<p>If you/your parents are concerned about cost of school, then you seriously need to consider the cost of travelling across country several times a year for school, especially at the holiday seasons. That can seriously add up, as can the cost of moving or storing your stuff.</p>
<p>Not everyone is into sports at any school. You can find intellectual stimulation no matter where you go. You really need to be more open minded- so far you have rejected schools because they are too rural, too into sports, too conservative (most colleges/universities are pretty liberal) not tier 1, not well known to prospective employers, not going to be affordable, not going to give you a lot of money, doesn’t have your intended major/current area of interest (that makes a bit more sense then many of the others). You said you wanted to be a journalism major - do your homework and find schools you are a match for that have journalism programs that aren’t too competitive for you. Fore eg, Syracuse has a phenomenal program, but is uber-competitive.</p>
<p>BTW, you do need to look at schools based on current GPA, not what you think it might be in the future. You have to base on what you know, not what you hope. And this approach
will not get you any merit money.</p>