Uncharacteristically, Seriously Stressed Out

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>For a billion reasons, including writing over twenty five essays (not including the ones I can use multiple times), finding the money for applications (well, not applications so much as possible fee waiver fall throughs, the CSS/PROFILE, SAT score sending, and transcripts), getting teacher recommendations (long story), contemplating Questbridge, and taking another SAT Subject Test (only because it's free and then free to send SAT scores, which will save me money...), I am - like most of us on here - stressed out. It's strange for me because I am usually quite calm in demeanor. However, considering I've been waiting to go to college since kindergarten, I'm finding this to be a moment of unusual emotion.</p>

<p>Anyway, this isn't so much a chance thread as a "help me" thread, since chances are either already decided or essentially useless. What I would like to know is whether or not I should apply to more schools. I had originally decided on six, listed in the order I would like to attend given financial aid and acceptance:</p>

<p>George Washington University
Washington University in St. Louis
Yale University (SCEA)
Rice University
University of Pittsburgh
Boston University</p>

<p>Now, I'm relying solely on a good financial aid package. My family's income is less than $25,000 (considerably less now, since Delaware announced varied pay cuts for state employees). In addition, I'm hoping to graduate less than $20,000 in debt with the prospects of graduating less than $15,000 in debt. No "debt free" college is really debt free for me since I'll need to take out loans for the student contribution and the work study, but trust me, I'm not complaining about $15,000 or so debt. Because of this reliance on financial aid and because of the choosy nature of half of the schools I'm applying to (and the financial aid reputations of the less selective half), I decided to apply to two more schools:</p>

<p>Stanford University
Tufts University</p>

<p>Now that I've got a full plate on my hands, I'm wondering if I made the right decision. Given the ridiculous number of essays I must write, in addition to the added financial burden, is applying to these two more schools reasonable? My list looks like this, again in order of most want to attend to least want to attend:</p>

<p>George Washington University (match)
Washington University in St. Louis (high match)
Yale University (SCEA) (reach)
Rice University (high match)
Stanford University (reach)
Tufts University (high match)
University of Pittsburgh (rolling admissions safety)
Boston University (low match)</p>

<p>You can find my statistics here, on the first page:
<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/724115-so-when-does-get-old.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/724115-so-when-does-get-old.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

2

<p>Applicannot from a Financial Perspective, I say go for a couple more schools where they have great package. You should be aware of Harvard and Princeton’s Package. If not, definitely check out their financial aid page. Also, Vandy and Emory are two other schools you may want to look at. </p>

<p>Spread your net as wide as you are able to. With your strong academics, you may want to look into doing some tutoring for pay to help you offset some of these expenses. Think of some innovative way of mixing and matching. For example, could you replace Boston U with Case Western, since they don’t have an application fee? Research if they are comparable with aid and what you are looking for in a college.</p>

<p>We all know the Ivies are a crapshoot. However, if you can see yourself at H & P, I say include them with Y & S, as these schools will be where you may get your biggest bang for the buck with the financial info you posted. I think if you add these additional schools, you have a shot at least one and shouldn’t be to shabby come 3/31/10</p>

3

<p>At this point, I wouldn’t mind replacing Boston with something else. It spiked my interest early in the game, but as my tastes have really developed in this college search process, it isn’t exactly what I want anymore. While I think I’d be happy there, if there’s something better out there that also has good financial aid, I’ll take it. However, I am only replacing it if the new school is a safety or a low match. I’ll do some searching, but if anyone can tip me off on a school, I’d appreciate it. I want a low match/safety in or very, very near a medium to large city with 5000-15000 students (a little more or a little less is fine). It can only be far from the Mid-Atlantic if it has good financial aid (merit or need based).</p>

4

<p>Check with individual schools if you can get their application fee waived</p>