I am currently a rising senior in Dallas, TX. I attended a prestigious arts magnet HS, but transferred to a collegiate high school for Junior year. I will graduate with an associates degree and 2 years of college finished. I have a 3.6 UW GPA, a 1280 SAT (without any practice; this score will likely improve considerably), and a variety of extracurriculars:
-volunteering at an equine therapy center for disabled children
-running vacation bible school and parents events at my church
-Secretary General of an international Model United Nations organization (GEMUN)
-internship at a nonprofit law firm in Dallas (LANWT)
-Costume design, construction experience
-Asst to English prof. at my community college
-Variety of missions and outreach trips with my church
-5 years work experience
-Capstone research project for my school (a research study and action plan based around the ongoing needs of a specific demographic of refugee children from Myanmar)
-More, but these are some of the additions for my college apps.
I plan on double majoring in early childhood education (EC-6) and secondary English education (7-12). I am looking for a reasonably priced, liberal arts school, preferably on the east coast. I am also looking at schools in Cali and TX. Are there any suggestions for possible good fits? Also, what are my chances of acceptance to NYU? I realize it may be a reach with my (bad) SAT score. Are there any other schools in NYC that would be a good fit?
Thank you!
NYU is a major reach due to the SAT.
You should look into UT Dallas, Redlands, TCU, SMU, UCSD
I’m trying to see how NYU which costs $70K in direct expenses only maps into what you’re looking for. What do you consider reasonably priced?
NYU is realistically not an option. I just want to see if I could, theoretically, get in.
$65K per year for the UC’s, with exceptional grades.
$40K+ per year for the CSU’s with exceptional to competitive grades. There is no state financial aid for non-residents.
Privates ~$60K+ per year.
For a degree in ECE or Education, financially, it doesn’t make sense.
In CA, you might want to check out Cal Lutheran, Cal Baptist, Biola, St. Mary’s-Moraga, or Loyola Marymount, depending on what flavor of church you go to. That said, if you want to end up teaching back in Texas, you probably want to stay in Texas for your undergrad as teacher credentialling programs vary by state.
Sorry, I’m not familiar with Texas programs… Are you doing Dual Enrollment? Or, at least, something similar to Dual Enrollment?
While in high school, I got 6 credits through CLEP and 35 more through Dual Enrollment. Then, I just stayed at the same community college for spring and summer semesters, afterwards applying to a variety of competitive colleges as a transfer student. This is something I would recommend if you do not have a good enough SAT score…
Although I had a 4.0 GPA throughout high school and college, I only got 1310 on my SAT. I’ve never been a good test-taker, due to becoming too nervous. However, since I applied as a transfer student with over 60 credits, the vast majority of colleges did not require me to submit my SAT scores. In the end, I ended up getting into some great colleges, such as Northeastern, UNC Chapel Hill (as an out-of-state student), Smith, UMiami, Brandeis, American, and numerous others. Three colleges even offered me some awesome merit scholarships, ranging from $10,000/year to $20,000/year. Therefore, if you cannot raise your SAT score enough, then maybe consider doing community college for a semester or two? And then apply as a transfer… Sometimes, it can be easier to get into some amazing colleges as a transfer than as a freshman.
In terms of making college more affordable, I can recommend joining Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society. That is, of course, if you are currently taking classes at a community college. And, in any case, apply for Jack Kent Cooke scholarship - either as a high school student or as a transfer. JKC is extremely competitive, but definitely worth a shot. Even if you only make it to semi-final, you will still have an advantage.
Also, when you choose colleges, make sure that they will accept your credits. In my case, with Dual Enrollment, numerous colleges (such as Brandeis, BostonU, Bentley, Smith, etc.) simply refused to accept my credits. Others (Northeastern, UMiami, American, UNC Chapel Hill, Clark, etc.) accepted my credits.