Suggestions for a confused junior

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm just at a lost of where I want to go. My top pick is NYU but it's hard to get in and I have to take into consider the carnage it will do to my wallet. </p>

<p>I live in Ohio. I've looked into Ohio State and I think I would get in but I'm not totally thrilled about going there but it wouldn't be the end of the world. And my sister went there.</p>

<p>I prefer a college in east or west. Not in the middle. I like a big college, coed, good mix of minorities, in a big city. A good financial aid system would be nice. I don't care too much about the unity or school spirit. </p>

<p>Also just a general question about colleges like UCLA, USC, NYU, etc They're known for getting the most number of applicants and accepting the least amount. Do all the applicants really have a shot to get in or do they just like the idea of California and NYC? I mean is it just a coincidence that they happen to be in places were a lot of kids dream of living?</p>

<p>My info:</p>

<p>Gender: female
Ethnicity: Chinese
Major: International Business
Financial Aid: Yes</p>

<p>gpa: w- 4.2 uw-not sure my lowest grade was a A-
ACT: 30 / Writing: only a 8
SAT: probably not taking them didn't do so hot on the psat (1560)
Rank: 13 out of 250ish</p>

<p>Honors English 10,11
Honors physics 11(this course is being run by kent university its basically a pseo class)
Ap US History (4 on the test)
3 years of french</p>

<p>Senior year plan: my school doesn't offer a lot of AP courses :/ So i'm doing PSEO
AP Gov 12
AP English
I'm taking PSEO courses in english, history, and chinese senior year</p>

<p>EC: All go up to junior year, I plan on continuing all the clubs into my senior year
National Honors Society 11,12
Student Levy Group Founder ( Our school was trying to pass a budget levy, organized student group to promote the levy)
French Club 9,10,11
Plan to - Robotics Club 12
Art Club 9,11,
Distinguished Scholar (students with 4.0+, its an award thing) 9,10,11,
CliqueBusters 10,11 (student group focused on unifying the school, i'm an original member so i was picked to be in it)
Student Senate: 9,10,11
Junior Class Council: 11
Focus Group: 11 (Group that talked with the principle about student body problems and recommendations, application based group)
plan to- yearbook class 12
plan to-DECA 12 (i'm going to take marketing at my school and this is the club that you join with it, the club participates in competition and stuff)
Academic Challenge: 9,10,11
Designed Poster for school plays (psd, competition) 11</p>

<p>Volunteer:
Blood drive worker/donor
Salvation Army Bell Ringer
Santa Shop Worker
Plan to - Hospital Volunteer this summer</p>

<p>Other info:
-First generation to attend college
-Writer for a asian american news site
-Not sure if this counts as a difficult situation type of thing but my parents don't speak English so I translated a lot for them (going w/ my dad to his business stuff, helping them get stuff done) and so i usually do the bills and things like that for my family
-Been to China to study Chinese ( 2 summers, alone - stayed with family that i had back there)
-I speak Fujianese fluently (my families dialect) , but not Mandarin fluently
-Most of the kids at my school go to local colleges, only a few stand outs a year get into out of state big schools</p>

2

<p>I think you’ve got a strong shot at NYU and USC both! UCLA might be tougher since you are OOS, but your GPA is strong and you have pretty good test scores. </p>

<p>I’m not sure if I understand your question regarding UCLA/USC/NYU. I definitely think all of the applicants have a shot of getting in, especially at USC and NYU, both private schools.</p>

3

<p>A good financial aid system would be nice.</p>

<p>NYU is horrible with aid, so unless your family can easily pay the $55k per year to go there, then don’t consider it. Not only is it not worth big debt, bid debt is hard to pay back after graduation.</p>

<p>How much will your parents spend each year on your education?</p>

<p>What is your EFC? If you don’t know, use this: [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and Financial Aid](<a href=“http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml]FinAid”>http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml)</p>

<p>Don’t assume that just because you didn’t do well on the PSAT, that you won’t do well on the SAT. Try it at least once. :slight_smile: Plus, some schools will super-score the SAT - but that will require you to take it more than once.</p>

<p>Take the ACT again. Try to get an ACT 32 (or equivalent SAT). With an ACT 32, you could get some great merit scholarships from some match and safety schools. :)</p>

4

<p>^ Don’t forget that the cost of living in NYC is also expensive. So to be honest it will be around $65k+ a year most likely. You never know how much you may spend on stuff like food and all!</p>

5

<p>My parents have already signed off on NYU, basically they’re okay with any school.
I know NYU has a horrible aid system but i’m hopeful i’ll get some scholarships.
Is USC or UCLA’s aid systemm any better, they’re both expensive too
I know i’m going to end up with debt but my parents helped my brother and sister through college and beyond.</p>

<p>My sister went to osu and left with a 11,00 dollar debt in loans. My brother gets financial aid only like a thousand or so (he already goes to a pretty cheap 8,000 year college).</p>

6

<p>You will get NO aid from UCLA. The UC system can’t even afford their in-state students right now. You have a better chance of getting merit aid from USC. What is your EFC? Will you qualify for much Financial Aid?</p>

7

<p>*My parents have already signed off on NYU, basically they’re okay with any school.
I know NYU has a horrible aid system but i’m hopeful i’ll get some scholarships.</p>

<p>Is USC or UCLA’s aid systemm any better, they’re both expensive too
I know i’m going to end up with debt but my parents helped my brother and sister through college and beyond.</p>

<p>My sister went to osu and left with a 11,00 dollar debt in loans. My brother gets financial aid only like a thousand or so (he already goes to a pretty cheap 8,000 year college).
*</p>

<p>I’m confused… There’s a disconnect between “my parents are okay with any school,” and “I know I’m going to have debt.”</p>

<p>When parents truly “sign on” to a school, that means that they are going to pay for all of it. What good does it do for them to “sign on” to ANY school, if they’re not paying?</p>

<p>Your sister’s debt is miniscule compared to what you’d be facing.</p>

<p>Do yourself a favor…(please)…go to your parents and ask them: Exactly how much can you pay towards my education each year?</p>

<p>Once you have THAT number, then you can make reasonable choices and decisions.</p>

<p>Based on what your siblings have done, they’ve gone to inexpensive schools, yet your sister still has debt. That suggests that your parents are willing to pay for “about” the cost of an instate public (probably about $20k per year).</p>

<p>So, if that’s what they intend for you, you need to know that.</p>

<p>NYU is not generous with merit either. NYU uses “enrollment management” strategies. It targets its merit and aid to the few kids they need/want to benefit their ranking goals. </p>

<p>Your ACT score isn’t close to what is needed for merit there. Your ACT puts you in the “middle 50%” of their students.</p>

8

<p>What do YOU want? What kind of school do YOU want to go to? </p>

<p>Do you want the classic college experience or the fastest route to your career?
Tiny (<1,000 students), small (1,000 - 3,000), medium (3,000-10,000), big (10,000-20,000), or gigantic (>20,000)?
Urban, suburban, townish, or rural?
Liberal, conservative, or mixed?
Quirky or preppy?
Is single-sex an option?
What are you going to major in?
How important is it that the school have a superior program in your major?
Do you want a strong core liberal arts curriculum, an open, I’m-still-exploring sort of curriculum, or a get-into-your-major-right-away curriculum?
Do you mind really cold or really hot weather?
Are any parts of the country a no-go? Are any parts of the country preferred?
Is campus beauty a factor?
What college ECs would you like to participate in?</p>

<p>There are a million questions to ask yourself, from the most important to the most trivial. Go ahead and ask them! The sooner you do, the better off you’ll be.</p>

9

<p>The problem is, I hate to suggest, is that many asians are hung up on prestige and rankings and therefore overlook WONDERFUL second tier colleges, many of whom have good scholarships and financial aid. </p>

<p>Stay out of California if you can…its a mess. But if you must, then look at University of San Diego. Elsewhere, UPortland, Univ.of Puget Sound, Seattle University, Gonzaga University;</p>

<p>In the midwest: Marquette, DePaul, Duquesne, Saint Louis University, reach: Northwestern and WashU.</p>

<p>East: Fordham, BC, Holy Cross, Lafayette, Lehigh, Syracuse, Villanova, </p>

<p>South: Wake Forest, Furman, Davidson, Emory, Univ. of Miami,</p>

10

<p>Ghostbuster makes an extremely good point, and contrary to what most believe, after your first job, work experience becomes a heavy factor in employers decision to hire. Supplement that fact with the point that you’ll probably end up pursuing an MBA - and your choice of undergraduate college doesn’t matter THAT much (if you’re not trying to break into consulting or investment banking) - so feel free to explore the colleges that ghostbuster posted above.</p>

<p>That being said, the UCs have increased their tuition by nearly 30%, and they NEVER give aid to OOS students. And, prestige wise, due to the financial recession, NYU’s recruiting is down anyways. Not to mention that it’ll murder your bank account. Repeatedly.</p>

11

<p>So if i go to NYU i get screwed fnacially, if i go to California i’m screwed financially.
I’ve heard about company scholorships where you promise to work for said company for a period of time if they help with tuition, is this a feasible option? </p>

<p>I talked to my parents again last night about colleges. They said I can go where ever I wanted and they would pay for most of my college. And I would get loans and pay some of that myself but for the most part they would pay for everything in the long run. This is the same thing they did for my sister, they payed for most of her college but she took out loans and now she pitches in when she can but they’re paying off her loans. </p>

<p>I’m hoping to get some money from scholarships locally, even if its only going to make a little dent in the cost.</p>

<p>In California I was also looking at San Francisco State University, UCI</p>

12

<p>UCI is also no OOS need. Since SFSU is a CSU it would be the same. Have your parents reviewed the cost of the schools you are looking at? They would be much more than OSU in-state where your sister went. With your record (scores and stats) you should get into OSU if you want.</p>

13

<p>

</p>

<p>What do these second tier colleges have in common??</p>

14

<p>The COA of UCLA is probably not worth it for an OOS student…</p>

<p>But depending on financial and merit aid (or lack thereof), some of the second tier privates mentioned in this thread may end up costing you more than UCLA, so you may end up paying more for an inferior education…</p>

15

<p>**Erin’s Dad’s quote: ** *Have your parents reviewed the cost of the schools you are looking at? They would be much more than OSU in-state where your sister went. With your record (scores and stats) you should get into OSU if you want. *</p>

<p>Erin’s dad is right. Your parents may be agreeing to something without knowing the costs (many parents mistakenly do this - many have no idea that non-residents pay a HUGE premium.)</p>

<p>To give your parents an idea, here’s the Out-of-State (OOS) Cost of Attendance (COA) at various schools…</p>

<p>COA per year for OOS students, State Universities
$25,787, U MINNESOTA
$31,872, VIRGINIA TECH
$30,000, IOWA ST
$31,500, U ALABAMA
$33,750, AUBURN U
$34,812, U IOWA
$35,029, U WISCONSIN
$36,210, OHIO STATE
$35,311, U N CAROLINA
$40,086, U GEORGIA
$36,977, RUTGERS
$34,696, TEXAS A&M
$34,922, U DELAWARE
$36,094, U FLORIDA
$32,752, U PITTSBURGH
$37,416, U MARYLAND
$36,985, U WASHINGTON
$37,548, CLEMSON
$36,848, PURDUE
$39,146, U CONNECTICUT
$38,120, GEORGIA TECH
$40,130, U ILLINOIS
$39,510, PENN STATE
$37,644, INDIANA U
$38,566, MICHIGAN ST
$48,041, UC IRVINE
$49,193, UCLA
$50,306, UC BERKELEY
$38,974, WILLIAM & MARY
$43,742, U TEXAS
$49,926, UC S BARBARA
$46,699, UC SAN DIEGO
$48,049, UC DAVIS
$39,483, UC S CRUZ
$42,570, U VIRGINIA
$47,188, U MICHIGAN </p>

<p>Private National Universities Cost of Attendance per year
$16,120 LDS, BYU
$20,410 Non-LDS, BYU
$43,288, Rice
$47,934, Yeshiva
$49,968, Caltech
$50,100, Syracuse
$50,806, SMU
$50,620, Princeton
$55,312, U Miami
$50,436, Case Western
$55,160, Fordham
$50,550, Yale
$52,000, Harvard
$44,278, Worcester
$52,000, MIT
$48,750, Pepperdine
$52,623, Stanford
$52,394, Cornell
$52,132, Emory
$53,000, Boston University
$53,608, Northwestern
$51,300, Notre Dame
$55,368, Vanderbilt
$52,082, Wake Forest
$51,050, Lehigh
$52,973, Dartmouth
$51,140, U Rochester
$52,162, Brandeis
$53,793, NYU
$52,030, Brown
$55,866 Wash U
$53,095, U Penn
$53,390, Duke
$53,618, USC
$54,300, Boston College
$53,390, Johns Hopkins
$54,160, Rensselaer
$55,330, Georgetown
$54,047, U Chicago
$53,660, Carnegie Mellon
$55,125, George Washington
$53,200, Tufts
$52,996, Tulane
$53,644, Columbia</p>

<p>Are your parents prepared to spend $50-55k per year on your education? If not, how much? :)</p>

16

<p>To the OP: why would you consider SFSU or UCI instead of OSU?</p>

17

<p>^^^</p>

<p>Good question…</p>

<p>I’m guessing that the OP wants to get out of Dodge…</p>

<p>however, if that’s the goal, there’s cheaper and/or better ways of doing that. :)</p>

<p>UCI is my alma mater, but it’s not worth $50k (JMHO). And, SFCU isn’t worth out of state costs, either.</p>

<p>With an ACT 30 (or higher if taken again, or if SAT is taken), the OP could get some good merit money at many schools that are better than SFCU.</p>

18

<p>mom2collegekids right, I want out of ohio :slight_smile:
If nothing pans out like I want to and I end up having to go to OSU I wouldn’t be totally devastated it’s just not my top pick. </p>

<p>I told my parents i’m shooting for schools that are around 50 grand a year. And I explained to them about out of state vs. in state tuition. </p>

<p>We considered me moving up to new york to live with my sister for a year to claim residency but NYU guts instate students just as much as out of state.</p>