Looking for some insight on merit and need based aid

Paying for College
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<p>The problem with the CC route, aside from delayed graduation, is that you don’t get the good awards as a transfer and often have to be a full payer for the final years.</p>

<p>Don’t depend on Embry, it may work out but low income students have come here with unaffordable package looking for another option. Michigan may be showing good aid if the reported income is quite low. GT seems unaffordable.</p>

<p>Did you read carefully through the Automatic Merit list?
<a href=“http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/”>http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Alabama is on there and the SAT for engineering students award has only ACT 30 not the 32 req’d for other majors. Get some of those application in on time and you have a sure thing. Some of the other full tuition require 32 ACT.</p>

<p>There are also self help tips for improving SAT score in this forum, pinned to the top. And one kid last cycle outlined how he improved his SAT score 700 pts over about a year. I don’t agree with all his points but his plan worked. It took self dedication, not taking a class. Really I never hear of those classes helping much. None of the kids my daughter knew were helped by the prep classes at her private school (outside vendor.) But if he is a proactive participant maybe it will. There is an act as well as an act forum and a general testing forum etc.
<a href=“SAT Preparation - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Another Illinois resident here, also certain that the University of Michigan gives almost no aid to OOS students. To make sure my recollection was correct, I just ran their NPC, which though it starts on their website links you over to the College Board’s calculator, and it doesn’t even ask for test scores. Is it possible that you got it confused with another school’s?</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.finaid.umich.edu/TopNav/Resources/NetPrice.aspx”>http://www.finaid.umich.edu/TopNav/Resources/NetPrice.aspx&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>@BrownParent‌ Thank you. </p>

<p>I have looked at the Automatic Merit list and shared it with my son. I’ve had several pm’s re: Alabama so we are certainly going to look further.</p>

<p>The income is under $50K, is that considered quite low? Honestly to me it is, but there are larger families living on far less so who am I to complain.</p>

<p>My daughter raised her ACT composite by 5 points after taking our school ACT program so there is hope. My son is also quite motivated so he will do as much as he can on his own as well. </p>

<p>For full disclosure (as it also impacts my S in a slim way) my D just finished HS (Dec. early grad), but will attend a local CC for two years. She works and plans to pay as she goes. Unfortunately her grades and test scores were avg. resulting in no assistance at the state school she was accepted at and hoping to attend this spring. </p>

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<p>@hs2015mom‌ I used the same calculator and got the same result. I pm’d you a bit more detail. </p>

<p>I did misspeak. I honestly thought the UM calc asked for test results, but it did not. I know one of the schools we looked at had a place for that, but who knows. I am getting cross eyed and loopy trying to take in all this info and keep it straight!!</p>

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<p>I see UM has on their FA site profiles of some sample OOS students and their packages that do show very good aid. I ran their NPC with lowish income and it gave good results. Maybe it has always been that way, don’t know. Our income is higher and my older 2 received zilch from them so #3 didn’t even apply this year. But that is an great school if your S can get in.</p>

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<p>Well, IU doesn’t offer engineering, so take that in to consideration.</p>

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<p>If co-op interests him, look into UCincinnati. They have strong coop and GE aircraft is in town. </p>

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<p>Right now, you have the issue that his stats are not strong enough that he can count on getting into schools like UMich and Northwestern. Those are reach schools for kids with higher stats than he has I rather doubt UMich 's NPC for OOSers, also, not to mention admissions is more challenging for the same. </p>

<p>Look at the threads that have the guaranteed awards and you can get an idea as to what he needs at minimum to get some big dollars. </p>

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<p>For UMich, if you have less than ~$35000 AGI, you may receive good aid even from OOS. If you have AGI below $65000, you will get some aid. </p>

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<p>At many lower ranked schools there will be some competitive full ride scholarships your S might try for. The issue is that being competitive, they are generally holistically chosen and you say his ECs are average, so it’s hard to evaluate chances. Just an example- NIU(mechanical only) has free ride Presidential one can apply for if 3.75UW/33. <a href=“NIU Financial Aid and Scholarship Office -| Division of Enrollment Management, Marketing and Communications | Northern Illinois University”>http://www.niu.edu/scholarships/merit_fall_2015/new_freshman_students.shtml&lt;/a&gt;. When you find scholarships like these, and it isn’t clear from posted recipient profiles or something what you have to be to win one, then call scholarship office and ask about it. How many typically apply and how many awarded. What is average stat profile and how heavily are ECs/essays weighted.</p>

<p>NCSU(aerospace!) gives 40 competitive Parks full-rides a year.
Mississippi State(aerospace!) gives 10-12 competitive Presidential full-rides a year. If ACT goes up to 33, would get $18,000/yr automatically, but that probably isn’t enough for you. They seem to have a variety of scholarships, some of which stack, so it might be worth calling to get more info.</p>

<p>In case he doesn’t get into any of the schools that have excellent FA, like MIT and it seems UM, you need back-ups. Try for some of the competitive scholarships at schools where he is well into top 25%. If full-tuition is the best you get financially at aerospace school, then Alabama, with the extra $2500/yr is likely the best you can do academically and as a great college experience. The UAH full ride is a good suggestion, as they have aerospace, but you might want to visit to see if the fit is good.</p>

<p>Utah State(aerospace!) gives full tuition automatically if he gets ACT up to 33, but Alabama is better.</p>

<p>If you broaden search to non-aerospace schools, then there are more opportunities for full rides, some automatic, like Louisiana Tech with a small bump in ACT as I mentioned before.</p>

<p>Since your ability to pay is not high, pay especial attention to residual COA. Extra class fees and fees for college of engineering that may or may not be covered by ‘full-tuition’ scholarships and may not appear in the average full-tuition listed in basic COA lists. The COA is supposed to include this, but engineering tends to run higher than average. Travel costs to far off schools, especially if need to fly. Variable costs of rm/bd. If looking at schools where he will be off campus after first year, what are housing and other living costs like there? Will you be required to purchase health insurance if yours doesn’t cover OOS? This can run a couple thousand a year, and is not likely to be covered by any scholarship. Some schools mandate coverage while at others it is optional, but something to think about seriously if very far away from home. Ours only covers emergency/urgent care OOS. If he is thinking of working part-time apart from work-study, then what are part time job prospects for students? This is very easy at many schools, but worth checking as I’ve read of schools where jobs are not so plentiful and even the work-study can be hard to fill.</p>

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<p>Just thought of this. When you run the NPCs, do you say you will have one in college, or 2? Your estimated FA will be higher if you say 2, but that will change when you fill out FAFSA/CSS next year. Because the NPCs don’t usually ask about the COA of your D’s college and may assume some higher cost in calculating the estimate. Since your D is at CC (and living at home?) you may get a better idea of cost by saying you’ll have 1 in college. And ballpark some guess that your actual aid might be $1,000 higher when you add in D’s info. You should still include D as dependent, just not as a college student.</p>

<p>Also, when scrutinizing costs at various colleges, be sure to see what sort of board is in the COA. Some colleges have only all-you-can-eat and so that is what is included, but many others have several options and they tend to include a medium 14 meal per week plan. That may be fine, but if you have a S with big appetite, may need to budget extra money for groceries to stock breakfast food in dorm room, or to switch up to a plan with more meals.</p>

<p>You may be able to save money on room cost by requesting cheaper triple if they have. COA usually includes double prices.</p>

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<p>@celesteroberts FYI, Michigan has horrid FA and Merit for OOS. Unattainable unless you have ACTs 34-35 or equivalent SATs. Just wanted to clarify.</p>

<p>@aeromom98 I asked my friend, and her student is on an AE full ride to Embry Riddle via ROTC. Not sure that’s what you were thinking of, but it is a free college education.</p>

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<p>Well my D had 35/4.0 and 800 sat2, AP galore, etc. and got nothing from UM, so I’ll agree merit OOS is hard to get. I thought FA was also bad for OOS, though our EFC is too high to test that. But people here are saying that has changed and so I just looked at the profiles of OOS families on their FA pages and tried the NPC with $50,000. It seems to be giving very good aid when the income is very low. I don’t pretend to understand, just observing and scratching my head.</p>

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<p>It’s not that puzzling, really. They don’t give merit aid to OOS kids, but they do give generous need-based aid to low-income OOS kids.</p>