Hi,
I am an international student, I currently got admitted to VT Engineering. As you can see, my SAT scores aren’t high and I saw people talking on this forum about that they got rejected etc.
Am I too lucky that I got in? Did I get in because I am an international student, did this increase my chances?
The following are my stats, please give me your opinion, thank you! (Consider that I just got rejected by UC Riverside)
I just wonder if this is a score in range or if I am too lucky.
My November SAT: 1440 (CR:390 M:660 R:390)
My January SAT: 1560 (CR:430 M:710 R:420)
SAT Subject Tests: Math L2: 700, Physics: 580
TOEFL: 96
Cumulative GPA: 71% includes senior GPA (When converted to US system from my country’s system, it makes something between 2.5-3.0)
But I improved and my senior year GPA is 87.5% yet with the most demanding class choice. (3.3 on US system)
These may seem very low except my “very high” senior GPA, but the rest is considered as average in my country.
There are no rankings in my school but as I assume, this year I’m one of the best.
Extracurricular activities:
Basketball
Archery
Science and Technology Club membership
Mechatronics Club membership
Online volunteering work through Twitter
Class Body Representative at student government
Project festival participation
I made a research project on renewable energy with a good university in my country that I want to develop during college.
I have an outstanding life story full of transition, which I believe I reflected pretty good essays.
Your Math SAT and subject test scores are good and your TOEFL score is pretty good as well, I think that makes up for your CR/W scores. From my understanding with the few international students I work with, the CR/W SATs are difficult for even the best english speakers who aren’t as exposed to the way US English/Language Arts/Lit classes are taught.
Admissions all around is a little bit of luck, so your admissions officer must have saw something in your application that made them view you as a Hokie. Congrats!
They don’t really give scholarships to international students since it’s a public university, but I called the office of Financial Aid yesterday and they told me if I am considered for financial aid, I will know by the end of this month. I really hope to receive a good amount but with these scores and GPA it doesn’t seem possible. They want 45K$ per year, life happens… @intparent
@isitan Financial Aid and Scholarships aren’t that great at Tech, even for Virginia students. Scholarships are hard to pin down because it’s so across the board - I have heard stories of students getting several from Tech that cover tuition, as well as amazing students who get nothing, and many who get a few small scholarships each year (I fell into the latter category but the combination of scholarships, federal loans and grant aid made Tech very affordable for me).
If you’re only hoping for Financial Aid, not merit scholarships, you’ll probably be disappointed.
@financiallylost My parents went to college, and 5K$ won’t be enough for me to pay the tuition. I wish there were easier ways for me to pay or it was cheaper, 45K is a lot of money, especially in my country where most people make 5K$ per year. By the way, I meant grants or scholarships by saying financial aid. I guess my stats are kind of low for merit scholarships etc… or are they?
@isitan yes, unfortunately your stats are on the lower end for any merit scholarships, and those are already rare for international students. I am not aware of any grants available to international students, as most of them are just the federal grants offered to US students and a handful that exclusive to Virginia residents.
@isitan Congratulations on your acceptance to Tech! I just want to ask you a question regarding your dashboard: Did your TOEFL and SAT subject test scores show up on your dashboard. Since I also submitted those scores but they haven’t showed up on mine yet. I just wonder if I should email the admissions office to ask.