<p>I would definitely post scholarship information from the school’s website if I could, but some schools don’t publicly post this information. I’ll talk about what I know about merit scholarships for the schools I mentioned.</p>
<p>University of Pittsburgh is really generous with scholarships. I’ve seen people with basic 1450+/1600 SATs and top 5-10% of their class get full tuition scholarships.</p>
<p>Case Western awards merit scholarships of up to $27,500/yr. I remember I was given $22,500/yr, which was still pretty good. </p>
<p>And for both of these schools, there was no separate application needed for merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the input. Just as a side note, I’m not going to have that much trouble paying for U of M, and I’ve already been accepeted to Michigan State as kind of a safety, but I read on other posts that their Alumni Distinguished Scholarship competition is actually really competetive for a full ride. I was just wondering if I could get a full scholarship to schools at least as good as Michigan State…so far the only colleges in Michigan that I could probably go to for free are more locally known schools like Wayne State and Central Michigan and I wouldn’t turn down acceptance at U of M for a school like that…</p>
<p>Including need based aid, could I go to any tier 1 or 2 schools for like $15,000 or less? I was thinking about applying to USoCal, Miami, or Purdue…</p>
<p>Seriously, don’t let the fact that UA is in the south keep you from exploring it. Go to the above link and go to the Virtual Tour and other links and look around. :)</p>
<p>At a minimum, you need to apply to heavy merit award schools like Alabama as your financial safety for going OOS. You essentially need a full-tuition award for your $15k to pay for housing, food, books, etc.</p>
<p>Almost anything less than full tuition is not going to provide you with enough money so that $15k will cover the rest. Room and board are running about 10k…then you have books and misc.</p>
<p>Purdue is bad about giving OOS student’s money. USC isnt’ likely going to give you enough so that $15k is going to pay the rest. USC is costing about $50k per year (COA), so if you’re lucky to get 1/2 tuition, that would still leave you with about $30k for you to pay for.</p>
<p>Pittsburgh actually sounds kind of interesting…does anyone else think I could get a full ride there? If anyone else could tell me more about the school that would be great. I like the fact that it’s urban, and relatively close to home.</p>
<p>momof2, I’m so glad glad UA has worked out great for your 2, especially coming from CA. DS ultimately chose UGA, but UA offered so much, like the computer-based honors program (You should share some more info about that, maybe. Did you ever meet Dr. Sharpe?) And to hear you say the girls beat USC and UCLA, wow! But, I take it you have not visited Athens, GA. :)</p>
<p>I just realized that being able to go to a school like U of M is a huge accomplishment, and it pretty much fits all my criteria for the perfect college. I’m not gonna go to a crappier school just because of money. Thanks for the suggestions but I realized that the best choice for me would be to go to Michigan at the instate rate, or go a school of equal or greater prestige. I know it sounds superficial, but it’s a helluva lot less superficial than determining your future based on what school you can go to for free. It’s like having the money to go to a fancy restaurant but deciding to go to McDonalds because you have a coupon for a free sandwich.</p>
<p>I didn’t mean to sound snobby, but I’m just saying that I wouldn’t want to lower my standards for money. By standards, I’m not just talking about prestige, but also student life, and how the school fits my personality. That’s why I’m still considering Pittsburgh: it’s in a cool city, it seems laid back, and it’s also ranked #56 by usnwr…so I guess I shouldn’t have said equal or greater prestige…but more like ranked at least as high as MSU. I’m a superficial *******…I know</p>
<p>The University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering might be a good fit for you, but it’s not certain that you would get merit money. If you are an URM, your chances would be better. I don’t know if half Filipino would be considered URM, but you never know.</p>
<p>Pitt often gives full-tuition scholarships (NOT full-ride) for those who have a SAT of at least 1450 (M/CR) or an ACT of 34. You’re a bit under that, but Pitt does make exceptions. Also, you may be invited to compete for the Chancellor’s Scholarship, which IS a full ride. However, that is very competitive, and you would need Ivy-level ECs and interests, from what I have observed. Out of 450 applicants, 10 to 15 “full ride” scholarships are awarded a year.</p>
<p>If you got the full-tuition scholarship, that would bring your annual costs down to about $11,000 (room and board). Additionally, the engineering school gives out a separate scholarship, which can be stacked.</p>
<p>If you look on the Pitt board of CC, there is a poster Emi2008 who is a sophomore engineering student who is having a good experience. I believe she is URM. You can do a search for her posts. </p>
<p>Definitely consider Miami. Someone already posted the scholarship info here. If you are accepted, they will let you know how much money they can offer you. If it’s not as much as you are looking for, all you lose is the application fee. The only drawback I see is that it’s not close to home for you, so that’s more $$$ you’ll be spending for travel (and it does add up). Other than that, I don’t see why you wouldn’t apply and see if you’re awarded a full ride or close to it. SOMEONE is going to get it, might as well be you.</p>
<p>Merit based scholarships are good but they usually stipulate that you keep a certain GPA to remain eligible. I have come across a program call Scholarzhipzone <a href=“http://freebies.web44.net/Scholarshipzone[/url]”>http://freebies.web44.net/Scholarshipzone</a> (not sure if anyone else had heard of it before) that offers a $10,000 scholarship for one year, and you have to apply again for each year, but at least it is not merit based :-)</p>
You’d qualify for free OOS tuition (worth about $80,000), and therefore your remaining $15k would easily pay for housing, food, books, and personal expenses. </p>