<p>Hi, im currently a senior in Austin Texas. Id like to get into international business or finance. I am a very fortunate college applicant in that I got into each university I expected to get into.. I was listed in cap program for UT(entails going to a University of Texas satelite school for a year, get 3.2 and auto-admission to Ut-austin), admitted to A&M, St. Edwards, and Trinity University. I have lived in Austin my whole life and I absolutely love the city, the atmosphere, the ecclectic nature of downtown/campus areas, and the live music especially. I have been a longhorn fan my whole life and about sophomore year I realized i probably wasnt going to make the top 10% and go to UT. It is sort of a bummer, I would love to go to UT but the CAP program is simply not an option. I dont want to transfer, I want a four-year college experience. Starting from bottom up; St. Edwards is a good school, right near all the downtown music and social scene in Austin. its very liberal artsy, however it does have a good int business program with connections in asia. the atmosphere there is terrific, potentially the greatest of my options, but its academics verge on average. A&M i am really unsure about. Ive visited, and i am not impressed with college station. i know plenty of people who went there and they heap nothing but praise about the school. That being said, I could easily see all those kids fitting in to that type of atmosphere in the first place. there seems to be a strange sort of lack of individuality about college station. the immense amount of tradition and things like the corps and yell leaders and stuff all look silly to me. It seems to be highly conservative, not that I have anything against conservatives, i am in fact not even a liberal i am purely an independent/libertarian by nature. Trinity is a terrific school with good business options, especially with big banks in houston and in international business (china). it is probably the best option academically based off of admission statistics. I have visited and I didnt really get a feel for the atmosphere, but I really enjoy san antonio,there is plenty to do and sufficient music and other sorts of things. I know people who graduated from trinity and based on their personality, I really feel like I would enjoy trinity; its at the top of my list. Here is how my financial situation pans out:
My Dad has had his pay cut in half the past 3 years. My parents can manage the finances well enough as they lie now, but there is hardly any room to spare.
Here are the estimated total expenses of the universities:
Trinity 42000 grants: 17500 loans available<strong>:25000
St. Eds 40000 grants: 19500 loans available</strong>: 21000
A&M 21000 grants: 3500 loans available**: 17000</p>
<p>**: includes federal work study. I do not want to use all these loans, my parents can probably squeeze out 7k-9k out of savings or extra income per year( at this point, my dad's situation could restabilize). My parents want me to go to A&M but they certainly wont force me. I realize that going to trinity would laden me with loans, but perhaps the college experience is worth it. I am strongly considering grad school as well, take that as you may. Please, through experience with the same issue, or by whatever means possible, I would love to read into some insight on this dilema. Apologies if you feel I rambled about my own feelings for the schools and my personality.. I just want to create a clearer picture to express my concerns. At this point I feel as though st edwards offers the best pure experience, a&m offers the most feasible means as far as money goes, and trinity offers a combination of atmosphere and great academics.. Thanks so much, i need to decide by may 1st. feel free to ask for more info about what loans were offered, etc...</p>