Hi everyone! I’m from Louisiana and am desperate to not end up at LSU. Unfortunately, my lower-middle class family makes too much money to qualify me for significant financial aid. I was wondering, are there schools, public or private, that are reputed for giving out a lot of scholarships based on GPA and SAT/ACT? Specifically to me, I have all As one B and a 31 on the ACT. I’m willing to go almost anywhere that’s better than LSU and isn’t in Mississippi or Alabama, preferably not religiously affiliated or super conservative.
So, my question is, what traditional four year universities are well known for offering substantial out of state scholarships based on merit?
I want to study nursing. I honestly have no idea what they make, mom is unemployed because of disability, stepdad does a variety of things, they alone could probably qualify me for substantial financial aid, but my stepmom is an HR director and my dad is a partner in a law firm.
But you said you were lower middle class. I think your dad as a partner in a law firm is problematic for need based aid but again it will depend on how much he makes. Many of the nursing schools up east that offer merit scholarship are Catholic schools.
The College of New Jersey or TCNJ is a great nursing school and too friendly to out of state students if you ask NJ residents. You will qualify for merit and the cost before need based aid is about $30k I would think. Since you don’t know your dad’s income its hard to say if you qualify. TCNJ is aggressively recruiting out of state students. It would be worth investigating because it is an exceptional school.
Schools use merit aid as a recruiting tool to attract high scoring students to boost up their SAT/ACT average. A 31 ACT is on the low side for big merit awards.
The reason this student has FA issues is because of divorced parents – sounds like bio dad and stepmom make good money, even though the parent with primary custody doesn’t. At least at schools that require the CSS profile & non-custodial parent info, there is an issue. Agree that raising your ACT score is your best bet.
How much is partner-dad going to contribute towards college? Ask him.
The schools that give the best aid aren’t going to give you aid because of your dad’s household income.
So…you either need to find schools that will give you HUGE merit or stick with LSU. LSU is very good for medically-related majors, so don’t give up on that.
Leaving the south will make it much harder for you to get the aid you want.
What kind of school do you like? Rah rah? quiet? rural? City?
You need to find out how much your parents can contribute each year. A good merit scholarship won’t help you if it leaves you with $15k to cover and your dad won’t pay that. ask him.
My friend’s daughter is going to study nursing at the University of Arkansas. She is a Texas resident, but I believe she will take advantage of a reciprocal agreement. As a Louisiana resident, you are eligible. My friend loved Arkansas. She is quite liberal politically btw.
If you are serious of obtaining a BSN - you say you do not want Alabama. There are a number of nursing programs at various schools where you would be successful. UAB has a very large nursing program - and they have a nursing scholars program for entering freshman - but application deadline for that has passed, along with scholarship deadline.
If you truly want to complete a nursing degree, look to what is affordable and where you can successfully complete.
I speak from experience. I am BSN. DD1 will complete BSN after spring term at UAB.
You would be eligible for merit at U of South Carolina, most likely receiving in-state tuition plus an additional $500 - $2,000 per year (Flinn or McKissick awards). Tuition and fees for 2015-16 total about $11,500 with another $9,500+ for room and board. The Honors College is excellent and with your GPA and ACT, you would be in range to apply (but you would have to actually apply). I do not know about the quality of the Nursing program.