<p>My mom will not be able to contribute much (if any) to my college education. I know scholarships wont pay for it all.</p>
<p>What about school loans?</p>
<p>Can that pay for it all?</p>
<p>how much approx. can you mother contribute?</p>
<p>well school loans have to be paid back eventually.</p>
<p>If you can find a cheap school to go to, take it over a more expensive one. Don’t saddle yourself with loads of debt for undergrad. It’s really not a wise decision. And scholarships can pay for virtually all your expenses. You’ll just have to devote 20 out of 24 hours daily searching for and applying to them.</p>
<p>When should i start applying for scholarships?</p>
<p>Start now. Make an account on websites like z i n c h.com (remove spaces) and fastweb.com, complete the profiles, and take advantage of their resources. They require a lot of writing (or similar work), but they do bring some great opportunities to your attention.</p>
<p>longhorn…</p>
<p>Right now…you’d be better off spending your time practicing for the SAT and ACT and keeping your grades high.</p>
<p>Outside scholarships are usually small and for one year only. Often not worth the many, many hours kids spend writing essays and such - when there’s only a small chance of getting one.</p>
<p>The big scholarships are from SCHOOLS… Those scholarships are for multi-year.</p>
<p>Agree with mom2…first get your test scores as high as possible. Also, have a discussion with your parents about how much they can commit to helping you. Get an estimated EFC using the online calculators at collegeboard or fafsa4caster.gov. Once you know that number you’re in a position to estimate how much federal and state grant aid you might receive. Then look for schools that will be affordable through a combination of grants and/or merit scholarships. Only then should you really worry about outside scholarships (unless you qualify for something that provides great funding/opportunities like Questbridge or Gates ).</p>
<p>What’s your EFC? if it’s low then you should focus on finding colleges that meet full need (preferably with few or no loans), if it’s high you should look for merit based scholarships (that you will get with good scores and grades, check out the SAT/ACT forums)</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>Either way…the student needs high stats. Kids with modest stats don’t get accepted to the schools that meet full need with small or no loans. And, kids with modest stats don’t get the big scholarships to overcome unaffordable EFCs.</p>
<p>OP mentioned possibly being Val in another thread which will help, and also that she hasn’t taken the SAT which I recommend doing ASAP.</p>
<p>Hmmmm, if you are Val, and really top, consider the need blind private schools? Amherst etc? who offer full aid, no loans. I am international, so not sure if this is the easiest way for an American to do this.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>The OP might not end up as Val since she’s changing schools for senior year. She may not even end up as top 8% if she changes schools.</p>
<p>*Current GPA=3.1 (graduating GPA will be around a 3.6 or higher) *</p>
<p><em>sigh</em> I’m sorry- I know that without the full story none of you can help much- the full story takes entirley to long. Plus I’ve just found out that i may not be able to transfer to a diff. school. Hypothetically speaking</p>
<p>“I’m Val. I have reasonably good SAT scores”
Can i get FULL RIDE? Anywhere in Texas???
Or a heck of a good ride?</p>
<p>Yes, probably. it’s hard to say without the full story. You’ll need great SAT scores for which you should start studying now. You might be able to get need-based money if you have need</p>
<p>[Rice</a> University | Prospective Students](<a href=“http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/Money_Matters.asp?SnID=2]Rice”>http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/Money_Matters.asp?SnID=2)</p>
<p>you can probably get a full ride at a third or fourth tier public.</p>
<p>Longhorn…</p>
<p>Don’t change schools if it means that you’ll be going to a school that has students who will push you out of top 8%. Do you have to change schools?</p>
<p>no i do not have to change schools. i actually think it would be best to remain at my current school.
I really want to attend UT and i feel like the only way to that is to be in the top 8</p>