<p>Hey, I’ve been looking at some pretty top notch schools (Columbia, UPenn, Hopkins, etc.) but my parents recently informed me that it’s going to be a ton cheaper for me to go to a school that DOESN’T require the PROFILE because of the way financial aid works (FAFSA is fine). What are high quality schools that offer a decent engineering but are still pretty well-rounded and don’t require the PROFILE? I’ve been looking primarily along the east coast, especially the northeast, but I’m definitely open to colleges in the midwest or south as well (possibly west coast but probably not). Size-wise I’ve been looking at schools around 4-10k but I’m fairly flexible. Also I know Princeton doesn’t require it but that’s a bit out of reach (acceptance-wise). Thanks!</p>
<p>Here are the schools that use the Profile. <a href=“https://profileonline.collegeboard.com/prf/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet.srv[/url]”>https://profileonline.collegeboard.com/prf/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet/PXRemotePartInstitutionServlet.srv</a> Compare that with your overall list. Princeton doesn’t use the Profile but they use their own forms asking for the same data.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, all of the schools I’m looking at so far (except my safety) do use the Profile. What I really need help with is finding some schools NOT on the list that are similar to the ones I was looking at and generally fit into the parameters listed above.</p>
<p>Your other posts indicate a 4.0 GPA and 34 ACT. That’s a near-full ride to University of Alabama - Huntsville, which is just about the right size (about 6,000 undergraduates). May be worth considering as your safety if money is really tight.</p>
<p>Rochester Institute of Technology (NY)
Clarkson University (NY) </p>
<p>Alfred University (NY) has its own FA appllication which mimics the CSS PROFILE and asks the same questions as the PROFILE. I see that it is on the PROFILE LIST, but they don’t require it. </p>
<p>With your stats you could get $15,000/year in merit aid at Alfred University, getting the COA down to about $25,000/year. </p>
<p>Alfred University (NY), established in 1836 in the small charming village of Alfred, NY, over 40 majors (some are through NYS public programs) merit aid, need-based aid, small classes-know your professors. About 2,000 plus undergrads, housing available for all 4 years, bus service to NYC at peak break times, shuttles to Rochester airport at peak break times, no Greek Life. Many clubs, organizations, AU publishes a monthly guide for students as to what is happening on & around the campus. </p>
<p>Princeton Review’s Best 377
USNWR’s Great Schools Great Prices
Fiske Guide 2012
Fiske Guide Best Value
Fiske Small Schools Strong in Engineering
Fiske Small Schools Strong in Art & Design
Princeton Review’s Best 294 Business Schools
Washington Monthly - #8 For Master Degree Institutions
US News Ultimate College Guide-Best Value </p>
<p>Honors Program (must interview) Co-op for Engineering, rolling admissions (be nice to have an acceptance in hand before December holidays) </p>
<p>Still under $40,000/year, so it is really a great value for a private university.
A Regional University in the USNWR’s categories. </p>
<p>[Alfred</a> University : Academics : Degrees/Majors](<a href=“http://alfred.edu/academics/degrees_majors.cfm]Alfred”>http://alfred.edu/academics/degrees_majors.cfm) Majors </p>
<p>[Alfred</a> University : Honors Program](<a href=“http://alfred.edu/honors/]Alfred”>http://alfred.edu/honors/) Honors Program </p>
<p>[Alfred</a> University : Academics](<a href=“http://www.alfred.edu/academics/]Alfred”>Academics | Alfred University) Academics </p>
<p>[Alfred</a> University - Inamori School of Engineering - Undergraduate Programs](<a href=“http://engineering.alfred.edu/undergrad/]Alfred”>http://engineering.alfred.edu/undergrad/) Inamori School of Engineering </p>
<p>[Alfred</a> University - Inamori School of Engineering - Co-Op Education](<a href=“http://engineering.alfred.edu/undergrad/coop.cfm]Alfred”>http://engineering.alfred.edu/undergrad/coop.cfm) Co-op Engineering </p>
<p>[Alfred</a> University : Financial Aid : Undergraduate Freshmen Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.alfred.edu/finaid/scholarships/]Alfred”>http://www.alfred.edu/finaid/scholarships/) Merit Aid Incoming Freshmen </p>
<p>Best of luck to you in your college search!</p>
<p>I think your parents may be grossly misunderstanding how FAFSA only schools work.</p>
<p>It sounds like your parents realize that CSS schools will look at home equity or value of a business, etc, so your family will end up with a lower EFC at FAFSA only schools.</p>
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<p>Well, guess what? FAFSA only schools often don’t give much/any need-based aid beyond the small amounts of Federal aid which is only for low income kids.</p>
<p>If your EFC is, say, $15,000 per year, and you get accepted to a FAfSA only private, you might get gapped $30,000+</p>
<p>Do you realize that schools don’t have to do ANYTHING with your FAFSA EFC except see if you qualify for little bits of federal aid? These school are under NO obligation to fill your need. </p>
<p>There aren’t FAFSA-only schools that are generous with aid. There’s a reason why gernous schools use CSS Profile. They want to make sure that their money is going to truly deserving students. </p>
<p>What have your parents estimated your FAFSA EFC to be? </p>
<p>There’s a large risk that you’re going about this wrong. You may end up with a lower EFC at a FAFSA only school, but only end up with a $5500 student loan. </p>
<p>Since you have an ACT 34, I suggest that you ALSO apply to a few schools that will give you large merit for your stats. </p>
<p>How much will your parents pay each year for college?</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships-6.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships-6.html</a></p>
<p>Look at post 112 above for ASSURED full tuition scholarships or more at various schools.</p>
<p>Univ of Alabama would give you full tuition for your stats. If you major in Eng’g, then the school would give you an ADDITIONAL 2500 per year. Total value of the two scholarships is about $100k.</p>
<p>Excellent advice from mom2…run calculators, cast a wide net. Assume nothing until the acceptances and FA offers are in.</p>
<p>Thanks! The tricky part is my parents run their own business and so their income is very inconsistent and so the calculators are hard to use accurately. And SLUMOM, Alfred seems nice but only has about a 75% freshmen retention rate. Do you know why? Also I don’t need a full ride or anything, I’m just looking for a decent school that won’t cost me 30k a year.</p>
<p>On the average, about 30% of college students transfer (USNWR) if Alfred has a Freshmen retention rate of 75% that is rather respectable. So many kids these days do transfer, drop out, leave because of money, maybe changed their major and school they have enrolled in does not have a strong department in that particular major. </p>
<p>The School of Engineering & School of Art & Design seem to be the ones that have the most drop outs, according to my daughter, who is presently enrolled there. Some students have to leave due to academics.</p>
<p>I’m running into the same problem as I look at schools with my son. We have a partnership where our income is based on assets under management. When the stock market tanks, so does our income. The buy-out value of the business is roughly $1.3 million, but we can’t just sell off part, liquidate part, or fire some employees to come up with money from the business. The business is our retirement “nest egg” - if we’d have put money into IRAs instead we wouldn’t have the problem we currently face.</p>
<p>Part of the problem is that money that would’ve been saved for college got spent on private high school for both kids. The older one had lots of trouble at the public HS & the private HS was instrumental in turning things around. Difficulty came when son said he wanted to join his sister since she was so happy with where she was.</p>
<p>Consolation states “Assume nothing until the acceptances and FA offers are in”. Easier said than done. I’ve run calculators on 10+ engineering schools and the most we qualify for is a smattering of small ($5,000) loans. Big whoop. We’ve started looking through Scholarship books and it’s so depressing to see that the majority expect us to be Native American, Hispanic, Black, blind, missing a limb, have disabled or deceased parents, relatives who served in a war, etc. Equally frustrating is that so many of these scholarship requirements also state “must demonstrate financial need”. My kid is above-average but not stellar enough to qualify for merit scholarships (3.6 GPA and a 30 ACT composite). We are already paying full cost for our daughter who has 2 more years of nursing school. Applying to schools with the idea you’ll worry about the cost later is foolish - why get your kid’s hopes up only to see him accepted & find the cost is prohibitive. Best to winnow the list to what you can afford and go from there.</p>
<p>Trinity University in San Antonio is an overlooked gem. They have three concentrations in engineering, all ABET accredited. A brand new $100,000,000+ Center for Science and Innovation will soon be completed. Very pretty campus, tuition lower than many comparable schools, generous w/merit and FA. Not a PROFILE school, ~2500UG students, endowment of ~$1B, yes, $1B.</p>
<p>*I’ve run calculators on 10+ engineering schools and the most we qualify for is a smattering of small ($5,000) loans. Big whoop. We’ve started looking through Scholarship books and it’s so depressing to see that the majority expect us to be Native American, Hispanic, Black, blind, missing a limb, have disabled or deceased parents, relatives who served in a war, etc. Equally frustrating is that so many of these scholarship requirements also state “must demonstrate financial need”. </p>
<p>My kid is above-average but not stellar enough to qualify for merit scholarships (3.6 GPA and a 30 ACT composite). We are already paying full cost for our daughter who has 2 more years of nursing school. Applying to schools with the idea you’ll worry about the cost later is foolish*</p>
<p>With an ACT 30 and a 3.5+ GPA, your son would get a 2/3 tuition scholarship to Alabama…that’s worth about $15k per year! Remaining costs would be about $17k per year. this is for ANY major as long as he applies before Dec 1st and submits the scholarship app. The apps are QUICK and easy.</p>
<p>AND…if he majors in Engineering or Comp Sci, then he gets an ADDITIONAL 1/3 tuition scholarship PLUS $2500 per year…so full tuition PLUS 2500 per year. Remaining costs would be about $10k per year!!!</p>
<p>Bama has a brand new mega-sized Science and Engineering Complex…800,000 square feet of new academic STEM space. New labs, new equipment, state of the art, breathtaking.</p>
<p>Alabama is gorgeous, has strong academics, and is FRIENDLY. </p>
<p>What is his likely major?</p>
<p>He’s looking at mechanical engineering with a special interest in cars. He enjoyed his aviation classes so he’s also considering aeronautical/aerospace engineering. He’s also developing an interest in computers so may look at computer engineering. He’d prefer something other than our state school (UW-Madison) since we live in the Madison area. Alabama is pretty far away & likely has no ice hockey (he was hoping for intramural or club hockey), but it’s certainly worth investigating! He loved Notre Dame (I thought it was a good fit too - the size and overall feel of the campus) and he also really likes Purdue. He’d prefer NOT to go to somewhere like Kettering or MSOE - he wants a place where there are other types of majors in case he changes his mind. We’ve already told him paying for UW Madison is a real stretch but that we think it’s important for our kids to NOT end up with a pile of debt. That said, if he wants something other than Madison he has to figure out how to pay the difference himself. Hence the frustration - knowing that his GPA & SAT/ACT are likely not high enough to get a Purdue merit scholarship and then finding very few viable alternatives. I know I can’t count on winning the lottery (darn!).</p>
<p>Re: #11 and #14</p>
<p>3.5 GPA with 30 ACT will get a full tuition + $2,500 scholarship at Alabama for engineering majors. Remaining cost would probably be about $12,000 per year. [Scholarships</a> - Undergraduate Students - The College of Engineering - The University of Alabama](<a href=“http://eng.ua.edu/undergraduate/scholarships/]Scholarships”>Scholarships – College of Engineering | The University of Alabama)</p>
<p>However, the scholarship is only 2/3 tuition if not in engineering, as described in post #13.</p>
<p>Prairie View A&M has a full ride for 3.50 GPA and 26 ACT, but it is in Texas. [University</a> Scholarships](<a href=“http://pvamu.edu/pages/2154.asp]University”>http://pvamu.edu/pages/2154.asp)</p>
<p>Minnesota has tuition reciprocity with Wisconsin, so its cost will be about $25,000 per year for you as Wisconsin residents (instead of about $30,000 per year for other non-residents). [Estimating</a> your costs](<a href=“http://onestop.umn.edu/finances/costs_and_tuition/cost_of_attendance/index.html?year=2012-13&residency=resident&program=undergrad&CSOM=false]Estimating”>http://onestop.umn.edu/finances/costs_and_tuition/cost_of_attendance/index.html?year=2012-13&residency=resident&program=undergrad&CSOM=false)</p>
<p>South Dakota Mines is about $23,000 per year out of state. [Full</a> Time Undergraduate Students](<a href=“HPC Page”>Full Time Undergraduate Students)</p>
<p>He’s looking at mechanical engineering with a special interest in cars</p>
<p>Well then, certainly apply to Bama. Mercedes Benz has it only US plant in Tuscaloosa. </p>
<p>As an engineering major, he’d get FULL tuition PLUS 2500 per year if he applies before Dec 1st! This is a combo of two scholarships…they stack…he’d get BOTH.</p>
<p>Plus, he qualifies for the Honors College and can live in honors housing.</p>
<p>And, you thought that his stats wouldn’t get great merit. ;)</p>
<p>Visit the Bama forum here on CC. It’s one of the most popular college forums. You’ll meet students and Bama parents from all over the country.
[University</a> of Alabama - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-alabama/]University”>University of Alabama - College Confidential Forums)</p>
<p>This fall, 55% of the freshmen were from OOS.</p>
<p>Here’s a graphic showing the states where those OOS frosh came from…
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-alabama/1396126-graphic-crimson-white-showing-origin-oos-students-2012-fall-freshman-class.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-alabama/1396126-graphic-crimson-white-showing-origin-oos-students-2012-fall-freshman-class.html</a></p>
<p>Alabama-Huntsville has Division I hockey, and your son would qualify for full tuition there with 31 ACT or 1360 SAT. It’s a good engineering school, but with or without hockey most students would probably prefer the flagship university experience at Alabama.</p>
<p>Clemson is one of the better schools for automotive engineering in the country (BMW connection) and he would have a shot at merit aid there also. (Sorry, no hockey.)</p>
<p>Bama has club hockey…the Frozen Tide
[Bama</a> Hockey | The University of Alabama Frozen Tide](<a href=“http://bamahockey.net/]Bama”>http://bamahockey.net/)</p>