For the major cities like Boston, New York, Philly, Washington, etc consider the cheap bus service between them. It can be as low as a dollar with advance purchase, but will probably be in the fifteen to twenty dollar range. Check sites like megabus and boltbus to see where they go.

Not sure where you call home but consider one thing about all the schools you are looking at, the weather is significantly different from location to location. Winter at Cornell will be significantly different than winter in Miami if that matters. One can have over ten feet of snow, one never sees snow.