You should definitely apply to BC. You never know unless you apply!
That’s true, @londondad – thank you. 
I will also look at Catholic U, as I know they’re of course in the prime location for politics but get anxious about them not meeting my financial need (as I do with all other schools, as well).@mamaedefamilia, Emmanuel College seems to be an okay fit, but is a majorly science-oriented school – I wish I was good at science and fit in with the science kids, but it really isn’t my thing.
^ I don’t work for Emmanuel College, so I’m not pushing it by any means. However, I think you may be misinformed about its academic focus. This is from USNWP: “The most popular majors at Emmanuel College include: Psychology; Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services; Biological and Biomedical Sciences; Social Sciences; and Communication, Journalism, and Related Programs.”
If you are considering Law School or the PhD/Academic track to become a professor, having a “name brand” undergraduate education will become one of your credentials–so shoot for the best schools possible. Catholic schools are known for being less generous with non-need merit, but if you qualify for financial aid, most of the Catholic/Jesuit schools should be very generous.
Of course, it may still be less expensive for you to attend UMASS-Amherst, but don’t discount it until you take a tour and really evaluate the tradeoffs. Paying off student loans can be a burden that you probably won’t have if you attend UMass Amherst.
Fairfield is a great choice (SAT optional) and if you can get your SAT’s up a little more consider Villanova.
Fordham, Villanova and BC all have outstanding law schools.
If you are considering being “a professor” you might want to spend some time exploring what you mean by that (eg tenure or adjunct), how much money you would need to make doing so, and the availability of jobs. For example, there are lots of adjunct jobs for little pay but tenured professorships are increasingly rare.
As a lawyer. I advise you also do your due diligence regarding the cost/benefit of that career choice. I work with a lot of law students and I now tell people who “want to be lawyers” that going to law school is great…as long as you don’t have to borrow money for it.
Look at Fairfield, Marist and St Joseph’s
@masscatholicgirl You have great stats except your test scores. If HC does not work our, it should, St. Anselm, St. Michael’s, Providence, Siena and St. Bonaventure should be on your list. Providence merit can go up to a free ride, same with St. Bonaventure.
For political science St. Anselm is first class.
This totally ignores the fact you have to compete against those other students and do better then them. The “name brand” means nothing in competing for positions in higher education if your in the bottom half of your class.
@mamaedefamilia – now, I see. I think I’ve just known so many people from my HS who have attended Emmanuel for Bio especially, so it might’ve made me a little biased toward it, but I’ll definitely look into it!
@Booksmart27, I am attending the Fall Open House at UMass Amherst in about two weeks, so it’s definitely a huge contender in my college options! I don’t have much money to pay for college (and neither does my dad) so I need to go someplace that’ll help me out financially, a lot.
@TempeMom I would want to become a tenure prof. so that I have a permanent position. I know law school doesn’t give much aid, if any, so I would want to gain a salary prior to going to law school.
@Wisteria100, thank you!
@A Stern, thank you! I will look at those places!
@masscatholicgirl A bunch of schools around here have bargain 5 year masters programs. Clark, for example, advertises that they give you the 5th year free. A friend’s daughter did a similar thing at Bridgewater – not exactly 5th year free, but I believe it was more of a MA in 4 years. Bridgewater’s extremely reasonable, price-wise. She had high academic credentials but was going into a relatively low-paying field so it didn’t make sense for her to spend big $ on her education. She had to get over the idea of going to a state school but once she was there she loved it.
I echo that you could check out our local test optional gems – Smith and Mount Holyoke. They both are generous with financial aid and meet 100% of need, and they have holistic admissions so you’d have an opportunity on your application to explain anything you felt you needed to.
If you love Stonehill, odds are high you’ll love Holy Cross, and their financial aid is SO MUCH better! And while your SAT is on the low side, you’re exactly who they’d admit because everything else you bring to the table is worth more than a few SAT points - their average SAT score is in the 1900s, so not so far from yours.
@MYOS1634 you’re absolutely right – I’ve visited three times now, had an interview and went to their open house and I’ve fallen in love with the school. I plan on applying ED but am praying they’ll give me enough aid to actually attend 
it’s my number one, but I’m afraid to get my hopes up too high because of its cost.
Have you run the NPC ?
ED can be tricky if you need to compare financial aid packages, because you are basically committing before you know the financials
It says I’ll only have to pay like $5,000 which is amazing but I hope that’s the truth @MYOS1634; @wisteria100 the policy at HC says if the financial aid isn’t enough, ED isn’t binding
NPCs are usually pretty accurate and since you’ve been a ward of the state in the past few years, your situation is rather easy (even though you will be tentatively living with your father for the upcoming months, being a ward of the state after age 13 trumps that.) The final amount may be a bit more but you should expect 5-6k at this specific college.
Each college will be different: run the NPC at Boston College and Notre Dame, for instance.
Regarding ED and the binding commitment, Stonehill has an unusual program, as I mentioned in post #43 above:
Just found a cool thing that Stonehill does that more schools should do, an Early Decision Financial Assistance Estimate:
http://www.stonehill.edu/admission/tuition-financial-aid/early-decision-estimate/
Apply to Marist. Our campus is located right on the Hudson River with great breathtaking views and awesome activities with over 80 different clubs and organizations you can join. We have a wide variety of majors you can pick from and it is so easy to switch between majors if you really feel like you want to switch. When you apply to Marist you apply to the college as a whole and not a specific school for a specific major. The small classes are awesome and you really get the individual attention that people really vie for at most institutions.