<p>That’s about it. Money’s an issue, and while my parents are certainly willing to help me, I think a lot of the debt will fall on my shoulders upon graduation - and I’m going to college for musical theatre so that whole debt thing will be an issue.</p>
<p>Baldwin-Wallace $23,524
Cal State - Chico $5,532
Elon University $24,076
U of Hartford $26,942
Illinois Wesleyan $32,260
James Madison $18,458
New York University $38,874
Northwestern $36,756
Oklahoma City U $21,400
Pace University $30,632
Penn State U $24,248
University of Mich $16,440
University of No. Col $9,225
University of P.S. $33,780 </p>
<p>Also, which schools would give good scholarships? 3.99 Cumulative UW GPA, 730 CR, 650 W, 530 SAT scores (retaking them to try to get the 530 M score up), good ECs and essays. </p>
<p>But should I just delete NYU, Illinois Wesleyan, etc. from my list because they’re so expensive? Or are their scholarships so awesome that it won’t really matter? But then I think, well, even if NYU gives me a $15,000 scholarship I still probably can’t afford to go. </p>
<p>I want my list to be at ten schools so I have a ways to go…should I consider cost as a factor?</p>
<p>First, what are your in-state options? Those will be the best bargains for total COA, not factoring in any need-based or merit aid.</p>
<p>While you should not let the cost be a dissuading factor in visiting or even applying, you should remain cognizant that it likely will be an important deciding factor in your final decision. If you are looking at getting good merit aid the key is to finding that school or schools that are looking for someone just like you, with your particular talents, strengths, and potential. Spend time with the admissions folks at all of your possibles and get a feel for which ones might covet you enough to offer big aid. </p>
<p>Be flexible - don’t fall into the trap of thinking that there is one and only one perfect school for you. There is no perfect school for anyone, but there are a bunch that are really, really close, some of them expensive and some not so much. </p>
<p>Isn’t it great to have so many choices? Good luck!</p>
<p>Have you taken a look at the Financial Aid forum yet? You may find some useful ideas there. The link is on the left side of this screen.</p>
<p>It is good to see that you are trying to be realistic about the money. Basically, as long as you know just exactly how much you and your family are able to pay, and how much debt you are willing to take on, you can go ahead and apply where ever you feel like PROVIDED you truly are prepared to wait to see all of the financial aid offers on the table before you make a decision about where you want to go.</p>
<p>As K9Leader says, you have a lot of great choices. Just be careful to not “fall in love” too soon!</p>
<p>First, find out what your family’s EFC is by doing a finacial aid calculation through College Board. That will at least tell you what a college will expect your family to contribute minimally. What they say your family can contribute might not match what your family is willing or able to pay.</p>
<p>Now that you have that number, you have an idea of what you might expect from a school IF they meet your need. But many schools do not meet need fully. So you will have to research each school and see what their policy/ track record is.</p>
<p>Some schools will give merit aid even if you do not qualify for any financial aid. Again research is necessary and you should be in the top 75% ile + to even think of getting any merit aid. See what amounts schools have given in the past to have a reasonable expectation. Of course, auditions make it even more subjective if you are trying for talent merit aid.</p>
<p>Sometimes it is not less expensive to attend a state school vs. a private. But you need to do your homework on each school to be realistic. I would strongly suggest looking at services like US News and World Report to see what their financial/ merit packages have been in the past.</p>
<p>You might want to include an in-state public school as a financial safety but, after that, you should more or less ignore tuition charges when choosing a school. You won’t know how much the school will actually cost until you get your financial aid award in the spring. You can estimate how much it will cost with an online EFC (expected family contribution) calculator.</p>
<p>I assume you’re instate for UMich. If so, go there. The musical theater program is top notch and I’m sure you’ll be able to get some scholarship money with those scores.</p>
<p>OP, I think that $16,440 figure for Michigan is the tuition per semester for OOS students. Their website shows a total two-semester tuition and fees figure of $33,069 for non-residents:</p>
<p>Don’t focus just on tuition. You need to compare net cost of attendance (net COA): the cost of tuition & fees, room and board, books & supplies, personal and miscellaneous expenses, and travel, less financial aid. Some of these figures vary by surprisingly wide margins from school to school. And personally, I’d focus more on grant and scholarship aid in the net COA equation. Many schools will offer you work/study and loans as part of your financial aid package, which is fine, except that these are really pieces you’re paying, not what the college (or federal or state government) is picking up. </p>
<p>That said, I don’t think anyone can answer your question straight off. This is something you’ll need to investigate for each school. Look at their websites; see what they say about COA and financial aid. Look at the CC site for each school (if any) and see what you can glean from that. Talk to their admissions and financial aid people if you can. Some of these schools may give merit scholarships to people with your stats; others not. All will give some form of need-based aid to students they determine to have financial need, but they may calculate financial need differently, some will guarantee to meet 100% of demonstrated need while others won’t, and some will offer all grants/scholarships while others will offer a mix of grants, work/study, and loans. Run some financial aid calculators to estimate where you stand on estimated financial need (i.e.m, calculate your “estimated family contribution” (EFC, a good place to start the financial aid niquiry.</p>
<p>rjkofnovi–the op may be instate for Michigan, which has a GREAT mus theater program, but he/she has to get in there first! Not so easy.</p>
<p>Personally, I wouldn’t borrow money for a major like musical theater, where it’s likely you’ll be waiting tables after graduation, while you wait for your “big break.”</p>
<p>I hope you qualify for need-based aid as well as win merit $$.</p>
<p>i think tuition should really be the last of your worries–especially for undergrad. sure i have loans to pay for that will set me back at least 10 years. BUT your financial institution really works with you on what plan is best for you and what you can afford/month post graduation. this is also coming from me the one that went to a public university. don’t think i would spend the ridiculous amount of tuition needed for some overrated private schools though.</p>