<p>Bumping after two minutes is quite rude… especially with a question this specific. Most state schools do not give much merit aid to out of state students. Once you have a list of schools, you will want to visit each school’s financial aid website. They should have information on merit aid and a financial aid calculator you can run with some help from your parents. Your test scores are pretty good, so that might help. But for out of state schools, you will mostly want to look at the merit aid section of the websites.</p>
<p>Regarding cost, here are a few thoughts:
- When you say $8,000 tuition, do you mean total cost (including room & board)? Or truly just tuition?
- Generally I am not a big fan of taking out many loans, but as an engineering major you will be in a better position than most to pay them back. So you should at least consider taking out some loans.
- Assuming you can earn a few thousand dollars a year with summer work and a job during school.
- If your parents both make over $100,000 per year, have you asked them how much they contribute financially each year for you? Even if they have not saved a lot (and saying they have not “had time” probably isn’t accurate… they actually probably have not chosen to, which is a different story), it seems like they should be able to contribute something from current earnings each year. Of course, that all depends on whether you have younger sibs, etc.</p>