<p>Well I'm a California resident so I've only been looking at UC's and CSU's. But lately I've been thinking about going to UMiami.</p>
<p>I want to apply to UCLA, UCSD, UCSB, UCI, Cal Poly, SDSU, and UM. I could only go to UM if I got a scholarship or some grant money though.</p>
<p>So could someone tell me if I have what it takes to get atleast a 1/2 or 3/4 scholarship. Or what is needed to qualify for some good need-based grants.</p>
<p>My Stats:
GPA = 3.76 UW, 4.03 W
Class Rank = Top 20-25 out of 730 so around 3-4 %
SAT's = Hoping around 2000+
EC's and Recs = Sports, leadership positions, and community service is all covered.....also i should have great recs.
Senior Schedule = AP Physics, AP English, AP Stats, AP Gov/Econ, AP Psych, and Journalism</p>
<p>I really don't like Cal Poly and UCI that much. SDSU doesn't seem respectable enough. UCSD seems too boring, no social life, no sports, no school spirit, nerdy cliquish asians, and seems kind of dull with no community feel.
On the other hand I love UCSB and UCLA. I probably won't get into UCLA so I sort of take them out of the picture. So basically as long as I can get the costs of Miami around the costs of UCSB, I will have a tough decision.</p>
<p>So can anyone give me an idea of what it is like to be a student at UM. Your advice can give me ideas on if Miami is even worth considering.</p>
<p>I would recommend visiting Miami to really see what you think.</p>
<p>I live here, and UMiami is in a really nice area- Coral Gables, one of the richest areas in Miami. However, a lot of times I hear people complain that they don't "have stuff to do" because they don't like going partying on South Beach, etc.</p>
<p>UMiami is a very international school and it has a good reputation, especially in Florida. I would say that it is definitely the most prestigious school in Florida next to UF. </p>
<p>What do you want to study? Music is fantastic at UM and their business program is also very good.</p>
<p>Overall, I think Miami is a really fun city to be in, but be prepared. It is VERY Hispanic and you will hear Spanish all over the place. If you don't enjoy that kind of culture, then you might be headed for trouble.</p>
<p>i live in miami too...i actually go to coral gables high which is a short walk from UM and i can tell ya that in Florida UM is one of th emost prestigious schools it has good business, music, and medical programs....as to life in miami if your used to using public transportation then you better stop and get your self a car cause public transportation in Miami is practically non existent, everything is done by car...as for life in miami i can tell ya i cant complain..i usually have something to do when i dont wanna go to south beach or go clubbin with friends but the only way that your really gonna be able to tell if UM is the school for you is to actually visit miami</p>
<p>P.S. and yes miami is miami so latinos are all over the place....i mean i am one hehe, but i think that being from cali you should be used to that</p>
<p>Buena suerte y que te vaya bien en tu busceda</p>
<p>Okay well you guys have mentioned it is really hispanic there. Coral Gables and UMiami seem to be mostly white, so I'm assuming you guys are speaking of the city of Miami when talking about the large hispanic culture. And I'm already used to it....my high school has more hispanics than whites. </p>
<p>Well UM seems like a great school bc I'm interested in going into business, medicine, or meteorology so it sounds like it's very good in all of those areas.</p>
<p>I'm going to get the College Prow.ler guide for UM so hopefully that will give me a better insight on the school.</p>
<p>But until then, any of you are welcomed to give me some ideas about the local atmosphere.</p>
<p>If cost is a concern, I suggest you look elsewhere for backup plans. 2 people I know applied for need based aid at UMiami, with FAFSA EFCs in the 4 digit range. Neither got a need based grant larger than 11K, and without a scholarship, that means the out-of-pocket cost is going to be 33/34K, more than 4 times the cost that the FAFSA believes you can pay. Yes, apply because it is a school you like, but make sure that you apply to those financial backups. </p>
<p>For Miami, here is a link to the academic scholarships. Even if you meet all of the requirements, they don't guarantee to give you the scholarship. If you don't apply ED or even EA, then your chances will go down because funds are first awarded to these people. Your test scores are going to be very important as you appear to have an A average with top 3%, so if you can pull off that 1400 SAT I, then you have a chance at 3/4, and would likely receive the 1/2 (meaning Miami's COA would be about 17K for you, comparable to the UC's). From what i've seen out of other posters, if you meet all the qualifications for a big scholarship, they typically award you that one or the one below, unless you come from an underrepresented state or a difficult school, where they try to "recruit" you and give you a bigger scholarship.</p>
<p><a href="http://www6.miami.edu/UMH/CDA/UMH_Main/0,1770,29532-1;40341-2;29913-2;46413-2;46410-3,00.html%5B/url%5D">http://www6.miami.edu/UMH/CDA/UMH_Main/0,1770,29532-1;40341-2;29913-2;46413-2;46410-3,00.html</a></p>
<p>I'm looking at your schools and you're stating your intent to go into business, however, only Miami has a reputable business school and that you probably won't be able to afford if you have significant financial need. You talked about your list, and how you didn't like 4 of the 7 schools on the list. If you don't like them, don't apply to them. You don't want to pay money to put yourself in a place you won't like for 4 years. Look at some B-Schools where tuition already isn't a concern, and you can get a scholarship. What do you want in a school (location, overall reputation, athletics, activities, environment, etc)? Perhaps we could make some suggestions.</p>
<p>A2Wolves6 -- Thanks for the link. As for the schools I listed I am still applying to UCLA, UCSB, UCSD, and SDSU.....not sure on UCI and CP so maybe you can help me find another school. I'm not really sure if I want to do business so major isn't a for sure thing right now, but basically any school that has a good reputation is find with me.....as long as they have options.</p>
<p>Also I'm not really familiar with financial aid so when you say 11k does that mean you get 11k each yr, or is it supposed to be used throughout the 4yrs of college?</p>
<p>As for my criteria this is what I'm looking for: </p>
<p>good academics, prestige, reputation, and connections.
it has to be close to the beach or I won't consider it.
nice weather 60's-80's, sunny, and rain is nice sometimes.
athletics need to be big, but I'll settle for a school that atleast brings some support.
I want diversity, but I don't want to be a minority.....by the way I'm white.
the atmosphere needs to be chill and laid-back.
social life is a must.....as long is there is somewhere to have fun I'll be good.
also there has to be atleast 10,000 students.</p>
<p>Again thanks for your help....!</p>
<p>Check to see if you qualify for financial aid first. Try an EFC calculator and see what your EFC comes out as. If it's more than the cost of attendance, then you won't be eligible for financial aid. Once you get your EFC after you fill out the FAFSA, you submit that to the colleges. Generally speaking, they take their cost of attendance - EFC = need (that's how Miami does it). Then they fill your need as best as they can with their avaliable resources, loans, work, and grants. Miami typically fills 80% of an applicant's demonstrated need, although they max out their grants at 11K, and the rest is in government loans (Perkins and Stafford) as well as 1.5-3K of work study.</p>
<p>I think you'll get into UCSB, fairly certain about that. UCSD and UCLA you have a good chance at. You don't need to apply to UCI or Cal Poly if you don't want to be there, as you have a school that you're going to be happier at that you can afford in UCSB. And SDSU you shouldn't have trouble with. I can't think of many schools close to the beach with good athletics and weather other than UCLA, Miami and USC. The majority of those beach schools won't have the big name athletics that Miami, UCLA, or USC would, rather something like Pepperdine, Rice, etc, where your football or basketball team isn't going to be competitive.</p>
<p>A2Wolves6 --- You have been very helpful, so I wanted to thank you.</p>
<p>But I have a few more questions about financial aid. You said Miami takes their cost of attendance - EFC......Does cost of attendance include housing? Also do they subtract the EFC before or after scholarships are given.</p>
<p>COA includes everything - tuition, transportation, housing, food, books, supplies, and personal expenses. </p>
<p>Scholarships are merit-based, financial need isn't a factor when they award them. However, they factor into your aid package. This is what's going to happen. You will submit your FAFSA to Miami. After you are accepted, they award you your scholarship (with your admission packet), and then your aid package. In that package, they will give you your grants, loans, and work. Then, the office of admissions forward their academic scholarship to the financial aid office. They add the scholarship to the package. However, if the scholarship and the aid combined together exceed your need, then they start taking things out of your aid package, typically loans first, then work, then grants.</p>
<p>I'll try a scenario. You file the FAFSA and your EFC is 12K. You get awarded the 3/4 tuition scholarship (yay!!! woot!!!). Then, Financial Aid decides to determine what to award you. With an EFC of 12K, they give you an 8K and a 3K grant, 4K in loans, and 2K in work. However, they get additional info from admissions of your 24K scholarship. When they add in your academic scholarship, your package gets up to 42K, and they will have gone over your need, so they adjust it. They take out the loans and the work, and the small 3K grant. Your financial aid letter comes back. They give you 8K in grants, and add in your 24K scholarship. The total package is 32K, meaning they expect you to pay ~13K.</p>
<p>Florida (Gainesville) is only about an hour in from the coast--and is definitely a gigantic sports school--as well as being one of the "best buy" colleges nationwide. They live for football there--and they won the NCAA title in basketball this year. </p>
<p>Oh, and there's also the other UC--UCSC--which is not as highly ranked as the others, but is right on the coastline just like UCSB and UCSD. Not much sports there, though--unless you count the sailing team. Lastly, there's CSU Long Beach.</p>
<p>If you're serious about studying meteorology and want to be in Florida, you should consider Florida State University as well. The met program is one of the best in the US and the most comprehensive in the Southeast.</p>
<p>The Director of the NOAA Hurricane Center happens to be an FSU grad, for example.</p>
<p>FSU just received a $6.2 million grant from NOAA to build a better hurricane modeling system. See: <a href="http://www.fsu.edu/news/2006/07/10/hurricane.grant/%5B/url%5D">http://www.fsu.edu/news/2006/07/10/hurricane.grant/</a></p>
<p>The FSU met website is here: <a href="http://www.met.fsu.edu/%5B/url%5D">http://www.met.fsu.edu/</a></p>
<p>parent2noles -- I decided that although i'm interested in meteorology i don't see it as a future career so i'm just going to minor in it. And I would only go to UM if I go to florida, never UF or FSU.</p>
<p>And Calcruzer thanks for coming up with some options, but I would never go to CSULB or UCSC.</p>
<p>So as of now my list is looking like this:</p>
<ol>
<li>Miami - GO 'Canes!!!</li>
<li>UCSB - Love the atmosphere and the BEACH!</li>
<li>UCLA - Great, but not as good as UCSB.</li>
<li>UCSD - I love San Diego and the campus, but with D2 sports, it lacks what I really want in a college......school spirit.</li>
<li>SDSU - A safety school I actually love.</li>
<li>ASU - Even though it gets a little hot, and its pretty far from the beach, it provides a great college experience, and i needed another safety.</li>
</ol>