<p>There are 3 conversations you need to have very soon in order to figure this out.</p>
<p>1- Call your high school counselor and make an appointment to see him/her. Try and get in before school starts so you won’t feel pressed for time. Let her know your goals and also your concerns. He/she should also be able to advise you on your financial aid options and on what colleges you should be looking at. </p>
<p>2- Go and see your high school track coach and ask him for his HONEST advice on you getting a scholarship to run track in college.</p>
<p>3- Talk to your parents. I understand that they are not willing to support you financially, but they NEED to understand that in order for YOU to get financial aid/loans that ALL of their financial information HAS to be shared with the FAFSA. None of us parents like to do this, but it has to be done.</p>
<p>Go to Barnes and Noble and plan on spending at least an hour looking through their financial aid books. Maybe will help bring some answers to your questions.</p>
<p>Pick a college with good public transportation including Greyhound/Amtrak because I just don’t see how you can factor in airfare if money is tight. </p>
<p>I have a son with huge goals and dreams just like you have, but he doesn’t have the grades to get him into any of his top choices. It has been very hard for him to accept, but he will have to make the best of his tier 3 school and work twice as hard to get into better grad school. </p>
<p>Did you try taking the ACT? Some kids perform better on that than the SAT.</p>
<p>You are the most tenacious kid I have every come across. Find a way to balance that with your other attributes and you will do just fine in life!</p>
<p>I also suggest you go to the library and read a book about financial aid so you can get a better understanding of the process, then definitely talk to your parents.</p>
<p>If the school promises to meet 100% of need (and that EFC is roughly what the Profile EFC would be), then yes. There may be work study/summer earnings contribution that would be required. You can find financial aid info on the college websites, on college board, and many other places.</p>
<p>The $6008 EFC means you won’t qualify for federal grant money. You might get a state grant if you stay instate. Check your state’s dept of higher ed website for qualifications.</p>
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<p>There are a few students who post on CC that they decided to take a more generous offer at a lower ranked school instead of going to a big name. One updated everyone on his experience with that a few months ago - but the name escapes me now (perhaps someone else will fill in the blank). Anyway, it seems that there were actually more opportunities available to him than he felt would have been at the other schools and he has had an amazing experience. He’s been very satisfied with his choice…and happy to be debt free! Don’t make the mistake of not looking beyond the rankings. Rankings do not, imo, always portray an accurate picture and education, at all schools, is often what you make it. Throw away the rankings and put some effort into investigating schools that seem interesting to YOU!</p>
<p>Agree with others on getting a book about financial aid. Paying for College Without Going Broke is very good.</p>
<p>The poster sk8rmom mentioned was Evil Robot, who took a full ride to Vandy over IIRC Stanford. ER ended up getting a masters (I think at no extra cost) and finished up with no debt, money in hand, and a dream job offer from Google. He took some time off between finishing school and starting work to travel, since he had savings and no debt. And, he had a fabulous time in school. </p>
<p>Another example is a poster named curmudgeon. His daughter was admitted to Yale, back before their super-generous financial aid policy started. The D knew she wanted med school, and didn’t want to start med school already massively in debt from undergrad. So, she chose Rhodes, which offered her a free ride. Her dad reports back on her from time to time; she is also having a tremendous, life-changing experience. </p>
<p>That’s just a few examples. There are lots more.</p>