Hi, I’m an international applicant from India aspiring to apply to either Cornell or UPenn for ED. UPenn is my dream school and Cornell comes a close second. However, I’ve heard that its nearly impossible for Indians requiring FA to get into UPenn and that I’ll have better chances at Cornell. (Certainly very slim chances, but still, more than the chance of getting into UPenn.)
I am very confused as to which college do I apply to. UPenn being the dream while Cornell being a more realistic chance.
Both are extremely selective. If you really want to maximize your chances of getting admission offers with adequate financial aid, you should consider a broader range of reach-match-safety schools rather than focus too much on your ED v. RD chances at a couple of Ivy League schools. Besides, ED generally is not advisable if you need to compare financial aid offers.
Here is one list of schools with relatively generous FA for international students. It is not an exhaustive list, and may be slightly out-of-date. However, it should give you some ideas about the kinds of schools that might be more realistic.
Note that many of them are small liberal arts colleges, which probably are not too well known among international students.
Also have a look at schools that automatically grant large merit scholarships for specific stats.
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/
Be sure to check which ones are open to international students. Many state universities do not offer any financial aid to internationals.
Thanks a lot @tk21769 . I have a good list of my reach and safeties with me for when I apply RD. However. I still wanted to just know which of the above two would I have better chances at, if I applied ED. The financial aid part isn’t too bad as I could afford close to 50k a year. So most of the aid packages offered should do fine.