chances for umich (and others) for indian international student without financial aid

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hi, I plan on applying to umich as my aspirantional school, my stats are below

9th 8.6/10.0 GPA

10th 91%

11th 60% ( my school deflates marks to get us “ready” for class 12th and the standardized test for engineering in india called JEE. A third of our batch failed. I also have a good reason for these bad grades as my parents got seperated at that time and it was not affable at all, my paternal grandfather was trying to take all my moms money and my college fund.)

12th 90% (first unit, though i expect 92 ish in mid terms)

SAT 1450
math 800
english 650

I am giving AP physics C both exams and have given sample papers and am pretty sure i will get a 4 or above in electricity and a 5 in mechanics. I also plan on giving calc BC, computer science next year

subject tests physics 800
math 2 790

EC : 3 National music competions, 2 for rock music and 1 for hindustani classical with first prize
tutored music theory and intrumental lessons to locals
guitar and piano grade 8 RSL certificates
2 year school tech club leader, organized 1 event at our school
5 prizes in interschool tech events, mainly in gaming and photography/photoshop
school band leader for 4 years
1st position in state level space tech competition
multiple local band and solo music shows
qualified to battle of the bands in my state

This is basically all, although i may be forgetting some minor music certificates. I intend to apply for a physics major .
and my essay is also based on music and relating it to physics and how both of them are a combines interest of mine. my main issue is my class 11th marks. In India, there is this JEE exam that all science field students have to give to get into any GOOD college, so our schools deflate marks a lot, but im not sure if colleges would be willing to look through this major red flag. this is the reason why im not applying financial aid and why im giving the ap exams, as i want to prove that its not me who isnt doing the hard work, the schools just dont budge. other schools im applying to include uwash, madison, ut austin, umd college park, ucsb and sd,uiuc, and u of colorado boulder as safety.

If you all could please tell me what i can expect, it would really alleviate the stress off of my shoulders. THANKS!!!

2

Do you have a TOEFL score yet? Your math is obviously quite good, but your English needs a little work. SATs are good overall, but a higher English score would help you. I know an Asian-American student (our of state for Michigan) with a higher GPA and test scores than you (nearly perfect) who got rejected this year. Still, give it a try. If you can afford to be full pay, you will have a lot of excellent options to study in America.

3

Most likely not. UMich is very selective for international students
Both your gpa and SAT score is below the international average

4

i do have an 8 band in IELTS, which i guess is a 105 in TOEFL?

but english is my main issue here, im regiving the SAT in may and hopefully i would get atleast a 700 in english this time…

Umich is also at the top of my list, so getting in would be a dream come true, but what im more scared of are my 11th grade marks as in india they dont really matter in anything, so the school advertently grades us like crap. im scared that colleges may undermine me because of this. would getting good scores on the AP and Subject Tests undo some of the damage? i could even have my councellor write about the antagonistic family environment during my class 11th.

Thanks so much for your reply, i was not expecting to get one, i made an account just for this post and got a reply within a day!!

5

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES (UCLA)
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN DIEGO (UCSD)
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SANTA BARBARA (UCSB)
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN (UMICH)
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND COLLEGE PARK
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AUSTIN (UT AUSTIN)
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA CHAIMPAIGN (UIUC)
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN MADISON
UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOULDER (CU BOULDER)
PURDUE UNIVERSITY

this is my current list, and i think i may be gettting too aspirational… what is your take on this???

6

and i thought that the mean SAT score was 1415?

7

sorry for seeming too annoying with like 4 continous posts, im just trying to get this stuff sorted. Im the first one in my family to go to a different country for education. none of my friends have contacts with people who have so researching online is my last hope

8

UCs give no financial aid to OOS/internationals, so take those off the list.

The best advice is to do well in an Indian school (maybe an IIT) and come to the United States for graduate school with possible funding.

9

None of the schools on your list will give financial aid to internationals (except perhaps Purdue). Is your family able to afford full-pay for these schools? Plus add the costs of travel to/from India. This will be about $70K USD per year or 50 lakhs. This cash has to be liquid and sometimes even held in escrow.

This is a lot of money. But if your parents can afford it, then by all means try. Your list is filled with state universities. These state schools are dependent upon out of state funds to manage their budgets. UCSD, for example, has an acceptance rate of about 45% for out of state students.

The only thing holding you back is the SAT score. You will be compared directly to other Indians applying. Your marks are low, and SAT scores will be used to compare you. Work on repeating the SAT and get a higher score.

10

If your parents can afford to spend up to $70,000 per year, you will get into at least a few schools on your list.

If you need financial aid, you have no safeties. U Colorado Boulder is not known for giving good financial aid to international students.

I noticed all the schools you’re applying to are public universities. If you have the money, you should also apply to some privates which may have more spots available to international students.

11

Physics also is taught at liberal arts colleges and you might look at which ones might offer you aid.

12

How much can your family pay per year? Not applying for financial aid only helps if you can afford to pay for 4 years. It won’t make up for low stats though.

13

If you are full pay, and not applying for financial aid, you’d have a good shot at NYU

14

I guess i’m more qualified to answer this question than others on CC because I’m also an international student applying from a competitive country.
UMich rejects/defers a handful of studnets with 115+ 1550+ from China, I’m sure the same applies to India.
The international average SAT is usually above the 75th percentile of the school.
A general rule of thumb for t30 colleges is 1500+ SAT, 110+ TOEFL with the exception of NYU,WFU, Virginia, UCLA who would be more forgiving of a lower score.

Ofc, none of these metrics are absolute.

15

thanks for all the replies and for clarification, i do not want financial aid. im pretty sure i would do tutoring and other part time jobs to cover atleast my living cost, and the rest my parents have saved up so money is no problem.

as for nyu, it really is not one of the best for physics ive heard

and i have kept CU as safety as they accept like 87 % of internationals and is one of the best in physics major

so basically, I have to get atleast a 1500 ro even be considered? but what of my class 11th marks??

16

and my thought process was that private unis dont really accept that many internationals, is this not true??

17

@thunderhawk765 You can only work part time jobs on campus in the US with a student visa. Review the regulations on this US government website
https://www.ice.gov/sevis/employment
These oncampus jobs are not guaranteed.

All private universities are not at the same level. Less selective private and public universities accept more international students. They are usually full pay. The top private universities that give generous financial aid are highly selective and much more difficult to get into. Previous posts have already mentioned this.

18

I agree with @momprof9904. Don’t do this…You risk getting deported for violating your visa. The Trump administration has a low tolerance nowadays. If you work an on-campus job for 20 hours per week, you’re looking at about $4000 per semester. After taxes you’ll be left with about $3000. Not sure you can cover your living costs by working a part-time job.

19

i meant on campus research assistantship with profs, thats still legal right?

and i will have a green card in the next 3 years or so, then i dont believe i will be restrained

20

Research positions on campus are often unpaid and just for credit. They also tend to not be available until at least second year, and often times not until third year.