<p>Anybody can apply to and attend an HBCU - it stands for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. That just means they were opened to serve the part of the population that couldn’t go to other colleges because of segregation. Historically, they were attended by black students. Not as much anymore, though the percentage of ethnic minorities will be higher than most other schools.</p>
<p>Thanks CTScoutmom! That was helpful.</p>
<p>I just wanted to clear something up. Your posts make it seem like you think all high school students in the U.S. go to wonderful big schools with lots of classes & opportunities and the best & brightest teachers. That is simply not the case. Many, many kids go to schools with no AP or honors classes with budgets so tight they cannot afford to hire elective teachers so there are no choices in classes.</p>
<p>Yeah, that’s the sort of plan I have. What other choice do I have besides work-study programs and loans?</p>
<p>Keep in mind that work-study is only for about $2k per year, and YOU can only borrow about $5500 per year and that amount will likely already be in your FA pkg. Your mom won’t qualify to co-sign other loans (low income and not a citizen).</p>
<p>One thing I noticed in your posts was your reference to “need-blind.” Need blind means that admissions does not take into consideration your need when they evaluate your application. It does not necessarily mean that they meet your need after acceptance. You need to search for colleges that “meet need.” Now, colleges that say they are need blind generally are colleges that do have good financial aid, but I wanted to make sure you understood the distinction.</p>
<p>@ momofthreeboys </p>
<p>Believe it or not, no one has told me this before. NOW I understand. I looked up the 4 need-blind schools and checked whether or not they are on the “schools-that-meet-need” list, but they weren’t. But almost all the other ones from the need-blind admissions list were there and they’re all competitive for me. I’m totally out of the league.</p>
<p>These are the schools I compiled so far:</p>
<p>1) Coppin State University</p>
<p>2) Fisk University</p>
<p>3) Hampton University</p>
<p>4) Tuskegee University </p>
<p>5) Dillard University </p>
<p>6) North Carolina A&T </p>
<p>7) Berea College </p>
<p>8) Prairie View A & M </p>
<p>9) Denison U</p>
<p>10) Knox College</p>
<p>Are these schools doable considering my criteria? Am I in the right track now?</p>
<p>@ juillet Thanks again for the list.</p>
<p>Ahmed315 - sign up for and take the ACT and SAT as soon as possible. Until you have those scores you won’t know where you stand regarding possible merit aid. You can take online practice tests to get used to the format, get an idea of some areas you might need to work on, and also to get an estimate of how you might score.</p>
<p>I’m on it, sir. I’ll give it my best shot. </p>
<p>Thanks for everything, CC.</p>
<p>Here’s the link to our own xiggi’s test-prep advice. Although it is written for the SAT, the strategies will help you with the ACT as well: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/68210-xiggis-sat-prep-advice.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/68210-xiggis-sat-prep-advice.html</a></p>
<p>Not sure why 4.8/5 makes you non-competitive. There are also some “meet full need” colleges that do not require SAT submission for admissions. Ahmed, you have got to get your hands on a general college guide like Fiske or Princeton Review and read up at finaid.org.</p>
<p>@ happymomof1</p>
<p>Thanks. I’ll take the SATs anyway.</p>
<p>@ lookingforward</p>
<p>Seriously??? No requirements of SAT submissions at “meet-full-need” schools?</p>
<p>I looked up the list, they all seemed to have requirements for SAT scores. I might’ve missed a few. Can you please name some schools? I’d really appreciate it.</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I just got a list of schools where SAT scores aren’t required: abcnews.go.com › US</p>
<p>I’ll have to check whether or not they are on the “meet full need” schools list.</p>
<p>Okay, I got Gettysburg College ¶ and Pitzer College (CA) and a few scools from Maine which are on the list of schools where SAT scores aren’t required and also on the “meet full need” schools list.</p>
<p>There also is a list of no-exam and exam optional institutions at [The</a> National Center for Fair & Open Testing | FairTest](<a href=“http://www.fairtest.org%5DThe”>http://www.fairtest.org)</p>
<p>Any guarantee, anything, even on the college website has to be checked out because things change. I’ve run into this a number of times where either I clicked onto an older web page with obsolete information, or it simply was not updated. Sometimes the information is even in error, with misleading language. So these things have to be checked out by the department in charge and current with the information.</p>
<p>Same with advice and info on this board. A lot of things have changed since my kids applied to college, as I’ve learned from others’ more current experiences. You have to check out everything.</p>
<p>Please don’t be relying on wiki and abcnews- not when you can get to more direct sources. </p>
<p>Also, ^ right, check dates: eg, after the 2008 financial crisis, some schools altered their needs blind policies, some subsequently returned to them. Doesn’t mater which; what matters is that you ensure your info is correct today.</p>