BaddyCaddy09

My mom is someone who didn't have much of a choice of where she wanted to go to college. Her mom gave her the choice to go to either Texas Tech or some other small school in Texas (her home state).

Since I'm an upcoming senior and entering the college process myself, she seems to believe that it's logical to apply to all of these top-tier schools and not come up with any safeties.

I, on the other hand, face reality and understand that I'm not going to get into most (if not all) of those top schools, so I have come up with a more realistic list of colleges that I'm interested in. However, when I mention these colleges to my mom, she straight up says "No" if they're not schools like UPenn (her favorite and probably the most unrealistic) or USC.

On my list, I've compiled schools like UMich, UT Austin, and other schools of the sort because I plan on majoring in business. When I mention my safeties to her (U of A & Arizona State), she straight up says "We're not applying to those schools. You don't need any safeties." Yet and still, I keep trying to explain to her that I have a measly 3.4 GPA, and she seems to think that since I'm an URM (African American), I have an automatic "in" anywhere I apply.

Should I be listening to her more? It doesn't make sense to me to go to these impossible-to-get-into schools if they're not the right fit for me. She won't even let me apply to schools in the south, and I've tried numerous times to explain to her that I'M the one that has to spend my 4 years wherever I go - not her. But still, she's the one who has to pay the tuition.

So I'm stuck in a hole. Am I being more reasonable by selecting middle-ground colleges that would fit me and safety schools, or is she being more reasonable in only letting me apply to schools that she likes because she has to pay the tuition?