Your daughter needs to decide what is important to her. If she really dislikes UMD, she has to come to terms with her affordable options. It seems she doesn’t want to.
There is nothing wrong with applying to financial reach schools just to see what happens…but she also needs affordable options that she likes.
There are smart kids at all schools.
I expect there will be kids at her level wherever she applies. Other academically strong kids who needed merit aid. Having the option of an honors college would help.
Have you had a serious discussion with your daughter? Does she know the budget? Does she understand that the schools on her list are most likely going to be way over your budget…and unaffordable?
I would tell her that if she doesn’t like UMD she needs to go down in selectivity, otherwise she will be at UMD. The choice is hers.
And what about schools with automatic merit for specific gpa and sat score so it isn’t a guessing game? And ones like that will have a good number of high stats kids because they also want the automatic Merit?
Kids at her level (like mine) are at these schools because they chased merit. They fill up the honors programs. My daughter’s friend was second in her class, 35 ACT, and is at UDel with tuition paid (my daughter is there with a $17,000 scholarship, only a 34 ACT). All of her friends were at the top of their classes.
The reason this thread is so long is, as @MMRose says, the OP’s goals are incompatible.
If you need merit, you will not get it at schools where the applicant isn’t at the very top of the applicant pool.
There is no shortage of LACs to choose from within an eight-hour drive from Maryland. It is a little bit of a Catch 22 that you are looking for a school where you are “overqualified” to get significant merit, but you don’t want to be at a school where you are too “overqualified.”
“And ones like that will have many high stats kids because they also want the automatic Merit?” This is a great point, but it will not only be the case at schools where automatic merit is listed. Also, the initial merit offer may not be all you can get. If, for example, Elon is a top choice, go back and ask if there’s more money out there.
Yep - our budget is $30k + fed loans. My eldest chose Alabama, in honors, in special lib arts program, had small classes, knew her professors, going to work in consulting post May graduation. LOADS of kids just like her.
My middle is the same - lucked out with a big merit award at Dayton.
Both applied to a range of auto merit schools, plus in state flagship (we live in the town), which they KNEW they were going to and could afford before Christmas - AND they had a choice between them. And then added in LACS, private Us, and special cohort scholarships for the middle one.
And because I don’t want this to sound like a pile on / we all did it right…
In sophomore year, my eldest announced her dream schools were Kenyon and Bates. I thought that we were bound to get suitable $$ as we are not a wealthy family and we had been saving for years into 529s for what we would be expected to contribute.
Imagine our shock and horror to run several NPCs over and over to discover that we could not afford our contribution. I had to explain to D that we couldn’t send her to Bates or Kenyon, unless she got the full tuition award at the latter. We were going to have to go on a merit hunt at less well known LACs and auto merit schools, plus include the dreaded instate school in our town. Even my husband, a BC alum, was devastated that his alma mater was only possible with a special scholarship (they give out 15!) - D applied, was accepted, but did not get the scholarship.
I made my kids prioritize their list of wants and needs in a college, using a kinda MOSCOW rating (Must have, Should have, could ideally have, would like to have).
My eldest sulked for about a month when I explained that Bates etc were pretty much off the table. But once she was over it, then we worked on a suitable list with some academic and financial reaches, likelies and safeties. It was an unpleasant time and I did wonder if she would even forgive me - but it did turn out OK.
NEVER would I have thought that LAC loving eldest would go to a southern flagship, join a sorority, study in the business school, and DRESS UP for football games. But kids - they surprise you!
It also made D2 process a lot easier.
There are top kids (and she’s not top) at every school - every school - find me Frostburg State or Salisbury and I’ll find you top kids.
Elon, as you said, has an attractive starting price but their merit is less. It’s the same as other schools - their sticker price is less and they discount less…but they are raising 9% this year.
Clearly your lists is long and everyone’s given you tons of ideas so no point in pushing it any longer but I do look forward to seeing where you applied in the fall.
As a family that did chase merit, I think the more you apply to the better - and as long as they offer merit, it’s worth a shot. I think if the possibility is there, it’s worth a chance. For example, a W&L has Johnson and the Weinstein. Both would work for you. My daughter got in but got neither and it was $81K so it was out. But we were chasing merit and did include it.
As long as you 100% have that safety valve that you know you can afford and you know she will love, then applying to other schools - and I would say more schools - is worth it. The common app has 20 spots - and i’d use them all.
Some schools - like UMD - gave us nada. Other schools like AU - we thought we’d get $25K and got $15K.
Then others gave us more than we thought.
You just don’t know - and hence the more apps the better - and if you’re like it’s too much work, then apply to schools with no extra costs and/or no extra essays. In this case, I think shotgunning after you get your desired apps in works.
Good luck.
But while I’ll keep reading, I think you have enough 
btw - this could work for you - has a Hillel but not sure if active. But if you got this scholarship it’d be $30K-ish.
Merit Scholarships - Freshman Admission - Christopher Newport University (cnu.edu)
OP-
You said you had 2 other children in college. Where do/did they go, and did they receive merit? Did you discuss a budget with them prior to applying?
Older kid is at GATech. I remembered bc we live in GA. No idea about a second sibling; I assumed younger than the D we have been discussing.
Did she receive merit to GT?
I didn’t see a mention of merit, which is hard to come by at GATech anyway. I did see this, which sounds like they are paying full OOS tuition (OOS COA is around $53k).
Well…hopefully this won’t cause a problem with this student, who has a lower budget.
I think I remember from months ago that one sibling is at GT and the other at university of Michigan.
So if this child gets into a generous CSS profile school that takes siblings into account, then they might get money via need based financial aid even if not via merit.
OP, have you run net price calculators at some of the more generous private CSS profile schools with 3 kids in college (if that’s accurate)? You might be pleasantly surprised. But you would definitely have to ask them about their sibling policy
Hopefully! I’m not going to go there as that is up to each individual family.
I could see a scenario in some families where the kids are each given the same total budget. Therefore the annual budget is less for the kid looking at medical school (8 years of tuition) vs the one with a typical 4 year undergrad. And perhaps there could be an agreement to give the kid any leftover balance if plans change.
This may seem a little out of left field, but how about about making your apps but if the only workable school ends up being UMD, your D takes a gap year to gain maturity and confidence so she’d perform better in a big environment. You’d have to look into whether UMD’s gap year policy to see if this is feasible.
Agree
GA Tech and Michigan - this may be where the “name” or “high level” school comes from - because there’s a natural sibling rivalry and there’s even a - I want to treat my kids equally rivalry.
So to go from Ga Tech / Michigan to a Christopher Newport - may just be too much a drop in name value vs. past family experiences.
While they’re considering lesser names, at app time - that might rear it’s ugly head.
That’s just a natural thing - i think - I’m sure there’s a psychological term for it.