Chance my son at the UCs and Cal States [CA resident, 3.53 UW, 3.63 UC capped, business or data analytics]

Here are some additional schools your son may want to consider:

U. of Idaho: Your son would receive nearly $17,000/year in merit aid here (source) bringing the price down to about $24k/year, so less than your UCs. And this page talks about some of the supports that are offered to business students.

U. of Nevada – Reno: Your son would qualify for WUE (source), bringing the annual cost to about $29k/year. There are about 18k undergrads here. It has the FIT (Freshman Intensive Transition) program which is for incoming first year students where they come to campus a little early, start forming bonds, and take a 1-credit class together (and sometimes additional ones). Exploratory students would be in the Nevada FIT program, or if your son is more confident about wanting a business-related major, then he could participate in the Biz FIT program. UNR says that it increases freshman retention by 7-10%, and from my outside reading, it’s because programs like this really help students to form social and academic connections that lead to success.

U. of Utah: About 27k undergrads here. Out-of-state costs are about $45k for the first year, but if a student stays in UT for 12 months (summer before or after freshman year) then they can receive in-state residency, making the remaining years about $24k/year. Or he could just do WUE for four years at a cost of about $28k/year (source). The U. also appears to have a lot of intentionality in its programs for first-year students. It offers a summer bridge program (Strong Start) where students get used to the campus and earn credit for two classes. It offers numerous themed housing and LLCs for students, but the Quest one seems particularly a propos for an exploratory student. They also have made their advising system really straightforward for students, it’s prior to orientation or seeking career advising, and has certain points when students are required to do advising before they can register for classes. For a big state school, they definitely appear to be trying to eliminate as many barriers as possible for students.

U. of Houston (TX): About 38k undergrads attend this school that is less than an hour from the Galveston beaches. Sticker price is about $34k for out-of-state students and if he applies by November 3 he could be considered for merit aid (source). Students who receive $1k/year or more in merit aid may then qualify for in-state tuition, which would mean the price would be about $22k/year (source).

U. of South Florida: If a campus by the coast is super important, this would be another option to consider. This page gives some info on Why USF. It’s sticker price is about $32k for out-of-state students. This one would more of a target/low reach, or could be more worthwhile to apply as a summer candidate rather than fall for a higher likelihood of an admittance. This thread has some useful info on admission to the Florida publics: https://talk.collegeconfidential.com/t/guidance-counselors-guide-for-florida-public-universities/3672949. If Orlando appeals more than Tampa, then he could similarly consider the U. of Central Florida.

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