<p>CIA - what part of Virginia are you from? It can be extremely hard to get into UVA from the Northern Virginia area even with great GPA and scores but don’t let that discourage you - give every school a shot! VA Tech is an affordable option and may offer money as well. We have tons of great schools in Virginia - Mary Washington, JMU, George Mason, VCU and many others. Also, depending on where you live, the community colleges may offer guaranteed entry into any of the state schools. I know our Northern Virginia Community College offers guaranteed admission to UVA, William & Mary, JMU, and others is you work hard and keep a high GPA so look into those options as well as they may allow you to get a degree from a school you may not get into now with your GPA. But yes, having your weighted GPA up above 3.6 is certainly a good trend and your harder classes work in your favor as well. Your GPA plus high scores will offer you a lot and check out the threads on merit awards and look at schools that currently offer good merit for high scores/GPA - Tulane, Auburn, Alabama, and may more.</p>
<p>Mantori–again, it depends on the school. At non-meets-all-need schools, as where I work, that it absolutely not true (that one gets substantial grants). CIA is right to be looking at merit aid, because there are only a couple score schools in the country who meet all financial need.</p>
<p>“I’m willing to go maybe 50k in debt over 4 years. At the absolute most. Is that reasonable or too much? Parents would know about this more than any other person I could ask.”</p>
<p>Waaaay too much. I would not suggest going over $20k in debt total for undergrad. Remember that after you graduate, you may need money for graduate/professional school, an apartment, a reliable car, a more professional wardrobe, so you don’t want to have your options restricted by too much debt.</p>
<p>CIA, if I were your parent I would tell you to do two years at BRCC and then transfer if regular admission to UVA doesn’t work out. You’ll save $$ and be guaranteed a great education. UVA also has a loan cap pretty close to the $20k Northstarmom has recommended.</p>
<p>garland, I agree completely that CIA should be looking for merit aid! The more, the better. But I think it’s also important, in his financial situation, to research schools with generous need-based aid policies and apply to them, rather than applying to schools where loans are likely to be the main form of aid. For a good student with low income, there are so many opportunities to get a good education for free; why bother with loans if you don’t have to?</p>
<p>When I said it’s moot, I didn’t mean merit aid. I meant the idea of taking out $50K in loans. It shouldn’t be necessary in this case.</p>
<p>One more thing. We live with my grandmother. Do they take into account her income when calculating EFC? She makes about 20,000 + 10,000 from social security (she’s a widow). So they make about 48k between both of them. </p>
<p>Sorry I’m asking so many questions, but it’s all so confusing.</p>
<p>CIA - I think I saw that you said you’re interested in political science…if that’s the case and you’re willing to take a flyer on a college on the west coast, I strongly urge you to look at Claremont McKenna. They love a good story there and while your GPA is low, your test scores are high. They are extremely focused on leadership positions, but I think you could parlay babysitting your sister into a good story. Finally, they are one of the liberal arts colleges that still offer no loans + merit money + they fully meet need. You’d have to write an awesome essay and rock your SATs, but you could do it. CMC is a life changing place with amazing connections in politics and DC…</p>
<p>See if you can get “How to pay for college without going broke” by Khany. The more you master the weird world of financial aid, the stronger your decisions will be. </p>
<p>It is not easy. We now have a junior in college and another headed to college this fall and I am still learning. </p>
<p>If your PSAT scores gets you National Merit status, then you’ll have several lovely options. U of Arizona, Arizona State and Oklahoma U all give full rides. </p>
<p>Questbridge can be excellent – but everything has to be in by the end of September. Start on the paperwork in late August and keep after it until it’s completed. The nice thing about doing that is then you will be well organized for college application work. </p>
<p>Shop the whole list of colleges. Don’t assume that Teeny College is crummy or that TipTop College has money to burn. Neither may be true. Use the College Board College Search site to see which schools line up with your GPA and test scores. </p>
<p>You haven’t expressed a career path (that I saw). Check out college majors and keep an open mind because some majors are more recruited and there will be more money available. (A chemistry major may get more invites than an English major). </p>
<p>Lastly, know that you won’t know YOUR cost until early April your senior year. All the schools will give you ballpark numbers in the fall – but they won’t be able to tell you specifics. You have to apply and be accepted and THEN they put together a package of grants/work/study/loans to offer to you. </p>
<p>So apply to several places-- it’s not until you apply and are admitted AND have submitted the FAFSA (and perhaps the CSS Profile) that you will learn that Happy College has a scholarship for left handed tuba players of Argentine descent – or whatever it is that lines up with who you are (hopefully!) </p>
<p>Too many students (and parents!) quit on the financial aid forms and on learning the Byzantine rules and just take out loans. Mastering the details can save you thousands.
Good luck!</p>
<p>Find out about articulation agreements between your local community colleges and the Virginia public universities. NOVA guarantees transfer to all of the public Us, so I expect that yours should as well.</p>