I suppose maybe it wasn’t rude, not sure, just felt like it wasn’t the nicest way to phrase what was being said. I appreciate your clarification and phrasing.
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Lock down the Bright Futures options first. Then apply to Questbridge, etc. After that, think about how or whether you wish to expand your search. Will you be happy finding lovely colleges that seem to be good fits but that offer very little if any aid ( like Elon)? Or will that just make you resent your affordable options more? I can understand wanting to broaden your search, but the reality is that almost no one except Bill Gates starts a search without financial limits. That is just reality, and to do otherwise is to set yourself up for disappointment. Find 6 or so schools known for meeting need and generous support and where your scores are way above average as reaches.
I like your story, I like your writing, and I’m really rooting for you. That said, you have to take budget into account. Undergrads can only take out about $5500/year in loans the first year and it inches up year by year, but still maxes out around $7500 for senior year. The federal government limits federal loans to around $27k TOTAL for undergrad.
But what about all the massive loans you hear about in the news? Those are usually cosigned by the parents, and it’s based on the parents’ financial information. If your family’s expected contribution is $0, it’s not going to qualify for additional loans.
So unless you win the lottery between now and May 1 of your senior year when you need to decide where you’re going to college, budget is a factor (and that goes for 99% of families in the U.S.). Go back to post #43. The colleges in the likely/likelier pile are ones I think you might stand a 50% or better chance of getting in. The ones in the possible pile are ones I think are probably somewhere between a 15-50% chance, in my opinion. (And use the common data sets to help yourself try and figure out where those schools go based on your likelihood of admission.) I don’t work in college admissions and nobody (especially me) can tell you where you will get in for sure and whether it will be affordable. But these schools will get you 90-100% of the way to where you need to go financially, and they’re good schools.
So definitely look at Bright Futures and your Florida options. Definitely look at Questbridge and other programs for first gen students. But if you’re saying you want to see what else is out there that might work for you, take a look at post #43 again.
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Don’t know why posters are poo pooing CC. A good friend of mine got his physics degree from Berkeley after two years of C.C. said it was the best move he ever made. His degree says UCB, not C.C. You have a much better chance of getting into a top program from CC then you do right now.
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Nothing wrong with CC but some, including OP, want a four year experience.
For many, you are correct CC is a viable option. That may be money related, not ready to leave the nest, wanting to go part time, or just not be strong academically. I’m sure myriad others reasons as well.
In CA specifically the CC route works for access to the UC and CSU system.
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Look at Hollins University in VA if you’re open to Women’s colleges. My daughter got offered a full tuition scholarship there but had to go to their scholarship weekend to be considered. It is known for its writing program.
She had about the same stats as you, but weaker ECs.
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On a different thread I was able to provide some names of residential community colleges that did well in terms of their students getting degrees or transferring over to a 4-year college. How was I able to find those particular names? Because I had them in a spreadsheet as options to consider for my own child, should my child decide to go that route.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with community colleges. It is not, however, the same experience as attending a 4-year university for one’s entire time as an undergraduate. And OP has expressed the desire to attend a 4-year residential university.
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All that’s true but unfortunately you have to be able to afford it. My advice remains: go two years at CC, at that point you could be competitive for top schools some of which will meet full financial need. You could come out with little or no debt from a top tier school. Not saying don’t apply to every school that will meet your financial need and that will give you an app fee waiver, you never know.
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So long as OP remains in the top 20% of his class, it appears as though OP is guaranteed a spot at a 4-year university. Florida’s Talented Twenty program guarantees that students in the top 20% who apply to at least 3 Florida publics will receive a place at a Florida public (not necessarily one of the publics that was applied to). And if OP was eligible for an SAT/ACT fee waiver, then OP receives fee waivers for up to 3 or 4 Florida publics, per the state.
Combined with the Bright Futures program (assuming OP has 100 hours of community service…make sure you have this, @jaceclmbia!) then tuition & fees at the public universities are covered. A Pell grant, which it seems as though this family would qualify for, would help with room & board expenses. And as @kevi2900 included in post #49, some of the universities like New College are making it a full ride for Pell elibible students. So for this particular applicant, an experience at a 4-year university is extremely likely to happen.
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Another nice thing about New College is that it belongs to NSE (National Student Exchange) which is a program of 200+ colleges across N. America (mostly in the U.S. but some in Canada, The Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico too.) You can do up to a year at a participating college, and your credits transfer automatically. Best thing is that you pay in state tuition, and your scholarships usually transfer (so you pay the same as you were at home school.) There are a bunch of New England schools on the list including UMass Amherst, and a bunch of other fun schools. Also St. Olaf and Gustavus (which AustenNut mentioned.)
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if OP is a trans guy i’m not sure how open they are to HWCs.
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Women’s colleges have different policies on trans students but some are amenable to having trans males as students. But as you said, it would be the OP to determine his comfort level with that.
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I agree with one of the replies below that CC is very weighted to STEM and “power schools” in general though I find longtime contributors/experts like gumbymom to provide really pragmatic advice.
That said, this is what I know from my seat. My DD (2021 HS grad) is on a gap year after deciding that none of her options offered felt right the first go around. So if anyone says applying as a graduated senior without a lined up deferred admission is dead wrong. I only have one kid and she was very clear that she was not interested in any of her parents’ alma maters (lol)
My kid learned from Bennington College yesterday that she was accepted into their Scholars programs with a significant merit scholarship ($140K–$35k per year). totally caught us by surprise. We did not expect that at all and we do not qualify for any need based financial aid. This will in effect make Bennington equivalent to in-state tuition. She is a theater kid (stagecraft). I share this because it is literally up to the minute info that might help.
That said, if you LOVE writing, Bennington might be a great fit for you. Their financial awards seem generous based on what I’ve read from kids here in CC who got need based assistance. My kid a strong writer but is not going to major in it. Her acceptance email specifically called out her writing so I think that’s a big plus for you because you sound exceptional. (besides, Bret Easton Ellis and Donna Tartt…)
The cons for Bennington to me are the extremely small size and distance from anything urban. I am also curious about their retention rate and transfer rate. but those are my issues not hers LOL
Anecdotally, these are a few of the other schools that are under consideration where she knows her classmates received decent $ and none qualify for need based:
Wesleyan University: great humanities. awesome if you are a theater kid. Limited graduate students so undergrads have a lot of access to cool research internships that would otherwise go to grad students at other institutions. very strong alumni association and all out the post grad network as a big strength for jobs. The kids we know received solid $ based on merit or need. our admissions tour host was a quest bridge senior from New Orleans and was really impressive.
Oberlin: mentioned by others. Also solid with money. great school. Queer friendly
Vassar: easy access to NYC beautiful campus. advantage if you are male. Also queer friendly
Didn’t apply:
Trinity in Texas (didn’t apply): We’re hearing a LOT of kids with solid+ achievements get great offers of assistance.
Kenyon: great writing.
Are you applying to Yale? it seems like you should…
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All great programs, above. But OP needs a completely full ride, not just 30k or 40k off the bill. Full rides are few at the colleges you noted except for Yale.
Re Wesleyan:
Wesleyan only gives a handful of merit-based scholarships, so the kids in question were either Hamilton Prize winners or just the recipients of very generous need-based aid.
Everything else you stated was spot on!
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The kids we know got full rides at trinity in Texas, Wesleyan. Know less about Vassar and Oberlin though Oberlin everyone 10k from the start.
Yes, Trinity gives a few free rides, as I noted. But they arent going to unhooked applicants with a 3.6gpa and 29 ACT score, I can assure you. Need places that are likely to offer a full ride to this OP given the context.
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Hi can you also pm me the link you mentioned in your comment? Thanks!
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