What about the academically fit student who was not too involved in H.S

College Search & Selection
1

<p>whose family's EFC is too high for aid? Are we off the hope list now for top LAC's? </p>

<p>We do have financial need............we can contribute about half tuition but need assistance for the other half. We have had a financial crisis this year and our financial situation will drastically change by year end. My daughter is a senior. We plan on explaining our financial changes to the schools she applies to........but was wondering if this would have much impact or not. </p>

<p>Also as far as her app goes...........she is an A student across every subject all four years except Math (AVG grades there) Honors classes (Except Math...although she has taken four yrs of Math and currently attends Pre- Calculus senior year)</p>

<p>3yrs Science, 3 yrs French Honors, 4 yrs studio art, 4 yrs English and History including AP Lit, AP US History and Western Civ I&II. Scored 5 on AP tests</p>

<p>770 US History SAT Subject</p>

<p>1930 on SAT V750 M490 CR690 (ouch on the Math.........has been working w/tutor and will retake SAT on 10/11 to bring the Math up.........striving for a 600+)</p>

<p>She has strong art interests and plans on putting a portfolio together.<br>
Teacher recs should be fine and personal essay .......I believe will be quality since she is a fine writer.</p>

<p>SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.................</p>

<p>CCer's what do you think?</p>

<p>For a white female from middle class- lower middle class from Long Island who is interested in the humanities particularly English..............</p>

<p>Are top Lac's or schools like NYU for real to apply to?</p>

<p>Concerns as stated above: </p>

<p>Fin. aid, grants etc. ............other than approx 20K can not take loans or contribute further.</p>

<p>Uninvolvement in school/community.........other than minimal clubs @ Catholic Prep H.S and her art interests( she attended art school for 2 yrs in addition to 4yrs HS studio Art and has her own web site depicting her photography and art)</p>

<p>The fact that we are not from an underrepresented grroup of people and have a high EFC.........yet still have need to foot half the tuition and are experiencing extreme financial hardship in which we will no longer be owning our home, and will be living a much lower standard of living in the next few years. Does the Financial Aid office in colleges look strictly at your income? Or do they consider all the circumstances?</p>

<p>My D has worked hard for her grades and is a talented and bright girl........we would like to offer the best education to her she prefers a city school, moderate climate not too traditional not too liberal. Northeast probally.</p>

<p>What do you make of all this.........this is our first of four entering college.....help us decide what colleges are reasonable to apply to.</p>

<p>She has as a loose plan so far:</p>

<p>Quinnipiac University in Hamden CT.........hoping for the 12k merit award.</p>

<p>Fordham University Linclon Ctr in NYC..........again 10 k merit award</p>

<p>and that's it.</p>

<p>We show her the need for safeties........considering SUNY such as Albany, Binghamton or Stonybrook. Or live at home colleges such as Hofstra and Adelphi. But she is not interested in these schools at all. She wants to live away and does not care for rural schools ( most SUNY's are rural).</p>

<p>We collect mail from schools like Univ of Penn, Brown and Dartmouth.</p>

<p>NYU, Vassar, Bard and Skidmore</p>

<p>Notre Dame, BC and Loyola</p>

<p>Swarthmore, Haverford,Wellesley and Barnard.</p>

<p>A sampling of many others...........have visited a few.</p>

<p>Realistically what are we looking at...........how to make a real list?</p>

<p>Any help?</p>

<p>We are at a stage where we have backed off a bit to let my D figure it out.</p>

<p>I have every confidence that she will. She is now working many hrs and just started driving w/ her new car and likes her semester senior year so far....she is obsessed w/ a boyfriend who is beginning his freshman college year in CT.</p>

<p>But she is putting away her $ to help us save for her education and is a responsible motivated young woman.</p>

<p>Would any parents who have been through this a few times or some seniors who are doing the saME THING THIS FALL CARE TO ADVISE US?</p>

<p>wE ARE GRATEFUL!</p>

2

<p>luliztee, I don't have a lot of time right now to go into a detailed answer but I would like to point you to a thread which I think should be essential reading for all families and students who will be going through the application process this fall.</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=96791%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=96791&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Especially seeing the list of schools you've mentioned in your post. Just a quick comment about NYU. If you are in dire need of substantial financial aid, which your post seems to indicate, then NYU is likely not the school for your D. My D2 is there as a junior and when all is said and done, the costs to send her there are in the area of $50,000/yr. The average financial aid award is approximately $17,000, and the largest merit awards are very much SAT score dependant. </p>

<p>Am going to be out of town for a few days but I'm sure others will have lots of good advice for you. Will check back when I return. Good luck!</p>

3

<p>alwaysamom is right about NYU judging from what I have heard from applicants. Andi's post is most helpful too. I would sit w your D and explain what you afford and what you cannot. I would advise her that excessive debt is not in her best interest if she were my D, would really push for applying to Hofstra and Adelphi so there is a place that she can go to if finances elsewhere do not work out. These schools are good, and close t NY to hopefully get some internships in the city. You might consider the possibility of commuting or sharing some living arrangement with other students at a CUNY- get her out of the rural area that she opposes. I think Quinnipiac could be fairly hefty too. Isn't the school about 34,000 now? I noticed most kids that apply there seem to be landing 5,000 and some get 8 or 10 thousand. I dug up what some kids anecdotally stated they received last year and their stats:3.6uw1280-(620m,660v)-8,000
3.96, 1280-10,000
3.7uw,1340(620m,720v)-10,000</p>

<p>I know that if I sat my son down an explained the situation, he would care about the financial hardship and would take that into account. I think most kids would. Perhaps you can talk to her about transferring after 2 years. I have a friend who's D insisted that she needed to attend NYU like her mother did. Her mother could not finance this and she was a single parent. She offered her a community college for 2 years and then NYU for 2 years. Her D did attend cc for the 2 years and then went to NYU for her degree.</p>

4

<p>You are very late in the game to be at this point.</p>

<p>First, retake sat I, immediately. Get a math sat tutor. There are reasons colleges let you take the sat multiple times and use the score core from each sitting--it's so you're not stuck with a 490. Most colleges are not using the writing this year, so think of her score as 1240.</p>

<p>Also, I thought fordham undergrad campus was in the Bronx. And I don't understand the aversion to liberal schools and the romance with NYU. Something of a tautolagy here.</p>

<p>Anyway, look into Emerson, Emory(very generous, but they will like you much better if you take time to visit the campus), SUNY at Buffalo, think of it as a Canadian adventure)University of Central Florida(in Orlando). Indiana.</p>

<p>You need to think more about state schools. The end of the rainbow on most privates, sound like a 15-20g gap for you.</p>

5

<p>Suny Buffalo and Indiana are good suggestions. You really should have some state schools on the list, but be careful and look up the price tags. Some of these oos schools can cost 30,000 too. This is why Suny Buffalo is a good idea as well as Hofstra, and Adelphi. If she hates the bitter cold maybe she will consider the LI schools. There may be plane fares involved oos too. I know ppl who went to LIU, Hofstra, and Adelphi and they have done very well. I have been to the Hofstra campus and it is beautiful. I guess you know the surrounding area has safety concerns and I see that as the downside here.</p>

6

<p>Have you looked at some of the "SAT optional" schools? You can find a complete list at <a href="http://www.fairtest.org%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.fairtest.org&lt;/a> Some of the great schools on the list that might be a nice fit for your daughter include Muhlenberg, Connecticut College, Wheaton College, but there are other excellent choices as well. These schools will focus on your daughter's academic achievements, not her test scores. The lack of EC's will still hurt, but at least she won't be hindered by that math score or a lower combined score that obviously doesn't reflect her academic capabilities. I would look at that list first and then add some other mid-range schools.</p>

<p>It's important to think about what your daughter has to offer various schools. While she may not have been super involved in h.s. EC's, does she have some outside interest or involvement that might be of interest to schools? This is very important if you're looking for merit money. At most schools, including places like Quinnipiac, the top merit scholarships go to kids who meet the minimum grade and test scores AND have something special to offer, such as a special talent, demonstrated leadership, minority status, etc. Unless your daughter has something like this to offer, I would not place my bets on her getting Quinnipiac's largest merit award. (But once you have explained the financial situation, you probably will be able to negotiate on financial aid a bit)</p>

<p>I sympathize. I have a daughter who sounds very similar to yours. She also has lopsided math/verbal test scores (although not quite a wide gap as your daughter - tutoring did help for my daughter). As a result, she's at or above the top verbal score range but at or below the low end of the math score range for most of the schools on her list. Her combined math/verbal score, however, is pretty much in the middle. She also has not been overly active with school-related EC's, but does have some outside interests and talents that I'm keeping my fingers crossed will be enough to pull her into the "accept" file.</p>

<p>However, I am very cautious about her chances. She has a list of solid schools where she would probably be an automatic in if her test scores weren't lopsided and she had more "traditional" EC's. As it is, I'm not placing bets that she'll get into all of the schools on her list or receive merit money.</p>

7

<p>If your family income will be much less in 2005 than 2006, your EFC calculation will change and your daughter will get more need-based gift aid in her second year. Low income has its advantages when it comes time for college. With a drop in income, your D could go to a SUNY for one year and then transfer after the income drops.</p>

<p>Have you considered SUNY Stony Brook? Is it within commuting distance? If you are relocating, perhaps you could relocate near your D's college and save R&B.</p>

<p>I have never heard anyone on CC recommend ROTC for financial aid, and I will not recommend it either.</p>

<p>Syracuse also come to mind for English and the Arts, including photo. I think SU is pretty generous with gift aid and they are doing good things for underrepresented groups. I think Stephen Crane and Joyce Carol Oates are SU grads.</p>

<p>You may be surprised at how much need-based gift aid you are offered. Don't write off the privates. Apply to some privates.</p>

<p>Someone referred to UB as a Canadian adventure. U Toronto or McGill? What is the current exchange rate for Canadian colleges?</p>

<p>Berea College - students pay their way with campus jobs.
Rice is inexpensive for a private. Grove City is selective, inexpensive, and filled with really nice people.
New College in Florida.
Rutgers College.
Pomona
SUNY Geneseo</p>

<p>for catholic, check out
St Bonaventure, near Olean, NY
Nazareth College, near Rochester, NY
LeMoyne, near Syracuse, NY</p>

<p>Doed D's boyfriend attend Quinnapaic in CT? If so, then Quinnapaic may be her ultimate destiny.</p>

8

<p>I would look at LACs like Beloit, Lawrence & Allegheny. My D with 1350 and similar grades was offered merit aid ($10K/year) at all three. They also start off less expensive to begin with (closer to 30K than 40K). All three would be very selective if located elsewhere. Quality schools, great programs, excellent academic results.</p>

<p>Basically you may get merit aid at a school where your D's SAT puts her above the 75th% score. So she can't get merit aid at a reach. However, there are great safeties out there. A place like Goucher, St Lawrence, or Wells might be the sort of quality school where a 1250 would be ~ 75%. On your "getting mail" list, Bard, Skidmore, & the women's colleges may work financially. The other schools will not.</p>

<p>Look also at publics with honors programs.</p>

<p>Even if freshman year is tight, your aid should go up the following year with the new financial info-- and your D can also be a RA for a free room as a sophomore. Perhaps you should budget a bit more than $20K for freshman year (like take on extra loan) knowing that it may be more like $15K the next three years with RA & better aid.</p>

9

<p>As a Long Island white female with a low math SAT who's interested in the humanities, I think she's going to have a tough time getting into the colleges that are sending mail to her. The exception is Loyola.</p>

<p>Her odds will be better if she's willing to consider midwestern schools like Grinnell, St. Olaf, Depauw, Earlham and similar schools or if she considers smaller southern schools like Rhodes and Sewanee.</p>

<p>Emory has wonderful merit aid for superstars that Emory is competing with Harvard and Yale for, but your D would not be in that category unless perhaps she applies to Emory's Oxford College, which accepts students with lower scores. For Emory's regular campus, usually one needs at least a 1500 (combined cr, m) to have a chance at the excellent merit aid offered through Emory Scholars.</p>

10

<p>Although Grinnell is in the middle of nowhere, they are reputed to have a particularly vibrant campus. They have so much money they can build or bring in anything they want. Merit aid can be attractive. However, I think they are increasingly selective.</p>

11

<p>You may want to consider Wells College, near Cornell Univ. Wells is reasonably priced and has an arrangement with Cornell such that a student can take courses at Cornell. A small LAC with the opportunities of Cornell...</p>

12

<p>SBmom, you shouldn't count on being an RA for sophomore year and beyond. These jobs are usually very competitive and certainly not everyone who wants the job gets one.</p>

13

<p>I think this school oos could be too pricey, but do not know, so I will throw it out here for you. I know of a young lady who is a sophomore this year at Virginia Commonwealth for art. She would like to be an art teacher. She is from the NJ. She loves this school. She seems impressed with the art department. I know nothing more.</p>

14

<p>To the OP - I would highly recommend looking out of state, and out of the NE. VCU is a good idea, they have a good art department, especially in certain disciplines.
But I would look first at SCAD - Savannah College of Art and Design. The daughter of a good friend of mine, whose family situation sounds similar to yours just started there this week. Her SATs were in the high 1200s (old style) and she got immediate merit aid based on SATs. For every X number of points she could raise her SAT, she got X more dollars. If she submitted a portfolio of work - stories, videos, more traditional artwork, etc, it would be judged, merit aid possibly awarded.
Important for many artistic types, including her, the awarding of merit aid contintued right up until the day class started - in other words, you didn't get one financial aid award at one time and that was it, you got multiple opportunities.</p>

15

<p>In the not mentioned yet category, definitely consider Drew University in Madison, New Jersey (solid school with good merit aid even before financial need is considered). However, I also second the excellent liberal arts college suggestions, especially in the Midwest. If in the Northeast, they would all be considerably more selective. Your daughter would have geographic diversity working for her and the possible choices are numerous. A few more that weren't mentioned yet, Denison University in Ohio (big endowment with solid merit aid), Kalamazoo College in Michigan (funny name but excellent school), Lake Forest College in tony suburb of Chicago (also good on merit aid), Hanover College in Indiana and so on. Depauw University has an merit aid award calculator (not even including need based aid). Your daughter will have plenty of choices (even with financial need as a major factor) if you can expand the geographic scope a bit. Also, honors programs at your state universities are also good bangs for the buck. Check them out, too.</p>

16

<p>Had to stop in middle to take son to school.</p>

<p>SCAD is featured as one of Kaplan's Hottest 25 Schools this August, so it will probably become more popular, although the blurb in the magazin about the school includes a terrible incident several years ago which reflects badly on the school - I know my friends would never have sent their daughter there had they had concerns.
SCAD has a variety of majors, although it is an art school, and its traditional liberal arts offerings don't include math and science. As mentioned in the blurb, it is one of the sources of talent for Disney and Pixar as well as other computer based design. It has a large number of offerings in historical restoration, and the kids get hands on experience in Savannah. SCAD has supplied the South with graphic designers, advertising personnel and interior designers for years.
The school is urban, and kind of NYUish with buildings integrated into the city, but on a much smaller scale. Savannah is a great town with a lot of character, ala NOLA. If she gets totally desperate for city life, SCAD has a new branch campus in Atlanta.</p>