@MYOS1634 I worked last summer, but will be taking some college courses this summer.
@usualhopeful what would be the difference between no lones and a free ride if you don’t mind elaborating
@Bunnylionn A no loans policy means that all money included in a financial aid is in grants or work study, and doesn’t have to be paid back. A full ride means that all money is provided in grants or work study, and the cost of attendance after subtracting grants and work study is $0. Full ride also tends to imply that the financial aid package is merit aid rather than need-based, although that’s not always the case.
It’s possible that WUSTL calculates all students with income <60k (and normal assets) as having a family contribution of $0, making the policy automatic full ride also, but I don’t believe so.
OP you have great stats. You are a strong candidate and being able to list QB as one of your accomplishments makes you stand out (even if you decide not to do Match). You have some essays already done as a result of the QB Prep, and you have had a “first run” of getting recommendations, scores and transcripts, and crafting an app. Congrats.
Diversity programs are great. You can probably use some of your QB essays. S used these to figure out whether he wanted a big campus or LAC, and to test the waters for competitiveness as an applicant. He applied to 4: waitlisted to 1 with an hour-long phone call explanation with 2 admissions counselors; denied at 2; admitted to 1. This helped us gauge his “admissibility” to these schools and their peer schools. He also decided that he would go “big” after being on a small LAC campus. It was an important learning which then led him to do EA.
You father’s home equity will probably throw off the net price calc. Some schools take property into account more heavily than others. I can’t speak to that – others on this site are more knowledgeable – but be aware that net price calc’s are designed for straightforward situations. CSS Profile will go into more detail.
The fact that you have a sibling who will also enter college is a GOOD thing for top schools. This will cut down your family contribution. Again it depends from school to school. As does financial aid in general. We are low income and it was surprising to me that our estimates for 100% need met schools varied up to $8,000 a year!!!
The point by other posters about loans is an important one if you are looking ahead to med school.
As for QB, you do not have to do Match if you are a finalist. You are fortunate to be in CA where you have some great UC schools. These are more and more competitive so keep that in mind (apply to more than one and expect lots of competition).
Two scenarios for you:
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QB Match - you can rank up to 12 schools in order of preference. Most schools (even the ones which normally include loans) will replace loans with grants if they take you as a match. You cannot do EA or ED anywhere else.
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Become a QB finalist – but do not rank. Have your QB app forwarded to schools for RD (for free). Do EA at a choice private school and also apply to a few UCs. ED is risky because you will never get to compare financial aid packages. EA will allow you to still apply elsewhere in RD round.
Please come back and keep us posted!