<p>@cptofthehouse What would you like to know that would clarify things? </p>
<p>The majority of colleges I am familiar with do not use weighted GPA. </p>
<p>Your test score and GPA are not in merit range as they currently stand. The only exception I can think of is if you have an outstanding extra talent. A friend’s daughter received a scholarship for vocal performance although her stats are at the bottom for her admitted college. </p>
<p>Colleges do not care- at all- about your parents’ refusal to pay for your college. They will require the financial information from your parents to make need based determinations, and I cannot imagine you will qualify. </p>
<p>You need to have a discussion with your parents about how they think you will attend and pay for college. </p>
<p>Thank you all so much for the feedback and response! I will definitely use the advice. Seems like I have a lot of work to do!</p>
<p>I didn’t see your test scores and grades at first. Sorry–now I see. it’s not me that needs to see some clarity. It’s you. Seriously, look at the midrange scores and grades for college, ask to see your high school Naviance points and see where you go in the cluster. Then run NPCs on the schools, and you’ll see what your family is expected to pay. So I don’t want to know anything. YOU need to know what the numbers in terms of chances of admissions and merit scholarships at some schools The first list of schools I gave you still holds. Plus other schools that are similar.</p>
<p>Schools that give good need based aid, but not merit, are not going to be possible for you if your parents have the means but won’t pay. Doesn’t cut it with the parents. And your mother should know all of this having gone the college route herself.</p>
<p>@cptofthehouse Well you had said “If you tell us a little more about your stats, that would help”. That’s why I asked what you wanted to know. But I’m mainly asking about colleges acknowledging that if I were to go to college, id be paying for myself, even though my parents have a lot of money. </p>
<p>@cptofthehouse But thank you for all of the advice and answers. It is much appreciated!</p>
<p>Yes, I did. Then I went back to your first post and saw them. The answer to your question has been given several times. Read the financial aid posts, the “stickies”, so you get how financial aid works. It doesn’t matter if your parents won’t pay. If they have it, and they do have to show it all, they check it out against the tax forms with the IRS retrieval device, they have to pay or you don’t get to go. You think anyone would pay if they could get out of it just saying they won’t pay? How many teenagers you know have the money to pay for college themselves? It’s all on the parents until you are age 24, married, have a dependent, are a veteran, officially homeless or a ward of the state before age 18. </p>
<p>Parent’s willingness to pay or not has no role in financial aid. Otherwise, everyone would say they would not pay for their kid’s college education. Your uwGPA is 3.5 which is pretty low for top 50 schools. It does not matter if your wGPA is 4+ or 5+ as there is no standard in wGPA. You and your parent do need to have a reality check. There is no way you can get into Northwestern with GPA 3.5 and SAT 1700 (not even 2000) and they do not have merit aid. If you do want to get merit aid to cover half of the CoA, you will have to aim very very low. SAT 1700 is much higher than national average. </p>
<p><<<<
But I’m asking more about getting need based aid. Am I likely to get more if I tell colleges my parents are not going to pay unless I get significant merit??
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<p>No, because you dont have NEED. Going away to these schools is a luxury. Your family has the means to pay. You dont have need. </p>
<p>Colleges wont care what your parents are saying. </p>
<p>If students could say, “hey my parents will only pay half,” and then schools would give more aid, then EVERY affluent family would say that. lol Schools dont care what your parents are saying.</p>
<p>I suggest that you have your parents make a CC account so that they, too, can have their eyes opened. They are equally naive about which schools give merit, and about what stats are needed at the schools that do give merit. </p>
<p>Your parents may have no idea that most top schools either dont give merit, or they only give it to a very few very special students who have some amazing hook. </p>
<p>ECs dont usually matter much for merit unless you have high stats and the EC is amazing…like you wrote a best selling book. Playing a sport, belonging to clubs, etc, is not going to get you merit. </p>
<p>most merit is based on stats alone…because the school is trying to entice students with very high test scores to attend their school. </p>
<p>Your parents need their eyes opened as well. They either think you will get large merit at these high stats schools, or they expect you to commute to some local school. which is it?</p>
<p>So… ask your parents if they are willing to pay full price for 2 years of college if you spend 2 years at community college. You may not love the idea, but right now you are not a great candidate for admission to the types of colleges you are interested in. Nor can you afford them. But if you did well in 2 years of CC, you could improve your situation AND your parents might foot the bill for the last two years. Just saying… I don’t think you have a lot of great choices given your situation. I do agree about suggesting your parents come out to CC and read some, and post some questions.</p>
<p>OP, you are AA, consider HBCUs. I’m sure many will give lots of aid if you get your scores up.</p>
<p>Yes, if you are AA then with an increase in your test scores you could get large merit at a number of HBCUs.</p>
<p>@mom2collegekids Heavens no! I couldn’t survive in a school like that. I need my diversity.</p>
<p>One of the fundamentals things about going to college is understanding the costs and how you expect to have it paid. Your parents’ financial situation will figure largely in this if you are a dependent student with “dependent” specifically defined (have to be age 24, or married, or have a dependent, or be a veteran, be officially documented as homeless, a ward of the state before age 18 to be independent). All students are pretty much required to fill out a FAFSA as the first step, which will verify the information via IRS retrieval tools as this is the Federal form. Your parents income and assets as well as yours are taken into account. I can tell you right now that with a $200K income level, it is not likely at all you are going to qualify for any aid, and it doesn’t matter a whit what your parents will pay, even if they refuse to pay a dime. </p>
<p>Some schools just require the FAFSA, but few will meet need defined by EFC for most students. None guarantee it. The schools, the privates that tend to be more generous with need packages also tend to ask for CSS PROFILE which has more questions and more formulas. Be aware that even if you have need by formula, particularly FAFSA formula, it doesn’t mean you are going to get it met. Most schools gap. They give federal and state money, the loans and workstudy and maybe a bit of their own funds,but most of the money is expected to come from your parents savings, current income and loans. You can only borrow $5500 your freshman year without parental involvement in loans. </p>
<p>For the students most desired by colleges, merit money is sometimes available The most selective schools, the most generous ones in financial aid, do not tend to give merit money. None of the ivies do, for example, nor do a lot of the highly selective LACS. Northwestern does not, nor does MIT,Georgetown, Stanford, for example. Some schools that are so selective and have some merit money are ultra selective when it comes to getting any of them, like Duke, RIce, Emory. Overall, getting a lot of merit money is not easy. You have to be in the top echelon of students to get it. </p>
<p>Schools have NPCs and you can play around with them and see how much money you are likely to get. Some, like Fordham have merit calculators in there==put various numbers in there and see what SAT scores and grades you need before they start giving you money. </p>
<p>Lol pick your poison! It was a suggestion & a viable option. My DD wasn’t that keen on applying either, but she needed a safety. Her stats are much higher than yours. You aren’t in a position to turn your nose up. Your GPA & scores look like you will be at a CC. </p>
<p>That you are AA, that you are a published writer, could be a bit of a boost. Hopefully you get those scores up, keep your grades up, are taking rigorous courses, could make the differences. </p>
<p>Your gpa is okay to good for quite a few schools, especially if you have hard classes like honors and AP. But your test score is too low for where you are aiming. I don’t care if you didn’t prep, scores through prep class usually only improve 20 to 30 pts. So maybe you can improve 100 pts. Still too low. If you embark on a long term self prep, (such as what is pinned at the top of the SAT-preparation forum by silverturtle or xiggi) then maybe you can get it way up.</p>
<p>Is the real issue that your parents don’t want to pay private school prices over public school prices without merit aid? You might do some reading here and see who is getting merit and what type of colleges. An AA girl recently reported no aid at Howard, her dream school over fantastic aid, full tuition I think, at Brandies, which she was going to visit. Some schools wanting a greater AA presence would be a good target for merit. But make sure your gpa and scores are reasonable for the college. You might have very good luck with LACs. I know a good but not great AA kid who is getting tons of merit aid at a variety of LACs this year.</p>
<p>I have an idea. I’m unsure why you selected the schools on your original list, such as Northwestern. Start a new post to ask what schools “feel like” those you first named but would be a safety for your expected stats. You might find a college you love. Also, share this college-funding reality with your parents. A lot of us parent-types are clueless until we really dig in and learn the real deal. Good luck! </p>
<p>@NewHavenCTmom 90+ average with a 1700 on the SAT= Community College??- You are terribly mistaken. I’m not trying to say I’m gonna get into Stanford, but to say a CC is not only an exaggeration, it is also an insult.</p>
<p>@cptofthehouse, when one “hopes” for things & doesn’t plan, things can blow up in your face as we saw with the young man who got in IU and can’t afford it. One must be methodical in this process and be open to many different options. My own DD had her heart set on certain schools, but I armed her with a sensible brain. Had those options not panned out for her, she would have had an HBCU as an option. Far better than the local CC. There are no guarantees in this crazy admissions game! </p>