Junior and still no idea where to go...help?

<p>So it's the end of my Junior year and I still have no idea where to go and I need a little help deciding... So here goes everything... I have a 4.0 GPA, I am ranked 1/105 as of now. I scored a 30 on my ACT with sub scores of: Reading-35 English-31 Math-26 Science-28. I also scored a 5/6 on the state writing assessment. My classes have been as follows;</p>

<p>Freshman 1
Physical Science Honors
Creative Writing
Algebra A Honors
Career Management Success</p>

<p>Freshman 2
Wellness
Environmental Science
Algebra B Honors
English 1 Honors</p>

<p>Sophomore 1
Latin 1
English 2 Honors
Biology Honors
Yearbook</p>

<p>Sophomore 2
World History
Interactive multimedia
Latin 2
Algebra C</p>

<p>Junior 1
WS American History (Dual Credit)
English 3 Honors
Bible History
Yearbook</p>

<p>Junior 2
WS Psychology(Dual Credit)
ACT Prep
Geometry
Chemistry </p>

<p>And my Senior schedule is tentatively:</p>

<p>Personal Finance this summer, then
English 4 Honors
Pre-calculus
Geology
Government/Econ.
Yearbook
American History 2(Dual Credit)
Life Connections
Music Appreciation(Dual Credit)</p>

<p>My school does not offer AP or IB classes, so I took the most rigorous classes I could and am hoping for the best.</p>

<p>Some of my honors, awards, and activities are:
National Honor Society member
Public Resource Officer of FBLA
Soldiers for Christ member
Vice-President of Students Against Destructive Decisions
Mock Trial
Co-Editor of the school yearbook
I volunteer in the community.
I've held a part time job for most of high-school.
I've been student of the month several times.
I received a letter in academics.
I received Student of the Year my sophomore year.
I volunteered for Obama's 2012 Campaign.
Breast Cancer Awareness Team member.
School of Promise member.(An Anti-Drug Coalition)
I sit on the school board as a student member.
I placed 5th in State FBLA competition.
I placed 2nd in State National History Day, and am going to compete in Nationals
I was selected as a Questbridge College Prep Scholar.</p>

<p>When choosing a college, money is going to be an obstacle, my family makes very little money and will hardly be able to send me to college without significant scholarships and financial aid. Also, I will be a first generation college student.</p>

<p>Some of the colleges on my radar are:</p>

<p>Vanderbilt University
Sewanee
Austin Peay University
Belmont University
Tusculum College</p>

<p>I would be interested with help with deciding on a college, not just these 5, but I'm more interested in colleges in TN.</p>

<p>You should look and see what merit aid is available at the Tennessee state schools (such as APSU, already on your list) - if you qualify for any significant grants there, you would have a safety lined up.</p>

<p>Any private school you apply to will need to be very generous with aid, because otherwise you won’t be able to afford them. So before spending money applying to Belmont, et al., you need to look at their financial aid policies.</p>