What would be good match, safety, and reach colleges for me?

College Search & Selection
6

<p>There are basically 3 strategies for managing the high costs of college:

  1. a strategy focused on need-based aid
  2. a strategy focused on merit aid
  3. a strategy focused on low sticker price
    Generally, these 3 strategies point to 3 different sets of schools.</p>

<p>Selective schools that claim to cover 100% of determined need are good choices if and only if (a) your qualifications are strong enough for a realistic shot at admission, and (b) your parents are able and willing to cover the Expected Family Contribution (which you can estimate with a school’s online Net Price Calculator.) At the least selective of the full-need schools (e.g. Holy Cross), an SAT-M below 600 would place you in the bottom 25% of enrolled students (therefore, the school would be a reach). At the most selective of the full need schools (e.g. Stanford), an SAT-M below 600 would place you in the bottom 5% of enrolled students (therefore, it probably would be way out of reach).
<a href=“http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2013/09/18/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need-2014”>http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2013/09/18/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need-2014&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>If your parents are able and willing to pay much less than the EFC, you may need to focus on schools that offer merit scholarships big enough to cover the difference (in addition to your determined need). Those usually will be schools where your stats would place you in the top 25% of enrolled students. So, they usually will be less selective schools that do not claim to cover 100% of determined need.
<a href=“http://www.thecollegiateblog.org/2012/12/09/national-universities-that-offer-full-ride-scholarship/”>Loading...;
<a href=“http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-private-colleges/index.php?table=lib_arts&state_code[]=ALL&id[]=none”>http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-private-colleges/index.php?table=lib_arts&state_code[]=ALL&id[]=none&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>The third strategy is to focus on schools with the lowest sticker prices. Generally, these will be in-state public schools. They may even need to be local schools to which you can commute from home in order to lower your room and board costs. </p>