<p>UNC isn’t impossible, just unpredictable. Besides finances, the OP’s father may want the OP to be within reasonable distance. I agree with the OP’s wishes to have some likable choices besides UNC. Since UNC is so highly ranked, it’s important to look at more specific aspects of the other choices to see if any are also appealing. I’m not promoting any of them, as fit is specific to the OP’s situation.
U South Carolina and Clemson have distinct honors colleges if the OP is eligible, and may award the OP some merit aid that reduces the cost of attendance.
NCSU also has an honors program, and being located in Raleigh may make it possible for the OP to access internships in the political arena.
No other in state options will be higher ranked than UNC. Hopefully the OP will get accepted there, but some other choices can also be good ones. Ranking is one aspect, but beyond that, the OP can consider which school will provide good opportinities and that will depend on the department and location. U South Carolina has a nice honors college and is also located in that state’s capitol, so it’s another consideration, however, the Dec 1 deadline is soon.</p>
<p>These are some great suggestions, thank you all so much! I had previously considered going to a private school, but it definitely is an issue of cost with my father. To convince my dad to let me go to a non-NC public school, I’d have to get the cost down to a price that would be similar to that of an in-state school.
@momrath, I understand how you would see a discrepancy between my GPA and ACT. I’ve taken the ACT three times, and the highest I’ve gotten is a 28 because of my low math and science scores. My english and reading scores (33 and 34) are much higher than my math and science (22 and 23). I’ve taken the SAT and the result wasn’t great; however, I’ve decided that I’m done with testing.<br>
For those of you suggesting privates, do you think it’s a possibility to get the price down to something around $20,000 a year? My family income is around $100,000.<br>
Also, for everyone suggesting NCSU, is their poli sci program strong? The attitude in NC is generally that if you want a liberal arts degree you go to Carolina and that NCSU is more science, math, engineering and agriculture oriented.</p>
<p>While UNC is known to be strong in humanities, that doesn’t mean it is weak in sciences and vice versa for NCSU. I’m not familiar with the poly sci department, but that it something you can check out. Another aspect to consider when picking a college is the location. For poli sci, the state capital is a desirable location if there could be internships, visiting speakers and other interesting opportunities. A small department isn’t necassarily a negative if it meets your needs. However that is for you to decide if it will work for you. Start with the website: [Internships[/url</a>]
[url=<a href=“http://spia.ncsu.edu/ps/]SPIA”>http://spia.ncsu.edu/ps/]SPIA</a> | North Carolina State School of Public and International Affairs](<a href=“http://www.ncsu.edu/career/students/jobsinternships/internships.php]Internships[/url”>http://www.ncsu.edu/career/students/jobsinternships/internships.php).
The same idea applies to USouth Carolina, also in the state capital.
However, with deadlines so soon, it’s best to apply to what you are interested in as soon as you can. After that you can visit the schools, talk to students/faculty in the department and get your questions answered from people who have first hand knowlege. Don’t miss a deadline to do this though. You don’t have to decide until you know where you are accepted.
Merit aid at private and OOS public colleges is not predictable, so you should have as many in state options as interest you. However, it may be worth a try at the SC colleges and see what happens.</p>
<p>I had no idea UNC was this competitive. This is a very good student and ought to be a cinch at his own state flagship. The weakness here, and it’s a slight one, is the 28 on the ACT? I’m thinking he’s a match for Michigan, and you’re telling me she might not get into Chapel Hill? Wow.</p>
<p>Both schools are competitive, and selective. While the OP is qualified to be admitted, it’s a good idea to also find some likeable alternatives.
The OP should apply to UNC and consider admission possible. The problem is that the OP doesn’t like the other choices on the list. I think it’s a good idea for any student, no matter how strong, to have several likable choices on the list.</p>
<p>It’s good to find other options but</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>isn’t accurate!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I second this. I was not admitted to UNC-CH instate–I had a 2120 on the SAT and am a direct descendant of one of the most prominent people in the founding the University.</p>
<p>I would consider NC State. You might also consider trying to transfer to UNC-CH after two years.</p>
<p>A lopsided ACT/SAT can be overcome, but it will require some finessing. Perhaps your counselor could mention it in his/her recommendation, for example emphasizing your excellent humanities performance and your (presumably) good grades in math/science.</p>
<p>Remember to check SATII requirements at the schools you’re looking at.</p>
<p>It’s not impossible to get need based aid at your family’s income level. You need to ask your father to use a target college’s net price price calculator to get an idea of what you’re likely to receive. You’ll get some variation from school to school, but it will give you an idea of whether you’re in the ballpark.</p>
<p>Merit aid is also a possibility, but that’s less predictable.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>This is a huge misconception that NCSU folks like to spread. UNC sciences in general > NC State sciences. The Chem, Bio, Math, Physics departments are all stronger at UNC.</p>
<p>In terms of engineering and agriculture, no arguments here.</p>
<p>Anyway, I definitely think there’s a good chance you’ll get into UNC, but it’s not a guarantee.</p>
<p>“For those of you suggesting privates, do you think it’s a possibility to get the price down to something around $20,000 a year?”</p>
<p>This will be difficult.</p>
<p>I suggest that you re-post in the Financial Aid Forum or in the Parents Forum, and put your GPA, ACT score breakdown, family income, and actual amount of money available for your education right in the first paragraph. Give your thread a title along the lines of “Parent income 100k, can’t pay more than 20k each year, what are my options?” to catch the attention of people who have dealt with similar situations.</p>
<p>I know a student whose profile was similar to yours who was admitted to the honors program at Guilford as a Bonner Scholar. Whether or not Guilford could be made affordable for you, however, would be a whole different issue.</p>
<p>Admission to UNC is possible but with a 28% acceptance rate, it can’t be guaranteed. Which is why it is important to look beyond UNC. In actuality, many state colleges are good opportunities, but are in the shadow of the state flagship if that flagship is highly ranked and selective. No Tarheel is going to sing the praises of NCSU, and UNC is great, unless you ask someone from Duke 
So, an applicant has two choices, apply to UNC, hope for the best, and be bitterly unhappy if it doesn’t work out, or take a close look at the merit of the other colleges and be content with the outcome. A stronger program at one college does not necessarily mean another one is inadequate. The student who considers the merits of the alternative choices is likely to be happier with the outcome.
I hope the OP gets his/her first choice, but if not, I hope the OP has found a place that he/she can be happy with.</p>
<p>I think UNC-A, Appalachian (both for the HOnors college => hurry, deadlines), plus Davidson if you have the stats and enough need, plus Guilford if you have high stats for merit, would all be schools for you to apply. They’d provide an alternative to UNC-W if you weren’t admitted to UNC-CH.
As for the private colleges: you have to type in “college data” and the name of the college, then look at “admissions” and look at the 25-75 range: if your stats place you above the top 25% then odds are good you’ll get a nice financial package. To have a better idea, run the net price calculators on each website, but if they don’t ask about your test scores, location, and GPA, they’re unlikely to factor in merit. If they don’t factor merit, your total cost is likely to be too high.
Hurry because many scholarships have Dec 1 deadlines.
Your best bet, if you wish to get out of state, is to find a LAC that will offer you enough merit aid, and the further away the more unusual your application will be so the more likely it is they’ll want to give you a “preferential” financial aid package if they admit you. Schools that come to mind include Centre, Hendrix, Agnes Scott, Goucher, Hiram, Wooster, Allegheny, Macalester, Lake Forest, Simmons, Mills, St Mary’s of California, University of Portland, Lewis&Clark…
You may simply apply to the schools that don’t require an application fee via the commonapp.
I certainly hope you’ll get into UNC-CH, but if you don’t, you have lots of good choices inside North Carolina and potentially outside, too (if you wish to have a few offers from out of state privates - the only unlikely is an out of state public university that would cost less than instate public, but for oos private vs. in state public it depends on the college, your financial situation, how you rank compared to other applicants… Many families here on CC have found that private can be cheaper than in-state).
It all really depends, so cast a wide net.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Here’s one Tar Heel who will sing the praises of State, and I’m certainly not alone in that. State has a very well-respected political science program, and in the past there has been a legislative internship program through State. I’m not sure of the current status of that; it’s something I knew about years ago.</p>
<p>Also, the OP mentioned UNC-Wilmington. I can’t speak to the political science program specifically, but UNC-Wilmington has become a much more well-respected university in the past 10-15 years. I’ve known a couple of students who, in recent years, turned down admissions offers from State and Carolina for UNC-Wilmington and are very happy there.</p>
<p>what Marsian says about the rising reputation of Wilmington is true. does that make it a school to equal the others?</p>
<p>I guess I should have been more specific- a UNC Tarheel. I was referencing the rivalry- UNC, Duke, NCSU. One poster mentioned Michigan, and there is a similar rivalry with UM and MSU.
In general, the NC colleges seem to be rising in selectivity, and are a good value at in state costs.</p>
<p>“Equal” is hard to measure when choosing a college, because what one student values might not be what another one does. Also my comment about the rivalry was in response to the post by Phoneyreal98 whose location reads “going to Carolina”. Ask a UNC student which is better and they will say UNC, then, ask Duke about UNC…A high school student is likely to hear different opinions from different perspectives. It’s important to find out how the college fits the individual.</p>
<p>OP, you should def. apply to NCSU. S1 is a NCSU grad and loved NCSU. He was not an agriculture or engineering major. I don’t think you have to worry about a weak Poli. Sci. dept. </p>
<p>My S2 is a recent ECU grad. who really enjoyed his time there. You would be eligible for the Honors College at ECU but you’d have to do the online application by midnight Dec.1.</p>
<p>My friend’s D was accepted to ASU but chose to go to Wingate University instead. She got enough merit money to make it almost equivalent to ASU.</p>
<p>I have been admitted to both UNC Chapel Hill and Appalachian in the major of Political Science. Strangely, Appalachian is the winner hands down in regards to internships. Sure, Chapel Hill might have more name recognition, but the best they could do for an internship was 3 credit hrs at the Chapel Hill Police Dept. Admissions AND the Poli Sci department both told me this. Appalachian, on the other hand, has a house a few blocks from Capitol Hill, will award 12 semester hours for a semester long internship and are even willing to supplement those hours with an independent study course. </p>
<p>Don’t know if anyone still cares, but I just remembered that I posted this and wanted to update! I was accepted to UNC Chapel Hill Early Action and am so excited to attend! </p>
<p>Congratulations!</p>