Hi there!
I’m an international student seeking to apply to CMC in my Early Decision I. I wonder what it would be like to do so for me. Will I be able to get full tuition aid?
My SAT score from March is 1370 and my GPA in class 11 is 3.89 on a 4 point scale. But I have worked for multiple multi-national companies, startups and non-profit organizations in executive roles. Plus I have some good ECAs as well.
Thanks in advance! Really appreciated.
It is possible but doesn’t sound highly likely. You should ask a financial aid officer.
They are need aware so if you have too much need they can reject you.
I would check the ED contract before applying, because if you are admitted but cannot afford it, you have a problem.
Give your stats, it will be a hard admit regardless although it sounds like your work experience will be a plus.
Are you a non-traditional student? (Example, someone who’s worked for several years after high school and are now looking to go to college?). Or are you just completing high school?
Asking because you said:
If you’re a 17/18 year old high schooler you’ll need to convince the AOs that you aren’t exaggerating your work experience, because how does a high schooler get to be an executive at multiple international firms?
(As an aside, those executive level jobs at multi-nationals pay very well - so if you’re looking for a full ride it doesn’t add up.
Really? You are a high school student who has had executive positions with multi national companies?
Please do not exaggerate your accomplishments.
My opinion…your SAT and GPA are on the low side for this college.
In terms of need…what WAS your income in 2021? Because that will be considered for your 2023-2024 academic year aid. If you really were an exec with a company…what was your income. And what about your parent income.
CMC offers primarily need based aid with a small number of highly competitive merit scholarships.
Based on what you wrote here, by 12th grade you have worked in executive positions in at least two multi-national companies, in at least two start-ups, and in at least two non-profits. That is at least six executive positions before you are 18, while being a full time students, AND, according to your post, you “have some good ECAs as well.”
I would find the claims of executive positions at multiple multi-national companies, start-ups, and non-profits difficult to accept from somebody in the late 20s, so you can understand why I am skeptical, and why AOs would be skeptical as well. If you add on to the the fact that you have been a full-time students AND have been engaged in other extracurricular activities as well, that skepticism is ramped up a couple of notches.
To answer your query - CMC is need-aware for international students. That means that your profile should such that they will not only choose you over hundreds of other applicants, but also pay hundreds of thousands of dollars so that you could attend CMC. You would have to be far better than any full pay or partial pay applicants from your region of the world. Unless that is the case, you are not likely not very competitive for CMC.
Has anybody from your high school ever been accepted to CMC (or to a similar college)?
The OP gave their GPA until 11th grade. So they are almost certainly rising 12th graders, or perhaps 12th graders (depends on how the school year in their country works).
They were either voluntarily or based on token contracts whose token value doesn’t add up to anything. I’d add they were SaaS companies, and multi-national as in their product can be used from anywhere in the world.
makes complete sense. I’d say they were SaaS companies or projects in the crypto space so innately multi-national. I used to do everything from home.
I didn’t work in executive role for all six of them. started from the lowermost and went to one of the highest roles. And it’s like two startups, one non-profits, and remaining multinational companies.
Nope, probably not even from my country, I suppose. Or if there are, the number would be very less.
Yep, I completed my 12th a couple months ago and am waiting on the results.
Sincere apologies for all this confusion. I hope this clears everything now.
My bad, I should have stated them clearly. By multi-national, I meant their product can be used from anywhere in the world as in SaaS companies.
Got it.
thank you.
I don’t know what SaaS is (you may want to write that out in full if putting it on a college application) but a multinational corporation is a corporation with offices in multiple countries. Just because you can sell a product to customers in multiple countries doesn’t make you multinational.
Exactly. It is important to be accurate and sound credible. If you’re unsure of the terms you’re using you can get feedback here on this forum.
This is not the same as being an executive. Again, please do not exaggerate. You might think you’re sounding impressive but admissions officers are well versed in what’s credible/achievable for a high schooler so writing things like this in your application is a sure way to get yourself rejected.
Good advice. The AO reading your app very likely won’t know what SaaS is either. Putting acronyms without explanation in your app is another way to do yourself a disservice.
Let’s go back to the original question. Admission given your stats is highly unlikely and as a need aware school with limited funds for international students, you likely couldn’t afford even if you somehow got in.
It’s possible but unlikely and unless you are prepared to break a contract, you should not apply ED. Breaking a contract could put you in a situation where you get blackballed at other schools.
Apply but not ED and find some schools in your country or another that would be affordable to you.
Yes, thank you. I think that others have given you some pretty good advice.
A. Are there any colleges in the USA or in other countries which many students from your high school attend?
Slightly off topic…
SaaS = Software as a service. Basically software available by subscription, in most cases.
For the OP, I agree with others that you are misstating your ECs. Luckily you’ve been made aware and have time to correct that and find schools that are a better fit for your stats. Keep asking questions and allow posters to help you. Good luck!
how’s that? If I’ve worked in their C’s suite, won’t that be an executive role? just asking.
thanks a lot for correcting my wording. really appreciated.
SaaS is a software as a service/subscription companies. I’ve worked for them in the finance sector.
About those roles, you said “They were either voluntarily or based on token contracts whose token value doesn’t add up to anything”.
The former should simply be presented as volunteering work and I think the latter as well since you weren’t being meaningfully paid for your work. If you were a “CEO” or “CTO” at your own non-profit/startup or one of your family member’s or family friend’s based on personal connections - that’s not materially the same as being hired into an actual paying executive role.
If you want to highlight the work you did and your leadership, it is much better to describe your accomplishments accurately and showcase them as you taking initiative, showing leadership, volunteering your time, etc. Those are all admirable and believable activities that strengthen your application. On the other hand, in an attempt to sound impressive if you say things like “I have worked for multiple multi-national companies, startups and non-profit organizations in executive roles”, you will come across as a gross exaggerator and it’ll hurt your application.
aside from your ECs, pay attention to what @tsbna44 said in post #11.
What other US schools do you have on your list? And do you have a backup plan in your home country?
got you. thanks a lot.
Colgate, Lehigh, Carleton, Grinnell, Trinity, Rice, Miami, New Jersey Insitute of Tech, Springfield, and maybe a couple of safety schools which I haven’t thought of yet.
Nope. it’s because I plan to go to the US for my studies. The condition of everything here in my country couldn’t be worse at this point. So there’s no point in having a backup plan in my country.
It sounds like you need very significant financial aid to attend college in the United States. Is that correct. Your SAT and GPA are really iffy in terms of acceptance into the colleges in this country that will likely give you sufficient aid to attend.
In addition, what do you plan to do once you graduate? You most likely will be required to return to your country. Going to college here is not a path to permanent residency or citizenship. You will be coming on a student visa and when that expires, you might be eligible to stay and work her under certain circumstances, but that is very much NOT a guarantee.
As an international student seeking full aid there are no safety schools in the US.
That may be your plan but it won’t come to fruition if you don’t get accepted or don’t get full financial aid. The vast majority of colleges have very limited funds (if at all) for foreign students. That’s just the reality.
If you don’t mind me being totally honest, given your stats and profile you have a fairly low probability of acceptance and an even lower probability of receiving full aid. Sorry if that sounds overly pessimistic but that’s the plain truth. So if you don’t have a backup plan in your country you may not be going to college at all.
How will you pay for some of these colleges? NJ Institute of Technology, Springfield don’t meet full need for all accepted students.
Colgate, Lehigh, Carleton, Grinnell, Trinity, Rice, Miami are all need aware for international students and that means your level of financial need will be considered when your application for admission is considered.