@iminboiz I have to echo those who have commented on your attitude.You will go far in life taking the view you are now-being a problem solver rather than crawling under a rock (which could be easy to understand but it isn’t useful!). College admissions anymore is entirely unpredictable and insane anymore. Our fourth is also a HS senior and I am so glad to have this behind us.
Some things we know or have learned along the way:
GWU is a great school but there is no way to get to affordable with your budget. Our firstborn attends there. DC is expensive. It is an urban experience, not traditional college like, so your costs will reflect that).
UMBC is a great option. They are very hands on in admissions and would work with you. Son went there.
3.As for your geographic limitations, I have to chuckle. My kids all felt when they turned 18, the gloves came off and we (parents) have no say in their choices. When we are sometimes pushed to having to remind them we are paying for whatever the issue of the moment is, they accuse us of playing the money card. (don’t anyone jump in here-trust me, we don’t hold it over them indiscriminately-but for privacy sake, I won’t get specific). You are a good son (daughter?) to be considerate of your family.
It has become very "in" to spend two years at community college to get general requirements out of the way at a controlled cost. Regardless of whether there is a defined path to specific colleges, most schools are open to receiving transfers. Not all of your credits will necessarily transfer or meet requirements of a new school but generally speaking, it is a very workable strategy.
As for transferring in from a CC, it is no different than finding one school is not the right fit and transferring to another. Some CCs offer experiences similar to traditional 4 year schools to those who are willing to immerse themselves. Two of mine did some CC time. Neither jumped in but the options were there. Depends on the CC, of course. It is harder to fully engage at a school come in as a junior but it is not impossible. Do you miss the freshmen experience? Yes, but I don't know how many people out there would tell you it mattered significantly to them. What you might imagine in your mind to be a "typical" college experience is probably less common than you might think. There are all sorts of paths, plans change, opportunities arise-many factors play in to defining a college experience.
There are many options still out there as has been shared in this thread. Good for you for keeping your ball rolling. Gap year options can run a wide gamut from cultural immersion to community service to work experience and internships. Do a search here in CC and you will find lots of info. But you aren't out of college options yet. Keep your positive attitude at your side and good luck.
University of Maine and University of Southern Maine are both possibilities. There are many closer to you, though. What about Stoneybrook? Are they still taking applications?
Just be careful that the CC route will work with your intended area of study. In VA, for example, the guaranteed transfer program doesn’t work for certain engineering majors.
One thing about GWU if it comes through is that you will have the opportunity to find work in DC to help supplement your income. Kids can really pull in some good money, especially in the food service industry, and jobs are plentiful. Obviously, you don’t want to jeopardize your grades. But there are options. Please make sure to write to the GWU AO and let them know how interested you are in attending. Also, sometimes George Mason will extend their application deadline. You can always write to the AO and ask. I live in the area and would be happy to answer any specific questions you have. Just send a PM. Best of luck.
The University of Maine and Southern Maine will both be expensive. 25k with the best merit at UMaine Orono. A good 7 or 8 hours from New York. You might as well look at URI for that price. Only a 2 or 3 hours.
As I know, the COA from U. Maine( or S. Maine) is around $25K, but is that possible for OP to get some aid to reduce its cost? I have met a student from Afghanistan that went there, even he got some aid.
This is from 2014:
"The University of Maine at Fort Kent and the University of Maine at Presque Isle
today unveiled a new tuition structure for out-of-state and international students that offers competitive pricing in those markets and also acts as a catalyst for economic development in Aroostook County.
For those students, that means their tuition would see a 40% reduction from $16,560 a year to $9,900 a year. Local economic development leaders are welcoming the rate change and what it means for the area.
OOS Tuition $9900 per year (and there are some lenient merit offers that could further reduce)
COA $20,592
I was in this exact same position around 2 years ago. I got rejected from everywhere but Emerson and I quickly decided that I didn’t want to go there. Trust me when I know how devastating and scary this can feel. What I did was rather than go to a school that I had no interest in, I viewed it as a wake up call that I needed to do something different. I took a gap year through the program Carpe Diem Education and it was the best choice I’ve ever made in my life. You can still earn up to 36 college credits through them too while you’re traveling and gaining life experience. If you’re going to reapply to schools that you truly want to go through, it is a good to show them that you’re doing something productive. Whether by working or traveling, I would encourage taking gap years to anyone.
@artloversplus I had not even considered that you were talking about the Maine regional schools. I thought you meant the flagship at Orono. Fort Kent and Presque Isle are on the Canadian border at the northern most area of Maine! That is an 11 or 12 hour ride from NY. They have scaled back academics and don’t even offer a BS in CS. UAH would be a 14 hour drive with a easier climate and they actually have a great CS program.
University of Southern Maine could be a possibility. They’ve had some financial issues in the past but they do have CS. Portland is a nice city. OOS COA starts at 32k. I don’t know what the merit award would be.
For computer science SUNY Oswego and SUNY Poly are both good also. You are past the priority application deadline but they will still take applications if they have space so call and ask.
@dowzerw Thanks for the beautiful response, I really appreciate it. I’ll take a look at UMBC and I’m a son lol. Stonybrook was the first school that rejected me and I’ll look at every option in this thread with an open mind & decide. Your 5th point about missing the freshman experience really made me think again about what I considered a good college experience. Thanks again.
Here’s one completely not on your radar yet but what about the University of Virginia College at Wise?. I think it is closer to a CC and has a guaranteed transfer to UVA if you achieve a certain GPA. Seeing your stats, I would think it could be do able for you. There are a zillion closer options but that just came to mind.
Two completely different suggestions - Germany is accepting US college students with (almost) free tuition and many majors are taught in English. Also, there are online schools such as Western Governor’s and University of Southern New Hampshire that pretty much allow you to start whenever you want. Neither of these is a typical college experience but, in lieu of a gap year, might be worth considering.
UVA Wise is in a beautiful location. But the base non resident price is about $32k with housing.
If GMU or Northern Virginia Community College work out please let me know as I may be able to help you find affordable housing. Good luck. And like others have said, I applaud your determination. It will serve you well in the future.
I am not sure the vcc/uva solution will be affordable to op given the total yearly affordability is $10,000. I love to see OP to go to UVA but it is costly for oos.
Full disclosure, I have an uncle he was a department chair at UVA. And I frequent Charlottesville.
Frankly, with a net budget of $10,000, it is hard to justify any OOS publics other than those give full ride scholarships. Perhaps some private LACs will fit OP’s budget with heavy scholarships. I think @MYOS1634 may have some trick for OP, given UAH and SUNY may fit the bill.
TBH, I’m hoping wherever @iminboiz applies will see his awesomeness and offer financial aid/scholarship love, so I wasn’t weighing cost significantly with the Virginia community colleges/College at Wise to UVA suggestion. (I also had not realized UVA at Wise is a full four year and on the receiving end of the Va CC guaranteed admit program). Unless we are dealing with a ■■■■■, iminboiz seems to be most impressive and has ended up where he is as a fluke. If I was an AO, I would offer him a spot!