<p>to start im black, and the son of a single mom. statistically i should be taking AP skipping instead of AP Chem for 3rd period. im asking how much of this actually matters. i have a 3.5 gpa, an 1860 sat, and would like to go to schools like duke, gtown, and sc. i know i would be a long shot for ivies, but my family keeps pushing me to think about them. the more and more i read this site the faster the hope dissipates from me. everyone tells me how great my grades are but they cant hold a candle to the people on this site. neither can my extracurriculars. i played football sophomore year and just recently got a job. thats pretty much it. i cant participate in alot of things because my mom has to work and wont risk her job for whatever little thing im trying to do. its been that way my whole life and ive gotten used to it. i just fear may 1 when i get rejection after rejection and end up going to a backup which i am not too keen on. Opinions and advice would be appreciated.</p>
<p>I would suggest that you try the historically black colleges who can find funds for you. The Black colleges try really hard to help. I would suggest Tuskegee, Spellman and Howard.
It don’t matter where you go, as long as you go somewhere.</p>
<p>When you write your essay, make sure you include that in your explanation of why you are low in ec’s.</p>
<p>Well, if you have at least a 3.5 GPA and 1760 SAT CR+M+W, you get an automatic near-full ride to Prairie View A&M (Regents’ Student Merit Scholarship):
[University</a> Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.pvamu.edu/pages/2154.asp]University”>http://www.pvamu.edu/pages/2154.asp)
A guaranteed acceptance with a near-full ride is a nice thing to have if you come from a family without much money (which it sounds like from your description).</p>
<p>Here are some more big merit scholarship possibilities:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html</a></p>
<p>You may want to try the ACT, since some students do a lot better on the ACT than the SAT.</p>
<p>Also, be sure to check the net price calculator on each school’s web site to get an idea of what kind of need-based financial aid it offers.</p>
<p>Please don’t think that the students represented on this site are typical. They aren’t. Many, many students from all over the country get into the thousands of colleges without having 4.0 GPA’s and perfect SATs. If you want to apply to an Ivy or two, go for it, but also be realistic and apply to schools more likely to accept you.</p>
<p>The idea of an HBCU which would not only accept you but give you a full ride is a good one, though I suggest you not apply to Spelman if you are a male! The male equivalent would be Morehouse. Those two are highly selective, though, so take a look at the different ones and see where your grades and SAT’s fit with a full ride. </p>
<p>And please don’t let anyone tell you that they are worthless-some pretty notable people have graduated from HBCU’s and they produce a large number of the black med school students and science graduate school candidates. My own D has her sights set on Spelman, but has others in mind too. You won’t find much information about them here on CC, but loot around the web and you will find some helpful info. IF you can, look into an HBCU tour-some are subsidized and are very affordable.</p>
<p>Good luck, wherever you land.</p>