<p>I have a 4.0 GPA and 2280 SAT with good extra curriculars but that isn’t what this is about. I set my sights high but I know that no one is a shoe in at some of the schools I really want to go to, even people with better stats me.</p>
<p>What are good schools that still have a lot to offer but which I can count on getting into more? I mean good in terms of opportunities they can provide for me in life and also in terms of financial aid, which are the two biggest selling points of some of the name-brand colleges I’m looking at.</p>
<p>Adding to the above questions which are important…</p>
<p>How much will your parents pay? If you don’t know ask.</p>
<p>What schools are you considering so far?</p>
<p>In addition to your major, what is your likely career?</p>
<p>*and also in terms of financial aid, which are the two biggest selling points of some of the name-brand colleges I’m looking at. *</p>
<p>Well…even schools that give SUPER AID aid (HYPS), do not give GREAT aid to those who earn too much and/or have too much in assets.</p>
<p>For instance…my cousin’s son is at Stanford (one of those 4 or 5 schools that give super aid). however, they didn’t get very much “free money” at all. Dad is a commercial pilot. They have a good amount of equity in their home and a good amount of savings. It was shocking to them. He was also accepted to MIT, which offered NOTHING. </p>
<p>So…my point is that even at schools that give GREAT aid, you may not get as much as your family needs…depending on your situation.</p>
<p>Shorecrest, the first thing we did with our son, is look for schools where he was certain to be admitted that we could afford. The state school were the obvious first choice as they cost the least. In fact, he could go to our local state school and pay it all himself if he commuted. Also some local colleges are generous to kids with his stats and so we included them on the list. Again if he commuted, they were affordable. Our state has pretty low tuition, so we included some of those schools that required room/board and they were still affordable. We then looked at schools where he was at the top end of their stats and added them to the list with hopes that he would get merit money. We also looked at some OOS schools that were not that expensive for OOS kids. </p>
<p>Had we been eligible for financial aid, we would have added some schools that meet most need as we worked our way up the scale. In fact, we did include such schools as reach schools. He got into a number of such schools, but no aid, no merit but for one, and that was a surprise.</p>
<p>I live in Washington and my family is self-employed in eco-building, which has sucked the last couple years. Five years ago we would not have been eligible for much financial aid, but in 2009 and 2010 we made half as much as before. And our assets are pretty much gone completely.</p>
<p>Paying for college is looking scarier and scarier, since the UW just raised tuition 20%…</p>
<p>I want to student international relations, politics, and maybe Middle Eastern studies. My dream job would be with the State Department or an NGO, that kind of thing. So far I’ve considered Columbia and Georgetown (as reaches, of course) because of their prowess in the fields I’m interested in, but I don’t really know what schools are good for this area without being super hard to get into/super expensive.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your replies though! I would have replied to your replies sooner but I’m new to CC and I couldn’t figure out how…hehe.</p>
<p>Not really a safety with your numbers, but easier to get into than Georgetown or Columbia, Tufts is a good option. It has arguably the best undergrad international relations program in the country and sends many grands into NGOs.</p>