I am an american citizen living abroad in Egypt. I’ve lived here since 2005 and since the 10th grade I have attended an international american diploma school. I am a member of a family of three, my brother and I were born in Virginia and my mother is also a citizen. My Mother does not work and does not pay taxes (I don’t believe she is required to), we live off of SSI benefits as my father passed away when I was very young. As a result, we are very low income and I know that I will not be able to actually pay for college myself but I very desperately want to attend college back in the united states as the institutions in Egypt are not all that great. I have an SAT score of 2040 (1300 composite), 3.8 GPA and am very low on ECs but I’m working on that this summer. I really need guidance here. Am I eligible to recieve the pell grant or any kind of financial aid? I don’t want to attend community college, I’m hoping to rely entirely on scholarships, loans and financial aid to attend a university. Any help or advice is appreciated!
There are a number of links in the thread I’m posting. Look for scholarships there for students with your SAT and GPA. Any chance you could retake the SAT and get that CR/Math about 1400?
The Pell Grant is only $5730 if you get the full grant. You would also be eligible for $5500 in Direct Loans for your freshman year.
Do you have relatives with whom you can reside? If not, you need to consider room and board costs plus tuition, fees, etc.
If your EFC is low enough, you should be eligible for Pell Grant. See https://fafsa.ed.gov/FAFSA/app/f4cForm?execution=e1s1
@Thumper1 if I retook the SATs, that would be my 5th time and I think that itself looks bad enough on an application. Don’t you agree?
Are you still in high school? How old are you?
Can you get a summer job? Can your mom get a job?
Do you have any money saved for college?
Is your sibling older or younger?
What do you plan to major in?
@Madison85
-I am, I am 17 years old.
-Even if I did, where I live it wouldn’t make much of a difference and my mother is unable to work.
-The only thing that I might be able to pay for is books and supplies but my mother is hoping on finding a way to payu for everything myself.
-My sibling is older and attends an Egyptian University, for free.
-Pre-Medicine.
“I don’t want to attend community college, I’m hoping to rely entirely on scholarships, loans and financial aid to attend a university.”
If I had a dollar for every time a student posted that…
Seriously, if you’ve taken the SAT four times already, you must not be happy with your scores.
And if you are attending a private school, the money must be from somewhere.
Most colleges are well over $20,000 per year, and you indicate you are living off of Social Security death benefits. If your father died when you were very young, that amount would not be very much.
“Any help or advice is appreciated!”
Move to the US after you graduate, and get a job with tuition benefits. Or go to college in Egypt and go to graduate school in the US once you have made some money.
Or you can look at your grades and test scores as compared to schools listed on the thread about “full ride” universities.
So you have a 2040 SAT and weak ECs and you want an American university to pay for four years’ of tuition, room, food, laptop, flights to and from Egypt, clothes, shampoo etc, entertainment, and you are willing to chip in to pay for books, pencils, notebooks? And you won’t get a job since you wouldn’t make much?
I forgot about travel costs - seems that relatives in the US might be an important ally in his search.
@rhandco If I saw going to college in Egypt as a viable option I would have saved myself the anxiety and stress of finding a way to study in the US, wouldn’t I? Yes, I attend a private school and of course, the money comes from somewhere. It comes from my relatives that wanted me to get a better education than my mother could have provided. They’re not going to pay for me to go to college, though.
Your safety school?
How much do the relatives pay each year for private school for you in US$? Is it a boarding school?
@Madison85 @rhandco Travel costs are taken care of. I know its unrealistic to hope for a full scholarship, I’m well aware of that. That’s why I ask if I am eligible to take out a loan and what would be required of me to do so. I’m looking to cover my tuition costs as thoroughly as I can.
@4kidsdad Yes, my safety school.
^I think OP is attending school in Egypt.
@Madison85 a little under 3,000$. It’s not a boarding school, it is a school in Egypt.
You can get a loan of $5500 for freshman year through the US government/your college after filing FAFSA. If your mom applies for a Parent Plus loan and is declined you can get a slightly larger loan.
Keep in mind that med school debt can add on another $200,000-$300,000.
You, the student, can take $5500 in loans in your name only. Anything beyond that will require a cosigner here in the U.S.
Do you have a cosigner here?
@thumper1 Yes, I do have a co-signer in the US.
Cosigner will definitely help.
We are using home equity; that’s often the cheapest way for anyone to get a loan. Any loan in your name, assuming you have no assets, even if cosigned, would likely be at a very high rate, beyond the government FA loans (5500 per year mentioned, and those are high compared to a home equity line of credit with variable APR right now).
Most top of the line universities are 60K per year or more cost of attending. That 2040 is an issue, because if you could get 2200 (and it is quite a jump if that’s your best for four attempts), you might get into the maybe Ivy range. Ivies are generous with aid, though few cover 100%.
Any other possible hook, including high-level sports or very very unique background, could be maneuvered into more opportunities.
Do you know if you would qualify for Questbridge?