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Right off the page you just linked. Total expected cost to attend (tuition, room, board, books, transportation- because you’ve got to get from TX to AL) for OOS students is $51k per year. I can confirm this number because several friends whose kids are current students at Bama have all thrown out the $50k a year number in conversation.
So while getting a $26k per year Presidential scholarship is lovely, it only covers 85% of OOS tuition and still leaves the family to cover another $25k per year in room, board, books, other living expenses, fees, and the balance of the tuition bill. Even the Presidential Elite scholarship is not a true “full ride” as the family is expected to cover 3 years of room & board.
Ah, I see. The numbers you used include stuff like the random $3k+ "transportation cost" etc. No one is ever going to get a scholarship with that level of coverage.
Most National Merit scholarships are this way too...a true "full ride" is pretty rare. (Though usually better at the in-state level)
In this case a Texas resident at the "Presidential" level would pay about $5k a year in tuition compared to double that at UT or A&M and pay the same living expenses (or higher in Austin). UTD might still be a better deal, but for someone wanting the "big state school" experience, it isn't a bad option at all.
Actually, comparing UT & Bama, it's interesting that UT breaks it down by semester vs year. Almost got me at first!
Ah, I see. The numbers you used include stuff like the random $3k+ "transportation cost" etc. No one is ever going to get a scholarship with that level of coverage.
Most National Merit scholarships are this way too...a true "full ride" is pretty rare. (Though usually better at the in-state level)
In this case a Texas resident at the "Presidential" level would pay about $5k a year in tuition compared to double that at UT or A&M and pay the same living expenses (or higher in Austin). UTD might still be a better deal, but for someone wanting the "big state school" experience, it isn't a bad option at all.
Actually, comparing UT & Bama, it's interesting that UT breaks it down by semester vs year. Almost got me at first!
I know that it’s incredibly rare to have all that covered, was just pointing out the family still has to cover the gap through savings, student job, etc. If cost is an issue or need to conserve savings for med school tuition, it’s significantly cheaper to take $6k from UTD or $10k from UNT and live at home for 1-2 years vs all the extra living & transit costs at Bama. And if the kid has any interest in Greek Life (the dominant social scene at Bama), add an extra $10k per year for that vs $1-3k at UNT or UTD.
This is an excellent point and we did take this into consideration, since we were moving at the start of high school for our eldest. I can say with near 100% certainty that he will not attend any post-secondary school in Texas because he is looking for a conservatory style school.
It does make me concerned for my daughter though. She will be entering 7th grade and is among the top of her class (we will see if that holds up); it is discouraging to think that top grades, activities and test scores still might not be enough for Texas universities. We are considering moving again as she enters high school and college choices will be one of the factors we plan on taking into account.
For your son, I would at least explore SMU and possibly TCU. The Meadows school at SMU is a fabulous arts program. Not Juilliard but impressive nonetheless. Depending on his specialty, UNT is very strong in some of the arts. The jazz program is one of the best in the nation.
For your daughter, top grades/ scores/ activities are certainly enough for admission to the top TX schools (excluding Rice which is as much a crapshoot as any other T20 school). It’s the big scholarship programs where one truly needs a “hook” (or two) to stand out. Your daughter is young and has plenty of time to gain the experiences and relationships needed to stand out. She just needs some guidance from you about being intentional. 7th and 8th grade are great times to still be trying out lots of new things- want to take choir or write on the newspaper or see if she enjoys volunteering with animals or a local food pantry. She can then kels building on the things that do interest her as she goes through her high school years.
There are lots of smaller universities in Texas that many students and parents often ignore. You often pay a lot more to attend a Division 1 school, but it's not necessarily a better value. For example, Angelo State (where my husband and I graduated) has a fantastic scholarship program called the Carr Academic Scholarship that was funded by a huge oil and gas endowment. That was the program that paid for most of our education! Sul Ross in Alpine has some fantastic arts programs, including an excellent interior design school. The smaller schools offer a more personalized experience with smaller classes and more opportunities than a huge school, so don't over look them!
For your son, I would at least explore SMU and possibly TCU. The Meadows school at SMU is a fabulous arts program. Not Juilliard but impressive nonetheless. Depending on his specialty, UNT is very strong in some of the arts. The jazz program is one of the best in the nation.
For your daughter, top grades/ scores/ activities are certainly enough for admission to the top TX schools (excluding Rice which is as much a crapshoot as any other T20 school). It’s the big scholarship programs where one truly needs a “hook” (or two) to stand out. Your daughter is young and has plenty of time to gain the experiences and relationships needed to stand out. She just needs some guidance from you about being intentional. 7th and 8th grade are great times to still be trying out lots of new things- want to take choir or write on the newspaper or see if she enjoys volunteering with animals or a local food pantry. She can then kels building on the things that do interest her as she goes through her high school years.
Thanks very much for the info. These threads are really helpful.
I have a child who will be applying to college. They are currently in the top 1% of their class in the Frisco ISD with a 34 ACT. They will not qualify for a scholarship based on financial need. Not a National Merit Scholar.
Are there any Texas schools (or nearby states with equivalent in-state tuition) that are generous with academic scholarships other than UT Dallas?
Hey TGentry, is this about your daughter who posted significant ACT performance improvement or is this another child? I'm not quizzing you just curious.
The general answer is no. UTD is an outlier when it comes to significant scholarship money given your kiddo's situation.
I have a child who will be applying to college. They are currently in the top 1% of their class in the Frisco ISD with a 34 ACT. They will not qualify for a scholarship based on financial need. Not a National Merit Scholar.
Are there any Texas schools (or nearby states with equivalent in-state tuition) that are generous with academic scholarships other than UT Dallas?
Here are the specifics on Angelo State's Carr Academic Scholarships:
Could we please have a thread about colleges in which UnfairPark resists the temptation to slam Texas schools with the rankings nonsense?
You just have to know that US based ranking algorithms are flawed when UT is typically ranked ~#50 in The US but usually ranked higher than that worldwide by others.
Further, keep in mind my BS is from Rice, but both UT and A&M have far more very highly ranked programs than Rice but Rice via US based rankings looks better on paper. UT has 49 graduate programs ranked in the top 10 per subject. IIRC Rice has 3 and according to one current source 1. A&M has more top 10 ranked engineering programs than Rice has undergrad and grad top ten programs schoolwide.
That's not to Rice is anything but a great choice for many kids. Rice is tiny, with mostly small class sizes and a very high percentage of classes are taught by professors. Not to mention admissions metrics are brutal so student quality metrics are very high.
The reality is Rice is great. But UT and A&M are too.
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So far as tracking towards medicine the "tier" of ones school is near meaningless. Baylor overall is a second or third level school. The school has a few excellent programs, a few more really goods ones and a whole bunch of, "show up and if your parents can pay you are in" type programs. That said Baylor has a tremendous suite of pre-medical related programs and 100 tracks record as one of the best "pre-med" factories around.
My child would be happy with free tuition, leaving only room and board/books/incidentals.
I don't think they would want to be too far from Texas. Other than academics and a club leadership role, they don't have any other "hook."
They are particularly interested in Baylor, Rice, UT and A&M but are open to any Texas or nearby school where tuition would be waived. I doubt they will get a dime from UT and probably not much from A&M. May not even be admitted to Rice. Baylor would have to offer a chunk of money since their private school tuition is ridiculously high.
I suspect they would qualify for free tuition plus a $6000/year stipend at UT Dallas, but they do not want to go that route. We toured UTD, and several employees emphasized the nerd-factor too many times. It's a shame that my child will not look past that.
I've looked into Arkansas. There's a slim possibility my child would qualify for their tippety-top fellowship program, or whatever it's called, but it's highly competitive. They would definitely get a 90% waiver of out-of-state tuition. However, my child wants to go into medicine, so I worry that in the med school application process a degree from Arkansas wouldn't be perceived the same way as a degree from UT or A&M. Perhaps my concerns are not warranted.
My mother had a saying: What do you call a doctor with a D average? DOCTOR
I have a friend who is a pediatrician. We went all the way through school together, and I could sleep in class, never had homework, and made straight A's. She had to work, and I mean really work and study, to get the same grades.
She took the MCAT 3 or 4 times to get a grade high enough to even qualify for any school in the US, and finally went to some small school someplace. Guess what? She's a doctor, works about 20 hrs/week compared to my 50+, and has a huge house in Frisco with a new Acura in the garage, compared to my barely decent house adjacent to a bad neighborhood, and a Honda Civic.
(Aside: I have a bachelors, and started Masters, but I just did not have the $$$ to ever really get where I wanted academically, though school was easy for me)
My mother had a saying: What do you call a doctor with a D average? DOCTOR
I have a friend who is a pediatrician. We went all the way through school together, and I could sleep in class, never had homework, and made straight A's. She had to work, and I mean really work and study, to get the same grades.
She took the MCAT 3 or 4 times to get a grade high enough to even qualify for any school in the US, and finally went to some small school someplace. Guess what? She's a doctor, works about 20 hrs/week compared to my 50+, and has a huge house in Frisco with a new Acura in the garage, compared to my barely decent house adjacent to a bad neighborhood, and a Honda Civic.
(Aside: I have a bachelors, and started Masters, but I just did not have the $$$ to ever really get where I wanted academically, though school was easy for me)
Totally not a big deal in the long run.
Your mom's saying is just a saying. No one who makes a D average in high school has any real chance to get into medical school down the line. No one with a D average in college has any chance at medical school.
ETA - I'm going to guess your friend's academic chops were better than you are letting on. Assuming she attended a US allopathic school......all students take the same USMLE Step 1, 2, 3 and rotational tests and she passed a state board somewhere. Excepting state boards those tests are standardized - meaning there is nowhere to hide.
Last edited by EDS_; 07-01-2019 at 11:30 AM..
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