is definitely still on the table. I'm guaranteed tuition through TOPS, and I'm pretty sure I'll get at least a portion of room and board as an incentive for me to matriculate there.</p>
<p>My ECs are numerous but didn't really require that much time... which is mainly the fault of club presidents past. I am the president of two clubs (maybe three... we'll see) this year though, fwiw.</p>
<p>Are there any schools that are particularly pressed for Louisiana students that you know of?</p>
<p>I sent you a PM. You need to look at your PSAT score. That's National Merit finalist award that you can really use to your advantage.</p>
<p>Rice is unbelievably expensive unless you qualify for FINANCIAL AID, not Merit Aid. The few merit scholarships are really hard to get. Fantastic school.</p>