ThisNerdGotAGirl

I am mexican/american , first generation college bound, 3.75 gpa unw.
I have 80 cs hours (math tutor)
I have done summer programs at U of Az and ASU (Arizona Resident) I want to major in Agricultural Engineering at Iowa State. ACT 25 composite score

What scholarships should I apply for? Do I have an upper hand because im a minority&firstgeneration ? And is there certain programs at colleges where the college pays expenses but you work for them?

dodgersmom

Your best way to pay for school is to attend an Arizona university! Both Arizona State and University of Arizona have ag programs - and tuition that is significantly lower than what you'd have to pay as an out-of-state student at Iowa State.

Depending on your family's income, you might be eligible for federal grants and loans, as well as work study (an on campus job that would help pay your expenses). Beyond that, you should ask your high school guidance counselor about local scholarships that you might be eligible to apply for. (Local scholarships, if any are available, would likely only help you pay for your first year; they wouldn't be good for all four years.)

But none of those is going to be enough to pay your way at an out-of-state public university!

You might want to check out CC's Hispanic forum to see what information might be posted about scholarships you'd be eligible for.

mom2collegekids

There are a lot of minority first gen students out there, so I don't think that will get you the scholarship money you need.

Iowa State will not likely be affordable. Your stats aren't high enough for merit, and they don't give much aid to OOS students.

Your stats are good, but not high enough for good-sized scholarships. You would likely be gapped a LOT.

Dodgersmom is absolutely correct. With your stats, your most affordable options may likely be your AZ publics. If you're low income, then you'd get fed aid, AZ aid, to attend a AZ school.

the state of AZ also gives scholarships to HS school students with good GPAs/test scores. I think you qualify for that.

You might also try applying to schools like RPI....they want more females, but I don't know if they have Ag Eng'g.


I just ran the NPC on Iowa State's website. I put in family of 4, 1 in college, family income $40k.....and only about $9k in aid was given (loans). You'd have to pay over $22k per year to go there. It would be MUCH cheaper for you to go to an AZ public.

Debbie7452

M2K, I'm thinking the OP's name refers to having a girl(friend) vs. being a girl. I could be wrong though!

mom2collegekids

lol...I think you're right.


OP....I see that you're looking at OOs publics like Iowa State and Purdue. Unless your parents will pay for those school, those schools will not be affordable. They don't give OOS students the aid that they need because they don't have enough money to help their instate students (whose costs are lower).

The only way an OOS public would be affordable for you is if your scores increase a LOT and you qualify for merit scholarships. Your ACT would need to increase by about 5-8 points to get the merit you want.

arabrab

Since you're an Arizona resident, consider all of the schools that participate in the WUE (Western Undergraduate Exchange) program -- they promise that your tuition will not be more than 150% of in-state tuition -- and there are a lot of schools with Ag programs.

mom2collegekids

^^^

If the student's family is not prepared to pay for college, then WUE schools may not be affordable. 150% of tuition plus room, board, books and travel/misc, is an amount that is well beyond federal aid, which is likely all the OP would get. Even with higher stats, WUE schools often will not give merit to those who already have the WUE discount.

People often forget that a WUE student is still an OOS student and therefore the public won't give them state aid and likely won't give them need-based aid that they must reserve for their instate students.

WUE seems to work best for those who can full pay.

ThisNerdGotAGirl

I live in a family of 10 and my parents make less than
$40,000 a year. And I'm will to do a work/study program , I had a 4.0 gpa 9th grade 3.93 10th grade 3.85 11th grade and right now its a 3.75 only because I am taking a lot more AP's and Honors classes than in freshmen year.

ThisNerdGotAGirl

I'm willing** EDIT

mom2collegekids

Work study is awarded by the school, and you can't predict whether you'll get it or not.

Work study isn't for much money....about $2000, and generally it goes for "day to day" expenses....not direct college costs because it's earned like a paycheck from a job.

What are your test score.

happymomof1

Financial Aid - Scholarships | Iowa State University

In the past ISU did have some merit money for high-scoring minority students. I don't know if those particular scholarships exist any more. Take a look here, and see what you can find out. It also is perfectly OK for you to send an email to the financial aid and scholarship offices and ask.

ThisNerdGotAGirl

Since I wish to major In Agricultural Engineering and doing a minor in Agricultural Business can I apply for scholarships in IUS's college of life science and engineering? And do scholarships I get in Az count for ISU as well ?
Test scores ( ACT )
26 Math
27 Science
24 English

sybbie719

It would depend on the type of scholarship. Any scholarships tied to you being in state, any ASU or other arizona school will not transfer to Iowa.

Most of the scholarships at ISU are attached to you being in-state

Financial Aid - Scholarship Search | Iowa State University

use their estimated US freshman automatic scholarship tool to see if you have a chance of getting a scholarship

https://www.admissions.iastate.edu/a...c/freshman.php

THese scholarships tend not to be large enough to make a dent in the 31k cost of attendance as an OOS student. Also, keep in mind that your parents will still have to come out of pocket for room, board, books, travel and other misc expenses

amarkov

With a ~25 ACT score, 3.75 GPA, and being out of state, you are not going to be very competitive for whatever scholarships they do offer. You might get some money, but it won't be nearly enough to make the school affordable.