I’m a Florida resident, graduating next year. I’ve been searching for the right school and I don’t think I’ve found it yet. Not sure if it’s worth it to stay in FL or if I should take my chances somewhere else.
Here’s more about me:
- 4.0 UW and 4.4 W
- 27 overall ACT (only my first try though)
- 100+ hours of community service
- EC: Yearbook, Thespians, Newspaper
- Wanting to major in something related to communications/media, business (marketing/advertising), or graphic design
- Aiming for The Florida Academic Scholars Award and I have part of a GI bill from a military parent
-Currently looking at FSU, UM, or UWF
Any colleges you can recommend for my interests any advice relating to the worth of bright futures and in-state tuition would be appreciated!
Yes, it is worth it to stay in Florida. Get your ACT to a 29. Look at some of the other smaller private schools if you aren’t sure about the larger schools.
Yes, stay in FL. Going anywhere else will be about quadruple the cost of tuition with little to no benefit. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to expand yourself outside of FL after you graduate.
I think you should consider all options(apply to schools in and outside of Florida) and decide on your school when you see the FA offered. When the FA offers come in you can see the net price for you.
One issue I have with staying in Florida is job prospects. Florida schools are more regional than national. While it’s possible to leverage a good education from any area, if you plan to work outside of Florida, that’s easier if you find a college with ties outside of that state.
With your stats, you might get good FA at a number of schools. (if you raise your ACT/SAT score, you’d do even better)
Wheaton College in Massachusetts
Clark University
University of the Pacific in California
Union college in NY has amazing FA and it has many of the other things you’re looking for
St. Olaf in Minnesota – great FA and its English dept. has very nice internship/ work experience opportunities
St. Lawrence U
Muhlenberg
Hobart and William Smith
Are you female? If so, you may want to look at women’s colleges –
Agnes Scott has cross registration at Emory
Mills has cross registration at Berkeley
Hollins U is a very nice school with many of the fields that interest you
Simmons in Boston is a strong school in Boston area (and those ties to work) with very good FA
Here are some more co-ed schools –
Beloit – has great FA and has interesting, fun people in a small LAC setting.
Hendrix
Sewanee – excellent writing
Southwestern U near Austin TX
Drew University in NJ – has access to NYC market
Dickinson–https://www.dickinson.edu/
Denison
there are probably several others
Best of luck.
Honestly, I think it’s up to you. I am also a Florida resident and a community college student. I was just accepted to UNC Chapel Hill, and seriously considering it as an option. Yes, it’s more expensive, but for me it seems as worth it.
The reason why I decided against Florida colleges is mainly their locations or prices. I’m from Miami, so I am used to living in a large city. I visited UF and FSU - although both are amazing schools, I really did not like their locations. Meanwhile, Miami simply seemed too expensive (being around $50,000/year for tuition only).
If you’re seriously considering going out of state, I would suggest considering community college for two years. This way, you could save money on the first two years of college, so you can afford going out of state for the last two years. Besides, Florida really does have some of the most amazing community colleges in the country! You could also try taking some Dual Enrollment classes during your last year of high school and saving more money and time that way.
You can also just try applying to a few out of state schools and seeing how it goes. You have an awesome GPA! All you need to do is get a better ACT score. Maybe try SAT? It is supposed to be better, if you prefer English over math. If you manage to get a better test score, you can get some great scholarships at various out of state schools. I would recommend focusing on that this summer. If you’re eligible, getting financial aid can also help.
What are you planning to major in? I can try to recommend you some good affordable out of state colleges based on that.
From a financial standpoint, staying in Florida is tough to beat, particularly at your academic level. For example, if you were to attend the University of South Florida, you would likely qualify for a merit scholarship of $3,000 per year – more if you raise your test score. In addition, Bright Futures at the Academic Scholars level will reimburse you for full tuition plus $300 per semester for books. This would dramatically reduce your costs – and this is not loans that you have to pay back. Other grant money might be available to you as well.
You would likely qualify for similar merit scholarships at UCF, FGCU and UNF. UF gives out less merit money. Not sure about FSU. The first ones I mentioned all have rolling admissions, so get your test score up and apply early if you want the best consideration.
Many schools outside of Florida would be probably be interested in you, but typically, the cost of out of state tuition makes it hard to beat the awards offered by the state universities in Florida.
@Dustyfeathers said
Do you really think one of the schools you named is more recognized nationally than UF or FSU? And while many give good financial aid, very few are going to give full tuition and books.
You may want to look into UCF. They have a great school of communications, with the college and journalism program being considered one of the best in the state. The journalism major is very competitive and demanding if you were looking as that as a potential track.The school for emerging media is really great and is probally the best out of the public FL schools, and their business program is very strong. Since the school is in Orlando, there are many internship opportunities for students with multiple degrees requiring an internship to graduate. Financially, its one of the most affordable major public schools around and if you increase your ACT to at least a 29, you’d be eligible for the Bright Futures Academic Scholarship which covers 100% of tuition. The school also has the second best theatre program in-state and auditions are open to all students. Good luck!