Party scene and academic balance for my college list [PA resident, 3.6? GPA, 28 ACT, <$50k]

Hey. I’m putting together my final college list, pending visits, and have been trying to get a good idea of social life, academic focus, and the balance between them for the schools.

  • I’m particularly looking for an academic focus on business, computer science, law and/or politics, and medicine/biochemistry (in that order).
  • Something additionally with a good alumni network throughout the east coast.
  • In terms of the social scene, something with a strong presence of Greek life with events throughout the week.
  • Lastly, I’d rather it be somewhere where the people who get high marks and participate in clubs aren’t mutually exclusive from the people who spend Thurs-Sun hammered.

Any experience, hearsay, or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Restrictions: 3.8 WGPA, 28 ACT but with very strong background/extracurriculars. <$50,000 annual cost after-aid.

  1. University of Michigan
  2. University of Minnesota
  3. Ohio State University
  4. University of Wisconsin
  5. University of Illinois
  6. University of Maryland
  7. University of Florida
  8. Indiana University
  9. Penn State
  10. University of Colorado
  11. University of Pittsburgh
  12. Purdue University
  13. University of Iowa
  14. University of Massachusetts
  15. Michigan State
  16. University of Alabama
  17. Rutgers - New Brunswick

You have a LOT of public universities on your list. Clearly, you are only an instate resident for one. Some of the OOS schools will have costs for you under $50,000 (Purdue, Alabama, probably Iowa) but some just won’t.

Are you a resident of MIchigan? If not, UMich likely won’t come in under budget. OOS cost is $76,294. They don’t guarantee to meet full need for OOS students and merit aid is unlikely. Of course, if you are instate, this is a great option.

Please check the costs of these colleges.

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Some of these will be pretty big reaches for a 3.8 weighted. I’d look at average GPAs for Michigan, Wisconsin, Maryland, Illinois and Florida.

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My daughter with an UWGPA 3.9+, 34 act loved UDel. She was in the honors college, work hard play hard, she got great merit, but even my UWGPA 3.7 30 act son was offered $10,000 a couple of years ago. Happy students, lots of daging, a lot going on, nice walkable campus with a great Main Street with restaurants, bars and shopping.

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True. That is something I wasn’t thinking of at first.

Still, most come out to somewhere between $50,000 and $60,000 including indirect expenses. Not entirely undoable Michigan is more or less an outlier.

Even though they don’t offer full need-based aid, would I still be looking at some relief after completing the FAFSA? I am a PA resident, single parent, middle income.

It is a bit aggressive by design since I like Penn State and am a PA resident.

UF and UMich are the two big reaches. For some reason, even though you are correct by saying UMD, Wisconsin, and UIUC are reaches, the data from my school indicates that virtually everyone who applied with above like a 3.4 GPA got accepted. Not too sure why that is.

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Maybe…maybe not. The first mission of most of these colleges is to provide aid to instate students.

Look at the ones that come in at your price point…

What is your major?

For computer science or business?
These schools admit by major and they’re all top 20 or higher schools for CS.
UMD Business is also a top 25 school.
Overall acceptance rates don’t tell you the whole story.

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And if you plan to apply to UMD…do so early action. They accept the majority of their incoming class in the early action round.

Take U Florida off your list as your chances of admission are quite low even if you were a resident of Florida.

U Michigan is a reach also, but less of a reach than U Florida.

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What is your unweighted GPA? 4 for A, 3 for B. You show a weighted - which will likely include more points for honors and AP. So a 3.8 isn’t a 3.8 and it all depends on the weighting system your school used and how much rigor you have.

Your academic focuses are wide spread but I thought of Bentley til I read of Greek life.

In general - the only ones that will work with less than $50K -and let’s say you have a 3.6 (just a guess):

  1. MIchigan - you won’t get in and if you did, it would be well over budget

  2. Minnesota - you might get in - and it’d be close. But it’s might get in.

  3. OSU - unlikely to get in - cost - close. Ohio U, Miami Ohio might be better bets.

  4. Wisconsin - won’t get in and won’t make cost

  5. Illiniois - you might get in (depends on major) -

  6. UMD - won’t get in and cost

  7. UF - won’t get in but cost ok. FSU also a no but better odds. UCF and USF maybe matches. FAU a yes.

  8. IU - will get in although not likely Kelley - potentially cost an issue

  9. PSU - you might get branched

  10. CU Boulder - you’ll get in but maybe not your major and cost an issue

  11. Pitt - you may get in but it’s more and more difficult as it’s become more popular. Not the same at all but close geographically - WVU might be a sub.

  12. Purdue - you might get in and it will work for cost.

  13. Iowa - this works

  14. UMAss - gonna be tough

  15. Michigan State - yes - but cost an issue

  16. Alabama - doesn’t fit your list at all - if you told me Iowa State, UNL - I’d get it. Well it matches up most with UF. You will get in and it will make cost with $10K auto merit. You might also look at Arkansas, Mississippi State.

  17. Rutgers - could go either way - and will be about budget.

So your list isn’t set up for merit. For every Ohio State or UMD that are unlikely, there are subs - a UNL, Iowa State, Kentucky, UNH, URI, WVU, Colorado State, Wyoming, etc. etc.

If you have to budget, then you need to set up for it.

Now back to your unweighted GPA - that matters and how much rigor do you have - meaning how many advanced, honors, AP classes have you taken. A 3.9 weighted doesn’t say much unfortunately - so I guessed at a 3.6 but don’t really know.

thx

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I think several of these schools are reaches (ie UF, Michigan). I would add the University of Buffalo.

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Re: Pitt. Apply asap and you will get an admissions decision pretty quickly.

What is this?

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Sorry - U of Nebraska (Lincoln)

Looks like the student chose a lot of big 10 schools - so it’s another - with a less competitive admission but very good. And mid 40s price wise b4 merit.

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What do you mean by this?

Is your child coming with you or has someone agreed to take care of them while you are at college? Will you be traditional college age(18 or 19)? Unless you have a college fund that can pay for your education, I don’t see a middle class student not having large loans paying that much and having a child to support.

Are YOU (the student) a single parent? Or is your parent a single parent?

@Bottom2564

Note that “single parent” likely describes the OP’s household.

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