Go to the program, that will answer your questions better than any here. And you should get a very good aid package if you are low income, yes they should really meet your need. 4 AP is decent, but it is possible you might have to work hard to adjust. Even though my daughter went to a private school she had to adjust to a rigorous college. I see you are from Tennessee so you shouldn’t have a huge culture shock. Vanderbilt is 64 pct white, almost 9 pct Afr. American, so there is reasonable diversity, they have made an effort so you can feel they are committed. A friend of mine has a black friend going to a smaller school with 85% white and he is having a great time. He is also low income from a poor school but it was a magnet type school and he had good preparation.