<p>On another note: Evergreen State would not be affordable to an out-of-state, financially needy student, because Washington State will not give grant money to out-of-state students who enroll in their schools. So the out-of-state student would have to pay full tuition plus housing – which means the annual cost of attendance would probably be in the $35K range. </p>
<p>If I was a kid with early<em>college’s stats, and if I really seriously wanted Evergreen, I might consider taking time off from school, and simply move to Washington and find a job there to establish residency. But that would be a plan for a student who is dead set on a attending a particular in-state college – one that might work equally as well in many other states – and early</em>college is not all that enamored with Evergreen. </p>
<p>I’d note that before embarking on such a plan, a student would need to do their research on the particular state’s policies for establishing residency for tuition purposes. It’s easy enough to establish residency for everything else-- you move to a state, find a place to live, register to vote, get a driver’s license … and that’s it. But some state colleges may not recognize a residency established by an undergrad under age 23, even if that person is self-supporting and living apart from their parents.</p>
<p>early_college, on the finances, I understand your family situation, because I am also self employed. Unfortunately it puts your family in a terrible position for need-based financial aid. Your dad probably makes too much money for you to qualify for a Pell grant; most private colleges would want to look carefully at his tax schedules or a business tax statement, and may impute income to him that he doesn’t actually have, or refuse to consider deductions for certain business expenses, and his fluctuating income means that even if you did get need-based aid somewhere, it would fluctuate along with the income. The more money he made one year, the more the college would expect the next.</p>
<p>If you were the younger of two siblings, I can see your parents deciding to suck it up and put everything they had behind you – but with two other younger ones, I don’t see how any responsible parent would make that choice. They simply need to conserve their resources and do their best to plan and provide for all 4. I’m sure your dad works hard, and your mom may be thinking that it’s a losing financial proposition to go back go work and also pay for someone to take care of your little sister when she’s not home, especially in this economy when it won’t be easy for her to find high-paying work. </p>
<p>It does sound like your parents are supportive of your goals and my guess is that they will be able to come up with $10-$15K a year to subsidize your college – but that still leaves a huge gap to fill. </p>
<p>Just so you know, I am going to tell you what rich people do when they’ve got a kid in your situation. The hire a personal tutor for their kid to help with test prep, and they send the kid for a 13th year of high school – a “post grad” year at a fancy prep school, to clean up the GPA. Of course the kid has to buy into that and work hard at the prep school – but the point is, they find a a way to clean up the record.</p>
<p>Poor people don’t have that option, but that’s why many go the community college to 4 year college route. A kid who can’t get into a good college based on the high school GPA may be able to get into a much better college as a transfer student from a community college with strong grades. (Of course, weak grades at community college won’t help much). </p>
<p>Anyway, I’m just telling you this so you keep in mind that there is nothing to be ashamed of if you find that it doesn’t work out for you to go directly to a 4 year college after high school.</p>
<p>EC-
Have you noticed that you are getting the same advice that you got last year, and the year before?? Apologies, but your repeat the same stuff over and over. And the word “BUT” really needs to be eliminated from your vocabulary. So you have a list of what you DO WANT. Take that and plug it, along with your stats, into the many college search programs available on line (as I mentioned, CC has one – USE IT!!) and find the schools that fit your crtiteria-- which MUST include affordability. DO it, and report back here with what schools you have found.</p>
<p>Maybe you should direct your dad to collegboard, and he would realize that VCU is FAR from a joke for you.Your scores are mediocre at best for them. I don’t want to be cruel, but please, please after two years face the facts. Please get a realistic grasp on your options. Let’s put everything else aside. If your parents can contribute 20K a year to your school, where can you go? The schools you want are much more expensive and you do not have the scores or GPA to get merit aid. That takes you down to schools that are $20,000 or less. You need to face the reality that you will need to go to a Georgia State school, at least at the beginning.
My daughter wanted to leave Georgia as well (and she did) but if had stayed here, she would have been attending classes, whether 30 or 500 kids, and getting the education she wanted, and isn’t that your ultimate goal?</p>
<p>Man up, realize your options and move forward. All this time you spend pining over unrealistic options could be put to better use. Good luck.</p>
<p>“A kid who can’t get into a good college based on the high school GPA may be able to get into a much better college as a transfer student from a community college with strong grades.”</p>
<p>Transfer from community college is certainly an option. But early-college, please remember that there are lots of “good” college to which you can apply (w/o going to comm college first) - - the list is not limited to those in the top 50-70. </p>
<p>Also, please consider suburban schools or those in small towns. As CCobsessed points out, city life is VERY expensive. All that stuff that you find attracative costs money. And who wants to sit home while more affluent students are hopping in cabs to go shopping, to shows/concerts, to clubs and to dinner - - heck, a movie costs $10+. </p>
<p>In short, start with affordability, be realistic about your stats and then idenitfy the factors where you are willing to be flexible (size? location? availability of a particular major?).</p>
<p>I am open to suburban/rural schools. Urban schools were just a preference. I am also very open to many different majors. I know people at VSU and their scores may have been the same/better, but their class rigor was not. My GPA would be much higher if I took the same type of classes they took. I am also not threatening to drop down to college prep classes. Also, a lot of my options are not unrealistic academically but the finances are holding me back. I’m sure there are many OOS which are matches but are unfordable. How about a school like Susquehanna or Wittenberg? I also am not that in love with Evergreen that I would move there and try and establish residency.</p>
<p>SUNY New Paltz and Purchase: 96%
Salem State: 88%
Montclair State: 88%
William Patterson:88%
Morgan State:88%
Delaware State: 88%
California State University, Bakersfield: 88%
California State University, San Bernardino: 88%
Norfolk State: 87%
Methodist U: 88%
SUNY Albany: 85%
Mass College of Liberal Arts: 85%
U West GA: 82%
U of New Haven:81%
Adelphi U: 81%
Sonoma State: 78%
Salve Regina: 78%
Sarah Lawrence: 83%</p>
<p>Since your parents income fluctuates, you need to sit down and ask them point blank how much can they write a check for each year, then start to make your list.</p>
<p>I have already done this and I always get a different answer. “I dont know” is an answer I get a lot from my father. My father also thinks he can afford more then my mother thinks we can afford. My father also suggests that he doesn’t know yet how much we can afford.</p>
<p>“a lot of my options are not unrealistic academically but the finances are holding me back.”</p>
<p>No point debating the first half of that quote (unrealistic academics) if the second half is true (finances holding you back). </p>
<p>A number of posters (myself included), think that the top-tier schools 100% need) are out of reach, but as long as you have a financial safety (in-state public) - - sure, go for the gold. But if your list consists of your safety and only/primarily the top-tier schools (as opposed to the less compet schools suggested), be prepared to attend the safety.</p>
<hr>
<p>SUNYs tend to be an OOS bargain - - but will still run more than $20K. Also, given NYS budget (not as bad as the CA budget), tuition and fees will be increasing.</p>
<p>You need to raise your GPA and SAT/ACT scores in order to have a decent shot at New Paltz.
Colleges focus on your transcript through junior year when they review your application for admission.</p>
<p>What kind of high school average is expected?</p>
<p>Our review of your academic work will be by academic year. </p>
<p>We can get a clear, year-by-year picture of your achievement and motivation throughout the course of your high school career.</p>
<p>As so many high schools now present weighted averages, we may recalculate the overall average in accordance with the high school profile if a significant difference is noted between the overall high school average and the end of year averages for individual core courses. We will use only the five core subjects when recalculating your average.</p>
<p>For freshmen accepted to the fall of 2010 class, the mean high school average is 92.0.</p>
<p>Let me guess: dad brings home the paychecks and mom pays the bills. In that case, trust your mom, because she’s going to be writing the checks.</p>
<p>However, what are your brothers and sisters doing? Surely they aren’t going to pay $20k for you and leave the rest in the dust, and $80k/year is ridiculous.</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d give whichever parent pays the bills a list–two columns–one of the college, and one of the expected cost. No financial aid. With your GPA etc. I’d assume you’re going to be paying for at least 75% of that. Ask him to cross off the ones that are too expensive so you know where not to waste your money applying (assuming his income stays the same, which it’s likely to over at least a couple of years). This might help them pin it down.</p>
<p>Then leave it for a little bit and go study. For the amount of time you’ve spent on this thread you could have done at least one practice SAT!</p>
<p>early_college has already explained that his father is self-employed and the income fluctuates. Which probably means that the father really doesn’t know – the mom likely doesn’t know any more than the dad – since he could be bringing home $80K one year and $20K the next. That’s just what life is like for a lot of self-employed people.</p>
<p>College_ruled: I have looked at GCSU and I am planning on applying to it. However, it is a little conservative (like the rest of Georgia) and I do not really like the area. My mother is a teacher, so our income was a lot more when she was working. She is taking off time to be with my younger sister (who is 1). She doesn’t just pay the bills, but she has contributed a lot of money over the years. My dad made about 90k before he started his own business (plus my mothers income). He has months when he can make nothing, but then has other months when everything comes at once. He really doesn’t know. My older brother is going to technical school which won’t cost much with the Hope Grant. He will be living at home. My younger brother will be a freshman in high school this fall, but I have no idea where he will go. He is actually taking the same schedule I did freshman year (the most rigorous offered), but things come to him easier. My sister is one, lol. My parents have time to think about college for her. My parents never saved up money for college. Instead, they had to work on paying bills and getting us a nice house. My mother had my brother at 22, so my parents had children young. </p>
<p>I guess I plan on applying to VSU and GCSU and the rest SAT Optional Colleges. I know I may have to stay instate, but I won’t be shocked come April. I think I may just plan on taking the ACT again in June even though I did a little worse. It seems much easier to prep for. What do you guys think?</p>