Hi all. The international student advice thread seems to have been untouched for a while so I figure I should start one here. Going into the American college application process, I was always disappointed at the lack of resources for international students in College Board, so here’s my way of trying to improve that.
Feel free to ask me questions about anything from the Common App to financial aid and I’ll try my best to answer. If it helps, I am from Canada and will be attending Brown next year.
Edit: Any other victims of the American application process - feel free to jump in. I can’t promise that I’ll get to all the questions myself.
I gave the SAT this June(I’m an int’l student). I got 800 in CR, 780 in M,and 630 in W.I actually got 45/49 questions right in the grammar mc.what brought down my score was my essay score of SIX(out of 12).neither did I practice writing the essay even once,nor could I even finish it on time in the SAT.suggestions for improving essay writing are welcome,but my main question is- I was considering sending in my college applications early for scholarship deadlines,but nearly all schools I’m applying to are really selective(I need a LOT of fin aid).should I even apply with these scores?I’m retaking the SAT in october and plan to send that score to my reach colleges(which would be nearly all of them.) Will my writing score in this SAT hurt me in the sense that adcoms will view it as my inability to express myself in English properly?it is important they view me as an effective communicator in English since I’m an international student.does my CR make up a bit for it?
Are you required to take the TOEFL? I wasn’t required to, so I can’t comment on the test, but I believe that your TOEFL score can prove your competence in English to adcoms if you were not educated in an English school system.
Judging by your response, your written English seems fine, and you might just not be used to the format of the essay section. Your SAT score may hurt you if your writing score is in the lower percentile of applicants to the school you are applying for. They will not look at your SAT writing as the only indicator of your English competence. Your TOEFL score (if applicable), essay, and English courses in school will be examined to get a better picture, and they might show that perhaps you were just not used to the format of the SAT writing section. No one can say for certain if your CR score will make up for it, but in any case, it’s a good idea to retake the SAT (and practice practice practice the essay this time!).
Don’t worry about the quality of your essay - just focus on finishing with an intro, 2-3 body paragraphs and a conclusion. Time yourself at home 5 minutes less than the amount of time you will have on test day.
I’ve been educated in a school where the language of instruction is English(at least officially).Some of the schools I am applying don’t require the TOEFL for CR scores of 670 and above(or something like that),some require me to have been enrolled in an English medium school(I’ve been in one since I was 3 and a half,so no worries here). But some of them require ALL international students to take the TOEFL so I was planning to take it in December.It’s true, for some of my reach schools,my writing score doesn’t even fall in the 25th percentile of the incoming admitted class.I knew I was going to take the SAT for a long time,but I kept delaying practice for the writing section because I had no idea what I was doing for the grammar part(I went by instinct).I decided I would have to learn the specific grammar rules tested on the SAT so I finished The Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar literally the DAY before the exam.in all the panicking about the grammar part I had completely underestimated the essay.You’re right about that essay format stuff that’s what I set out to do but on the SAT I could just write the introductory paragraph, an example from Emma, a weaker hastily written example from my personal experience and I ended my essay with the words “Another example is”.(aka i couldnt complete it).the essay was barely over a page.but I’m kind of glad I could write anything at all.it’s kind of complicated,but anytime we’re supposed to write something for English class(on the spot) I just freeze.I can’t write a word.you see, I was supposed to be good at writing in addition to academics but in my sophomore year, not only did my academic grades plummet(particularly in social studies) but I lost the second round of this awful play writing competition that I was representing my school in.I missed a LOT of classes because of that thing(we had to rehearse in school) but that’s no excuse for my less than great grades.so in my junior year I decided to focus completely on my academics and give up my guitar playing, and definitely NOT write.because I wanted to be the kind of person who was good at math and science,not one who’s supposed strength was "English "(which I wasn’t good at anyway).around the same time I decided to start preparing for the SAT.I read many classics.of course,I convinced myself this was for the SAT.no way would I want to enrich my perspective of life by reading literature,right?(reading books is a sin in my home.)My parents get a bit upset if they see me reading a book(they think it is a waste of time and it would be better for me to study.) Maybe they’re right in a way,but I would have been seriously deficient in English if not for the SAT.okay sorry,I didn’t mean to go off on a tangent . this post started out being about the TOEFL and I ended up telling you my life story -_- the point is, yes I AM going to practice a lot for the essay and thanks for your advice.You were an international student too,I guess?
Okay WOW you got into Brown.What are you going to major in?
Um, I applied to over 20 American schools and I did not take the TOEFL. There were only two schools - Bates and Bucknell - that were extremely annoying about the requirement; others waived it when I emailed or called them.
Also, that’s okay. Colleges will see your writing score breakdown. Many schools do not even consider the writing portion.
Thanks for the info, @International95 !! How much financial aid did you get in the colleges you applied to?(if you applied for fin aid).I know university of Chicago doesn’t consider the writing score,but it is need aware.(for internationals).hey,do you think if I take the SAT again and get an awesome writing score it would slightly increase my chances? I know I have to do more impressive things than getting a good sat score to wow uchicago as I’m an international student asking for FA.ps- my annual income is below 60,000$.
Most schools I was admitted to met my need or went beyond it and gave me more.
I mean, retaking the SAT wouldn’t hurt because your writing score isn’t very a good. If it was a 700, I would recommend against retaking the SAT.
Admission with aid at all schools that promise to meet need for international students is highly competitive. The usual acceptance rate goes below 10% at all those schools.
Generally, TOEFL is not required if
- You spend 4 yr of high school in English medium
or/and
-you have certain score in reading score.
Many schools, even top40~20 waive your TOEFL req. if you satisfy 1st condition. Tippy top schools waive TOEFL scores if you have high CR scores at least 670, to 700. Dartmouth is very strict about CR requirement(700)
So… U said the full need met schools are very selective…I missed the deadline for Google Science Fair,and ISEF(I guess the first round will start again in Nov). I was banking on International Mathematics Olympiad(I mean the regional or national levels) but unfortunately in my country,a recent rule states that seniors(12 std) students are BANNED from giving the regional level(or any other ) starting from THIS year ,which is real bad luck because I’m definitely not good enough in either physics or chemistry to get selected for anything.Now I’m going to participate in the regional level of IOI,but I don’t know any c++(we study the programming language python in our school.again,a recent change.)
@musicprincess33, good luck on the SAT again. I always like to say that the only thing the SAT tests is your aptitude on the SAT, so just continue to practice the essay section if you are not finishing. Your past writing experience wil not dictate how well you can do on the writing.
I will be concentrating in Computer Science. Keep in mind that schools won’t only be looking for SAT scores and international STEM awards - I did not participate in any science fairs, IMO, ICO, or IOI in my HS career. If you have them - great - but the best thing to do is to show depth in the activities you have already done. That said, if you are interested in Math/Comp Sci, it’s probably a good idea to look at IOI, though I don’t know if you will be able to compete in many levels before application deadlines.
Having received generous fin aid (I had very significant need) offers at my admitted schools, I want to reiterate to international students to look beyond only need blind institutions. Need aware schools can and often do provide very good fin aid packages to international students. However, the number is usually very tiny - I received an email from Rice that I was 1 out of 20 international students who had received fin aid. Very competitive, but I don’t think I was any superstar applicant, so very accomplish-able.
I will repost part of the above comment – because I think it’s very important.
**** I want to reiterate to international students to look beyond only need blind institutions. Need aware schools can and often do provide very good fin aid packages to international students. ****
@oreganese
Your comment was very helpful! I am reaearching colleges this summer and a few days ago I crossed Rice off my list, because they say that they typically dont meet full need. I am glad I came across this thread! If you dont mind sharing - did the FA packages you receive contain loans and what was the usual student contribution/work study? Are transportation and books/fees covered?Also- are there any other colleges ( that typically dont come to mind) that you would suggest applying to if we are an international with a LOT of need? Thank you! 
I assume that it is possible for an international student to receive loans in their fin aid packages, but no, I did not personally receive any. Usual student summer earnings expectation is ~2500 in freshman, then goes up in later years. You may or may not receive a work study portion in your financial aid. Transportation, books, and fees are included in your cost of attendance, which they use (along with your family contribution) to calculate your financial aid package.
If you are a good test taker, I would recommend looking at universities with automatic scholarships based on your SAT/GPA (like Temple University). I believe tuition is 100% free if you get above a certain number. I did not apply as I did not come across these policies until after I learned of my acceptances, but I wish I’d known in case I was not fortunate enough to be admitted to the schools I was admitted to.
I’ve heard that LACs and women’s colleges (If applicable) often give a lot of financial aid as well. I’m not incredibly knowledgable on this, but I know that there are lists on College Confidential and that Common Data Sets provide the average number of financial aid received by international students.
Good luck.
Hey everyone!
I’ve got some questions about CommonApp
- We don’t have such thing as GPA so should I convert it to the US system by myself in my application? And as far as I know, unweighted GPA doesn’t count the difficulty of the class, right? Can I choose this option even though it’s not officialy stated at school?
- In my country people study for 11 years at school. Should I use American system when for example filling in the activities part? Like if I did smth during my 10th grade (kinda junior) I write like it was 11th grade. Or should I just fill everything like it is and leave 12th grade blank all the time?
Thank you in advance
No. Use whatever scale your school uses. If it’s on a 20 point scale, use that, as an example.
No.
Hey is it true that Public colleges provide International students less Scholarships than Private ones??
@oreganese Did u apply to only top ivy league colleges or did u also apply some lower ranked colleges, if so please mention the names.