CallMeJeROMEO

I am currently going into my senior year of high school. I am a Tennessee resident from a family that makes somewhere between $40,000-$50,000 a year with three kids living at home. My ACT score is 30 and my GPA is 3.63 weighted (I don't know my UW GPA). No extracurriculars (Explanations later in this post). I have probably several hundred volunteer hours at a few churches. I will have taken 3 AP classes when I graduate and mostly honors classes besides that (other than the classes when i was homeschooled freshman year and the classes not offered honors).

I was homeschooled until sophomore year of high school and I went to different high schools both years I have been in school. This is my reason for lack of EC's.

Does anyone have any ideas of what colleges I could get into for virtually free? My parents aren't paying any of my college and I plan on going to grad school, so I don't want insane debt on my UG degree, but i also want to get into a prestigious grad school (probably for either an MBA or a J.D.). So what are some good colleges I can get into for very little money? Please think about room and board in your answer. I appreciate any input.

Also, is there anything I can do to increase my chances/lower my price, such as raising my GPA to a 3.75, etc?

CallMeJeROMEO

Oh, and if this is in the wrong section, please tell me and I will post it in the appropriate forum.

Erin's Dad

Two threads you should look at:

Automatic Full Tuition / Full Ride Scholarships

IMPORTANT: Links to AUTOMATIC/GUARANTEED Merit Scholarships

mom2collegekids

Retest to try for a higher score.

Also take the SAT.

What is your intended major?

Do you qualify for HOPE and other scholarships in Tenn?

CallMeJeROMEO

@M2CK:
I am looking at a business major, probably business administration.

I took the ACT 3 times and got a 30 the last two times, so I do intent on taking the SAT in October.

Yes, I do qualify for the HOPE.

@Erin's Dad:
Thanks, there was a lot of good information in those threads!

polarscribe

You should look first at your in-state public. The University of Tennessee is a good school and if your parents aren't going to contribute anything, it's likely to be your most affordable option - perhaps your only affordable option. Merit scholarships are great, but the vast majority of them are not "full-tuition, full-board" scholarships, and with zero parental contributions, you most likely won't be able to cover the gap between aid and cost.

mom2collegekids

After looking at the scholarship offers on those links, also look at some of the Tenn publics. With HOPE, you might only get free tuition at UTenn, but at some of the other Tenn publics you may get merit as well, which combined with HOPE may mean a near free ride. Then a $5500 student loan could cover the rest.

CallMeJeROMEO

Thanks for the replies! I really appreciate all the help and am seriously looking at UT at this point.

mom2collegekids

Don't just look at UTenn. For that, you'll get HOPE for tuition, but that's not enough. You'll still have room, board, and books and fees.

Look at some of the other good Tenn publics that give merit in addition to HOPE.

wavylays94

Apply to all the top tier schools. If you get into one, you'll go for virtually free.
That's what I did. I applied to 20 top schools, got into 3, and I'm paying no tuition or room&board. We're similar financially.

thumper1

Wavy, this student does not have the ACT scores or GPA to be accepted to the tippy top generous schools. This poster needs to look at schools where he/she can afford the costs with the guaranteed scholarship she has, where costs are more modest.