I have recently been looking at out of state colleges and am wondering what the best way to bring their tuition down is. I am only a sophomore in high-school so I have time to think about this, but my parents are saying that the tuition needs to be around 20k a year. I was looking at some nicer schools and wasn’t planning on going in-state. I did some looking and saw that the tuition was between 30k-40k for some schools I was looking at. Is it really even possible for me to go out of state at nicer schools for 20k or is in-state realistically my only option?
State schools are funded by their taxpayers so if you want in, you have to pay their OOS fees. The states are obligated to fund their tax-paying citizens first. They are not going to give you grant money to bring your costs down. The tuitions will run about $30-40K, not including other expenses.
Look also at PRIVATE schools. They give FA w/o regard to state resistancy.
First, check the NPC of each school. Tuition is just part of the cost while need based financial aid would depend on your family situation. Second, aim for merit aids. That would be likely the only way to bring down the cost for OOS public schools. However, you need to have strong credentials in order to get them.
Instead of looking at nicer schools and wondering how to pay for it, try it the other way around. Look for the schools that are inexpensive, give OOS fee waivers, or merit for your high gpa ans SAT/ACT scores. You won’t get to pick and choose but you may find something you like. Or in the end you will see the value of your instate financial advantage. Start with these threads from the Financial aid forum.
And schools like Ohio State have the Buckeye scholarship which would bring the tuition and fees into your range. Be sure your parents aren’t neglecting to look at the total Cost of Attendance. Maybe they are assuming room and board is fairly uniform but it can vary by several thousand.
http://undergrad.osu.edu/money-matters/tuition-and-fees.html
The Western Undergrad Exchange has reduced tuition rates for OOS schools on the list. Here is the link to the website and you can check which schools participate: http://wue.wiche.edu/search_results.jsp?searchType=all