Going to college in the States as former exchange student

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi everyone,</p>

<p>I'm Aaron from Germany, I was in the states as exchange student in 2011/2012. I went to High School in Phoenix, AZ.
I'm about to get my High school diploma in spring of 2014 here in Germany.
But, after being home for about 10 months now, I still have the idea to go to college in the states. I would like to be in or near a bigger city for college though. There is just one problem: the cost. </p>

<p>Some facts about myself:
I'm class rank 2 or 3 of 165 students. Hope to exit school with a GPA of 1.2-1.3 (Best being 1.0, worst passing GPA 4.0)
Took the SAT without that much preparation about 1.5 years ago, it was like a 1900 composite I think, might be better now and with some preparation, like 2100 or something...
Spent a year as 16-year old in the states on exchange.</p>

<p>Playing european handball and used to be in a soccer team as Goalie.
Active member in a political party.
Very active in my exchange organization (YFU): I currently hold the post-return orientation supervisor position and I am leader of our city's chapter; I did some selection interviews of some applicants, and went on two orientations/seminars as teacher/leader.
I think I'm one of the most active high-schoolers in this organization...</p>

<p>The problem with costs:
In Germany, college is generally for free, one just has to spend money on the living cost. So it's like $10,000 on that max.
So, when studying in the states, my parents won't support me with much more than about 10k a year.
So what I need is basically a (more or less) full scholarship. How do I get that?
There are some colleges, that are need-blind in their admissions and meet all needs, even for internationals. These colleges are HYP, MIT, Dartmouth and Amherst.
There are some others, I found out, that also have pretty good conditions for internationals, Georgetown, Stanford and some more. </p>

<p>But, I know thats pretty difficult to get in these schools. So, I hope you can help me with the following:
Which of these might be the easiest for me to get in (not-so-good stats but I think good community involvement (ECs) and intl' experience)? Which school cares the least about stats?
Do you know other schools (less hard to get in) that support internationals and have good financial aid or generally low tuition cost?
Do you know others ways to get money for college? any other scholarships?</p>

<p>Thanks in advance for your help!</p>

2

<p>You should start by reading through everything (and yes, I do indeed mean everything) at <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/&lt;/a&gt; Then make an appointment with the counselors at the advising center closest to where you are living. There are several in Germany: <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/Germany[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/Germany&lt;/a&gt; EducationUSA is a not-for-profit organization that receives some support from the US Government. There may be small fees for its services, but that income goes to directly support the office that you visit. The counselors pride themselves on offering unbiased accurate information about educational opportunities here. They are expert at helping students in your country find good places to study in the US.</p>

<p>Not all colleges and universities here offer need-based financial aid or merit-based scholarships to international students. When the aid is need-based, the college/university will determine what it believes your family can afford. If your parents will only pay USD 10,000 each year, but the college/university believes that they can pay USD 20,000, then that place will not be affordable. If the place offers merit-based scholarships because of your grades and/or SAT or ACT scores, that scholarship still might not be enough to bring your costs down to what your family can pay. So don’t fall in love with any college or university until after you know that you can afford to attend. Remember, you won’t get your student visa if you can’t demonstrate that your full Cost of Attendance (COA) is covered by some combination of personal/family money and scholarship or aid money offered by the place you will be attending or by another outside scholarship source.</p>

<p>USD 10,000 will not go far at all here for an international student. Even most community colleges have a COA of USD 20,000 for international students. There are very few places where that would cover the living expenses. You will need a scholarship or aid that will cover your full tuition, fees, health insurance, and a bit more.</p>

<p>Some of the students in [International</a> Students - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/international-students/]International”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/international-students/) have managed to come up with affordable places to attend here. Look for anything posted by b@r!um who has good ideas about the money. You also should spend some time in [Financial</a> Aid & Scholarships - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/]Financial”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/) to read through the threads on merit-based aid and aid for international students. Some of that might work for you.</p>

<p>Wishing you all the best!</p>

3

<p>Many top LACs have generous financial aid policies. Since you’re very active in an international organizations, two MN colleges with good financial aid may be of interest: St Olaf (well known for global/study abroad) and Macalester (international politics).
I don’t think there’s any college that recruits handball players but you can check with the American handball association. However most have soccer teams so if you can up your game you may be able to play for a Div III school thus ease your admission.
Your other bet is to retake the SAT and score very very high.
Since your GPA would convert to a 3.9 or 4.00 unweighted, a combination high GPA + high SAT score would give you a good shot at merit aid.
Also, when you say 10,000, do you mean euros or dollars?</p>

4

<p>Would you consider going to college in germany then taking summer courses or getting an internship in US with some of that $10k each year?</p>