It’s actually nuts you pay an application fee and can get rejected. On top of going in price blind.
But there’s enough intelligence out there and on here to figure it out. Apply widely and to the right schools and you’ll find a few great offers. But you have to be flexible.
In my daughters case we were really blind. We accepted and it was going to be $22k a year at Collehe of Charleston with $12k merit.
Then every few weeks she got a note of increased merit. She now has scholarships worth $1k over tuition. So that’s really blind. But In a good way. Lots of schools have ‘additional’ scholarships above the norm. Make sure to hit those too.