Cloverman

I recently started my college search and soon realized that choosing colleges to apply to is a very difficult process, so I would love to hear some input. I'm going to be a senior this coming year at a smallish school in NH (700 students) and I hope to study engineering in college (although I don't know what type). I have tons of extracurriculars (Cross Country, Track, Math Team, Quiz Bowl, NHS, SHS, Student Government, etc.). My unweight high school gpa is 3.92. I have taken the SATs once so far and I got a 2120, 770-math, 690-reading, and 660-writing. I also took the SAT2s and got 700-physics, 790-math2. As for AP courses, I took the AP Physics test this May (I don't have my scores for that yet), and I will be taking the AP Chem, AP Calc BC, AP SpanLang and AP EngLit next year.

My current college list is:
Cornell - stretch
Johns Hopkins - stretch
Dartmouth - stretch
Lehigh - middle
BU - middle
Northeastern - middle
UMass Amherst - safety

I would love to hear anyone's opinions on my chances at these schools and whether or not any schools should be added to or taken off this list. Thanks!

Erin's Dad

What can your family afford? UMass OOS is almost $9K more than UNH IS.

Cloverman

My parents will be paying however much UNH in-state tuition costs that year, so around $25,000. I will have to foot the rest of the bill. However, all the money I receive from either financial aid or scholarships helps to pay off my part.

ucbalumnus

Some low cost safety candidates here:
Automatic Full Tuition / Full Ride Scholarships

You may want to see if Minnesota, NCSU, Virginia Tech, Stony Brook, and Cal Poly SLO may be within range of your parents' contribution plus the subsidized Stafford loan limit ($23,000 for four years).

UMass does have a New England regional discount for NH residents if they choose a major not available at NH public schools. But without it, the cost of attendance may be too high for you to consider it a safety (about $36,000 per year, or $11,000 per year higher than your parents' contribution).

Erin's Dad

You'll need to check on what scholarships you might be able to get from UMass. Of that $9K difference you can only borrow $5.5K in a Stafford loan. You'd have to come up with the rest some other way (and you can't personally borrow any more without a cosigner). Here are some other options to consider: IMPORTANT: Links to AUTOMATIC/GUARANTEED Merit Scholarships

Cloverman

Thanks for that information, I will definitely have to look into those scholarships. However, what do you think my chances are of being admitted into those schools regardless of the financial aspect? (although that will play a huge role when I decide where I want to go)

whenhen

You'll get into Cal Poly SLO with those stats no problem. I know plenty of instate kids that were accepted to their engineering program with much lower stats (and SLO only looks at stats). One not of caution, most of the Cal States are experiencing extreme budget cuts, so registering for classes may be difficult. Check the SLO forum to see if this is accurate or not.

whenhen

If you're willing to go to a rural area, also consider New Mexico Tech. It's about $29,000 per year, which is slightly more than your parents are willing to spend, but you can easily get a summer job to pay off most of the additional cost

nctrani713

Hey you should definitely look at OOS schools that have good undergrad engineering programs. That way the cost won't be as much as private schools, but still more than in state. University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign would be one and other good state flagships that have strong engineering programs.

hornetdad

I'd say no problem getting into UMass Amherst with those stats and you might even get some merit aid. UMass engineering is ranked higher than UNH, for what it's worth, and from what I've seen (my son just finished his first year there), it's a great program. The problem with the regional discount is if you change your mind on a major to something that is offered at UNH, you lose the discount. It kind of locks you in.

However, without some significant financial aid (merit and/or need-based depending on your parents' income) I don't see how the privates you have listed will be affordable for you. All of them are close to $60K per year and you can't borrow enough on your own to make up the difference between the $25K your parents are willing to pay and the cost of attendance. You should run the net price calulator for each school to get an idea of what the real cost to you would be. In my opinion, it's not worth going into big debt to finance an engineering degree from an expensive private when there are more affordable state and other (merit aid) alternatives.

barrk123

Use the schools net price calculators to see ~how much you would have to pay

Erin's Dad

OOS Public Us frequently cost as much as Private Us. For instance UIUC, the school you mention, costs $48K/year. University of Illinois Financial Aid: Undergraduate Non-Resident 2010-2011 Cost

Cloverman

Both my sisters were in the same situation I am right now and they received significant financial aid in the form of approximately $25,000 from most of the schools they applied to. However, I am very concerned about tuition, so come May there's a good chance that the school I go to will be determined by how much debt I'll have when i come out. Although I hope it doesn't come to that.

mom2collegekids

Hey you should definitely look at OOS schools that have good undergrad engineering programs. That way the cost won't be as much as private schools, but still more than in state. University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign would be one and other good state flagships that have strong engineering programs.


NCTran.....he says that his parents will only pay $25k per year. The state flagships with engineering programs like UIUC (or UMich/Cal/etc) will NOT be affordable.


cloverman....with your stats, there are schools that will give you large scholarships for your stats. Use the link that Erin's Dad gave you and also use this one:

Automatic Full Tuition / Full Ride Scholarships

Look at Post #80

Sparkeye7

Maybe you should pick tOSU as one of your safety schools (50% ACT 27-31) imho. You should definitely qualify for "National Buckeye Scholarship" for OOS students at tOSU. Ohio State is very diverse, and Columbus is the 15th largest city in the country. With $10,000 annual National Buckeye Scholarship, the COA for tOSU will be roughly $25k per year (roughly $35,000 for OOS - $10,000 scholarship = $25,000 total COA) which would then be affordable to you based on your parents' support.

Scholarships

Engineering
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Bioengineering 28th
Chemical 17th
Civil 23rd
Electrical 19th
Materials 15th
Mechanical 15th
Industrial and Systems 4th

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