<p>Most of the more selective universities also have higher grade inflation.</p>
<p>[National</a> Trends in Grade Inflation, American Colleges and Universities](<a href=“http://www.gradeinflation.com%5DNational”>http://www.gradeinflation.com)</p>
<p>Finances were a concern for us in this economy and my guys both did well with private colleges. They matched, or were better than, public U. It will likely depend upon your ACT/SAT stats. Do you have any yet?</p>
<p>My suggestion to anyone where money is a concern is to look for schools who are known for good financial aid and apply to them as well as your in state public. Don’t fall in love with any particular school, but know the pros of each. After the financial package comes in, then pick who to fall in love with based upon fit for you.</p>
<p>We have one in college (sophomore), one heading there this fall (and you might want to apply to his future school - the University of Rochester - since he also is looking at either medical research or pre-med), and one more who’s a sophomore in high school yet. My youngest will be applying to public and private… after we do some research and figure out which schools are good with Tropical Botany… He also needs to get test scores and will get his first set this coming fall.</p>
<p>If our economy improves, great, finances won’t be as much of a concern for us, but if not, there are still affordable options out there for kids who do well in high school (GPA and SAT/ACT).</p>
<p>I live in your state and think you should look at University of Mn-Duluth. Your Gpa will give you great merit aide. They also have a medical school; you do your first two years in Duluth and the last two at University of Mn-Twin Cities for clinical work. Some have said that the Twin city students look down at the Duluth students but as my DH (who is a pediatrician) says “At the end of the day you both get called Doctor”. When we visited with my DD15 she did not like the school but her sister 13 loved it and even as middle school student is always asking if her grade are good enough to go there. I thought the school was pretty neat in the way all the buildings are connected so you never have to go outside in winter. They pride themselves on wearing shorts and t-shirts even when its -30 outside.</p>
<p>I hope this helps and wish you luck on your future.</p>