Disowned junior needs help quick.

Applying to College
1

<p>This is going to be complicated, so I'd greatly appreciate it if you would bear with me. Moderators, I didn’t know where I should post this thread, so I’m sorry if this isn’t in the right part of the forum, etc. </p>

<p>I am an international student currently in her junior year, and am from a single-parent family. Probably will be the first to attend college. Mom needs to take care of my little sis; we live on government subsidies. Long story short, I don’t qualify for fee waivers, so we have to fork out a whole lot of money to take the required standardised tests. An educational institution sent me an SAT tutor to help me improve my scores. Took the May SAT after four months of intensive studying; just found out that my SAT score dropped by 130 points. The fees have set us back quite a bit naturally, to the point where we’ve been starting to borrow from banks; my mom blames me for not studying hard enough (her accusation is questionable, but it’s the least of my worries right now), for chasing after impossible dreams while bringing the family down, and thus disowns me. Everyone I know is disappointed. </p>

<p>I don’t know what I can do right now. I really want to – have to, in fact – go to American colleges for my undergrad degree, since Anthropology is not offered as a major in any of our local universities. Needless to say, I will need to be given a huge amount of financial aid to get there. Columbia has been my dream since I was ten (Margaret Mead!), but it just doesn’t seem possible right now. (Stats enclosed below.)</p>

<ol>
<li> What can I do to strengthen my applications?</li>
<li> Possible schools for me?</li>
<li> How should I deal with my family issues?</li>
<li> Any advice?</li>
</ol>

<p>Thank you so, so much for reading this. Hopefully things will work out, but I’m doubting it.</p>

<p>School Type: quite famous public school
Unweighted GPA: 3.667
Class rank: school doesn’t calculate; top 10% at the very least
SAT I: first time 2140 (800 CR, 690 M, 650 W); second time 2010 (700 CR, 690 M, 620 W)
IELTS: 8.5 overall
SAT II Literature: 780
SAT II World History: 770 </p>

<p>Extracurricular Info:
*took courses at Coursera, MIT OpenCourse just for the hell of it
*wrote theses on cultural norms, immigration, religion, philosophy, etc as extra coursework – a paper actually won an international essay comp
*Literature Society; chairlady
*Editor-in-Chief of school magazine
*Designed language course in my own dialect, along with materials such as flashcards, for immigrants of ethnic minorities at a local community centre; volunteered 180+ hours
*Voluntary English tutoring for my immigrant neighbour; ~250 hours
*Project manager of a fundraising carnival; raised ~$2000
*Model United Nations Conference Team – Head Delegate; Leader of Delegations; won Best Delegate Awards and Honourable Mentions at all MUNs I went to
* Debate Team – co-founder and captain; adjudicated two debates under a national debate comp; best speaker in quite a few debate comps
* choir, drama, ballet, tennis (nothing special)</p>

<p>Work Experience:
*internship at major broadcasting company
*Tutor, 6 hours per week, 3 years now</p>

<p>Awards:
*Harvard Book Prize 2013
*2nd in national news commentary comp
*school awarded me the Outstanding Service Award and Subject Achievement Award twice
*Shakespearian monologue comp champion</p>

2

<p>Quickly: your SAT score has NOT dropped: as long as it’s 2000 or 2100 the numbers after don’t matter much (2190 obviously is different from 2000 but only slightly, especially for internationals for whom it is very hard to break the 2000 threshold). Actually some schools will superscore you, ie take the best result from any test you took, for you that’s 800, 690, 650.) Schools like to see a “2” in front of your total and that’s super impressive for an international student.
All your stats, grades, ECs, are excellent. However you should apply to a lot more schools than just Columbia. BTW if you’re a girl, definitively apply to Barnard.</p>

<p>If you live on government subsidies, how can there be no help to pay for SAT’s? Those tests are super expensive. :s I understand your mother is upset because it cut into the family’s basics, but really you’re okay, you’re over 2000 in any case, most schools will see the higher score or will superscore you, and for international students that’s what matters. Your next job is your essay and thinking about it is free. :slight_smile:
Tell your mom that you’ll be admitted to a top school and you’ll pay her back tenfold once you have graduated. :slight_smile: Plus she’ll have bragging rights if you’re the first one to get admitted to college, furthermore a prestigious college in the US that gives you a scholarship bigger than people in your area/family make in a year, meaning they really really want you. And who knows, you may even start a trend and encourage others to apply. :)</p>

<p>Since you’ll need lots of financial aid, refer to this and apply to lots of schools from the list.
[Top</a> 25 Financial Aid Colleges in US for International Students (Need-aware) - Desperate Guide: Undergraduate College Financial Aid, Scholarship](<a href=“http://www.desperateguide.com/us/top-25-financial-aid-colleges-in-us-for-international-students-need-aware]Top”>http://www.desperateguide.com/us/top-25-financial-aid-colleges-in-us-for-international-students-need-aware)
You can also participate in the Robertson Scholars from Duke and UNC-CH, in the Johnson Competition at Washington and Lee, etc. (You have a the stats to be competitive).</p>

3

<p>If you live on government subsidies, how can there be no help to pay for SAT’s? Those</p>

<p>It sounds like she’s getting subsidies from ANOTHER country. She’s not getting US fed aid. Her country may not provide aid to take a US college entrance exam. </p>

<p>Desperate,</p>

<p>What do you mean by “disowned”? It sounds like your mom is disappointed (inappropriately), but that’s not the same as being “disowned” (you’re not my daughter anymore, get out!)</p>

<p>Your only hope is to get accepted to a school that “meets need” for int’ls, but may not be super competitive like the ivies. Maybe Smith? Mt Holyoke?</p>

4

<p>desperatekid -</p>

<p>You and your mother need to read through everything at <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Then you need to contact the counselors at the advising center closest to where you live: <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/centers.php[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/centers.php&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>EducationUSA is a not-for-profit organization. If your family is truly hard up for money, the counselors will almost certainly be able to reduce any fees that are charged. The counselors are expert at helping students in their countries find good places to study in the US. They will be able to tell you if anyone like you has been admitted here in recent years, and whether that student has received the kind of aid that he/she needed.</p>

<p>The US is not the only place on the planet where you can pursue undergraduate studies in Anthropology. Do some research on the other places where you could do that, and contact the universities involved. You have more options than you want to believe that you have.</p>

5

<p>MYOS1634: I definitely will apply to Barnard, thanks! As for the government subsidy thing - it just hasn’t occurred to the government that slightly disadvantaged kids like me’d like to go overseas, I guess? The arguments you wrote in your post are exactly the same as the ones I used to persuade her into letting me go to the States for college. Thanks for links and the encouragement; it really means a lot to me :smiley: </p>

<p>mom2collegekids: Disowned, as in “I have no such daughter”. As in, “I will feed you and provide you with shelter until you are eighteen, but no more”. As in, “I refuse to sign your notices from school”. She hasn’t even addressed me once since my scores came in. I admit maybe she needs time to cool down, but she’s the sort of person who means what she says. That’s why I’m so, so worried. I’ve tried to apologise, but she’s like, this is the last straw. You’re a curse, and I want nothing to do with you. Smith and Mount Holyoke - got it! Thank you so much :smiley: </p>

<p>happymomof1: I actually am going to apply to the UK as well as Canada; all the costs involved in the whole “applying-to-colleges-in-4-countries” thing has taken its toll, and my mom’s probably angry and frustrated because she sees no tangible benefit from the whole venture. I’ll contact the EducationUSA advising center as soon as possible! Thank you so much for the advice :D</p>

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<p>Your mom may come around. In the meanwhile, explore colleges online, ask for their brochures, write back if they email you, ask questions, show interest. Women’s colleges are especially good with financial aid for admitted applicants, they usually cover full need, and the quality of education is on par with their ex-“brothers”.
Perhaps your mother is focusing her anger on the score because it’s something she can seize, when in fact her anger is something else -fear you won’t return, fear you’ll ridicule her, fear you jeopardized your family’s savings for a pipe dream, etc.
I’m sure the community here at CC will be here for you and try to help as much as we can.</p>

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<p>As a fellow junior, I have much respect for your maturity in this situation. I don’t how I’d put up with what you are dealing with! Based on what I have picked up from my college class, your credentials should be more than sufficient for financial aid from a lot of colleges. You have a lot of leadership positions as well. Stay Strong and make sure to talk to your college adviser!</p>

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<p>I think your scores and grades look great. Don’t worry about the 130 point drop. US schools will look at the best scores.</p>

<p>Does this quite famous public school send kids to colleges? Is there a college counselor you can talk to about more local options shoud the US not pan out. </p>

<p>Can it really be that no universities in your country offer anthropology? Seems hard to believe.</p>

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<p>That’s a very touching story of your life. Use it. Essays. Scholarships. Whatever it takes. Use your hardship to boost your situation.</p>

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<p>Update: I have contacted the local EducationUSA advisors; apparently there’s an Opportunity Fund for kids like me to deal with upfront costs related to applying for US colleges. It’s on a school-by-school basis, so the agency and my school are discussing options right now. Fingers crossed! </p>

<p>MYOS1634: I’ve also been looking at Bryn Mawr, Wellesley, Swarthmore, Middlebury, NYU, U of Chicago and Northwestern. I think you’re absolutely right; she has complained a few times about my being miss little high and mighty before all this happened. As for the CC community - I have received so much advice and so many kind words within this day alone. People like you guys make me feel a tad more hopeful about the human capacity for good. (I mean it.) </p>

<p>lastspartan: Thanks! I talked to her today, and she told me to keep working hard. :D</p>

<p>qialah: Really? Would it be worthwhile to take my SAT for the third time (provided that EducationUSA helps me with the fees)? 70% of said famous public school do go on to matriculate at local and international colleges; a few have gone to HYMPS, Oxbridge, and the like. I’ll be applying to a few countries, so I guess it’d work out somehow? Technically we don’t have college counsellors, but my debate coach has been very supportive, and has taught me a lot about career pathways, the nitty-gritty of the admissions process, and so on and so forth. Only one uni here offers archeology, but dusting artefacts is simply not my thing. Thanks for replying to my post! </p>

<p>Complik: Thank you! Wouldn’t it backfire, though? I mean, I wouldn’t like people telling me their sob stories in an attempt to win my respect.</p>

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<p>Your SAT II scores are excellent. At Middlebury and several other schools, you can submit 3 SAT II scores (in different areas of study) in lieu of the SAT I or ACT. If you’re good at another subject, you may want to consider taking one more SAT II and submitting those 3 scores to Middlebury and others that accept SAT IIs.</p>

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<p>Like it or not, people will be jumping at the chance to help you. International student, female, first to attend college, single parent, etc. Colleges are specifically helping people like you. And scholarships, don’t even get me started. If you look around enough, you can probably find a full ride.</p>

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<p>Finding full aid is not easy for international applicants. As soon as you have 15 posts and can send a PM to another username here, get in touch with b@r!um who is the closest thing to a financial aid expert in the International Students Forum. She has written about the research strategy that she used to identify places that would offer her the kind of aid that she needed. She should have useful ideas for you.</p>

<p>You also should read through the threads on guaranteed merit-based aid in the Financial Aid Forum. Some of that aid is available to international applicants. However, you would have to apply very early - in most cases before December 1. Start with this thread:<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html?highlight=bobwallace[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html?highlight=bobwallace&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;