<p>Agreed. Having said that, this “red-state” fear tends to be blown out of proportion a lot of the time. I live in a state that has gone from blue to red, but that doesn’t mean there are any less like-minded people for me to associate with. And certainly in a college setting, it’s easy to “self-select” among peers with similar interests. Also, at the risk of stating the obvious, it is possible (and desirable, IMO) to find common ground with people of different backgrounds and perspectives.</p>
<p>However it does make it easier if the end goal is political activism within the party. To use an extreme example, I reside in the only state where every county voted for Romney in the last election (even Wyoming, Arkansas, and South Dakota had a few splotches of blue in the sea of red). As such, a democratic poly sci student liking to work for a state legislator would find it more difficult to connect with state leaders than if he or she went to work in a state like Oregon where democrats are more numerous and issues advocated by the party are more likely to be considered.</p>
You really believe Bama gives merit $ because it’s conservative? Really? How about because they’re trying to raise the stats of incoming classes to put them more in the conversation with top Public Us. That is the same reason Oklahoma offers so many NMF scholarships.</p>
<p>That being said, the OP should look at the list of automatic and competitive full rides in the FA forum.</p>
<p>Exactly. Bama has to spend money to get high-stat OOS students, because it has a reputation for being, among other things, conservative. Which many high-stat applicants like the OP here find unattractive.</p>
<p>Oh, please. Almost ALL colleges dangle financial carrots to increase diversity of their student bodies and round out classes with athletes, musicians, geographically underrepresented kids, etc. The in-state student body at UA tends to be conservative because the state is conservative. Like a number of other state flagships (Florida comes to mind) Alabama has an ambitious long-range plan to improve the overall caliber of its student body. And that plan involves spending money to get the students it wants.</p>
<p>^Agreed. And that is why I think the voting habits of a state are of little concern to students, as long as there are individuals/groups at their college with similar perspectives and interests. </p>
<p>I live in WI, and the way things are going here politically you’d think we had become a true red state almost overnight (people are not-so-affectionately calling it “Wississippi”). But is the campus environment suddenly less liberal overall at UW-Madison? Of course not.</p>
<p>I’ll duplicate some of the comments already offered but here goes:
Figure out how badly the “profile” financial aid application hurts you. Basically it takes into account the value of your home etc. If it is going to hurt your financial aid badly, then concentrate on schools who use the FAFSA only.
Count on having to pay what the FAFSA says your folks can afford.<br>
Merit scholarships etc will be taken off any aid until they are greater than the financial aid. They may however reduce your need for loans. Again, expect to pay out of pocket what the FAFSA says you can affort.
When comparing schools, the difference should only be in how many loans are in your package. They should one way or another meet your FAFSA needs.<br>
The goal is to reduce your need for loans, especially unsubsidized loans.
With financial need, you may find private schools end up being cheaper than the state school. With the common app, applying is cheaper and easier - if you have need you probably need to apply to many and compare packages.
You should probably look at the character of the school rather than the character of the state. There are some really liberal schools in “red states”. Oberlin, Earlham, Kenyon etc… and you will be in the world of the school, and not so much the world of the state. But also, college is a good time to be exposed to different ways of thinking…</p>
<p>Some of the best known large merit scholarship schools (e.g. Alabama) give no need-based financial aid at all (beyond administering federal aid).</p>
<p>Check the policy of each school if this is a concern.</p>
<p>Thank you to everyone for the advice! I have some questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Most of you mentioned Alabama. I am not familiar with them. Are you talking about the University of Alabama? Are those scholarships automatic? Do they have a good science program? It still looks like I’d be paying $17,517 per year for expenses besides tuition.</p></li>
<li><p>Do I actually have a decent chance at a scholarship at UC Santa Cruz, UC Merced, or UC Riverside? The UCs are pricey to apply to so I don’t want to apply if I don’t have a good chance.</p></li>
<li><p>Are the scholarships at Temple University automatic? It looks like those are qualifications, not guarantees.</p></li>
<li><p>As far as the red state problem, it’s not that I’m worried that I’ll meet people with different views than myself. I’d much rather be with politically active conservatives that people who are apathetic. I’d like there to be enough liberal people in a small school to populate the liberal clubs. Of course, that’s not that big of a concern in a larger school.</p></li>
<li><p>I’ll take off Syracuse, North Carolina, and North Carolina State. I’ll look into Dickinson and Gettysburg. Thank you to everone who looked at my list and made suggestions!</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks for the links! According to that, it will cost $7,578 per year. But it says that hours above 16 incur aditional charges per semester. Should I be worried about that? And why does it say “tuition or $95,800 over four years ($23,950 per year).” on the scholarships page and then say that tuition is only $11,975 on the finance page? $23,950 is more that it costs per year according to the finance page.</p>
<p>Oh, I figured it out. The finance page is only for one semester. So, besides parking, I have to double the price of everything. The net price calculator says I’ll still be paying $18,104 per year.</p>
<p>^^ You might be able to do better than $18,104/year at some of the LACs you listed in your first post. Run the NPCs for a couple of them (or use collegeabacus.com). Using College Abacus, I estimated the net cost for a middle income student to attend another selective LAC, Kenyon College, would be $10,341 after need-based aid. Assumptions: </p>
<p>Family AGI = $50K
$50K in family financial assets
Married parents in late 40s, both work
Home purchased for $150K in 2000, owe $100K
No assets in student’s name; no student income
Student will live on campus</p>
<p>I’ll look into Kenyon college, thanks! I’ve looked at it a little before but it didn’t seem to be very science based. Should I be worried about that or does it not really matter as it is only undergrad?</p>
<p>I think Kenyon was just an example, to show that private schools can be affordable. Figure out what schools interest you and play around with online calculators like College Abacus to see what kind of need-based aid you’re likely to get.</p>
<p>That’s right, Kenyon was just an example I gave for possible cost comparisons.
Other LACs with excellent need-based aid, and perhaps greater strength in some of the sciences, include Carleton, Grinnell, Haverford, Macalester, Oberlin, Smith, Swarthmore, and Wesleyan. These aren’t safety schools, mind you. However, if they admit you, they can be expected to offer decent aid packages (possibly even beating the UCs or a big merit scholarship from Alabama … depending on your circumstances.)</p>
<p>Forget Gettysburg and Dickinson, unless 20-25K would solve your need. Besides, you don’t have the stats, probably. Definitely look at Alabama’s and Temple’s merit. I don’t have the cutoffs in my head, but you’re close to making an automatic at temple. As for the UC schools, any of them, I think there just isn’t enough in any of the merit scholarships that are offered. Cali is looking to fund their once-great UC system on the back of OOS families. Hope this helps. Knowing how much merit you need, an approximate number like 23K, would give you an idea of what schools you should look for. It will be very difficult to get a large, say tuition-size, merit scholarship anywhere but at the automatic schools like Temple. I’m going thru this same search for my family, so you’re not alone in this kind of search. I commend you for taking the initiative. Good luck.</p>