Hi there,
I want to know if it would be better to go to a state school out of high school and then go to MIT for my graduate studies, or go straight to MIT from high school. My family is middle-upper class, and my dad owns his own business, so I will likely receive 0 dollars in need-based financial aid. My PSAT score was high enough that I will likely be named a National Merit Semifinalist, so if I decided to go to the University of Oklahoma, I would have a full ride. However, my dream school is MIT, and I believe that there is an okay-chance of me getting in. Would it be better for me to try for MIT (where I’ll have to take out a lot of student loans), or take my full ride and get my undergrad from OU.
There are lots of good places to get your education. Unless you have extraordinary qualifications and major hooks, you are unlikely to be admitted to all of them, or even a few, and being an NMF is pretty common in the top tier schools. Apply and see if you are admitted to MIT and other places, look at private schools with big merit scholarships (e.g. Vanderbilt, USC) , and other schools with NMF scholarships. There is a lot of ground between OU and MIT.
Apply to several possible schools, including MIT, OU, and other schools that will give you large merit.
. Alabama will also give you huge merit for being NMF.
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Would it be better for me to try for MIT (where I'll have to take out a lot of student loans),
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NO!
Have you asked your parents how much they’ll pay each year for college? If not, do so. Since your dad owns a business, you’re upper-middle class, likely you won’t get a lot of aid.
–Run the net price calculator for MIT and any other school you are considering.
–Keep in mind that as a student you will be limited in the amount of debt you can take out – it is likely that your parents would have to agree to take out the bulk of the debt if the numbers are large.
–Cast a wide net in terms of your applications and see how things turn out.