Thanks for all the helpful replies.
To clarify, OSU was referring to Oregon State. Ohio State is a good school but not sure if worth the cost even after merit aid as I could probably go to a cheaper school that’s still good for CS/Math. I would get decent aid at ASU(Does anyone know if Western Undergraduate Exchange + Merit aid can be combined? If so, I will definitely place it as higher on my list. U of A is probably too expensive for what it’s worth. U Alabama is solid for merit aid but I’m not sure I want to go to a school with such an emphasis on athletics and so far away from everything else just because it’s “cheaper”. As for U Florida, how is it for CS/Math? What do post-undergrad opportunities look like there? One of my friends with similar stats was admitted to UF as a presidential scholar. What is campus life like? How about San Jose State, is it worth it to go out of state just for the career opportunities? How are the campus and academic opportunities(research, etc.)
As for all of the reaches, the ones I listed were the ones that were affordable after running NPCs. To respond to @AustenNut first post I do not intend to apply to every school listed, if multiple schools were listed on the same line it means I would apply to 1-2 of those. That’s why I asked for how many HYPSM+ schools I should apply to and LAC recommendations for my interests. As for UChicago/Duke it is extremely unlikely I would get any merit aid, but I ran NPC’s and the numbers run very close to or under budget(UChicago is pretty generous despite my financial situation).
The next point was that I meant to say I was missing targets in last post, not reaches(mb). For Northeastern is it worth it to go to alternate campus? Are the merit aid opportunities still the same regardless of campus? I’ll be visiting the California campus soon.
I’ve visited OSU/UO + PSU- disliked PSU’s ‘campus’(it doesn’t have one) and their mission/school in general. OSU was kinda cool as I like the town and decent programs but a very easy school and not the best with AP credit from what I’ve heard. Don’t remember much about UO but it’s a nice place fs, a bit too much emphasis on athletics and running for me though.
In regards to workload, I am not applying to all of the colleges I listed. This was a rough draft and I plan to narrow it down extensively. My mother is unemployed so we very likely qualify for fee waivers(thankfully), income last year was around 210-220K, increased this year but I am very fortunate to have the perfect timing regarding fee waivers until my mother gets a job again(very likely that period of unemployment will not last long). For workload, I understand this year will be especially rough regarding academics + essays but I plan to ease off cross country if needed after the season ends mid October to focus on essay writing. My school fortunately offers a college counselors that has helped me with essays for internships in the past and “Advisory” required work blocks that give ~40 min week to work on college/career related activities as well as required school stuff(senior photo, etc.). I am completely used to rejection as earlier this year I applied to many internships, jobs, and summer programs and was rejected from a lot of them. It can especially be rough for me once I receive 10+ rejection letters but I learn something from each one and have put together successful applications for many programs and have learned a lot about how to represent my best qualities. TBH, I thought college was not an option(or at least not a smart one for our financial situation a couple years ago) and was not focused on EC’s or course rigor very much, but I am very grateful to be somewhat naturally intelligent and succeeded in school. Because of this, I am not expecting many acceptances and that is ok because I didn’t spend my time in high school preparing for college, I mainly focused on my personal life instead of spending time on EC’s or additional course rigor. If I’m accepted to one of my reaches I will be extremely grateful but I will still be grateful if I only get accepted to one or two schools. I’m not sure what I want to do for grad school/PhD, go corporate right after college, or consider starting my own business or doing nonprofit humanitarian work yet, so even if I end up at a safety I’ll still have to consider whether it’s in my best interest to transfer or try to get into a better grad school program. Either way I do plan on going to a T20 school eventually as it’s a life goal of mine I’ve been fortunate enough to start pursuing junior year and regardless of how long it takes, it will be accomplished.
Dw about ur post length, I also write long posts.
I’ll look into some of the colleges you guys recommended, Is Stevens Tech still a respected institution. As a side note, friend is going to Whitman with similar stats but he didn’t receive the best aid package TBH I kind of want to experience studying somewhere else than the Western states. Are any international universities with good programs for my interests affordable/realistic admits? UChicago has good aid + research(which is something I haven’t pursued too heavily but if possible I would like to try it for undergrad or during senior year summer.
This was a long post but I’m very grateful for all the advice given. If you have any additional suggestions, please let me know.