What are my match schools? [$20-30k limit with merit, STEM major from LA, NMF 4.0 GPA]

If you like UNM for the skiing and merit $, consider U of Utah as well. The access to skiing and other outdoor activities is unparalleled. They’re generous with merit for high-stats students and also offer a path to residency after the first year, which could make it highly affordable. The Honors College offers robust programming and great honors housing. Music opportunities are excellent too.

The maximum merit at Scripps is half tuition, which only drops the net price to about 50K. (I believe CMC has a few larger scholarships, but it’ll be a long shot to get to your price point.) If a women’s college within a consortium appeals, maybe look at the Massachusetts 5-College Consortium. Smith, like Scripps, maxes out at half-tuition merit, but Mt. Holyoke has some full-tuition scholarships. The Five College Astronomy Department is a collaboration among all 5 schools https://www.fivecolleges.edu/academics/astronomy

As for WashU being classified as a target… it’s definitely a reach to get the necessary merit. (Whether an unaffordable ED acceptance would be more likely, which it probably would be, is moot.)

Another big-NMF-merit school with a good honors college and strong astronomy/astrophysics is UCF. But with what’s going on politically vis-a-vis higher ed in Florida, I’d be more wary than I would have been a few years ago.

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