St. Olaf has some big merit scholarships for kids with her stats. All-around strong school and happy students. I have known a couple of NMFs who went there. Also St. Olaf can cross register at Carleton.
Matches for D23 interested in Biology (research not med school) - meet full need or have good merit!
Try each collegeâs net price calculator with the various possible number of students in college in order to see what the likely effect of the number of students in college will be at each college (i.e. so you know what to expect for year 3 at each college).
EFC from FAFSA only directly applies to government aid (Pell grants and government loans). Each college may choose its own calculation for its own aid, so using each collegeâs net price calculator is important.
At this stage, your daughterâs list shows a dearth of purely undergraduate-focused colleges. For some ideas along these lines, she may want to view the biology course offerings at schools such as Connecticut College (excellent for botany), Amherst (notable for neuroscience), Swarthmore, Pomona and Hamilton. Beyond foundational courses, these colleges offer a variety of interesting course titles in specialized areas, including marine biology, microbiology and plant science. For a womenâs college alternative to Agnes Scott and the potential for merit scholarship recognition, look into Mt. Holyokeâs excellent biology program.
With respect to expenses, this site may be helpful:
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My daughter goes to Rice and while itâs a reach, they provide great financial assistance (The Rice Investment | Office of Financial Aid | Rice University).
One thing that is great about Rice is it is very easy for undergraduates to do research. I donât know anyone who wanted to do research there who didnât.
Wanted to say thanks so much for all the responses! There were some recommended schools that were already on a list of ones we should check out and several that seem like great fits that were not (Eckerd and UMD!) I also had never heard of the Duke Marine Consortium so that was very interesting and might put W&L back on our list - we had removed it primarily due to a lack of course depth in the biology department.
Also appreciate the info about PhD programs. All our family/friends who are STEM people are doctors and nurses so PhD and research track STEM careers are all new to us and we clearly have a lot to learn!
The school year has only just begun but she is LOVING her Marine Bio class so weâre definitely taking a deeper look at schools that offer that in particular while ideally also offering Microbio/Botany etc. in case her interests shift or she wants to combine with double majors or majors/minors. Sheâs still definitely more interested in marine science with a focus on algae/invertebrates/microorganisms vs. dolphins/turtles etc.
D23 is busy researching curriculums at severals schools and it looks like I have a LOT of NPCs to run in the coming weeks as we donât want to waste time on applications to schools that are truly not going to be affordable. In her research she learned that UMiami offers a specialized degree in Marine Science/Microbiology & Immunology (BSMAS) so that firmly locked them in as a âmust applyâ for her! Of our current/tentative list, sheâs got 4 due on 10/15 (UGA, UNC-CH, Clemson, UofSC) and then UMiami and CofC on 11/1 so sheâs going to move forward with finalizing her Common app essay and working on those 6 applications while we continue to research others. Itâs going to be a busy few months!
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Eckerd was a totally unknown school to us, even though we lived in St Pete for 5 years (all my kids were born in Pinellas County)! We just lived in the northeast part of the city and Eckerd is in the south, plus we were sure our kids would naturally go to our Alma mater in our young parenting naivete, so didnât even contemplate colleges in those days.
It came on our radar when my youngest wanted tropical marine bio and, literally, everyone in the field that either of us asked about it had it in their top list of schools to consider, often #1 because of not having grad students and being right on the water. After visiting his top contenders, it was the only school my guy wanted to go to, so weâre glad finances worked out for us. (His Plan B was the work and not go to college.)
Thatâs as far as I can help out though, because my guy is a flora guy more than water guy. He dropped Marine Bio the first week or two of college after seeing what it entailed in more depth and knowing he wanted a different direction. Heâs done well for himself and is now actively doing Permaculture Farming - not at all regretting having chosen Eckerd. Their âThink Outsideâ and being a very âgreenâ college fit him well. Theyâre also a big party school (probably comes with being on the beach), but that part never appealed to him and he still had plenty of friends.
But I donât know if the finances will work out for you or not TBH. Miami has a good program. A van ride to the lab isnât the same as rolling out of your bunk and strolling across campus, but plenty of students choose it too. The grad students getting to do most of the âfun stuffâ (my guyâs words) were also an issue for him.
If youâre looking in FL, definitely compare both.
Financially, you could consider Nova Southeastern too.
$25-30K BUT she would love to get cheaper is what you wrote.
Good luck to your daughter. My only concern again - is your OOS publics. Unless youâll qualify for need (only UVA and UNC meet) or plan to go for Moorhead-Cain, thereâs no reason to apply to UNC. Iâd say the same with UGA unless your budget figure has a lot of elasticity.
Thatâs why I mentioned Alabama, UAH - you might find others with huge merit that meet her needs. For example, Alabama has Randall Research. UGA is most certainly not going to meet your costs. Nor will UMD - I mean, they have Banneker Key but again these are home runs, not realistic for 99%. W&L is a home run too - I mentioned not because itâs right per se but the Johnson is strong and reasonable in that they award it to 10% of admitted and have other full tuition on top of that. And get on their list - theyâll send you a freebie app.
I would look at an Alabama, UAH, Florida State, USF, FAU (Honors) - whatever school that can get you to $25K - vs. applying to schools where you canâtâŠif that makes sense. And when you are seeking a price point - use all your 20 Common App spots. Others like Miss State, Ole Miss - donât know if their programs work for you academically but their price points will. I understand not all these âmeritâ schools will fit your academic needs - hence check out their programs specifically and even lob a call to the department heads (have your child) to see - how they work in this area.
I surmise (short of need being met at a private) with this list your daughter is most likely to end up at an SC public - and thatâs fine.
Best of luck.
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I think the problem with your list is you are solely looking at cost and not factoring in what the student wants to major inâŠ
As long as the OP has a good safety, financially, admittance, and with a desired major, there is no reason to add a bunch of schools not well known for Marine Sciences.
No school should be applied to that the student doesnât love more than their safety. Having more than one safety is fine if there isnât a clear preference, but one doesnât need oodles of them just to say they got admitted to oodles of schools.
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Agnes Scott is definitely an academic safety. They also guarantee $22K in merit. Donât know if that brings it down enough or not. We toured there. Loved Decatur.
Hollins is another small womenâs college to look at. Itâs in a smaller city (Roanoke VA), but beautiful setting. They have a great study abroad program and field studies. My D22 has a friend there majoring in Biology. They will give good merit too. She could be in the running for a full tuition scholarship with her great grades and scores.
UNC has a great Marine Sciences program. I am acquainted with some of the profs there. They do regular trips to the Galapagos and have done some fascinating research on the Great Barrier Reef and other stuff. Some of the other UNC system schools like ECU also have great programs, but I am not sure I would pick them over Clemson or CoC.
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For Marine sciences have you looked at TAMU Galveston? Or U Hawaii Manoa?
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I agree 100% but Iâm simply saying that if someone has a target cost there is zero reason to apply to any school that cannot get you there. The âinitialâ consideration set should only include those schools so you have to eliminate schools where itâs not possible. UMD is unlikely but possible. Others not possible. Thatâs all Iâm
saying. Hence my note to look at curriculum, call departments and see if they could work.
The OP have a target of $25k and less. So I absolutely used that as a gauntlet.
We had a target cost but are full pay. We applied to 21 including UMD. Not all got to the # I wanted. But all 20 could have. Thatâs what Iâm suggesting OP do. They have financial safeties and they could and should throw some Hail MarysâŠbut those should be only schools that can at least potentially, even if unlikely, make the budget.
So unless you have need or you are applying for Morehead-Cain, I see no reason to include UNC. Same for UGA (forget need aid here) although if you get a full OOS waiver it would get you close. FSU, as a sub, would put you under budget. Is their program right ? Thatâs what Iâm saying OP should check. Florida schools, as an example, other than UF, can be cheap for this student.
This goes back to the first consideration of applying to any college is affordability.
And I agree that if one is happy with their safety, then they donât need an expansive list. But if you are hunting for big merit, that does change the calculus and you should take your shots.
Like I said, I imagine this student will end up in state and thatâs wonderful. Fine schools. Different in setting and vibe but all fine. And I might throw in Coastal too. I know less reputed in state but I think known for marine studies/science, etc.
All good.
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Considering cost, Iâd definitely look at Nova Southeastern (in FL). When we looked almost a decade ago (2014), they had a newer program for undergrad - grad school was more established I think - but I left thinking they could be âup and comingâ in the field. They gave great merit aid at the time to try to build their undergrad. I donât know what theyâve done since.
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I donât disagree with you about the OOS state schools. UNC-CH is my alma mater so obviously Iâm a bit biased there and would like her to apply. As I said, I know I definitely need to run NPC but if it is similar to when D20 was applying we could get some need there. She is not a Morehead candidate (no sports to meet the athletic component) but will apply for Robertson and Stem Scholars. All are BIG reaches but are worth a shot with her stats and interests. UGA would absolutely require at least a 1/2 tuition to stay in the running, more realistically full - again we know this is a stretch but they have ALL the options as far as majors and really incredible course depth/electives so weâre going to give it a shot!
The struggle is that the big state research instutions are more likely have the range and depth of courses she is looking for (including possible progression right into grad coursework) but are much bigger reaches as far as hitting the merit needed.
Hawaii is on our list to check into as is USF. In the past USF has given full COA to NMF so weâre waiting to see if that is still the case when their updated scholarship guidelines are released in Sept. On paper, Alabama makes complete sense to include but she is simply not interested in attending there. Same with some of the other MS, FL or TX schools mentioned. To be candid - if she is going to attend a more southern/conservative school, sheâll probably just do it in our own state.
Her school has a weekly college counseling seminar class for Seniors which just started back this week and a great college counseling department so weâll also be leaning heavily on them for additional guidance as we move forward. It is not unusual for many of their students to get into T-20s or get premier scholarships so they can better advise which ones she might actually be competitive for and which ones we should drop in favor of others. Weâre super grateful for this support as D20 had a different counselor every year of hs and they were all much more focused on graduation requirements vs. any sort of college advising.
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UNC might be a good one for grad school if the finances donât work for undergrad.
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As something to consider, the range of offerings in a college curriculum could introduce your daughter to areas of study with which she may not yet be familiar. For example, she might encounter collegiate courses in geomicrobiology or oceanography, which could lead her to geology/geosciences. For this reason, it may be premature, and possibly counterproductive, to make marine biology the defining aspect of her search.
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I think grad school should be a factor, but most important is worrying about paying for undergrad. Your daughter sounds like the type of student who can make the best of opportunities and IMO there will be grad school opportunities in the future.
My daughter never really thought about grad school (nor did I) and after changing majors 3 times got a BA in history. She took a year off and applied to grad school. I thought it was a bad idea as she had loans from undergrad and hadnât made much money in her year off. Then came covid and she was making even less, but she applied and much to my surprise, she got a funded position (tuition, fees,insurance, a stipend). The TA stipend isnât much, but it doesnât cost much to live in Laramie Wy. She was able to bank her TA salary for most of the year (also worked at Starbucks) because she wanted to go to Europe for 6 weeks this summer. She definitely lives the poor student life (4 roommates, drives a 20+ year old car, shops at the thrift store) but sheâs happy.
Well, since May theyâve just thrown money at her. She had the cost of her trip (tuition, travel with a professor, then 3 weeks of travel and research on her own) paid, so still has all the money she saved up. Today she got paid $1000 to sit in the history department to answer questions for the new freshmen who started school this week (Iâve never made $500/hour!). I think it is the departmentâs way of making up for the low TA salary and they keep finding little jobs for her to do.
I never expected this to work this way. Everyone said social science masters degrees arenât funded and I believed them. My daughter is an optimist and ALWAYS thinks things will work out.
Your daughter could get a job with a university and have her program funded (or employer paid). My other daughterâs roommate did that at Florida Tech (she got undergrad and MS there in marine bio).
IMO, worry about undergrad. With good merit of course.
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Yes to all of this. I think thatâs why the larger schools or smaller schools that offer additional classes via consortium or partner schools are currently more appealing. I donât think the general idea will change at this point (bs in bio field with research focus) but there are SO many varied majors and opportunities within that focus!
And honestly the first 2-3 years of core classes are incredibly similar across many of the bs programs weâve looked at - basic bio, chem, stat, calc, physics etc. which evens the playing field a little bit.
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Agreed. With the disclaimer that we to make an undergrad selection that gives her as many options as possible for future choices and opportunities and ideally doesnât close any doors. This definitely includes financial considerations, not just curriculum.
She is the middle of 3 kids and weâre paying for college for 10 years straight with several overlapping years. We want to support our children but we certainly donât want to be spending unnecessarily!
Fortunately sheâs not really caught up in prestige or school rankings which makes me confident weâll find a great fit for her both academically and financially.
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Note that schools placing at the highest level of future PhD attainment, such as Reed, Swarthmore and Grinnell, may, largely for reasons of institutional tradition, generally offer B.A. degrees to their graduates in the natural and physical sciences.
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Maybe other schools with the major donât offer all of these options, but Eckerd does:
Also from the linked site:
Ocean setting
Class is often held in Florida waters off our seawall or on board our own fleet of vessels.
Hands-on research
Our professors attract millions of dollars in research funding, which means you could find yourself doing real research in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Panama or Bermuda.
Thereâs a reason so many Hollings Scholars (NOAA) come from Eckerd:
Three Eckerd College sophomores were recently awarded 2022 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarships, bringing the schoolâs total number of recipients to 105âmore than at any other college in the country.
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