I am trying to narrow down this list but I am finding it difficult to predict merit aid and how schools will interpret my financial need. Yes, I have run net price calculators. I am just hoping for some information from your experience with these schools to add to the number from the calculator.
Quick Stats: 33 act, 3.9 GPA, >5% class rank, Washington State
Financially college is going to be a bit of a problem.
I have looked at, and like a lot of things about my local public university (UW Seattle) however I really need more options. I really want to be able to study computer science as a freshmen. I also would value going to a smaller school with more of a sense of community.
On paper my financial situation makes me look decently rich. However, that is really not a representation of the assets my parents can put towards college. My dad owns a part of a medical practice and works in it. So while we may on paper have a high income, most of that income can not actually go to things like college. As a result, my FASFA etc is around 35k whereas my parents have states they can only pay 15-20k per year.
Although I am sure this will no doubt be a controversial opinion, I am fine drawing out a ton of student loans. Because I am going into Computer Science the job market for me will likely be nice. I am also very disciplined. I can live frugally for additional years paying off the debt quickly.
I will also be going for a masters degree.
Could you please sort of rank these schools by how affordable they might be? I know some of these schools are infamous for giving a ton of aid whereas other schools (like Stanford) really leave you on your own in that dimension.
Northwestern
Lehigh
Tufts
Brown
Harvard
Princeton
Duke
Stanford
Carnegie Mellon
Cornell
If your EFC is very high, you’d be better off focusing on need-based aid.
This would be very competitive, if it’s even an option, at the tippy-top schools.
^^^she means merit based aid
Most parents will not cosign large loans
What are your parents saying?
Plug in your financial information to the net price calculators of the schools you’ve mentioned.
With a 35k EFC, you will get aid, but you’ll have to pay 35 k a year.
Almost all of the schools you mentioned offer no merit aid AND take the CS Profile as well which may make your EFC increase.
I mean 20k vs 35k isn’t too big of a difference. You can take a total of 27k of student loan under your name over four years. Anything else would have to be consigned with your parents.
Plug your finances into net price calculators of your schools and let us know what they says
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With a 35k EFC, you will get aid, but you’ll have to pay 35 k a year.
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You don’t know that.
those schools use CSS Profile to determine aid. We don’t know if after submitting CSS the schools may find that the family has other sources of money…business assets, home equity, etc.
In state, UW costs about 23K per year, not including personal expenses. That should be feasible with the direct student loan and some summer employment.
Stanford, Harvard, and Princeton are more generous than many in their definition of need-based aid but it may not be enough to close the gap.
Duke, Carnegie Mellon, and Lehigh offer merit-based scholarships but I don’t know how competitive they are, how high the level of aid is, and if there are internal deadlines that might have passed already. Consult their websites for more information.
If a liberal arts college is a possibility, maybe check out U of Puget Sound. They offer a few large merit-based named scholarships. Separate application required and deadline is Dec. 15!