<p>I’m a junior about to be a senior in arizona</p>
<p>Ethnicity: Male Asian (2nd Generation)
GPA: 4.0 UW/4.9 W
Class Rank: 1 out of 530</p>
<p>SAT:
2280 Overall (first try and ive only taken it once)
1560 Math+Reading
800 Math
760 Critical Reading
720 Writing</p>
<p>SAT II:
World History-740</p>
<p>AP Test:
World History-5
Calculus AB (expecting 5)
U.S. History (expecting 5)
English Language (expecting 4)</p>
<p>EC’s:
4-year Varsity Basketball
Will be Varsity bball captain this upcoming senior year
Special Olympics Basketball Coach
YMCA Youth League Referee
YMCA Employee
Nighthawk Basketball Camp Counsler
Internship With Univ of Ariz Track Coach
People Club Treasurer
Connect-4 (similar to Link-Crew)
Show Choir
Univ of Ariz MEDCAMP 2007
Had a poem published </p>
<p>I will most likely be a National Merit Finalist in the fall</p>
<p>*i know that my EC’s are a little weak, but thats b/c im so focused on basketball. my school is really good in bball. this year we had one player going to ASU, another Army, we were in state championship last year, and U of A comes to our open gyms to scout us. unfortunately, im not sure if colleges will know how good my HS team is and i dont think many people know how much a commitment basketball is (countless hours shooting, lifting, conditioning, playing, etc). any ideas on how to improve my EC’s? Thanks for your input!</p>
<p>Also how much scholarship money do you think i could get? NMF gives me a OOS tuition waver, but do you think its possible for me to get close to a full ride (tuition, room & board, etc)? Thanks for your input</p>
<p>yeah i expect to get into Texas but im curious what scholarship oppurtunities i would have with my stats. im also looking at ivy league and schools like stanford, but i think Texas would be a better situation for me financially. plus i love the thought of going to Texas ;)</p>
<p>You’re a very strong applicant for UT, but even then merit (as in full ride or close) are very rare. You’d be better by applying to a bunch of private schools in addition to UT as they have more funds to give out.</p>
<p>groenveld i kinda have thought about Rice but it seems too much of a small school for me. i like a big college atmosphere and if i do go to a small school it would most likely have to be a ivy. my dad is good friends with the AD at Rice (my dad coachs at Univ of Ariz, and the AD at Rice used to be at UofA) and he always tells me that Rice is a good school and how he can get me a full ride there (the AD would get me a position as manager on one of the sports teams i guess)</p>
<p>I agree with everyone else: aim higher. UT gives out very little merit based aid (unless you want to go into engineering). USC gives out great merit based aid, but there’s no such thing as a full ride at USC (only full tuition). I’d also check out UNC, UVA, UCLA, & UMich which are better state schools than UT and give better merit/financial aid.</p>
<p>bball, what is so enticing for you about attending Texas? Your state universities trip over themselves giving full rides to National Merit Finalists. Also since your father is on the staff of U of A, it seems like you’d qualify for a free ride in that manner.</p>
<p>To corroborate annn’s, Groenveld9’s (et. al.) points, check out the following link:</p>
<p>It appears that the out-of-state tuition waiver will be a slam dunk for you, however, anything beyond the $1,000 stipend will have to come from other merit based sources within the University. They are a bit harder to come by.</p>
<p>My son is going to Texas this fall. He had grades, academic honors, and ECs similar to yours. He was accepted into the Engineering Honors Program and has received a $24,000 scholarship from the COE ($6,000/year) provided he maintains a 3.5 GPA. He also received a $13,000 National Merit Scholarship (as an in-state student). This will roughly cover tuition only. I haven’t heard of any student receiving more than this based strictly on merit. </p>
<p>Assuming you become a NMF, scores of universities will offer you a full ride. I suppose it comes down a few factors…your financial situation, what you intend to study, and what kind of environment you want to be in for the next four year. On the surface, there appear to be other/better alternatives for you.</p>
<p>jagman you are absolutely right about the UofA. everything would be completely paid for at UofA and i might even make a little money haha. while i believe UofA to be a good college for me, i think id be selling myself short if i didnt seriously consider other colleges. with that said, i hope to get a lot of money at a out of state school (my family makes pretty good money so not expecting any need based aid). the reason i want a lot of merit money is b/c i dont think a Texas education would be worth 10K-20K a year where i could just go to UofA for free</p>
<p>I believe you just answered your own question. </p>
<p>Again, once you attain National Merit Finalist status, there are at least 80 schools that will be willing to give you a full ride. Check out this link:</p>
<p>Texas, unfortunately, is not one of them. A few will actually pay you. </p>
<p>Also, if you intend to pursue HYPS, your credentials will get you past the initial cursory rounds in the admissions process. You will need outstanding recommendations and strong, strong essays. This level is a real crapshoot. I have seen applicants with much weaker backgrounds than yours get admitted to an elite school. Conversely, there have been others with perfect score and grades, national awards (Siemens/Intel), etc. that were deferred or flat out rejected.</p>
<p>You should do well no matter what school you decide to attend.</p>