Washington State may be a good option for you. They have a decent band (I think) and there biology program is phenomenal. They specialize in their zoology and veterinary programs so you’ll be in good company if you go there for anything biology related. Wazzu even has bears on campus as part of the zoology program (may be a good research opportunity). You’ll have to deal with hot weather only for a few months, its mainly cold up there during the school year. Academically, Wazzu isn’t too rigorous but they have a great honors college if your interested in better academics. It is located in Pullman which is a very small town but don’t be scared off by its size. You’ll definitely get used to it and find you have everything you could really want on campus, plus Spokane is just a short drive away. Tuition is moderate for OOS (around 25,000) and with a 32 ACT you could definitely get a decent aid package.
Also I don’t know if you’d like to come this far south but San Diego schools offer great biology programs with good biotech internship opportunities.
The midwest states have a tuition exchange program which should give you a huge variety of schools to choose from. The tuition rates are between in-state and out-of-state, which should keep your debt minimal. Schools on the list include Indiana Univ, Purdue, Kansas State, Nebraska, and a lot more. There are limits on how many students they’ll take on this program, so you’ll want to jump on it early. Here’s the link:
@coolguy40 That’s so cool! I’m going to give some of the schools I would be able to use this with a second look. Thanks!
Do look at Kansas State. They have a vet school where undergrads can get research opportunities. They have very good scholarships and very good sciences. My son is pre-vet and his gf pre-med there and love it!
3.75 Weighted for Wisc is a reach school, they admit 3.8 UW
GPA and Class Rank
Applicants are expected to achieve a high level of performance in the course work they pursue and an increasingly strong academic record. We ask for your GPA and class rank. We also realize that many schools consider GPA on different scales and some do not report GPA or class rank at all. We consider both GPA and rank in the context of your school. We typically see unweighted, academic GPAs between a 3.8 and a 4.0, and a class rank in the 85-97 percentile.
Test Scores
Scores from either the ACT or the SAT are required and must be sent directly from the testing agency. We do not require the writing portion of either the ACT or the SAT. Our test code is 4656 for the ACT and 1846 for the SAT. Do not send your results rush (SAT) or priority (ACT); we receive all scores electronically on a daily basis so there is not an advantage to rush or priority delivery. We consider the highest composite score obtained in a single test administration as your “official” score, although we will look at all scores reported in an effort to get a true sense of your achievement. Admitted students will typically score between 28-32 on the ACT and 1330-1460 on the SAT, although there is no minimum required score.
My GPA was recently updated, I can only see that I now have a 4.02 W, and I’ll be able to see my new unweighted and class rank later in the summer when they update the system. My class rank was top 16% before the update, it will probably go up when everything is updated.
“Schools on the list include Indiana Univ, Purdue, Kansas State, Nebraska, and a lot more.”
When you check the list be aware that it is not the flagships that are on the exchange. For Purdue for example it’s Purdue Ft. Wayne and for IU it’s South Bend. You’ll have to look up the others.
There are many variables impacting finances involved in making a college list: state of residence, major, grad school plans, merit aid, need aid, etc. For some people it makes sense to apply to tip–top colleges; for others it doesn’t.
I think your particular situation points you towards solid state schools that will give you some merit money…this will likely leave you with money left over aftet your bachelor’s.
No reason to go to west coast or to expensive publics ( like Colorado). Check out Kentucky, Iowa State, West Va., Nebraska, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Ok. State. All have reasonable tuition to start with, & with merit aid should be well within your budget.