Any suggestions for LACs and Universities with good financial aid?

College Search & Selection
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Demographics
*First-gen international student with high financial need.

  • Gender/Race/Ethnicity: Male/African

  • Unweighted HS GPA: 3.59

  • ACT - 33

  • SAT - 1550

Extracurriculars
Won a national hackathon, volunteer work at school library, on-campus work experience

Intended Major(s)
Computer science

2

Rice University has very good financial aid and a good computer science program,

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As an international student, it will be difficult to get need-based aid except at schools that meet 100% of need for all students–and those might be difficult with your GPA. You could also look at the “work colleges” that guarantee on-campus jobs and lower prices (Berea is the first to come to mind). There are also a few schools with scholarships specifically for international applicants–look up the collegevine article about it, tons of awesome information.

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4

What do you think your class rank is? That will help put your GPA in context.

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From Forbes:

Among more than 4,000 degree-granting institutions in the U.S., there are actually only five four-year colleges who are truly need-blind for international students: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, and Amherst . These colleges meet full demonstrated need of all admitted students.

Beyond that, you can look at all the generous colleges that meet full demonstrated need of all admitted students and are need-blind for domestic students, although they are not need blind for international students.

Within those, consider what you, or your student/child, likes:

  • liberal arts/ intellectually oriented majors or pre-professional majors (i.e., majors like philosophy or history or physics vs. majors like engineering or pharmacy)
  • big or small
  • rural, suburban, or urban
  • single gender or multi gender
  • Greek organizations or no Greek organizations

Good luck in the search!

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There are more than five colleges that meet full need need for all accepted students BUT other than the five listed above, the international student’s financial need will be considered when their application for admission is reviewed.

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I think you’d be a very competitive candidate for admission to Wesleyan. And, it meets 100% full need for all accepted students.

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Actually, this is not a correct statement. Many colleges and universities (probably around 70% in the US) are need-blind for admission (including for international students), but do not claim to “meet need” (however they define “need”).

The list of these five colleges and universities may be correct if one was describing “colleges that are both need-blind for admission and claim to “meet need” (based on their own definitions of “need”) for all students, including international students”.

The more limiting factor for the OP and other international students seeking undergraduate education in the US is that few US colleges and universities offer good (or any) financial aid to international undergraduates.

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Yes, the top was a Forbes quote, but that is what Forbes meant: need blind AND meeting full demo’d need.

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Sure. Thanks a lot.

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Yeah, Berea is definitely on my list.

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My school doesn’t rank the entire graduating class, but we’re about 960 students, and I’ll probably be within the top 10%.

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Look at Warren Wilson, too, then. It’s another one of the work colleges.

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Alright. Thanks a lot.

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Thanks. I’ll be applying to Wesleyan regular decision as that’s what their website advises for international applicants.
I just hope I’ll get in.

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