<p>Well small "ish", smaller than my huge state school!</p>
<p>I have always dreamed of going to Uchicago but I'm just coming to terms with the fact that my parent's won't pay for it (and I'm not willing to take out 30K/yr in loans!). I'm really interested in a LAC-type atmosphere, with the excitement of a big city nearby though, and intense academics, especially humanities-focused. I'm currently a junior in HS and was wondering if someone could recommend some colleges that would fit me and would give me some merit aid.</p>
<p>My state uni costs about 20K a year and my parents are willing to pay that and maaaybe slightly more, but they've already told me 40-50K a year was out of the question. Also we're not getting any fin aid, they're basically really rich, just really practical ;).</p>
<p>I've already taken the SATs for a special program (which I decided not to do - hah) so here are my stats:</p>
<p>2280 SAT - 800 V, 700 M, 780 W
4.0 GPA with most rigorous course load (except in math, I'm one behind, just taking AB calc senior yr) so far - currently I'm doing really well and don't see that maintaining that GPA will be difficult at all, maybe I will get one B in math and bring it down to a 3.9 or something, so let's say I have a 3.9 applying to schools
Two 5s on AP exams already from sophomore year and expecting to do well on a few more this year</p>
<p>Good but pretty normal ECs - sports since I was young (not in school - ballet), music since elementary school (really involved trumpet player, love jazz), two years of JV field hockey but didn't make the varsity team, volunteering, blahdeblah so I'm involved but it's fairly normal stuff</p>
<p>A few small LACs with city excitement and good merit money:
Goucher–Baltimore (and DC is not far)
Lake Forest – Chicago
American --DC (really a small university of about 6000 undergrads)
University of Denver–also a small university with good merit money</p>
<p>I’ve never heard of Lake Forest and University of Denver…</p>
<p>Are they known for being really academically focused? </p>
<p>I imagine with my monetary constraints it might be kind of difficult, but one of the things I liked about UChicago is that everyone I’d be in class with (if I got in) would’ve been smarter than me…I really like a challenge and am wondering if challenge+merit money would really go hand in hand?</p>
<p>Can’t make any recommendations because I think merit money at highly selective LACs is very hard to come by and is likely to be at or under the $10,000 level unless you are really amazing or really lucky. I think the abundance of merit money that some students and parents dream of isn’t particularly realistic. Some schools give no merit aid and many others give it in partial amounts that offset tuition but may not even bring it down to state university levels. </p>
<p>As far as the comment “Also we’re not getting any fin aid, they’re basically really rich, just really practical.” My reaction to that is as follows: All families need to make the decisions that work best for them. But I don’t think it is necessarily “really practical” or praiseworthy to set a limit on what one is willing to pay for education if the funds are there. Obviously it’s not good to go into debt or compromise one’s retirement. But if the money is there, I don’t know what it could be spent on that would be likely to have more of a benefit. The benefits of a good education and the non-classroom experiences that come with that are not necessarily quantifiable. A year’s tuition at a great private LAC or university costs less than a Volvo SUV. Two years costs perhaps what a BMW 7 series costs. Granted the Volvo will last a number of years, but if you can afford one or the other, I’m not so sure it’s the Volvo or BMW I’d choose (and of course one can fill in the blanks for a similarly priced non-car purchases).</p>
<p>Well, bringing the costs down to 30K/yr might be something they would consider. 10K/yr is not a drop in the bucket! </p>
<p>Their argument is this: they both attended state universities, and both commuted. They now both have very high paying jobs, and interview potential hires for those jobs. Practically speaking, they see no difference - in terms of getting a job, from their own experience and their hiring experience - between state school graduates who did well and more prestigious school graduates who did well. </p>
<p>There might be an intangible benefit to an experience like UChicago, but they see that as a luxury that they don’t have the obligation to provide for, just like they’d never buy me $100 jeans because there may be some difference in size/fit. If I want to be academically stimulated, they see no reason why I can’t find smart kids at my state university or read a lot or whatever. </p>
<p>All valid - not what I would like to hear, because every kid dreams of going to a great university, but it’s what they believe, so I’m trying to work around it…</p>
<p>“A year’s tuition at a great private LAC or university costs less than a Volvo SUV.”</p>
<p>Room and board would cost 40-50K - that’s a really nice car. My parents would say this “Sending you to UChicago would be like buying 4 cars in 4 years!” and that’s something they would NEVER, ever do. It doesn’t compromise their retirement but it will compromise what they want to do in retirement, which is buy a really nice house someplace really nice…and they feel like they’ve worked for a long time and deserve it at this point. I tend to agree with them, unfortunately .</p>
<p>I go to Beloit College in WI. It is very academically rigorous and similar to the intellectual environment at UChicago. I have several friends at Chicago (3) and it sounds as if Beloit compares a lot to Chicago. I have a friend at beloit that transferred to Beloit after a year at Chicago, because they found Chicago to be too overwhelming and stressful and did not like the other students. She is thriving at Beloit and she says that the workload isn’t quite as heavy (though it is still pretty big) she feels that she is learning just as much at Beloit as at Chicago.</p>
<p>Beloit has amazing FinAid, it costs $40k a year, but gives lots of scholarships. I currently have 19k a year in merit scholarships (no need based), which makes Beloit very reasonable. Check it out!</p>
<p>College Honor and University Scholarships
Our honor scholarships are among the oldest merit awards in the country. Seeking to recognize applicants for their outstanding academic and extracurricular achievement, demonstrated leadership, and commitment to their communities, the College Honor Scholarship provides full tuition awards to a handful of highly qualified entering freshmen. Approximately 100 University Scholarships are granted each year, and they cover roughly a third of tuition ($10,000). Scholarships are guaranteed for four years.</p>
<p>^A number of top kids in our neck of the woods who needed money to attend college picked USC as a good blend of academics and scholarships. Unfortunately, USC is about the size of a state school, which may be too large for OP.</p>
<p>Look for colleges outside your geographic area. If you are from the east coast, look at Whitman (not a big city though) and Claremont Mckenna. If you are in California, look at colleges in the midwest or south.
If you are a girl, look at Scripps in Claremont CA.</p>
<p>But check out the Associated Colleges of the Midwest site and research some of the listed schools. You would have a good shot at a $5K-$10K merit award, or more, from some of them. The most selective, Carleton, does not grant much merit money. Grinnell, Macalester, Colorado College, and Lawrence all do. Beloit, mentioned above, is also an ACM school. </p>
<p>For someone who likes the University of Chicago and wants an urban environment, a good choice among the ACM schools is Macalester College (St. Paul, MN). It is one of the best urban LACs in the country.</p>
<p>You should look at Rice University – a small LAC-like research university with close professor contact, residential colleges, close to a large city but located on a beautiful self-contained campus, and they offer great merit aid to about 1/3 of their admitted students.</p>
<p>second Rice
If you are open to the PNW I also suggest Willamette U. It would be a safety for you. It’s in Salem, the state capitol but just an hour from Portland. They gave my D merit totaling 48K over 4 years and her SAT Math was 200 pts less than yours</p>
<p>Also Occidental is just 30 min from LA and is fabulous. Don’t know much about the merit money they offer though but it is worth a look.</p>
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