Please help me choose my college!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I applied early action last fall to several state schools. My dream school was UVA for several reasons. Number one it has a great business school and is competitive academically. Secondly, it was a public university with similarities to many of the more elite private schools. Lastly, the campus was beautiful, the sports teams are great, and it looked like a fun school. Unfortunately I cannot afford to go there because I am not poor. If your parents make less than $60,000 per year they will pay for pretty much everything but that is not me and I can't afford the 50k per year to go. </p>

<p>Now I am trying to pick from the list of several other schools I applied to. I am a Georgia native who is naturally interested in economics, finance, and politics but I won't shut out math and science either. I am currently interested in pursuing an actuarial career and plan on majoring in a subject based on economics or finance. </p>

<p>The other schools I was accepted to are:</p>

<p>University of Georgia
Georgia Tech
University of Alabama
LSU
University of Mississippi - Ole Miss</p>

<p>As of now LSU is out because they only offered me 10k per year in scholarships (half tuition) whereas ole miss, Alabama, UGA, and GT my tuition is fully paid. Also at UGA I know I have at least one extra scholarship of $1000 per year. At Ole Miss I also got accepted to the Chinese Flagship Program which pays for you to learn Chinese and to go to China. As far as core academics and business programs go I would have to say that GT is the best and they also are the best for getting you solid internships and career hookups. UGA on the other hand also has a good business program, a much more fun environment, and amazing food. Ole Miss and Alabama are somewhat in the middle of nowhere which worries me a bit but I think I could get used to it pretty quick. I am not sure yet if I will go Greek because money is a big concern to me. If you guys could give me some advice that would aid my decision in any way I would really be grateful. </p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>I think University of Georgia or Georgia Tech would be a better be a choice. UGA is one of the best public schools. It has a good sports teams and there is a big social life. The campus is also very nice. Georgia Tech is a large research university thats highly ranked. I dont know much about the social life, but it has a really good sports team.</p>

3

<p>For an actuarial career, you may want to consider majoring in applied math or statistics, or at least taking significant advanced course work in those subjects (as well as economics and finance).</p>

<p>You may want to look at [Be</a> an Actuary](<a href=“http://www.beanactuary.com%5DBe”>http://www.beanactuary.com) .</p>

4

<p>Here is a good calculator that lets you put in some non-numeric information as well as the numbers: [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Advanced Award Letter Comparison Tool](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid) Sometimes seeing things on paper side-by-side helps clarify things. If you are contemplating going Greek, you should get some estimates for annual costs from people at the different universities so that you can factor those in as well.</p>

<p>Truly, there isn’t a bad one in that list. You have good options to choose from!</p>