Help me out?

Student Lounge International Students
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<p>Well, I've asked you guys to chance me before. However, I've got my full profile now and I, for the life of me, cannot seem to narrow my college list from my original shortlist. I don't want to apply to more than 10-12 colleges (largely due to parental pressure, they're not too keen on sending me to the US) and I need full aid. I'm an arts student and I want to pursue economics and international studies/history.</p>

<p>SAT I - 2350 (CR-760, W-800, M-790)
World History - 800, Math II - 740 (Repeating next week along with literature)</p>

<p>Class IX - 85.7
Class X - 89.8 (Never could get over missing out on a 90 by 1 mark)
Class XI - 76.2</p>

<p>With regard to ECAs, my greatest depth is in debating, with 2 national and 11 overall wins. Additionally, I've won at and chaired a few Model UNs, but I've never been to an international one. I've dabbled in quizzing and drama, but not too seriously and hence, I only have 3 wins in each of them. I have received the principal's award from my school for public speaking. Lastly, I've been part of a student run NGO ever since it was founded and, as a core member, have assisted in project development, mainly in our venture in a west Delhi slum.</p>

<p>Well, that about sums it up. I've given a list of colleges I'm interested in below. Be as brutally honest as you can, as I know my list, by and large, consists of reaches. I'd just like to know where you think I have a shot taking into consideration my need for 100% aid and my extremely ordinary school grades.</p>

<p>Duke, Johns Hopkins, Williams, Amherst, Middlebury, Swarthmore, Yale, UChicago, Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, UPenn, Northwestern, Dartmouth, Brown, Cornell, Washington University in St. Louis, Lafayette, Boston (Trustee scholarship)</p>

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<p>^You are a very good applicant. I don’t do chances since I don’t believe in such stuff, but make your essays good, and you’ll get in somewhere.</p>

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<p>I tttthiiinhk i no u…
Which city did u say?</p>

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<p>Hey, its good to have you back here, nban92. Your SAT score seems to have improved exponentially (if I remember correctly from your previous post).
IMHO:
Duke - YES
Johns Hopkins - YES
Williams - Elusive. Your grade 12 results and a good essay might work.
Amherst - Same as above.
Middlebury - YES
Swarthmore - Maybe
Yale - Towards a YES
UChicago - YES (but because you’re applying with aid, I can’t be too sure)
Princeton - Towards a YES; depends on your grade 12 result.
Columbia - Towards a YES; but they hardly take kids from India
UPenn - YES
Northwestern - YES
Dartmouth - Can’t Say (weathers too cold anyway)
Brown and Cornell - YES
WUSTL and Lafayette - 100% YES
Boston (Trustee scholarship) - I am told that they’re very selective with this schol, but you can try.</p>

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<p>you should definitely apply to JH, duke, northwestern, midd, WUSTL, UPenn, columbia, cornell, and boston. also you could consider CMU if you’re really interested in economics, they have a very good program, plus you have very high chances there.</p>

<p>I’m not so sure about Dartmouth, Harvard, P’ton, Yale, UChic, Swat, Williams, and Amherst. truth be told, these colleges seem to have a penchant for all-rounders. as history shows us, they expect brilliance in all aspects. also, how were your 12th grade mid terms? </p>

<p>also, has anyone applied to UCLA? everyone should apply to UCLA =P Cali is where the beaches and women are at =P</p>

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<p>^CMU does not offer financial aid as far as I know. The OP needs full aid.</p>

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<p>He is’nt?? A 2350+ and national awards puts him in the ballpark for every school he’s listed. His 11th marks are a bit low, but I don’t see it counting for much - most likely it’s either due to school strictness in marking, or a personal difficulty which hindered his studies. It’s going to come down to his essays more than anything else now.</p>

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<p>rsaxena, you’re right. I don’t think they do. But scholarship?</p>

<p>nban92,
Another thing - I added Northwestern by mistake to my suggestions. Actually, you might want to reconsider NWU. You’re an international asking for aid - that too, 100% - I knew a guy with a stellar profile, much like yours. Perfect SAT scores (2330, 20 pts below yours), extraordinary GPAs, and a truckload of ECAs. Plus, he wrote amazingly well, so his essays were top notch. He still didn’t make it into NWU. NWU is well known for its skepticism with regard to financing internationals.</p>

<p>Also, no Harvard? LOL =P</p>

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<p>^CMU asks for a prelimnary app (which was supposed to be due last month) which proves that the candidate can afford an education on his own. Otherwise they will not read his application at all, as far as I know. If an applicant cannot pay initially, his application will not be read. </p>

<p>Am not sure though. Maybe they have a special procedure for scholarship applicants. Ask someone who’s applied/applying there.</p>

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<p>No harm in applying.</p>

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<p>Great to see some good replies!
columbialove, you’re right, I’ve improved by 190 points :slight_smile: I like what you’ve suggested, it’s more or less along the lines I was thinking. Swarthmore doesn’t give much aid, while Amherst & Williams, from what I see, appear to be tougher than some of the Ivies. The few I know who got in, have REALLY high school & SAT scores. I’m not applying to Boston anymore, I’ve crossed the deadline for the scholarship anyhow. NWU, Chicago, JHU and even WUSTL seem to be quite stingy with aid. I’ll still try for Chicago, though, it is my dream college. Lafayette, on second thoughts, isn’t exactly what I’m looking for. I’m pretty hesitant to apply to Harvard, Princeton and Yale. Truth be told, I just get intimidated by the names and my school grades. Yale has interviews, though, so I’ll try there. So where does that leave me…</p>

<p>Definite - Yale, UPenn, Middlebury, Duke, Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Columbia, Chicago
Out - Swarthmore, Williams, Boston, NWU, Lafayette
Undecided - JHU, WUSTL, Harvard, Princeton, Amherst</p>

<p>So, recommend 2 colleges from the last list of 5 colleges?</p>

<p>Also, collegebored11, CMU doesn’t give aid to internationals and doesn’t have scholarships either.</p>

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<p>I’d recommend JHU and WUSTL (easy, certain entry). And Princeton, if you feel like [caution: daunting supplement essay ahead]. </p>

<p>IMO, kill Amherst and Harvard.</p>

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<p>Brown and Columbia are like two opposite sides of the pole.</p>

<p>Plus, C isn’t for everybody. Only choose if you think you don’t want much of a sense of community. C doesn’t have much College pride either and not many college events take place. Most people there have a “We’re here now, what next” attitude. That said, C can give you opportunities like no other college and makes you more ready for a demanding materialistic world out there. Be careful to know what you want for your college edu.</p>

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<p>Hmm, I don’t know so much about Columbia’s lack of college pride, you make it sound like an IIT/IIM :stuck_out_tongue: But then again, it is in NYC (nothing, NOTHING, beats New York) and as you said, by virtue of its location and reputation, the opportunities it offers are pretty amazing. I know quite a few people at Brown, and what I hear about the life there… it’s pretty sensational. So, I get your point, but I do adjust pretty well in various situations and I wouldn’t really mind trying for either ends of the spectrum. They’re both real tough to get into, anyhow. I’m just keeping my fingers crossed for Midd, Duke, UPenn or Dartmouth.
columbialove, I disagree with the certain entry or the easy bit, I might just end up being a fellow with a vacuum in my cranium for not applying to any safeties. Screw Harvard, too much of a reach. Plus, Yale’s better. You think JHU’s a viable bet? Isn’t it really low on finaid?</p>

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<p>Yeah, that factor is definitely present.</p>

<p>That’s actually my point. Because of NCY proximity, there’s not much to do on campus. People generally take off to NYC on the weekends. And you’ll be living in a city all your life anyway. I’m looking for a fuller collegy experience. But then, I do like other aspects of C.
Ooh, bdw, which organisation are you working with in West Delhi?</p>

<p>columbialove- WuStL 100%? Are you sure about his chances? He is asking for aid. How liberal do you think WUStL would be with aid packages bdw? Any acquaintances?</p>

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<p>@pixie, I’ve heard of an Indian student who received aid worth her demonstrated need (90-100%) at WUSTL last year. I clearly remember that she had a lower score than nban92 here. Also, WUSTL has a lot of scholarships. I received their catalogue earlier this year, so I can vouch for that.
@nban92, as for safeties, UMich and Indiana-Bloomington have good econs programs, so consider them. They have fat scholarships too. With your profile, you have high chances of receiving them.
Also, aren’t you considering Stanford? If you’re an ardent econs aspirant, you should apply. Stanford is extremely unpredictable with regard to admissions, so you never know! If you make it in, it’ll be an amazing experience.
As for JHU, their aid policy isn’t as severe as you think it is. Apply for their merit based scholarships as well. Your profile has high chances of receiving full aid, so you should definitely try!</p>

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<p>Also apply to Columbia, but don’t bank on it too much for admission. They’re very stern with aid asking internationals =P</p>

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<p>well, this year, columbia hasn’t admitted a lot of Indians, so maybe theyre looking forward to admitting more next session. that seems like a happy prospect, doesn’t it? :)</p>

<p>i think you should apply to Princeton and JHU from your final remainders. also, i agree about IndianaU at Bloomington. Indie-bloom has been known for its economics major, plus it offers truckloads of scholarships to foreign students every year. But i think that you need to apply asap to be eligible for their scholarships.</p>

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<p>perfectpixie, I’m part of a start-up NGO called Becoming I - <a href=“http://www.becomingifoundation.org;%5B/url%5D”>http://www.becomingifoundation.org;</a> I am one of the founding members. We currently work in Najafgarh, but we’ll begin branching out slowly, maybe from late next year itself. It’s been a very uncertain, but ultimately rewarding experience.
Hmm…, Stanford? I’m extremely flattered, they’re all major braniacs there. I thought about it, but the number of qualified applicants from my school (2250+, 90%+ for all four years, olympiad wins + other stuff) for places like CMU, Caltech, Stanford, MIT etc., i.e. those with great science & engineering programs, is just disheartening. Also, Stanford’s commonapp supplement is pretty daunting. And considering that top schools don’t usually take more than 3-4 students from one school, I figured I’d rather try for other schools.
I’d checked out Indiana-Bloomington, but my counselor was quite adamant against that school for me. Currently, I’m leaning towards JHU & Williams. How be that?</p>

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<p>nban92- The NGO seems impressive. It is commendable that you’re going into the field and doing the work. I like your objective! :)</p>

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<p>Not sure about Williams again. But you should definitely apply to JHU. </p>

<p>Also, Princeton is a better (less elusive) option than Williams, I think.</p>

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<p>^Meh, Williams is pretty selective. true that. but no harm in trying, yes?</p>