<p>Firstly, junior, 3.45 UW GPA, 36 ACT, top 30 USNWR school, live in AZ. Looking at the fin aid numbers, ASU seems to be a rather cheap option ($14692 yearly), as well as being one that I like (nice campus, people I know, etc.). I thought I had ruled out Tucson after two trips down there for the State Geography Bee, living in what resembled the houses on the outskirts of Puerto Penasco. Going in to April, I thought my safety was set, and had already started drafting my ApplyTexas essay (TAMU is an option).</p>
<p>After talking to my English teacher, a Tucson native, she told me that the area I was in (NNW of the Convention Center, for any residents reading this) was practically the worse place to be in Tucson, and that in general the city is much better. With that in mid, and started wondering about whether U of A would be a better fit for me (school's taking a trip there in the fall). My dad is quite the helicopter parent, and while he has agreed to allow me out of state (to other warm weather schools), he has stated that if I go to ASU, he'd be driving over there weekly to see how I'm doing, checking on my grades, etc. </p>
<p>I personally am 100% opposed to this happening, and am now considering U of A more and more. How do I sell the added pricetag (roughly $1000 more yearly, after estimated scholarships) to him without giving away my desire for distance between us? I think he'll probably remember my vitriol against going to U of A from a few months ago and see through what I want to do.</p>
<p>You sell it by doing serious research on both schools and presenting your dad with a clearly formatted spreadsheet (yeah, it could be hand written) identifying strengths and weaknesses in a way that clearly shows UA is the better school for your academic and EC interests. Do it fairly the first time to keep your dad from asking “What about X?” the whole time.</p>
<p>On the other hand, just going by your post, it sounds like the biggest problem here is your relationship with your dad. So if you really prefer ASU, do your best to sit down with your dad and air your concerns. Be sure to listen to his, too. It’s not easy for some parents to make a transition as their child moves from adolescence to adulthood, and you’ll blow the whole thing if you invalidate his emotions. If there is a mature adult that both of you trust (a family member, a neighbor, whatever) then having this person “referee” the discussion might be even more helpful.</p>
<p>I would be patient if I were you. You based your dislike on incomplete information as your English teacher suggested. Since you haven’t been to U of A, you can’t really make a fair judgment about which campus you like better. You may find you like that campus better than ASU’s campus. Part of growing up is changing your mind when you are presented with new information. You may actually come back and be able to say wow, what a great campus.</p>
<p>In the mean time, I would be doing my homework as WasatchWriter suggests (and as an aside I used to live in Utah and miss the Wasatch Mountains). Academically and socially, U of A may turn out to be the better fit for you. And I would add be ready to answer the question what about X because I suspect anything you say will be countered by what about X. Also, WW makes a great suggestion if you find ASU is the best place for you.</p>
<p>what is your weighted gpa?</p>
<p>i dont blame you for wanting to be far enough away that your dad doesnt visit all the time…that will really interfere with your life.</p>
<p>your dad can have access to grades without a physical visit…doesnt he know that???</p>
<p>In college you often dont get graded papers back, just an online grade…because often homework is submitted online as well.</p>
<p>How much has your dad said that he’ll pay each year?</p>
<p>do you know what your efc would be? are you low income ? middle income? high income?</p>
<p>what was your Psat? are you a likely NMF?</p>
<p>do you have C’s as any semester grades? If so, how many?</p>
<p>If your weighted gpa is higher, there are other big merit opportunities.</p>
<p>what is your career goal?</p>
<p>What about other automatic scholarship schools? With a 36 ACT, I am guessing that you might find some good options outside Arizona (even further away, and maybe in a place you like better). I am wondering about NMF as well.</p>
<p>Apologies for not giving all stats, got 1 C frosh year, retook that class, not NMF, 3.9 weighted. Dad has stated he’d pay no more than 20K a year (~110K yearly income, about 30K EFC), so I already have found a list of OOS schools where merit aid will get me below that threshold. </p>
<p>Career goal is, well, nothing. Make money. I’d like to do accounting or secondary education, but dad, being the EE, thinks (correctly) that the money is in Comp Science, and that I should go into that to make a lot of money, despite me showing little interest in it. </p>
<p>I’m not trying to find other OOS CompSci schools that give out merit aid, I’m just trying to find out the best way to backtrack my comments about not wanting to go to U of A.</p>
<p>can you see those thunderclouds off in the distance? that way lies your next year with your dad. Your dad knows he’s got a smart kid but mistakenly thinks that major equals money, money equals happiness, and you are he. It’s going to take him a long time to get over the last of these, so think in terms of years rather than days. Take the long, patient approach with Dad but keep pulling away, compromising, pulling away a little further, compromising, and so forth. Going away to college AND doing REALLY well is a sure-fire way to accelerate the process. Coming up with summer internships and studies abroad is another. </p>
<p>Your career goal tells us that you are not he. You’ve yet to discover that career goal, and college is much about helping you to do that. You do need to get out from under that thumb, at least from what you’re telling us. You could do CompSci or CompEng AND teach secondary school; there’s an increasing demand for graduates who can do this well just as there is an increasing demand for CS and CE graduates. You could do Accounting AND teach secondary education, too. There is money to be made in accounting, math, actuarial science, statistics, and a ton of other numbers majors.</p>
<p>So you’re asking us how to get out of the fix you created about UofA. If you don’t go the routes presented above in which you sell Dad on the comparison of the two schools, then you sell Dad on the comparison of one or both of these two AZ schools and some places even further away. You want a school however that will offer you a multiplicity of majors since you don’t know what you want to major in. Research some east coast schools. That will get his attention. Remember, the long, patient approach. </p>
<p>You could visit UAz with your dad and give a great performance of WOW when you tour (gosh, I didnt know that they had XXXXXXX)…to suggest that your new love is based on the actual visit…lol</p>
<p>but also…you need to add more schools with huge merit just in case you dad sees thru the UAz thing.</p>
<p>Buggie, I gave you the best way to backtrack. You have to actually visit the campus. You have not done so. </p>
<p>@geo1113 , I’ll do that as soon as I have the chance (either Labor Day Weekend, or Fall break, from the looks of it).</p>
<p>Good. That is why I said be patient. </p>