<p>My GPA is 3.6 unweighted and 4.0+ weighted. SAT scores are 2180. on the SAT II i have a 750 in math 2 and a 710 in physics. I know that with my stats i probably wont be able to get into a top college, so i am considering aiming low for undergrad so i can get a full ride. i like the idea of not being in debt when i finish college. </p>
<p>What tier colleges should i look at for a full ride? examples please :)
Will going to a lower raked college with a full ride hurt my chances of getting admitted to a top college for grad school?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>What do you mean by “free ride” ?</p>
<p>Do you mean “free tuition”</p>
<p>or do you mean…free tuition, free room and board, free books?</p>
<p>With your SAT, you could get free tuition at a couple of mid-tier schools depending on what your Math +CR score is from a single sitting. What is it?</p>
<p>For you to get a total free ride (room, board, etc) you’d have to look at some lowish tier schools that you may not like because they may be commuter schools.</p>
<p>What is your likely major?</p>
<p>What was your PSAT?</p>
<p>Will going to a lower raked college with a full ride hurt my chances of getting admitted to a top college for grad school?</p>
<p>My sons got large scholarships to a mid-tier flagship. One has just graduated and has been accepted to a PhD program at a Top 20 university …full Assistantship, full tuition, large stipend.</p>
<p>hmm, well i meant all expenses paid for, but if that means i would have to go to a lowish tier school then i’ll stick to just free tuition :). </p>
<p>i PM’d you my scores, but i’ll post them again for anyone else who happens to find this thread. </p>
<p>Math + CR = 1500 (Math- 780, CR- 720)
PSAT- 192 (junior year)</p>
<p>i’ll probably major in something money related (eg finance or economices)</p>
<p>Congrats to your sons!! what were their scores like?</p>
<p>My kids’ SATs were 2280 and higher…and ACT 33 and higher. </p>
<p>(not super-scored…I don’t know what their scores would be super-scored. These were single sitting scores)</p>
<p>One kid did better on the SAT…and one did better on the ACT. That’s just the way it goes. </p>
<p>*
i’ll probably major in something money related (eg finance or economices)*</p>
<p>*i meant all expenses paid for, but if that means i would have to go to a lowish tier school then i’ll stick to just free tuition *</p>
<p>Ok…you need a strategy…</p>
<p>1) Apply to some schools that have COMPETITIVE merit scholarships. These aren’t assured and you’d be competing against 100s of kids for a top scholarship. These may require that you attend a “scholarship weekend” for interviews. Don’t know if your unweighted GPA is going to hurt you. Do you have any top ECs or national awards?</p>
<p>2) Apply to some 3rd-tier ranked schools for assured “full rides”. I only know of one that still exists, but there may be others. </p>
<p>3) Apply to some schools that will give you ASSURED free tuition for your stats. I know that The University of Alabama (ranked #79) will give you free tuition if you apply by Dec 1st. I think that is the highest ranked national university that would give you an ASSURED full tuition scholarship for your stats.</p>
<p>considering i have the whole summer to study, i think that i can get a 2300 on the sat. if i did would that change things? </p>
<p>Nothing special when it comes to EC’s. i was in model UN for 3 years and guitar ensemble for 2 years. in guitar ensemble our group scored highest in a multi-state competition at hershey park (we were the only guitar ensemble there, but nevertheless our we scored higher than any other type of group on the same scale). i also taught math for a few months at a hindi school in which my parents were founding members. currently i have about 30 hours of community service from teaching at the hindi school, but will get another 60+ hours this summer. sadly, no national awards :(</p>
<p>so if i understand this correctly, alabama is the highest ranked school that i am assured a full tuition, but higher ranked schools MIGHT give me a full tuition? Also, does this mean that i’m pretty much assured some kind of scholarship (full or partial) from higher ranked schools than alabama?</p>
<p>If you are asking if there are schools out there that will give you a free ride, the answer is likely “yes”. You have to find them. Read Momfromtexas’s thread on full ride scholarships and use her methodology. Since your stats are very good, you’ll have some good hits in that search.</p>
<p>If you are looking at schools that are highly selective and well known, many of them do not give much in the way of merit scholarships, though most of them are generous in financial aid if you have need. None of the ivies, for example, give merit scholarships, nor do schools like Amherst, Williams, MIT. Those top rated schools that do have some merit awards, have a highly competitive process. By all means look into what is out there. Emory has a Scholars Program, Georgia Tech has a Presidential Scholarship program, Duke has a full ride scholarship, as does Wake Forest, BC, UCh, JHU have some merit awards. UNC CH has the Morehead. Pitt has the Chancellor Scholarships. You need to look at what is available at those schools that interest you.</p>
<p>Most important of all, however, is that you have a few schools that you know you can afford that will take you. Once you have that covered, you can go after full and partial rides with abandon.</p>
<p>Do you qualify for financial need?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>NO…because in that batch of schools above number 79 are a bunch of schools that don’t give merit aid AT ALL.</p>
<p>You might want to check into applying for the McNair Scholarship at U of South Carolina. It’s a full ride scholarship. The application is a doozie but if you are selected, it’s well worth it.</p>
<p>i found 2 threads from momfromtexas. is it the original one or the update?</p>
<p>as for financial aid… i think so, but im not sure. isn’t it different for each school? currently my dad is unemployed so we make ~100,000 a year (mom’s salary) with 4 people in the household. Also, the money i would receive from financial aid would have to be paid back, correct? is financial aid any better than just taking a loan?</p>
<p>Vivek, if you can sit with your parents and run through some numbers for the FAFSA and institutional financial aid estimator, you can get some idea as to what kind of aid you might be able to expect. From the federal government, loans are all you are guaranteed, and only $5500 in Staffords for sure if you meet FAFSA requirements. Those are loans in your own name. Does your state have any programs like Florida’s Bright Futures? Depending on your parents assets, how that $100K sits on the tax forms, whether your parents have equity in their house, will all go into the equation of what kind of financial aid you might get. Yes, it is different at each school, but the better endowed schools tend to be more generous in aid, and for such schools the aid sometimes is all grant money. But yes, most of the time the package is made up of grants, and self help. </p>
<p>There are a number of private schools that have some nice merit awards such as Denison, George Washington, Fordham. Catholic schools seem to have some generous scholarships for high scorers.</p>
<p>What state are you in?</p>
<p>@thumper1
“NO…because in that batch of schools above number 79 are a bunch of schools that don’t give merit aid AT ALL.”</p>
<p>but in the schools that do have merit aid, i would receive some type of scholarship, right?</p>
<p>@ MizzBee
im in NJ. </p>
<p>@cptofthehouse
im not sure if NJ has any equivalent programs at the moment. what does Florida’s Bright Futures do?</p>
<p>One thing you can do is look at the USNEWS and WR Big book at a Barnes and Noble and look for the pages in the front section that has the lists of colleges giving the most grants. There is a column for financial aid and one for merit aid. That will give you a start on some schools that do give out merit money. The book is probably worth buying as you can look up each school that you check off that does give merit money, and you can then see how much it gives in merit money and what the average award is. Your stats are high enough that except at the top schools, you probably stand a good chance of getting a hefty award at schools that give them. For awards like the Morehead, or Emory Scholars, or Duke’s full rides, it is very competitive since getting accepted to these schools is not a sure thing even with stellar stats.</p>
<p>Ohio University (they use a SAT sliding scale and a 2100 is usually full tuition, my nephew attends as a 2nd year on a full ride), Ohio Wesleyan U. (known for merit and offered my son two “stacked” merit scholarships --Schubert and Founders which was full tuition). OU has an excellent business school and you would most likely be admitted into their honors college. Good luck!</p>
<p>You might look into PITT and Tulane. They have some pretty nice scholarship program although you’d want to apply early for your best changes of receiving them.</p>
<p>as for financial aid… i think so, but im not sure. isn’t it different for each school? currently my dad is unemployed so we make ~100,000 a year (mom’s salary) with 4 people in the household.</p>
<p>did your dad work at all this year? Did he receive any kind of severance pay this year?</p>
<p>Does he receive any unemployment checks?</p>
<p>Will your dad likely become re-employed in the near future?</p>
<p>It sounds like with your parents’ income, you won’t qualify for a lot of aid because your EFC will be highish…probably higher than what your family will pay.</p>
<p>Ask your parents how much they’ll pay. It sounds like you could have an EFC of about $25k. If so, you will need large merit scholarships so that your REMAINING costs are an affordable amount.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>You will ONLY be guaranteed to receive merit aid at schools that GUARANTEE that all students with your stats will receive merit aid. Otherwise, you will be competing for merit aid with other students with stats similar to yours…and BETTER. You also need to check college websites for requirements. Some of the most generous merit awards require a separate application and those along with your admissions application are typically due before December 1. Many require an essay as part of that application.</p>
<p>Thumper is right.</p>
<p>I think some think that because Alabama does what it does, that others with higher or similar rankings are doing the same. Most are not. </p>
<p>Even Indiana U has decreased its assured scholarship (see below). It was one of the only higher ranking schools that I knew about that had a high **assured **scholarship (non NMF)…but now Indiana has greatly decreased it for future students. :{</p>
<p>IU</p>
<p>Out-of-state tuition and fees: $27,689<br>
Room and board: … $7,918<br>
Books and supplies: … $978
personal expenses: … $2,412 </p>
<h2>Transportation expense:… $820</h2>
<p>COA…approx…$40,000 per year</p>
<p>IU Distinction - $36,000 ($9,000 per year)</p>
<p>The IU Distinction Scholarship is awarded to the best and brightest out-of-state students who meet each of the following criteria:</p>
<pre><code>* Out-of-state student (domestic and international)
- Minimum SAT score of 1340 or minimum ACT of 30
- Minimum GPA of 3.80 on a 4.0 scale
</code></pre>
<p>IU used to give a $16k per year merit scholarship…which was a bit more than a “half-tuition” scholarship.</p>