@neoking “Also, does Yale really have a crappy engineering program? I really like the school but it probably wouldn’t be worth applying to if engineering there isn’t good…”
While Yale is arguably not as highly regarded as Engineering programs at other top schools (eg, Stanford and Princeton) they have realised it and are throwing a ton of money at upgrading their engineering program. If you like the feel of Yale overall, then you should apply.
When my DD and I did the Yale tour the guide spent lots of time showing us the new engineering lab and speaking about increased funding for the Engineering school.
You should definitely apply as they have great financial aid for someone in your income bracket.
Apply to Yale engineering. It may not be as great as the rest, but it’s still really good, and they’re doing a lot of improve it (and with how much money they’re throwing at it + brand prestige, it should work quickly).
Look into Olin.
Move CMU to “reach”.
I agree UTD is a safety in your situation, provided you apply early enough for McDermott/CollegiumV. Add UAlabama Huntsville for another safety perhaps? Or Trinity Texas if the NPC returns an acceptable price?
Add RPI and Case Western for matches.
You need to find some more private schools that offer both engineering and good aid. Have you looked at Villanova or Santa Clara U?
Not sure if the schools you named have “good aid”. SCU’s net price calculator at https://www.scu.edu/financialaid/net-price-calculator/ says $26,166 – $44,766 for a student like the OP. Villanova’s net price calculator at https://npc.collegeboard.org/student/app/villanova says $28,046. Both would seem like quite a stretch for a family with income of $65,000.
I dont know about AE at all these schools, but Lafayette, URochester and Trinity CT all meet at least 97% of need on average and would be matches. Bucknell, CWRU, and Lehigh might be affordable after merit, but I don’t know them well and they don’t really meet need.
@ucbalumnus I meant to clarify that both Villanova and SCU have merit aid that the OP may be eligible for.
^ Alas, both, especially Santa Clara, are really bad for lower income students. They don’t offer sufficient financial aid nor high enough merit scholarships for them. (Santa Clara ranks among the worst for lower income students.)
I second URochester, Lafayette, and Trinity CT .
I agree with Trinity. We thought that it was a great place to do Engineering within a smaller school, but son decided not to do Engineering.
I agree RPI is a good choice also, look into Northeastern.
I second Northeastern. Check out University of Miami also.
@labegg Thank you! RPI seems pretty good but GATech is unfortunately too expensive.
@ucbalumnus Thank you for all the links and financial information! I will add Yale to my now reach heavy list!
@londondad That’s great to hear about Yale! Thank you for all the schools with nice merit aid!
@MYOS1634 Thanks for the info about Yale! And yes, I understood I incorrectly labeled CMU as a match. I’ll research Olin and Case Western, and it looks like I’ll add RPI after doing a net price calculation.
@usualhopeful Wow, I never knew they offered that kind of aid! Hmm, URochester is definitely looking very attractive now. Thank you!
@Wisdom2share Will do, thanks! Northwestern and Northeastern are both on my maybe list now, it’s pretty funny haha.
I can’t thank you guys enough for taking the time to help me! ^:)^ 
A note about URochester - for my family, its aid was not very generous, and put the net cost at about 7-8k higher than my FAFSA-calculated EFC. That’s not to say you shouldn’t apply (it’s an excellent school, was my top choice), but a reminder to apply to need-met matches widely.
Someone previously mentioned Notre Dame. I don’t know much about Notre Dame’s Engineering program. But I can attest to the fact that ND’s financial aid is very very good.
I would run the Net Price Calculator to give yourself an idea of how much it would be. Also, the net price calculator for ND is only estimating what the “University Scholarship” amount might be. In addition they have a “Provost Scholarship” which is technically a need based award (Only those that demonstrate financial need are eligible), but has a merit based component. In addition to that I believe most of the Notre Dame Alumni Clubs raise funds to provide scholarships for admitted students from their geographic area that show financial need.
I was definitely pleasantly surprised by the financial aid award after the Provost Scholarship and Alumni Club Scholarship were added.
If anyone comes from a family that makes less than $100,000 per year and is thinking ND’s not an option because of price, I would always encourage people to apply to ND. I think you you just might be surprised.
@usualhopeful You prompted me to do some more research on their aid, and it seems like many have had issues making the college affordable for them. I th
@GraceDad Thank you for the response! My English teacher, who will write one of my recommendations, also went there and she frequently talked to me about it. It seems like an exciting school but the strength of their engineering program concerns me. I will have to do more research, but as of now, it’s definitely a maybe.
I’m ready to add USC to my list after lots of research. Would it be a match or a reach for me? They’re acceptance rate is pretty small but I don’t usually hear of USC being included in reach schools here on CC.
Looks like I have 10 schools now (the original 8 I posted + Yale and USC). Many of you have recommended other great schools (looking at you RPI, Northwestern, and Notre Dame), but I’m concerned with applying to more than 10. Should I include more on my list?
Thank you everyone.
As long as you have 2 affordable safeties and a handful of matches, you can apply to as many reaches as you wish. Start with your safeties, then apply to the matches, get all of this done early in the fall, and then only add the reaches including your ed/rea/scea choice.
USC is an automatic reach due to selectivity.