Makes sense. I’m not looking for any guarantees (since I know “holistic” means pretty much anything goes) but just a thumbs up is enough for me.
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Minor updates to smaller programs:
- MIT WISE (Fly-in): Rejected
- Columbia EPC (Fly-in): Rejected
- Coca Cola Scholarship: Rejected
Fourth time’s the charm though. (I’m delusional)
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Would you be content with attending your 3 safety/match schools? Every so often there is a person with great stats where somehow the stars just won’t align with the highly rejective schools.
I think you’ve done what you can with respect to the long lists of reaches – would it make sense to invest some time into identifying more “matches” so that you do have more options, should you need to?
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I would definitely be OK with my matches/safeties. Especially UF! I get full cost of attendance covered at any of these schools plus some stipends.
I do have a reason for applying to my reaches, though (beyond just “academics”), and it mostly comes down to money. I cant afford matches (as they usually dont give enough aid as top schools) but I also cant use Bright Futures/NM. It was somewhere in the old post if you can find it.
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Can CC suggest some top schools (but not Ivy level) that can work with the budget? I think OP schools are too reachy.
In my opinion both Gatech Stamps and UMD full ride are not happening.
OP needs private that will be happy to give enough Merit to attend. Public is not going to work here. I am thinking in line school needs smart minority student with his stats.
How about Lehigh for great engineering and a perhaps slightly less reach-y application? OP would have to check the NPC to see if its an affordable option.
Lehigh is giving me $27k NPC. Like the location, but looks like a no-go without scholarships. $1000 boost from NM is basically nothing.
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Lehigh does offer merit scholarships. My high stats D23 (engineering) was offered the Dean’s Scholarship - $15K/year for 4 years. I think Lehigh has higher levels of merit scholarships as well. Not guaranteed of course, but may help bring the cost down.
Might work, tbh. It’s worth a try seeing at it’s the only target/reach in here with some semblance of merit awards.
Did you rule out the NM schools like UTD and Tulsa for some reason? Sorry if I missed that. 
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OP here is your problem. You have a lot of DE. Public schools love DE and give credits for most of them. However, public do not give FA to OOS students… Privates seldom give credit for DE (I think MIT is an exception.). So unfortunately with your financial situation your best bet is top public in Florida.
Lafayette good engineering will meet 100% of need. Smaller school but a great liberal arts engineering mix in similar location as Lehigh. Close to Philly, NYC, Jersey Shore and Poconos
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No, Tulsa is the one I hear thrown around all the time and its in there but for some reason I forgot to include it. I think it wasnt in my google sheets?
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Maybe, but I’m not terribly concerned about schools not taking DE credits. Especially if they’re reaches.
That actually sounds pretty interesting. Ill look into it!
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The problem is the budget is not aligning with the NPCs.
hmmmm - Tulsa?
It’s free. It’s solid. It’s got the biggest concentration of NMS in the country - according to the school - 25%.
Maybe - depending on majors - an SMU Presidential and W&L Johnson as Hail Mary’s. There’s others like that.
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I would caution about meet full need. DD did not get merit at Lafayette. Their meet full need was very costly and included loans…
W&L for Engineering?
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OP another issue that big public are usually good for Engineering (with no FA for OOS). There are few private for Engineering but they are either very top (MIT) or a bit small with not much full ride opportunities.
He only has one out of state public school on his list (Georgia Tech) and I believe he is looking at the STAMPS - sure, it is a long shot but at least there is the possibility of making his budget. With a $10k budget, the very elite schools are your best bet to get close to that number via need-based financial aid. There are very few merit schools that are going to get him anywhere near the numbers he’s gotten from the NPCs at elite schools. Since he likes and can afford his Florida options, it isn’t a bad strategy. As a first gen (and possibly lower SES) candidate with fantastic stats I think he will be an appealing candidate. Of course, it is still a long shot, but certainly not an impossibility. He could also add Tulsa for another safe option that would come in at budget. For kids with tiny budgets (who qualify for need-based aid) merit will rarely get you to where you want to go.
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