What colleges should I apply to? (A-levels)

College Search & Selection
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<p>Hi everyone,
Ok here is the thing: I am a resident of florida but my family and I live outside USA. I got 5As and 3Bs in Olevels (june 2008) and now my predicted A-level grades are 3As and one B. I gave SAT1 in june without preparing and got 1710. Now I am giving ACT next week (got a 26 composite in practice test)
Here is the list I made but plz plz help expand it since I am unable to visit any colleges:</p>

<p>1) UF (reach)
2) FSU (reach)
3) FIU (match)?</p>

<p>I am president of the chess club at my school (75+ members) and the state representative for an environment-protection organization.</p>

<p>Any help would greatly appreciated.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance</p>

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<p>apply to Clemson!</p>

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<p>thanks for replying pierre. I forgot to mention that i am inclined towards engineering but cant afford more than 15k/year. Do you have any other suggestions?</p>

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<p>University of Minnesota</p>

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<p>pierre is correct minnesota is great and cheap.</p>

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<p>I have a feeling that U Minnesota charges more than 15k for out-of-state students.</p>

<p>OP:</p>

<p>On that note, if you are a citizen of FL, you shouldn’t have too hard of time paying for UF or FSU tuition. And a 1700/26 should get you admitted.</p>

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<p>You’re going to need to stay in-state.</p>

<p>So…</p>

<p>UCF - match or safety</p>

<p>UF - may be a reach</p>

<p>FSU - match</p>

<p>OOS costs would kill your budget.</p>

<p>Frankly, going in-state may go over your budget. state tuition, room, board, books, fees will likely cost more than $15k per year. You may have to take out some small loans (but don’t take out too much, too difficult to pay back!! )</p>

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<p>[Costs</a> and Aid](<a href=“http://admissions.tc.umn.edu/costsaid/tuition.html]Costs”>Cost of Attendance | Office of Admissions)</p>

<p>OOS: $15-16,000</p>

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<p>Here are the in-state Cost of Attendance for …</p>

<p>Florida $16,723,
UCF $12,240 + books & misc costs [Student</a> Financial Assistance, UCF](<a href=“http://finaid.ucf.edu/applying/app_costs.html]Student”>http://finaid.ucf.edu/applying/app_costs.html)</p>

<p>Note…any COA number may be a little off; it may include the cost of a cheaper meal plan or a cheaper dorm than you would want. </p>

<p>Also note: UCF didn’t include books, transportation, and personal expenses, on its COA page. Cost of Attendance should include: Tuition, any fees, room, board, books, transportation costs, some misc. </p>

<p>I imagine that FSU would be about the same price as Florida or a bit cheaper</p>

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<p>Pierre…</p>

<p>That OOS price you quoted for UMinn was for OOS tuition only. R&B $7280, books $1000, etc, would be at least another $8200 dollars!</p>

<p>He’s not going to be living in a tent and growing his own food.</p>

<p>:)</p>

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<p>Cost of Attendance for FSU - [fsu.edu</a> | Office of Financial Aid](<a href=“http://financialaid.fsu.edu/apply/cost_ungrad.html]fsu.edu”>http://financialaid.fsu.edu/apply/cost_ungrad.html)</p>

<p>FSU $17,880 (higher than UF - a surprise)</p>

<p>Note…FSU and UF included more misc costs than UCF did in its COA, so UCF’s COA should probably be about $2-3k higher than the $12,240 written above.</p>

<p>Cost of attendance for UF - <a href=“http://www.sfa.ufl.edu/apply/coa.html[/url]”>http://www.sfa.ufl.edu/apply/coa.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>So…</p>

<p>You need to apply to all 3 schools. There costs are probably about the same when all things are compared.</p>

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<p>Just in case you’re wondering about other states’ schools …here is the COA when a person is an Out-of-state student…</p>

<p>COA per year for OOS students , State University
$25,787, U MINNESOTA
$31,872, VIRGINIA TECH
$34,812, U IOWA
$35,029, U WISCONSIN
$36,210, OHIO STATE
$35,311, U N CAROLINA
$40,086, U GEORGIA
$36,977, RUTGERS
$34,696, TEXAS A&M
$34,922, U DELAWARE
$36,094, U FLORIDA
$32,752, U PITTSBURGH
$37,416, U MARYLAND
$36,985, U WASHINGTON
$37,548, CLEMSON
$36,848, PURDUE
$39,146, U CONNECTICUT
$38,120, GEORGIA TECH
$40,130, U ILLINOIS
$39,510, PENN STATE
$37,644, INDIANA U
$38,566, MICHIGAN ST
$48,041, UC IRVINE
$49,193, UCLA
$50,306, UC BERKELEY
$38,974, WILLIAM & MARY
$43,742, U TEXAS
$49,926, UC S BARBARA
$46,699, UC SAN DIEGO
$48,049, UC DAVIS
$39,483, UC S CRUZ
$42,570, U VIRGINIA
$47,188, U MICHIGAN</p>

<p>So…staying in-state is probably looking pretty good right now… :)</p>

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<p>Please don’t be offended by this question, but is English your first language? I know that you’re a resident of Florida. However, in your opening post, you used the phrases, “gave SAT” and “giving ACT.” That made me think that English isn’t your primary language since most say “took the SAT,” “sat for the SAT,” or “going to take/sit for the SAT.”</p>

<p>Again, I don’t mean any offense. This could just be because you haven’t been living in the US for awhile. What country are you living and how long have you been there?</p>

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<p>why not check out C.S.U Sacamento they have a very highly competitive engineering degree compared to U.C Davis!!!</p>

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<p>@wittywonka: I may be able to afford uf but is 1700/26 enough?</p>

<p>@mom2collegekids: thanks for compiling that list. English is not my first language (no offence taken:) )…I have been living in pakistan for the past 4 years</p>

<p>You guys give very good, practical advice. I asked my counselor where to apply and he said:

  1. UC-Berkeley
  2. UM-Ann Arbor
  3. Grinnley (sp?)
  4. Franklin&Marshall</p>

<p>I was later comparing that list with my classmates and realized that he was suggesting those 4 colleges to everyone (i guess my counselor wants everyone to receive straight-up rejections lol!)</p>

<p>what are the advantages of a liberal-arts degree?</p>

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<p>The OP stated a budget of $15k per year. As an OOSstudent, a Cal State costs a LOT more than that!!!</p>

<hr>

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<p>You must have forgotten to tell the counselor about your very limited budget (or your counselor only knows those 4 names…LOL). Those schools cost about $50k per year for a FL resident. I think the school is > Grinnell</p>

<p>Since your budget is so limited, you pretty much have to limit yourself to Florida state schools. From the ones that I noted, UF, UCF, FSU, you should be able to find a great program. Go to each website, then go to Prospective students (or Future Students) and then look around at their academic offerings.</p>

<p>Also, select one or lower tier Florida publics with your major as safeties.</p>

<p>BTW…you still have your US green card, right? Or are you a US citizen?</p>

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<p>I still have my green card. How is FIU as a safety?</p>

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<p>@yubasutter = good suggestion. i will most definitely apply there.</p>

<p>Can anyone suggest 3/2 programs?</p>

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<p>You should also add University of Illinois- Urbana champaign to your list.</p>

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<p>As stated before, many places are going to cost too much. Also, a liberal arts degree is not the way to go if you want to do engineering.</p>

<p>Still, I’d look at:</p>

<p>SUNY-Binghamton
Evergreen State
U Toronto
Kettering (great co-op and probably good aid)
Bringham Young (Really. The whole Mormon thing might suck, but it’s dirt cheap!!!)
SUNY-Buffalo
USF/UCF/FSU/UF
Case Western</p>