Here’s the thing: on your journey to further your education, you’re going to meet a lot of people who have good intentions for you and may have a certain idea about what you want. So if you were applying early action, and some of these dates, at some of the schools, are early, your counselor probably thought about meeting early entrance requirements to meet those early dates. Don’t blame anyone for your decisions.
So learn this: Ultimately you are responsible for anything that impacts your life and your future.
You may get advice so you should appreciate the people are trying to help you. If something is not confirmed, it’s on you to get online and confirm dates.
The people on this forum are going to give you advice but you need to follow up and make sure it’s correct. The easiest way to do that is get on the Web and learn about the colleges directly from their websites. Find out how much school is going to cost you.
Indicating that you are a US citizen but live in India, does not mean that you get carte blanche to get funding from the schools.
Understand that if you are applying to a school, that is funded by the state government of that state, you’re going to be considered out of state. You’ll pay full fees for most of them.
Example: For any of the UC’s, because you aren’t a resident nor a graduate from high school in California, you’re not getting instate rates because neither you nor your parents reside in the state of California. That’ll run you about $75,000 per year. There is no financial aid for nonresident students because the funding comes from the taxes of the State of California.
So how does your US citizenship help you? As a citizen you can file the FAFSA to qualify for grants and loans from the US federal government. But, be aware that that funding is really small amounts. The majority of funding for scholarships comes directly from the universities them selves. Private schools tend to have more money.
I would strongly suggest you do a Chance Me/Match Me thread. That way folks will know your whole academic profile, and not just your SAT score. And the members here can give you their opinions about your chances at the three schools you mentioned here, and suggest additional options.
Please include your annual budget for college costs. You do qualify for aid as any other U.S. citizen, but that doesn’t mean all colleges will cover sufficiently your costs to attend.
If your income dropped significantly, you could be eligible for a fee waiver as a US citizen - I think the threshold is something like 45k but you need to look it up yourself and hurry because there’s extra time to process the request and different deadlines, it may be a matter of days.
Next, are you Pell eligible and do you know your SAI? If you don’t know, check if you’re Pell grant eligible here: https://studentaid.gov/aid-estimator/
It matters because Pell is an important marker for colleges.
Public universities won’t be affordable unless your parents are still official residents of that State.
You should focus on universities that meet need or close, where your scores would be fine or where you could be test optional (Gettysburg, Dickinson, St Lawrence, Skidmore, Muhlenberg, Macalester, Kenyon, Bates… All come to mind).
If you’re a girl, women’s colleges could be of interest. HBCUs also could be of interest to a history major, Howard with its setting in DC in particular (though you’d have to qualify for merit scholarships).
Further expanding, a ten point difference could be the same raw score or even a better score. In math for example, one missed question can result in scores between 760 and 800 depending on the curve.
Look at MIZZOU. It was the first J-school in the nation and your SAT will be fine.
Maybe. They’d automatically get Mark Twain Level I ($21,500/year) with a 1390 and a 3.8 or higher. The rest would depend on what the FAFSA shows after the change in parent employment status.
OP, I think you’d be much more “screwed” if you weren’t a US citizen. If you were an international applicant with high financial need, then yes, you’d probably need the very high SAT score you wanted, to compete for the limited funded spots available.
Luckily, you’re a domestic applicant. Lots of domestic applicants with strong transcripts like yours apply test optional… plus, a 1390 is fine for many good schools.
However…
Were you targeting Maryland and Georgia in hopes of getting one of their very competitive full rides? Those are long shots for almost everyone, and I’m not sure how a non-resident family “in a tight spot financially” could afford these schools otherwise.
Wake, on the other hand, would meet your documented need if you got in. The possible problem there is that if your dad’s job loss is recent, your first-year aid could be automatically based on his income while he was still working. (Although, worst-case, you could defer a year to let the FAFSA catch up with your financial reality.)
They do not give a lot of weight to test scores when evaluating your application. GPA, Class Rank, Rigor, and Essay are all “very important,” but standardized test scores are merely “considered if submitted.”
In the most recent CDS, only 26% of entering students submitted an SAT score when they applied, and 22% submitted the ACT. So at minimum, 52% of entering students were test-optional - possibly more if the SAT and ACT-submitting groups overlapped.
So yes, your 1390 is below 25th percentile, but that’s only among the less-than-half of students who submitted scores, who are obviously the higher-scoring <half.
Your bigger possible disadvantage at Wake is that they aren’t need-blind, so requiring a lot of financial aid may put you at a disadvantage, but it’s hard to say to what extent. Many need-aware schools only consider financial need for “toss-up” students; if they really want to admit you on the first pass, they may not look at financials at all.
If it appears that you’d get enough aid, and it’s your true favorite among schools that meet need, then applying Early Decision could help your chances.
All first-year applicants must submit results of the SAT and/or the ACT in order to be considered for admission, per University System of Georgia requirements. Keep in mind that in our holistic review process, tests are only one of many factors used to make admission decisions
Like Ga Tech, UGA requires test scores, as mandated by the state.
Standardized Tests
For Spring/Summer/Fall 2022 and beyond, SAT/ACT scores will be required for First Year and Dual Enrollment applicants. Scores must be submitted electronically by the respective testing agency.
Neither UGA nor GTech would be affordable unless OPs parents have retained residency in Georgia.
Overall, OOS public universities aren’t the best choice for a high need applicant.
Why Wake (Southern state? Greek life? Proximity to relatives? Legacy?..)