We’re having a tough time finding schools that fit these categories. DD is a junior, homeschooler, PSAT 750 M, 740 CR (taking the SAT in March), 4.0 GPA, 48 hours dual credit at a 4-year university (36 of those in Math). She’s picked her reaches, but her match/safeties are places that aren’t known for great aid packages, whether merit or need-based (though merit is highly preferred, as we might be just outside of qualifying for much need-based aid, even though we have 6 kids). Any ideas? Other preferences: 5000+ undergrads at least, not heavily Greek, east of the Mississippi. Thanks for any insight!
By definition if a school has great academics and great aid it is not a safety for anyone.
TomSr, of course, but certain schools are less competitive overall but are “hidden gems” for certain fields. For instance, she’s taking her dual-enrollment classes at Otterbein, which is not very selective overall but is a destination for theater majors. We’re looking for that school, only with math. Make sense?
What state are you in? Often safeties, are state schools that are affordable.
Assuming she’s eligible for National Merit (check her junior year PSAT score report to be sure), she could get full rides or close at some good colleges. With a 223 selection index she should be a National Merit semifinalist anywhere in the country. Check out the National Merit threads here on CC.
Florida might have some interesting choices for her. U of Central Florida has gotten some very good reviews from students and parents taking the tours as potential National Merit Finalists. I’m not sure about the Greek aspect but otherwise I know for sure it meets your preferences. Florida is also set to expand its Benacquisto scholarship to out of state NMF, so that puts a lot of Florida colleges in play for large merit aid.
Sounds like she’s in OH so you would get good pricing at tOSU which should be strong in math. There should also be strong math programs at the other OH schools with engineering programs.
Case has ended up being a bargain for kids I know with stats like your D (but not home-schooled- these were kids in HS’s known for demanding courses and without grade inflation… I don’t know how colleges evaluate the GPA’s in cases like yours).
Can you give us a sense of what you can really afford to pay out of pocket? Nobody here wants to start suggesting schools which will give you 5 or 8K in merit off the sticker price if you really need to stay within a much tighter budget.
We’re in Ohio, and OSU is definitely on the list. (It would be perfect if it weren’t sooo close. 
) Thanks for the reminder to check out the National Merit threads . . . semifinalist does seem likely for her. We haven’t explored Florida at all; good info! Thanks for helping out a newbie mom!
Realistically, 10K is our max.
And yeah, throwing in homeschooling is a whole different ballgame. Most of her coursework is DE or with independent teachers, so her grades aren’t “mommy A’s” but we have yet to find out how those independent courses will be viewed. We know that they’re rigorous, and that they compare favorably to the courses at the college-prep schools in town, but who knows if the average admissions rep will see that. I’ve found the hstocoll yahoo group, and that’s been helpful.
How advanced in math? If she is highly advanced, she probably wants a school with a large math department and graduate level offerings and research opportunities.
In-state Ohio State looks like an obvious choice if the finances work (have you run the net price calculator at https://sfa.osu.edu/incoming-freshmen/about-aid/net-price-calculator ), and if it actually is an admission safety (may be less certain due to home school evaluation).
I had the same question about the math as #10. I think also people could give a better opinion based on what she has taken or at least what is she taking now. If I had to guess I don’t think all of those dual credits will transfer. Our public school has s dual credit with a CC in the area and those classes tend not to be honors classes.
If she went to OSU, would she commute? If not, I don’t see how OSU is affordable. They’ve become pretty stingy with merit offers. Except for the very big ones (which are insanely competitive), their highest merit offer these days is $4K/year.
@AmyC are you also looking at Ohio University and Miami Ohio? They both lock in tuition/room/board for all four years and offer decent merit. We just got back from a visit at Ohio U and I was SO impressed by the college. Definitely look beyond OSU.
University of Alabama may check some boxes (though not the greek one) and will be hard to beat with merit.
Check out Univ Alabama Hunstville, a 1490 SAT and her grades will earn free tuition, if she bumps up that SAT or scores a 34 or higher on ACT she can add free housing to the mix. Math/Science heavy engineering University, smaller state school, with some greek, not heavy athletics (no football) but several other sports including men’s Div I hockey! Amazing dorms, beautiful campus and surrounded by lots of Tech - Huntsville is home to NASA along with a plethora of other tech companies.
We’ve already had some contact with OSU, and we do feel confident that it’s a true safety for her, and that she’s a strong candidate for merit aid, and based on the net price calculator we’ll be able to manage it. So the good news is that she’s going to get to go to college at a school with a great math program. The only negative to OSU is that she can see campus from her bedroom window. She’d love to go away from home if that’s an option. It may not be, and that’ll be fine, but we don’t want to overlook something that might fit the bill. If we could pick up OSU and move it to another city, she’d be thrilled.
She is incredibly advanced in math. She’s already completed Otterbein’s minor, and she’s likely to complete their major by the end of senior year. So a rigorous program and grad offerings are a must . . . she’s taking these classes for love and not to get out of them in undergrad, but she’ll need to be someplace where Linear Algebra or Complex Analysis or Number Theory is a more intense level and not a total repeat. We’re confident that she’s an attractive candidate for plenty of universities, but getting in is no good if there’s no aid,
Can you afford to have her live in the dorm at OSU, at least for the first year?
@AmyC while we couldn’t see DS’s university from our home, his door room door was 8 miles from our front door. He wanted to go “away” and the school that made the most sense was 8 miles from our front door, off to a dorm he went. He said later that those 8 miles might have been hundreds as even tho, same town where he could have lunch with Mom once a week and meet up for family dinners etc he still felt “on his own”. If the local school is a good fit and makes sense economically look at the dorm options.
My DS lived on or near campus all years, he did a student apt, a dorm, and a couple of house rentals. He had a great time 8 miles from home.
Other Ohio universities - Cincy, Miami, OU - would all have advanced math and probably cost less than OSU.
St Olaf runs the very well regarded Budapest math program, which suggests their math dept is very advanced (but obviously, check). Can’t see it costing $10K though, unless you are very low income and it sounds like not.
Sspeaking of Budapest, that could be a semester or a year for her to study very advanced math, no matter where she goes to college. https://www.budapestsemesters.com/ and for courses http://www.bsmath.hu/CURRENT/syllabi_of_classes.html
Have you already been running Net Price Calculators? That way you can get a better idea of whether financial aid will even make such schools feasible. It sounds like you need match/safety schools with big merit - there is a thread in the financial aid forum. 10k may not fully cover room and board at most colleges.