Guide Me / International / CS

College Search & Selection
1

As we are approaching the deadlines, I would like to have some las perspectives from the CollegeConfidential Community. I am an International student. I want to major in CS. I would like to give my stats because I will need your ideas about the best place for me.

GPA:96.47
Ranking: 1/42
SAT: 1450 (650EBRW/800M) Superscored - 1440(640EBRW/800)
SAT II: Math - 780
Physics - 790
IELTS: 8.0

ECs:
I don’t want to mention about them but there are some decent ECs( vice president x2 / president of the student council, a lot of initiatives and community service)

LORs:
Principal - Physics Teacher: 9/10
English Teacher: 8/10
Physics Teacher: 7/10
High School Counsellor: 8/10

Applied to:
The University of Illinois at Urbana (EA)
Georgia Tech (EA)
Princeton (SCEA)
UC Berkeley (only exception, CS B.A.)
UCLA
Purdue (EA)
University of Washington
The University of Michigan EA but got into regular decision pool
UT Austin
Michigan State University, applying for a scholarship
University of Toronto
University of Waterloo
City U Hong Kong, scholarship

I will apply to:
Drexel
NYU
University of Wisconsin - Madison
Rochester U.
McGill
UBC
UCL
University of Sydney
University of Melbourne
University of Amsterdam

Do you recommend any good CS program (in the U.S.)that will fit my stats/requirements etc. I just wanted to have your opinions as a whole. (No financial aid except few schools like Princeton and Rochester)

Thank You

2

How come you applied SCEA to Princeton and still applied EA to other schools?

3

Could you clarify, in what sense does UC–Berkeley represent an exception? By Rochester U, do you mean the University of Rochester, rather than the Rochester Institute of Technology?

4

So clarify, you would be OK the be full pay at these publics? Australia? I think you have cost constraints, so you need to define the limit. NYU will be +$70K, but Canadian schools will be a bargain. Do you really HAVE these options? Lots of your US publics will admit you at full pay, Australian schools will admit you because international $$ rule. What is your citizenship?

5

Can you afford to be full pay? There are a lot of public colleges on your list that won’t give any financial aid to out-of-state or international students.

Your SAT is a little on the low side as CS programs are very competitive and your list is pretty reach-heavy overall, but your GPA and SAT II scores help. Do you have any CS or STEM-related extra curriculars?

6

@anna114141
In Princeton’s Single Choice Early Action, you can apply to public/states schools early. There is only restriction about private schools.

7

@merc81
All of the CS programs I applied were either BS or BEng. Since my SAT score is low and B.A. CS in Berkeley LESS competitive comparet to EECS (still competitive though) I wanted to try my chances. I mean University of Rochester

8

@Sybylla
I would be OK to pay public schools. My economic situation is complicated but hopefully I will be able to afford first 1.5/2 years of college (including books, room, meal plans etc.) depending on the school. I do believe my chances outside US are significantly higher and I want a variety of schools/countries to choose from. I am Turkish.

9

How will you finance the last 2 - 2 1/2 years?

You will need proof of funds for your student visa.

10

@Groundwork2022
Yes. I will be able to afford the full pay, hopefully. I am coming from the Turkish Private school and my whole curriculum is in Turkish because my class does not offer IB classes. That is a downside. On the other hand, I am the valedictorian. Yes, I am aware of my low SAT score but to be honest this is the best-ish I can do with this English level. I am retaking SAT in December tho.
I have CS / STEM-related ECs.

  • Member of Turkish National Science, Robotics & Technology Team
  • Founded FRC club (the first club in our school’s history which is founded by a student)
  • Regional Quarterfinals FRC, Engineering Inspiration Award, Team Spirit Award
  • I got selected for the CS-BRIDGE program in one of the best universities in my school. The CS-BRIDGE program is sponsored and administrated by Stanford University.
  • Lots of Robotic competitions.
  • I started some events. Initiatives: Our school’s first Space Day/Astronomy Day/Camp
    (School Name) Science Workshops - these events are still going on.
    There are some more as well.

If you suggest/recommend any school that has a decent CS program and is reach for me, I would be happy.

11

@momofsenior1

“Real Estates”
Parents’ annual estimated income: around 25-30k. But hopefully we are able to pay the full price for the first 2 years and in these 2 years we will be able to save the money we need to pay the other half.

If I will go to private instution and if there is a drastic change in my economic situation, I think the financial aid department will help me out. If the same thing happens in public school, which are not likely to happen, I will find co-signer and have debt until I find the money. But as I said, it is unlikely to have this situation.

12

OK, your extracurriculars look good.

I am not seeing how you can afford public schools, though. Eight out of the nine US-based schools you applied to are public schools that won’t give you any financial aid. Princeton is private, but it is a high reach for everyone (as an international student with low SAT scores, you have a 99+% chance of being rejected).

One rule of thumb is not to borrow more than you can make in your first year out of college (that’s too much for many of us here on CC - our government will only loan US students around $27,000 or so - total; beyond that the parents have to agree to cosign). With your family savings + $5K/year in work study (optimistic) + a loan, you are in very real danger of running out of resources well before you can finish your degree.

You would be better off looking for less expensive options, and perhaps doing a semester at a college in the US.

13

The visa process will involve looking at the financials. If you cannot prove you can pay, this is just a waste of time. It isn’t an abstract, you, as an international applying as full pay, have to have this money available and provable, not potential loans or locked in real estate. FA offices won’t save you and your visa will be revoked and you have nothing if you run out of money. Who is paying for all these applications?
You need to apply to your local university. IMO you have no school on your list that you will be able to afford or will get admission to.

14

The UC’s are $65K per year, so, multiply that by 4 years. You will not be able to get instate residency fees.
You have to show that you have the money to pay these fees for your visa.
Also, your SAT scores won’t get you into the UC’s for CS. It’s way too competitive.
Your parents make less than ½ of that; where will they get the money?

15

Did you check financial aid policies for international students in each US college in your list?

I’m not sure, but probably just Princeton works for your financial situation.

University of Rochester, Michigan State and Drexel, are options, but, I don’t think that they give you enough financial aid to be affordable.

Good Luck.

16

Do not borrow money to study in the US. It will be difficult for you to pay your debt after you return home. Most students do not find work in the US after graduation, so please don’t plan on staying here.

Australia and Canada have better immigration policies for international graduates of their universities than the US does. If you absolutely must leave your home country, do more research on immigration policies in Australia and Canada, and see if their universities offer programs you like.

17

You’ve received good advice so far…have you taken the TOEFL test? You will need that for most of the US schools as your HS instruction is not in English.

18

First of all, thank you for your responses. However, I fell I could not express myself, and my question is unanswered. My original question was: “If you suggest/recommend any school that has a decent CS program and is reach for me, I would be happy.” but the topic of the discussion shifted to “financial situation.” As I said earlier, I will be able to pay the full price - regardless what the price is. Even though I did not wan to give much information about my financial situation, to clarfiy myself, I even said I will use “real estates” for money source and after all the calculations I did with my family, we will be able to pay the price. So debt/getting financial aid is not likely to happen - as I mentioned earlier. I feel I repeat myself and to be honest a bit disappointed because of the shift in topic.

I do understand your concerns about the financial situation and you kindly say “if you have no money, then forget it from the first place.” and I am aware of that. Trust me, financially I will be ok.

To answer individually:
@Groundwork2022
Real Estates are sufficient to pay the full price. I appreciate your help.

@Sybylla
I am paying for all these applications. We have a college budget.

“IMO you have no school on your list that you will be able to afford or will get admission to.”

How can you say there is no school in my list that I won’t be able to afford? Not knowing my economic background and assuming I won’t be able to pay based on my other comments don’t seem like credible to me. In addition, even though my SAT score is low and it is so competitive for CS major, I do think I have good chances to get admission for the other schools outside U.S. and some U.S. schools like Purdue, Michigan State. Thank you for your time and effort though.

@“aunt bea”
Thank you for your question. Yes, my SAT score is very low for UCs. When the admission officer / regional manager of UCLA and UC Berkeley came to my school, I had a little talk with them about my SAT score. They exactly said : “your SAT score is pretty low but on the other hand you have good ECs and GPA. Honestly, it depends on your essays and your passion. Still apply to have a better evaluation but don’t overhype to get in.” I applied as they said and I am shooting my shot.
Also, as I stated many many times before, I did not want to reveal my economic background since the question I asked was based on the program I wanted but I stated that real estates will be enough to pay these prices.

@“International Dad”
Thank you for your response. I apply to Drexel, Mich State, etc. to have variety and other plans as well. I know they do not cover the most of it and thank you.

@happymomof1
I agree with the fact that I should not borrow any money and I won’t. However, I do not find your “Most students do not find work in the US after graduation, so please don’t plan on staying here.” statement accurate. I am not data analyzer or expert on this issue, but I have many solid alumni from my school who worked in Microsoft/Apple etc. after they graduated. I used to want to be an aerospace engineer and since I am international it would be lower my chances to find a job and I would think you are correct. But getting a CS degree, which is a booming industry right now, from the schools I stated is valuable and hopefully will work me. It is not guaranteed and I will have a lot of hardships both financially and mentally but I think it is worth it and hopefully I will find a job.

Thank you for your comments on Australia and Canada. Yes, it is easier to get an immigration from these countries compared to U.S.

@Mwfan1921
I took IELTS and got 8.0 from it. It will be enough to apply to these schools since many U.S. schools now accept both IELTS and TOEFL.

19

You don’t need any more reach schools. As an international student applying to the most popular major, your list is already very reach heavy.

20

@momofsenior1
Any suggestions for safety / fit schools then?