<p>^^ Again, from OOS publics like Michigan, UNC, UVa, I doubt you’ll get enough merit aid (if any) to make them very competitive with UT-Austin in-state. Size might be a concern, too, if UT is “too big”. UVa is smaller than the others.</p>
<p>How vital is it to get good merit aid? Have you used an online calculator to estimate your expected family contribution?</p>
<p>If merit aid is essential to making an expensive private school or OOS public work, you may not have too many match-safety options that are significantly more attractive than UT. Even if you get into the reaches, they may be unaffordable (unless it’s a school like Yale or Stanford with a high ceiling on income qualifying for need-based aid). The more selective the school, the less likely it is (in most cases) to even offer merit aid.</p>
<p>If you’d consider a true engineering school, you could shoot for free/reduced tuition schools (Olin or Cooper Union). If you’d consider a small school, you might have luck with a LAC that would shower merit aid on a high stats, Asian female STEM major from Texas.</p>