<p>Hello, I’m new to the boards and also new to college applications (rising senior). I’m currently very excited about Bucknell and am very seriously considering applying early. The first challenge is getting in, but I have a 32 on the ACT and a bunch of music and church extracurriculars, so I honestly think, despite my paranoia, that I will be okay. The problem comes in that once admitted, I need a serious hunk of financial aid to go, specifically earning the Tuition Exchange Scholarship since my mom is a faculty member at a small, private LAC (Carson-Newman College). If anyone knows about the tuition exchange program and how likely I am to actually receive this scholarship, I would be very much appreciated. If it makes any difference, I’m looking to major in Chemical Engineering.</p>
<p>And on a slightly related note, how accurate is the CollegeData college chances admission calculator for colleges? I’ve been using it trying to get a rough estimate, but it says Harvard is a maybe, though I’m thinking with my scores it’s a “Why did you bother applying.”</p>
<p>So my mum and dad both teach at another tuition exchange school and I'm def. looking at Bucknell as my number one choice, but I'm gunna be a junior so I don't have to worry as much about it.
I'm so worried because thus far I've been a really good student and I'm pretty sure I'll get in but I don't know if I'm exceptional enough to get the scholarship.
Good luck though.</p>
<p>i cant answer the collegedata question, as the online calcuators tend to change their algorithms with frequency. i would agree, though, that unless you are an incredibly interesting applicant, harvard with a 32 act is a pretty tough sell.</p>
<p>on tuition exchange, as you probably know from the website, bucknell awards as many scholarships as the children of its employees receive. as a result, it is entirely possible that in a given year 50 admitted students could compete for 10 scholarships. or 30 could compete for 20. the resulting requirements would vary quite significantly. </p>
<p>nonetheless, i recommend that you go to admissions with your email. they may have some information for you on the kind of stats past recipients have had and may be able to clue you in on the specific selection criteria (grades and sats are likely weighed very heavily). or perhaps youll simply get a vague response. at the very least, though, they should be able to give you the raw numbers (admitted students and awarded scholarships) for past years. </p>
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<p>Thank you very much for the help. I didn't know if there was some sort of trick to getting into these college scholarship programs or what, but the more and more I research college admissions in general, the more arbitrary it seems. At the moment I'm reading "Admissions Confidential" by Rachel Toor if anyone was curious. Its pretty good.</p>