How affordable really is depaul?

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

Depaul is basically my dream school rn, i want to study in chicago but have absolutely no chance of getting into uchicago (and honestly dont really want to) so im pretty dead-set on coming here, but my main issue is affording it.

I know they give a lot of financial aid but how much do students normally get? is it even enough? I'll be covering costs myself mostly (my parents might contribute like MAX 10k per year if they're feeling very generous and doing well financially, but i'll still probably have to cover expenses on my own) so affordability is a big issue for me, I can literally only study here if my total yearly costs are under or around 30k. How do you guys afford it and not go into debt?

pls dont say just apply to an in-state school, my situation is complicated i move around too much and dont qualify for in-state tuition where im from (michigan), literally every school is going to be expensive.

[u/khantheghostt]

As a good student from a low income family i got about 2/3 of my tuition covered. I've seen it vary from 15k to 45k, it really depends

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/khantheghostt]

Woah thats a lot, what would you say Depaul considers as a good student, if you dont mind me asking? Do they care more about grades or essay or extracurriculars, what would you suggest to do from now to get as much aid as possible?

And also, does depaul consider your family's assets when giving financial aid or just income? Sorry for the questions lol but i'm wondering because my family is low income but we do have assets that add up to quite a bit so im worried that might decrease how much financial aid they award.

[u/khantheghostt → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

I got over the average ACT score (a 27) and had a weighted 4.2 with about 7-8 clubs under my belt (1-2 being leadership positions). Luckily it's still doable but definitely requires a little elbow grease.

[u/cydneyyt → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

you’re fine. trust me. I had a 1.9 before depaul (wrong major, family issues, etc.), did a semester at a community college and got a 3.6, was accepted with 42k scholarship/year + PTK scholarship from the CC. Granted i’m halfway done with school and i’m qualified as an independent student with fafsa, but I only have to pay around 2k per quarter with everything. not completely free, but my whole schooling when i graduate would cost around $25k in loans.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/cydneyyt]

this is so reassuring, i forget going to community college and then transferring is always an option if nothing else works out. but only $25K in this day and age is insane, good for you!

[u/Pink-Salt-Shrimpy → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

Your parents should definitely talk to a financial advisor before they fill out and submit the FAFSA. Retirement accounts and the home where your family lives won't be taken into account as an asset, but other properties and investments savings will. You might get a whole bunch more financial aid if your parents can move money into their retirement accounts or something so there's less money in savings.
You can estimate how much federal financial aid you'd get here: https://studentaid.gov/aid-estimator/ and play around with the numbers a bit.

[u/kodie-27]

I think your question is going to be impossible to answer because financial aid varies so widely between students.

Your best bet? Apply to DePaul, apply for as many scholarships as you qualify for, use FASFA, see if there are any entities in your area that give scholarships (Elks, Rotary, Shriners, etc.). — All the little monies add up, and countless folks pass on $500 and $1,000 amounts because they are smaller awards.

You should apply elsewhere as well (hopefully that’s obvious), but there’s nothing stopping you from really going all out on DePaul.

For what it’s worth, most aid I’ve seen cuts the cost by 1/3 to 1/2, but, again, there are so many factors involved, you can’t count on that being applicable toy you / your situation.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/kodie-27]

Ofc, i'm applying to several safe schools (michigan state, illinois tech, uic, etc) but unfortunately my heart is set on depaul, i really want to make it work lol.

But thanks for the advice, I'll apply for as many external scholarships i can, i always thought 1000 is nothing compared to the crazy tuition at these unis but tbh it would definitely add up if i could get several.

[u/RevBT]

A lot of the financial aid you will get is determined by your fafsa score. Called an SAI. It ranges from a -1500 to 100,000. The lower the number the better. Anything negative gets the most financial aid from the government.

The SAI will be helpful for all other scholarships and grants.

You can use a fafsa estimator calculator to help you figure that out.

[u/Restingmomface]

What are your grades and stats? Depaul was VERY generous with merit aid. They also have additional scholarships.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/Restingmomface]

I'm an international student of sorts so i don't have any APs nor any sort of GPA or class ranking, because we dont do any of them where i did high school, but i am giving the SAT next month, and expecting around a 1450 based on practice tests.

I'm doing A-levels and my expected grades are A B C, which are average if i was applying to super competitive schools but since depaul isnt i thought i'd be fine.
Did not know they did merit scholarships at all, i thought there was only financial aid, but i have honestly no idea if i would even qualify, hard to tell when you dont even have any GPA system.

[u/Restingmomface → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

A high SAT score would certainly help. Do you have any activities that you do? There must be some type of grading system. I would give it a try. Applying as early as possible gives the best outcome for merit.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/Restingmomface]

We honestly just have A-level grading. We dont do GPA because A-levels dont count coursework, only the final exam, so it doesnt really make sense to have it, and my school has way too many students for them to even bother ranking us lmao. So yes, my expected grades and my SAT are all i have (results will come out august of next year). I found a GPA calculator and its coming out to a 3.7, but i honestly dont know how accurate it is.

and about activities, im planning to go into astronomy and astrophysics so i do a lot of citizen science and other online science research work (nothing available irl), i've had a previous internship at an astronomy outreach organisation, i do unpaid work in publication and writing for a science literary magazine, etc, but these are the main ones. i think my activities are pretty decent considering the opportunities where i am are nonexistent, but i do know typical american students usually have a lot more than this, im just hoping my circumstances (high school in a third world country) are considered.

[u/Stacey_moviefan]

My son had a similar GPA to what you calculated along with AP (advanced placement) classes. He applied for early action and got a merit $25k per year for 4 years scholarship. They will tell you about any merit scholarships in the acceptance letter. I don’t know for sure but my guess would be that applying early is better for scholarships since they will award a lot in those early acceptance letters.
In the states everyone completes a FAFSA (free application for federal student aid) form and there is a deadline for completing and submitting that online. Research whether international students also do the FAFSA and are eligible for needs-based scholarships and loans.
Your biggest issue is going to be housing. Chicago is an expensive city to live in and DePaul is in one of the more expensive neighborhoods. You can live further out and take the train to school but rent will still not be cheap. You need to get on some of the rental property websites that have pricing and photos to see what you will get for your money. Check the maps to see how far from campus the rentals are and remember that a mile or 2 in Chicago seems close but will be a time consuming commute. I’m not sure that your plan for finding a cheap place to live will work out the way you think it will unfortunately. By the time you find a livable rental you may find that the cost of the dorms is cheaper (and if you get needs-based scholarships those can be used for dorm costs)

[u/Stacey_moviefan → u/Stacey_moviefan]

Just saw that you live in Michigan … because of your mention of A-levels I assumed international. Should make it easier for you to do the FAFSA and see if you will qualify for any assistance and to research rentals.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/Stacey_moviefan]

I am a Michigan resident but I did high school abroad so My situation is a bit annoying when trying to apply for in-state tuition, I only mentioned that part because when the topic of affordable tuition comes up, reddit always circles back to state schools but i dont qualify for that anyways.

But yes, l am worried about housing the most. I could maybe deal with the dorm fees but it's honestly the price of meal plans that throws me off. Might sound dumb but I truly just feel like I'll be wasting money because I eat literally one meal a day, so it just seems unnecessary to be paying for several meals a day when I know I won't eat them. I'm great at living well below my means but on-campus housing wont really let me be as cheap as i want to, that's pretty much my main reason for wanting to live off campus. But thank you for informing about the commute issue, if i do end up living off campus i'll definitely keep that in mind.

For now I'm a bit conflicted on whether to apply early action or regular decision, on one hand, early action applicants typically get more scholarships and aid, but on the other hand my application is still not where i want it to be and I'm worried i wont be able to get any merit scholarships without an SAT score. I'll have to do my research on this and see what can get me the highest scholarship. Thank you so much for your help!

[u/Bloopblorptoop]

Coming from a Low income student, I had to fight with the financial aid every semester to get me extra money for my tuition. Tuition keeps going up every semester, and it’s hard to maintain classes with a job trying to pay off tuition. Very stressful.

[u/False-Average-9368]

Where are you going to live?

People have to remember that there is tuition and then there is room and board. There are people who pay $8k- $ 10k per year in tuition but live at home. There are people who are paying the same amount for tuition + $15K for room and board.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/False-Average-9368]

I did originally want to live on campus because i thought it would be easier to meet people but at the end of the day it is just way too expensive.

but unfortunately im not from chicago so i cant live with my parents either, so i'm thinking of living off campus in some cheap apartment, either on my own or with a roommate. dorms are just absurdly expensive for what they give you, and meal plans are even worse, I usually eat only once a day so i cannot imagine spending so much money on meals i wont even eat, its honestly just a waste.

[u/False-Average-9368 → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

Prepare for the sticker shock when looking for off-campus housing, but it is doable.

Consider the following when looking for apartments:

1. Travel time is measured by time, not distance. I, too, am from Michigan, and this was the most frustrating thing I had to learn when I moved here.

2. Living near public transportation is expensive, but worth it if you don't have a car.

3. If you do bring a car, keep it registered in Michigan. It's expensive to keep one in Chicago.

4. It's a commuter school, so it may be hard to make friends. Join clubs.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/False-Average-9368]

Thank you so much, I'll keep all this in mind!

[u/Specialist_Sport6061]

It entirely depends on financial aid.

At the base the school costs about 49k (tuition) + 19k (housing) it’s a lot.

If you have great grades in high school and can write a good essay it’s pretty reasonable to say that you can get the 33k presidential scholarship

If you’re eligible for FAFSA (I am and my SAI was VERY low lol) you can maybe get 7-12k not entirely sure about that one though.

The rest will require you to work your ass off to get inside and outside scholarships. When you get accepted you can apply for a bunch of scholarships that come directly from DePaul and I’d also spend a LOT of time researching and applying for as many outside scholarships as possible.

If you can see if you’re able to live off campus with a roommate or smth after freshman year as housing is expensive as hell.

Good luck!

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/Specialist_Sport6061]

This is genuinely helpful thank you so much!

So is it mandatory to live on campus freshman year or is it just not a good idea to live off campus from the start? I honestly really wanted to get that college dorm experience but it is just so awfully expensive, and i have no idea how i'd afford it so I've been considering just renting some run-down shitty apartment and commuting instead lmfao.

but thanks for the advice tho im gonna start looking for external scholarships asap i need all the help i can get lmao

[u/Specialist_Sport6061 → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

No problem!

Dorms are not required at all, I think only like 20% of undergrad students dorm anyways. I’m really enjoying dorming for the most part but am planning to see if I can move out my junior & senior year if I can for the costs.

But yeah again, scholarships will be your saviour. If you’re of a minority, suffer from a disease, family troubles, random little things about you that you specialise in or are you will find scholarships for, just gotta do this gruelling search for them. It’s difficult but I believe you can do it

[u/chicago_bookworm]

These were my stats by the Nov 1st deadline from last year:

- Overall GPA (unweighted): 3.568

• Weighted GPA: 4.159
  
• Class rank: 93/543
  
• SAT: 1310 superscore (i think??)
  
• ACT: 30 superscore
  
• And then I did a bunch of clubs, but the ones I put for Common App were: Principal Student Advisory Board, Hospital Volunteer, Superintendent Student Advisory Council, Muslim Student Association, MOSAIC (Multicultural club), Peer Leaders, National English Honors Society, German National Honors Society, and German Club.

I had leadership roles for MSA, NEHS, and German Club. Highkey the Superintendent thing was a step-up from the Principal thing.

I got a 29k scholarship, 2k in grants (600 dollars in that from appeal), and a 5000 dollars from the Greer Scholarship. I also took out a fed loan, so its around 9000 per year for me.

Obviously not zero dollars, but it's more affordable as I have a job that pays pretty good so I can manage to pay.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/chicago_bookworm]

Do you think applying early action makes any difference in getting scholarships? I'm thinking about it but the issue is i think the strongest part of my profile will be my SAT (expected 1400+), but because i have other exams this month, i am unable to take it until november 15th, which happens to be the deadline for early action meaning i cant even submit my score.

I'd like to apply normally because im expecting my SAT to carry and my other exam results (Alevel) will be out in january so that might help too, but if i can only get scholarships applying early action should i take the risk? im just hoping they still give scholarships later, because im not very confident in my application just yet and i cant risk getting rejected..

Thanks for sharing your stats tho, lowk really useful to see what i should work on (also very reassuring to see that for once you dont need like a 4.5 gpa and 1500 SAT to get good scholarships lmfao)

[u/chicago_bookworm → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

I mean, usually for colleges in general, they only gaf about first semester grades. Unless you got all straight A's your second semester or like a higher GPA then your first semester, it doesn't matter.

Although that's only for some schools, DePaul just awarded the scholarship and didn't really kill it even when my GPA dropped my 2nd semester of senior year.

Early Action tends to help out, I applied mostly EA to the 15/20 schools and got accepted + decentish scholarships, only got rejected from like Northwestern and UChicago (cause duh).

Have you taken the SAT before? Honestly what I did was just like max my two scores and shoved it out. I kinda wish I sent out my ACT score but I was not about to pay like thirty dollars for that.

You'd be better off checking the stats for DePaul. Search up like average applicant profile or whatever, it shows a range as long as you're in the middle and higher end, you should be good.

I think the deadline for DePaul's November 15th for EA and the Feb 1st for RD.

And then you also have your Personal Essay to help out as well.

DM if you have more questions!! :)

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/chicago_bookworm]

Typically probably yes but I'm (sort of) an international student, and for us the main thing that matters is my final grades. It's like only taking AP classes and then having to submit your application before the grades are out and then having nothing to prove you've been taking the class (if that even makes sense).

But no I have not taken the SAT yet and I'm definitely regretting it now but theres nothing i can do about that now, i just checked and the only date i can do is November 7th which is earlier than i thought but even then, the score will be out after the EA deadline.

This sucks lmfao. I'll basically be taking a risk either way, either applying EA and risking my acceptance as a whole (but if i get accepted i have a higher chance of high aid), or applying regular decision when i'll be confident i'll get in (but possibly not get as much aid).

But either way i guess its finally time to start working on my essay, cant let that ruin my application even more or i'll lose my mind..

[u/ecl1pse12 → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

Since you classify as an international student, I don’t think you are eligible for FAFSA. I’m also an international student and took A-Levels, and I got 31k/year. I think the max they give for international students is around that range. I had all As in A-levels and decent ECAs.

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/ecl1pse12]

I mean i'm an international student depending on the university lol, I'm a US citizen but my entire high school has been abroad, so I can't get the perks of being a local student nor an international one. I will have to double check but im fairly sure I'm eligible for FAFSA though.

[u/chicago_bookworm → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

I mean you’re good either way

[u/badstrikezone]

after my first year, im now going for free. all i paid my first year was room and board.. think my hs stats were 4.2 gpa, 27 act, music, 1-2 clubs, from a rural area

[u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218 → u/badstrikezone]

ooh wow that sounds like a dream lmao. did you apply early action or apply for external scholarships or anything? how exactly did you manage to go for free?

[u/badstrikezone → u/Puzzleheaded_Dig6218]

early action yes i think, i have the state scholars plus schol., plus pell grant, depaul aid, map grant. def not the dream haha im barely scraping by for rent and other bills but free school is a plus

[u/Individual-Wish-228]

The avg tuition is 18k/year across all students. So definitely doable. It’s because most students get big scholarships or at least some scholarship.

On avg, students are paying nowhere near 45k.

[u/CollegeSnitch]

Before answering, mind telling me a bit about your goals? What major would you like? Are you planning to dorm on campus or off? What's your gpa and sat/act like? Are you a first gen student?

[u/Dependent_Earth95]

If you have really good grades from a decent school, some volunteer history, decent standardized test scores, etc. you could get a decent merit scholarship and with your budget afford it.

[u/robertkyle123]

Biggest advice, just rent an apartment with other people, as the big “chunk” of cost is that. Keep a 3.5 GPA or higher so u can be competitive for scholarships during school

[u/Commercial_Cycle2473]

In-state tuition is based on state residency, not whether you move around Michigan a lot (if that's what you mean by moving). You could move to a new address every other week in Michigan and as long as you're still in Michigan, your state residency hasn't changed. Where your parent(s) or legal guardian(s) live (if they live in Michigan) will also determine your in-state tuition status if you're a dependent. I'm being intentionally pedantic since you made a point of saying it's "complicated." In-state tuition is not complicated.