I’m applying to LACs mostly (Williams, Pomona, Swarthmore types). The thing is, I don’t want to end up rejected from these selective schools because of the tick on the “financial aid” check box. I don’t need aid THAT much. Plus I won’t need as much aid as most kids.
Here are my stats if you think they’re relevant:
SAT 2220 one sitting, literature 740, physics 780. 42/45 predicted IB diploma points, and my school doesn’t inflate grades. Pretty good extracurriculars. Great recommendations, great essays.
Thanks very much for taking the time out to write your opinion, if you do (:
The three schools you mentioned (Williams, Pomona, and Swarthmore) are need blind for domestic students only. I think they’re all need aware for internationals. For other LAC’s you need to check each school for whether it’s need blind.
You say you don’t need aid THAT much. Have you run the NPC’s and talked to your parents about what they are willing to pay? The school’s determination of need may not be what you think of has your “need.” Trust me, just ticking the financial aid box doesn’t mean you’ll get any!
Pomona is need blind for internationals WHO COMPLETE 4YEARS OF HIGH SCHOOL IN THE US.
How much do you need per year? If you can afford at least 30k per year, then your chance is as good as full pay students.It makes a huge difference(80K for 4 year is nothing but 250K is a lot to support for colleges)
and I already told you that being able to afford 30k per year will make your odds as good as that of full pay internationals…which answers your question, yes, your affordability matters.
None of the regular posters on this forum (=the international student section) is in a position to tell you that. It would depend on the order that each college processes their applications. Your guess is as good as mine.
Yes they consider how much you need. So you can apply for financial aid and indicate you only need, say, 10K - that places you in a rather good situation. Needing 50K makes the same situation virtually impossible.
However as B@r!um said, nobody can predict exacly. The number Paul gives (30k) is a pretty good threshold - below that, things are complicated.
You don’t get to decide how much aid to ask for. You submit your financial aid application, and they decide whether you need aid, and if so how much. They might decide you don’t need any aid at all, and admit you without offering aid. They also might decide that you only need a small amount of aid, and admit you instead of another student who would need more aid.
You will not get your student visa if the visa officer who reviews your application does not believe that you can afford the full cost of attendance for that particular college/university through some combination of family money, aid from the college/university itself, and any other sources that are available to you.
@MYOS1634, @happymomof1 : That was exactly the information I needed. Thanks so much!
@paul2752 : I did, indeed, read the posts in my thread. My question was simply whether asking for aid would affect my chances, and if so, would the amount of aid I needed further affect them.
