<p>We were notified that my son would recieve the NHRP in the summer however, it seems our GC reported his GPA on a 5.0 scale (4.15) which we are now finding out equates to a 3.3 on a 4.0 weighted scale. So he will only recieve Honorable Mention. We are very disappointed as looking forward to taking advantage of the many scholarships available for the higher designation. We are asking to appeal his GPA qualifications as last year he was in a serious car accident and missed 4 weeks of school which was very difficult with his course load in his Junior year, in addition to suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury (concussion). Regardless, college search has changed for us. Looking for advice on other colleges that may award merit money despite only having honorable mention. A few other things, he is an Eagle Scout, 2 Varsity sports, Captain Junior Year, SAT 1900, ACT 28, AP Scholar with Distinction, church youth leader and scout leader. We are open to schools on the East Coast (relatives in the Philly area) but live in Texas area and would look at options here although class rank is low (50% percentile) so bigger state schools may be out. We are looking for our net costs to be in the $20,000-$25,000 range (or preferably much lower.)</p>
<p>The other question I have is how many Freshman retain their scholarships when most require to keep a 3.0 GPA. Having been a Freshman in college I understand that is hard to do for even the best student!</p>
<p>What about factors other than east coast: size of school, campus vibe, Greek, urban/suburban/rural, any specific major requirements (eg. engineering), etc.? </p>
<p>Also, is the rest of the country out? I ask because the NE tends to be a desirable region, making admissions and merit more competitive. If the midwest or south are possibilities, that might give more options.</p>
<p>It’s a generalization, but usually merit recipients are academically in the top of their class, so while some do have problems (particularly fr) holding the required gpa, I don’t think it’s a huge problem.</p>
<p>Your son’s class rank likely puts UT-Austin out of reach and possibly A&M as well. That said, it’s likely worth the $ to apply to A&M. Tx Tech would better fit his class rank, but his ACT & SAT scores would put him well above the average. And, going to school in Lubbock is not for everyone – some like it, others don’t. I know both types – some who loved it and others who define heaven as … Lubbock in the rear view mirror.</p>
<p>Nebraska, Arizona, and possibly Arizona State are schools for you to consider since they may give your son enough $$ to bring the cost well below your threshold. </p>
<p>Arizona sent my older son a letter with all the scholarship information in it (their National Scholar Award), but he had the higher Hispanic scholar designation. They may also send it Honorable Mention as well. Arizona is reasonably good science & engineering school, just not as good as A&M.</p>
<p>There is a link in another thread to a scholarship estimator from Nebraska. Putting in your son’s data into that calculator indicated that he had a good chance at enough $$$ to fully offset out-of-state tuition (thereby making it cheaper than A&M). Nebraska is your typical, large land-grant type school. It’s good enough academically that the Big Ten wanted it (and there are MANY schools with good football teams that the Big Ten would not touch due to academic concerns.)</p>
<p>I think his ideal preference would be a mid-size suburban school that is “more selective” in order to be in classes that are simliar to the culture of his AP co-students in high school. Not sure his overall resume will allow acceptance and/or $$ to be feasible. We do not rule out location…yet, but would like a contact person within about a 1/2 day drive to any location he chooses so NE would be ok with Grandparents in Philly.</p>
<p>Tech, UNT and Midwestern would be his safety schools. Coast Guard Academy and Colorado School of Mines as reach. A&M, possibly as a overall candidate and even Blinn team. There are no shortage of qualified hispanics in Texas so URM is not really a thing in many Texas schools.</p>
<p>Without the NHRP, schools that were originally on “the list” are now not considered viable(as full rides to schools such as Auborn were the lure). We would not rule out any school that would give him financial stability after college. A conversation we need to start having with him regarding loans, etc.</p>
<p>To that end, does anyone know if the “free application” solicitation (assumed to be directed at URM students with higher SAT scores) have more likely acceptance rates? I have not been able to research that quite yet. We are going to target those schools as possible ones that will give $$ as well. </p>
<p>We are sure the perfect school is out there for him. We just have to put alot of effort in finding it. </p>
<p>Thank you again for your advice. Greatly appreciate it as this is first off spring to college. Followed closely by #2, a current junior. The only silver lining to that is our EFC is halfed not doubled once #2 goes to school! I might just have all the kids wait until little sister graduates high school to get a triple break:) </p>
<p>And just lastly…is EFC a joke? They expect a middle class family to save 25% of their gross income for their children’s college. I guess we could skip eating for a couple years…</p>
<p>“And just lastly…is EFC a joke? They expect a middle class family to save 25% of their gross income for their children’s college. I guess we could skip eating for a couple years…”</p>
<p>the assumption is that families have been saving for college all along. The expectation is that EFC comes from past savings, current income, and loans.</p>
<p>And, since most schools don’t “meet need”, EFC is rather meaningless…you’ll likely have to pay more than EFC. And, merit gets applied to NEED first.</p>
<p>Without the NHRP, schools that were originally on “the list” are now not considered viable(as full rides to schools such as Auborn were the lure</p>
<p>?? </p>
<p>If you mean Auburn, then you may be mistaken. Auburn doesn’t have a full ride for NHRP. It only offers a small scholarship of $1k-$2k per year.</p>
<p>You may have been looking at the offers for NMFs and NAs…which are large, but not full rides. </p>
<p>I became a NHRP scholar and my unweighted GPA is certainly not above a 3.5. I’m almost positive that they take the weighted GPA for NHRP Scholar designation. You should definitely ask them about that because I’m pretty sure he qualifies with that GPA.</p>
<p>This thread is a bit old and the topic was kind of specific to the OP. I suggest you start a new thread @Jesuitparent that is for people that want to post about any aspect of the NHSR program.</p>