<p>Hi, I have almost finished applying to colleges, but lately I think I've been selling myself short about my chances at some schools. </p>
<p>I have a 3.4 unweighted GPA due to medical issues, 2020 SAT, pretty average ECs (some leadership, 4 years of band, etc), and I am, I think, a very good writer. I am also half-Jamaican (black), half-white.</p>
<p>Can anyone suggest maybe middle-tier schools that would look more closely at my URM status? I know that can be a factor sometimes. I just haven't applied to any reaches or really any matches because I thought my GPA was too low, but my friends have told me I should've aimed higher.</p>
<p>Location doesn't matter, but my family's EFC is 0... which probably eliminates a lot of schools. I am still interested in everyone's input though.</p>
<p>Can you tell us what schools you already applied to (and what you liked about them)? What size school do you have in mind? What is your potential major? What is your exact SAT breakdown? What state do you live in? I am assuming you are a US citizen, let us know if you aren’t.</p>
<p>Of the schools I have applied to, I like Washington State, Northern Arizona, Humboldt. And I am planning on applying to Western Washington and either University of Oregon or Oregon State. I want to double major in biology & foreign languages/Spanish/French. I like medium to large schools for the opportunities, but I really want an close-knit, intellectual environment, so I’m trying to get into an honors college/program if I end up at a state school. A friendly environment & sense of community is really important to me. An emphasis on global learning would also be nice. I superscore my SAT because 1980 seems so much worse than 2020, haha. CR: 660, M: 630, W: 730. I live in Washington.</p>
<p>Yes… but Reed is a completely different type of school than every other one on the OP’s list, and also she said medium to large. Reed is a small, liberal arts school with a quirky student body (please don’t start the “what is quirky” conversation!). It attracts a very definite type of student, and I don’t really see that vibe in the OP’s post.</p>
<p>The “full need” list is definitely a good starting place for you, since you have $0 EFC. And while you say location doesn’t matter, travel can get expensive if you get too far away.</p>
<p>What about one of the Claremont colleges? Scripps (if you are female) or Pitzer? Scripps in particular has good bio & foreign languages. And all five of the Claremont colleges are sort of snuggled together like lego pieces (no major roads run through the campuses). So you get the benefit of the big school with the vibe of the small school. You could run their Net Price Calculator and see how it looks. Even though Scripps is all female, it is right in the middle of a 5,000 student campus – the other four colleges are co-ed, so I think you kind of get the best of both worlds.</p>
<p>Since your EFC is 0, I don’t think it’s a good idea to be applying to all of those OOS publics. They won’t give you the aid that you need. </p>
<p>Many/most publics don’t give extra consideration or aid for URM status, so you’re likely going to be very unhappy with the gapped aid pkgs you’ll get. </p>
<p>Since you need LOTS of aid, you need to be applying to schools that will give you lots of grants. </p>
<p>Also…many publics do NOT superscore…so your best sitting will likely be considered at those schools. What is your best Math + CR score from one sitting…that will determine merit scholarships and will influence honors program acceptance.</p>
<p>What is your home state? If it’s not Oregon or Washington, then don’t bother with those three schools. </p>
<p>I’m concerned that you haven’t been advised well and will end up with a lot of unaffordable schools.</p>
<p>True, I have not really had a lot of advising when planning for college… In fact, I’ve had no real help at all. All the OOS publics I’ve applied to except for the Oregon schools have automatic WUE tuition rates though, which was a draw for me.</p>
<p>It is just hard finding schools that encompass EVERYTHING I want/need in a school. Washington is fairly limited in options. I have been keeping cost as a top priority, but also keeping it in context with every other factor of the school. Another reason why I am asking for schools that will consider URM status.</p>
<p>Take a look at Whitman and Willamette. Both in the PNW. Both give a lot of aid and your URM status could help I would bet. I am sure you would get in to Willamette (match) but Whitman might be a reach due to the GPA.</p>
<p>I live in Oregon and I would recommend against UO and OSU because they don’t have WUE. My sister is currently at WWU on WUE which made it about the same cost as UO. It’s definitely something to look at but at most of those schools you will still be paying 20k a year. If you looked at some privates that aren’t impossible to get in to, you could potentially get more aid even though the price can look daunting.</p>
<p>* All the OOS publics I’ve applied to except for the Oregon schools have automatic WUE tuition rates though*</p>
<p>WUE rates often are NOT affordable to those with 0 EFCs. When you have 150% tuition rate and add in room, board, books, transportation, and personal expenses, federal aid is not nearly going to be enough.</p>
<p>Do you realize that federal aid is not much? With a 0 EFC, you’d get a $5550 Pell Grant and a $5500 loan. Getting any other aid is very iffy. </p>
<p>For instance, the WUE COA for Humbolt is about $25k per year. Fed aid won’t come close to covering that. you won’t get Calif aid. You’ll have a huge gap in aid.</p>
<p>Why are you applying to the Oregon schools? Apps take a lot of time and effort. Why divert our efforts to schools that won’t work? Why not spend that time on schools that have some possible chance of working? </p>
<p>WUE programs mostly only benefit famillies who can pay the costs…they usually do not benefit those who need full aid.</p>
<p>Go to the net price calculator on the web site of each school you are considering applying to. Prepare to be disappointed at out-of-state public schools, even with WUE discounts.</p>
<p>[University</a> Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.pvamu.edu/pages/2154.asp]University”>http://www.pvamu.edu/pages/2154.asp) is an automatic full ride, but it needs a 3.5 GPA and 1760 SAT score. Don’t get your hopes up too high, since it is probably unweighted GPA, but you can always ask if they consider some kind of weighted GPA for that.</p>
<p>mom2collegekids, I don’t mean to be rude, but your criticism does not help much… I am asking for suggestions for colleges that consider URM status and provide a lot of financial aid. You’ve actually made me feel pretty badly about my financial situation. It’s embarrassing, and even more embarrassing that my parents have withheld financial information from me until after I applied to most of these schools… But I am aware that I need to be the practical one, which is why I need help finding schools that offer “lots of grants”, as you said. There are more elements to my story, like that I have relatives who can help out a bit, but now I would rather look into grants. Do you have any suggestions for schools I can look at?</p>
<p>Thank you for the link ucbalumnus! I’ll look into that. My GPA might rise above 3.5 after first semester grades, but I don’t know if that matters.</p>
<p>I am going to write off the Oregon schools. I was born & raised in Duck country and always wanted to go there, but I know it’s not going to happen unless I somehow get Gates Millenium, so I’ll save the energy Practical thinking, I hope…</p>
<p>Have you looked into the Questbridge college match program? It is for low income students and it is NOT a scam. There are threads on CC about it…</p>
<p>She’s just being honest with you. As embarrassing as it might seem, it’s better than her coddling you and giving you false information that ultimately affects where you enroll, and might leave you in a lot of debt.</p>
<p>The problem is, i don’t think there really are ‘URM schools.’ Being a URM is just one of many factors that adcoms use when they decide whether to accept or reject an applicant or not. That being said, have you tried applying to some HBCUs? You might be able to get a good scholarship at one of those.</p>
<p>I believe that the Questbridge program deadline has passed?
One of the reasons I did suggest Reed is that it is one of the schools that claims to meet full need. I admit I am not familar with the “quirky” description, so it is important to check that out. Yes, it is smaller, but it might fit.
Some of the smaller LAC’s may offer good financial aid compared to the state schools. They may also welcome an applicant that will add to the campus diversity. I agree that there are not really “URM” schools, but that diversity is one factor that is considered in making up a student body.
Finances are a part of choosing college as well for a majority of applicants at many levels. College is costly, and although I understand it’s personal, this is one area where many families have to come up with a plan that they can afford, so it is very common. You are not alone with this Lexi. With finances, comes travel costs, so how far away you want to go is a consideration.
While you and your peers want to aim higher, with financial aid in mind, sometimes “reaching lower” (albeit not too low) will result in a better financial aid package in the form of merit aid. Looking at some LAC’s where your scores are at the top range, and an LAC that is not in a popular geographic area may turn out to be an affordable and good education. Consider some of these
[CTCL</a> Member Map | Colleges That Change Lives](<a href=“http://www.ctcl.org/colleges/map]CTCL”>http://www.ctcl.org/colleges/map)
Another group of schools to consider are the women’s only colleges. There are many. Agnes Scott and Spellman (HCBU) are in Atlanta, which is a nice city and easy to travel to.
With deadlines approaching, I hope you can find some that will work for you.</p>
<p>mom2collegekids, I don’t mean to be rude, but your criticism does not help much… I am asking for suggestions for colleges that consider URM status and provide a lot of financial aid. You’ve actually made me feel pretty badly about my financial situation. It’s embarrassing, and even more embarrassing that my parents have withheld financial information from me until after I applied to most of these schools… But I am aware that I need to be the practical one, which is why I need help finding schools that offer “lots of grants”, as you said. There are more elements to my story, like that I have relatives who can help out a bit, but now I would rather look into grants. Do you have any suggestions for schools I can look at?</p>
<p>I think you missed my point. I’m sorry that I wasn’t more clear. You’ve indicated that you’re considering applying to certain OOS publics that won’t be affordable. </p>
<p>Applying to schools takes a lot of time and money. My post was to suggest that you alter your list a bit and take those schools off and include some schools that might work.</p>
<p>No one wants you wasting time applying to OOS publics that are going to hand you a big bill and little aid to go towards that. No one wants you to have a handful of unaffordable acceptances. </p>
<p>I’m sorry that your parents weren’t forthcoming about the family financial situation prior to you doing some apps. However, now you’re talking about future applications. No point in applying to more schools that won’t work. Instate publics might work since your state does give state aid in addition to fed aid. OOS publics won’t likely work unless they are UNC-CH or UVA. </p>
<p>URM status is often only really meaningful to private schools who can freely consider race and are willing to “pay” for more diversity.</p>
<p>Your financial situation “is what it is” and therefore you must work with it. </p>
<p>I suggest that you look at privates that will accept you and that are known to provide good aid and want more minorities. Those might be some Midwest schools. DePauw is known for good aid. </p>
<p>Then you really don’t know ANYTHING about Reed except its location… just saying, Reed has a very unusual reputation for highly intellectual, but also unusual students. No one should apply there without visiting and carefully reviewing their website (it would be a waste of an application for many students). And is about as far opposite as I can think of from the schools the OP already has on her list.</p>
<p>OP, I do think you are being overly sensitive. And maybe it is a shock to get advice like mom2collegekids at this point in the admissions process. But she is not wrong. I don’t think she was being rude, but the realities of what those schools will/won’t do is harsh. So maybe it seemed that way to you. Not to those of us who have been watching students go through this process for years. It is good that you are talking with her now instead of having no affordable options in a couple of months.</p>
<p>You asked about Occidental. I think it is fine if you are willing to accept the small size. I still think the two Claremont colleges (Scripps and Pitzer) are better options (combining the things you said you wanted).</p>
Practical thinking, I hope…</p>