Hello, im currently a sophomore at a Competitive high school. I don’t want to run into the same problem as my sister come senior year: she was un able to attend her dream school due to cost. Im interested in schools such as Georgetown, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, Emory, Villanova, Duke, Notre Dame, etc. All of these schools have one common theme, they’re expensive! Im a white male in a middle class family, so there aren’t many scholarship opportunities.
I am just wondering if there are ways for me to start early on earning money towards my dream schools. Im interested in business and Econ, so if there is a school that has good programs for a decent tuition, please feel free to mention it. Thanks
The schools you have listed give primarily need based aid. If your sister didn’t qualify for need based aid, then you might not either. But really…for your family contribution to be in excess of the cost of attending schools like this, you parent income would need to be in the about $200,000 a year range.
Now…what schools did your sister target? Did she target schools like this that meet full need? Does your family really have a high income and assets? Or did she target exoensive schools that don’t meet full need.
Back to your list. There is some merit aid given at Vandy, Duke and Wake Forest. The others give need based aid only. For merit aid, your stats would need to be at the very tippy top of their admitted student pool. Are they? For need based aid, you would have to have financial need.
How much will your family pay annually for your collefe education? What is your instate flagship? Do you have college savings? What are your grades? What is your parent annual income?
My sister didn’t qualify at WashU or Notre Dame. right now, my GPA is 3.95 and my ACT is 28 (i can hopefully improve to a 33 or better). I am taking all honors and am taking many AP and honors in the next few years. I live in MN, so my only affordable options are the U of Minnesota, and Wisconsin Madison. I also plan on getting an MBA, so there is another cost to plan for. I don’t know my exact family income, but I have 1 working parent in a family of 4 (My father is the CEO of a smaller company) but i dont know the exact amount. I don’t believe we qualify for much on the Fafsa. $60,000 a year is way out of our budget, and i was just looking for ways to keep the possibility of going to a school that i am interested in, while not breaking the bank.
Thanks
Your ACT of 28 would need to significantly improve to be in the running for merit aid at any of the schools on your current list that award merit aid, in my opinion.
You are a sophomore. Your goal needs to be to very much improve that ACT score, and also to maintain extremely high grades. That is what gets merit aid at most colleges that give merit aid.
In addition, you might also want to try the SAT. Some students do better on the SAT than the ACT.
And lastly, your parent income will be the huge driver in terms of need based aid. If your sister didn’t get any need based aid, it’s likely you won’t either, unless your financial situation changes dramatically. It is possible that for the year or two that your sister and you both are in college, you could get a bit need based aid at some of these colleges. But first you have to get accepted, and your 28 ACT score does not make that a slam dunk at any school on your list (beside UMN, and UW).
What is your sister’s FAFSA EFC? And what was she expected to pay per year at her dream school?
I will find out her FASA and the income situation. The 28 I received was the result of no studying and it being my 1st time taking the test. After doing extensive prep work, I can improve that. Is anything I can do to get into a great undergrad school at a decent price?
Read the posts in some of these links. They will give you some ideas.
If you are looking for need based aid, you first need to determine IF your family has financial need. If your sister got none at WashU or Notre Dame, this implies that the schools determined that your family could pay almost $60,000 a year for her to attend. This would align with an income in the $200,000 range…and really, if you are the only one IN college, you won’t get need based aid anywhere with that family income.
For merit aid, you need to apply to schools that award merit aid. Some don’t. And you need to meet the criteria at those schools for receipt of merit aid. Typically, merit aid goes to the very tippy top applicants who are accepted. So…what can you do? Get a really good ACT score…33 or higher…higher is better. And your GPA needs to be tippy top as well.
Look carefully. Some schools have guaranteed awards based on your stats. Others have applications for their more generous merit awards.
Also, if I may be so bold as to suggest that you drop the “dream school” label. Sure, you will have a school or two that are your top choices…but dream schools? It is likely that your career dreams can be fulfilled at many places. Plus, if unaffordable, a dream can quickly turn into a nightmare.
I would say save as much money as you can now. If costs is an issue, stay within your state so that you dont have to pay out of state tution and go to a community college, that will save a lot. I’m doing the same thing and am majoring in business. Also, fyi, california has a lot of good business schools that are way cheaper than the ones u mentioned and provide just as good quality education.
ND also has merit scholarships. You have to be at the top of their applicant pool to get those as well.
Yes, drop the “dream school” idea. They make as much sense as chasing after a “dream girl”. Figure out your goals and ways to reach them. You may be able to do so via various LACs/unis where you can get enough merit money to make them affordable or even UMinny/UW-Madison.
An MBA straight out of college would be full pay, most likely. However many MBA programs prefer you get a job straight out of school and have work experience before getting an MBA. A benefit to that is that some companies may subsidize the cost.
Worry about undergrad now. If you end up at state school you will save money and still get a good education. Take control of your opportunities by working hard wherever you end up and take the initiative to pursue internships, etc.
I’d say if you have a dream school you’re truly dreaming! Have some reaches but more safeties you can afford and would be happy attending. A college is part of the journey and not a destination. Remember that.
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My father is the CEO of a smaller company) but i dont know the exact amount. I don’t believe we qualify for much on the Fafsa. $60,000 a year is way out of our budget,
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When your sister filled out FAFSA, what was her EFC.
I doubt you qualify for any free aid based on Fafsa…that is for low income people.
You need to ask your parents how much they’ll pay for your college each year. How much are they paying for your sister?
The big concern is that your sister wasn’t permitted to go to pricey schools (that cost the same as ones on your list), so that means your parents won’t pay for your schools, either.
I honestly recommend you look for outside scholarships because chances are you may not qualify for financial aid to begin with. During my junior and senior year of high school I applied to at least 12 scholarships and got three of them. Two of those scholarships were merit-based, not need. So if you’ve got the grades, good writing skills, and recommendations, should should be able to snag something.
^outside scholarships are not going to work. The #1 source of aid is the institution itself, then the federal government, then the State. OP will not qualify for any financial aid. He thus needs to look for schools with merit aid, such as McDermott Scholars at UTD, or the UAlabama Presidential scholarships, or the Robertson at UNC/Duke, or LEEP at Clark, or Honors at Pitt or USC or UMass, etc, etc. However, OP’s ACT would need to jump to at least 30 (if not 32) and excellent ECs would be necessary too.
I’m from Minnesota. Are you interested in attending any private schools in the state? My daughter had an ACT of 31 and was offered top merit awards at four of the privates she applied to. St. Olaf gave her an $18k per year scholarship, but she’d have to take out loans to make that one work and we’d forking out more than we want to spend. Since you are just a sophomore, I’m assuming your ACT will be in the 30s when you are applying to schools. I would recommend that you check out a few of the private schools to use as safeties to get in and I’d think you could earn enough merit aid to make them financial safeties as well. You have to create a few soft places to land if your dream schools don’t pan out for you.
We visited a variety of schools with varying price ranges. Our goal was to get the most bang for our buck. After my daughter got all excited about St. Olaf we knew we needed to find a school at a lower price that had a few things in common for her to visit, so we added Concordia College in Moorhead to our list. I would not have predicted it beforehand, but this was the school that really struck a chord with my daughter. The campus is great. The people were incredible - students and people who work there. I had not been to the Fargo/Moorhead area in over 20 years and was pleasantly surprised at how cool that area has become. My daughter wants to be a nurse, so we didn’t pay a lot of attention to their business program, but we walked through their new business building and it’s beautiful. The dorm where she’ll live is connected to the business building. They do brag up their business department, so I think you should look into it. In the end, they gave my daughter their highest merit award - $20k and they are saving a place for her in their nursing department. It became a no-brainer that she would go there. She got higher merit awards at a couple different schools, but their starting prices were several thousand more, so they won’t even come close to CC’s final price. We have not gotten her complete FA package from CC, but we know already that we’ve got this. My husband and I both felt that this school offered the most bang for the buck and my daughter is just thrilled that she can go there because it was her favorite. I know it doesn’t sound as glamorous as a Georgetown or Notre Dame, but my daughter will finish in four years, have no debt, and be very employable. It will cost less than attending the U of MN. Honestly, if the U of MN is one of your “worst case” options, you are in a very enviable situation for many kids.
You and your parents need to go to each of these schools and use the net price calculator. There are so many different factors and every school’s formula is different. It’s not true that everyone under $200.000 will qualify even with two kids in college (trust me!). Many schools look at savings, home equity etc. etc. Don’t assume anything based on generalities and make sure you have a financial safety THAT YOU LOVE.