D2 worries that her desire to go into a creative field means little future money to pay back big loans. With guidance from CC we have compiled a list of schools that could possibly offer some merit money and have programs she might want (theatre directing/playwriting, screen writing, creative writing to name a few.) D1 claims we should be aiming higher, but I feel that’s kind of pointless for a BA when money is an issue. As you can guess, we make too much for FA, but due to some circumstances that I don’t want to get into, we don’t have the resources to just cut a check to the college of her choice. (But that’s a whole different thread!)
D2 has a 31 ACT, SATs coming soon, decent extracurriculars mostly involving theatre, plus some leadership roles at church and school. All A’s so far. Top 5% in her class. 6 APs upon graduation (5s on APUSH, Lang and Psych tests so far.) Seems to prefer smaller schools–just knows she participates more in smaller classes. So a bright, above average kid, but she knows she’s not up for major scholarships at elite schools.
So here’s the list for now:
Appalachian State
Roanoke College
Elon University (but they really don’t give much merit in my opinion.)
Belmont University (visiting next week)
Florida Southern (maybe?)
College of Charleston (maybe?)
UNC-Chapel Hill will be her only real reach, and we know she won’t get $$ there.
Any more ideas? Or should she not worry so much about merit money and try for “reachier” schools? We have some time set aside to tour in the summer, so any ideas (about schools, not my financial situation) would be appreciated!
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D2 worries that her desire to go into a creative field means little future money to pay back big loans.
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No undergrad should have big loans. Creative majors probably should have no loans or very small ones because their salaries are often quite modest for quite awhile…maybe always.
How much can the parents pay each year?
What is your home state?
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we make too much for FA, but due to some circumstances that I don't want to get into, we don't have the resources to just cut a check to the college of her choice. (But that's a whole different thread!)
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Not really a different thread. Very relevant to this one. We don’t want to waste your time on impossibly expensive schools. We don’t need to know why you can’t pay full-freight, we just need to know the amount that your family can contribute each year (**combo of parents funds, small student loan, student summer earnings).
I don’t know why you’re asking if she shouldn’t worry about merit money when it appears that merit money will be seriously needed. Or, maybe I misunderstood your post.
Sounds like she needs mostly financial safeties since reaches and matches won’t be affordable.
Here’s the deal
…If you can pay about $15-17k per year**, then your child needs a full tuition scholarship, so that your $17k can pay for room, board, books, fees, supplies, travel, etc.
…if you can pay $35k per year**, then your child probably needs a half-tuition merit scholarship.
…If the amount the family can contribute is either higher or lower than the above amounts, then the merit chase will change.
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D1 claims we should be aiming higher, but I feel that’s kind of pointless for a BA when money is an issue.
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Is that a typo? Is D2 making that claim or is an older sister making that claim?
Either way, you’re right, it is pointless. Why have a handful of unaffordable acceptances next spring? It will just be a point of frustration.
Hmmm…as I re-read my post, maybe I should have just asked for suggestions for more financial safeties, because I really believe that less debt is the most important consideration for undergrads. But to answer your questions, home state is NC. Let’s just say to some future job instability, we’re trying to not pay more than 5K each year, but that could go up. Hence the desire for merit money. And if the merit money doesn’t come, we will have to explore co-signing loans. And yes, older sib is the one giving advice about aiming for more prestigious schools! But that kind of stuff is more important to D1 than it is to D2.
If parental contribution is $5,000 per year, the student can add a federal direct loan of $5,500 and perhaps $3,000-$5,000 of work earnings every year, for a net price limit of $13,500-$15,500. However, lower is better (e.g. in case the student is unable to find a job or enough work hours to earn that much).
But that means that you need financial aid or scholarships of at least full tuition, perhaps more.
Cosigned student loans are generally not a good idea.
Do the net price calculators at the various schools suggest that need-based financial aid will be sufficient or insufficient? If insufficient, then a safety would have to have an automatic full tuition or better merit scholarship, and other schools need to be chosen for reasonable possibilities of full tuition or better merit scholarships (which generally means low match or safety level for admission, but may be high match or reach for competitive scholarships).
The financial aid for D1 was basically non-existant, so I am assuming the same for D2.
^^Don’t assume that. We got no need-based FA for our first two kids, but decent need-based FA for #3. Partly due to more kids in school and partly because salary changed. Possibly your private circumstances and second child in college improve your chances for FA.
You may want to look here for full tuition or better merit scholarships (but check college web sites since some may have changed):
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/
http://competitivefulltuition.yolasite.com/
Is she open to considering a women’s college? Hollins has a strong theatre program, and her stats are good for merit there.
^^ I second that: Hollins is an excellent college.
How many years will both DDs be undergrads at the same time? What year in college is DD1?
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Now, the biggest problem is, D1 got a miracle merit scholarship at an elite school, and sibling rivalry runs deep. D2 feels like she’s not getting a good deal unless she gets something close to a full-ride, so her expectations are a little too high. We are in-state for Chapel Hill, which she didn’t like a whole lot, but even if she got in she would graduate with over 90 grand in debt, which doesn’t seem like a good plan for a Writing for Stage and Screen major.
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I remember you!
It sounds like D2 has moved on from sibling rivalry, is that correct?
Did D1 have much higher stats and/or some hook? It can be very hard to get a decent-sized merit scholarship at an elite school w/o some sort of hook.
She’s consistently said “no” to women’s colleges, so I’m guessing Hollins is a no.
Yes, @mom2collegekids, you found me! That was my only previous post, and the “sibling rivalry” has died down some. I don’t think D2 really ever thought she’d be up for merit at a top 20 school–it was more that she thought she should get some merit somewhere. We still can’t figure out why D1 got the big scholarship. It wasn’t automatic, she has no hooks, great scores but so does literally everyone at those top schools. My best guess is she just interviews remarkably well.
No. Great hard-working student, and tests quite well, but not National Merit well.
D1 is a rising college sophomore and D2 is a rising HS senior. I am assuming that since D1 has full ride, our financial aid picture for D2 basically doesn’t change because it’s not a financial burden to have 2 kids in school when one of them is paid for already.
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we have compiled a list of schools that could possibly offer some merit money and have programs she might want (theatre directing/playwriting, screen writing, creative writing to name a few.)
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When she has her SAT scores, please post.
Will she be testing again? At many schools, having an ACT 32/33 or SAT equivalent can mean free tuition.
Right now, many schools are reviewing last year’s merit scholarships, so in a short time, we’ll be able to make more realistic choices based on new info.
How many years will DD1 and DD2 be undergrads together?
She doesn’t want to test again, but will if she feels one more point could make a difference in a possible scholarship. I will let you know the SAT score as soon as she gets it. They will be in school for 2 overlapping years.