<p>I need:
1) a school that offers need-based financial aid to internationals
2) the deadline to still be open</p>
<p>Chinese Female</p>
<p>SAT CR: 510
SAT Math: 690
SAT Writing: 540, Essay-4
(Retaking in Jan., but not sure how much higher I can get them...)</p>
<p>SAT II Math Level 2: 800
SAT Chemistry: 800
SAT Physics: 790</p>
<p>TOEFL: 613, paper-based</p>
<p>Essays / Possible Hooks: talked about my history: I already graduated from a high school in China and got into Wu Han University (3rd most selective university in China) but decided to come to America to get an education instead (I am currently attending a high school in Arizona as a post-high school-grad). I come from a subsistance farming family (we grow food only for ourselves, we have none left over even to sell), and have had to work my way up despite the death of my mother when I was 5, public humiliations because my family was the poorest among the poor, rejection from my stepmother when my father got remarried, and other various hardships. I have been number 1 in my class since about 3rd grade.</p>
<p>Teacher Recs: Outstanding -- including varified information in essays
Councilor: Same as above</p>
<p>Strengths: Story, SAT IIs, rank
Weaknesses: SAT Is, no APs/IBs, I desperately need financial aid</p>
<p>Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!</p>
<p>Applied to:</p>
<p>Harvard
Yale
Dartmouth
MIT
Duke
Middlebury College
Stanford
Vanderbilt</p>
<p>American University
Boston College
Brandeis University
Wesleyan University</p>
<p>But I need a SAFTY! And how do you feel about the schools I applied to? Thanks again!</p>
<p>I am a bit confused about the list of colleges you are applying to and the level of your neediness. Boston College and American University have no financial aid for international applicants to the best of my knowledge. Are you hoping for a merit scholarship? The highest merit award at BC seems to cover tuition. Does that mean that you could pay for room and board yourself?</p>
<p>If the answer to the last question is “yes”, there are a number of lower-ranked colleges with full-tuition scholarships you could apply for. However, your SAT scores are too low for significant scholarships with SAT cut-offs. Your SAT scores would put this option into the “worth a shot but not a safety” category.</p>
<p>Liberal arts colleges tend to be more generous with financial aid for international applicants than most universities. Have you considered applying to some?</p>
<p>Does the high school you are now attending offer AP or IB classes? What classes are you taking now? </p>
<p>As impressive as your story is, I am a bit concerned about your academic preparation for the colleges you are applying to. Your SAT scores are below their 25th percentile and I am concerned that you might look not-so-great in direct comparison to your American classmates, some of whom might be taking the classes you are taking now (in your post-senior year) as a junior. Are you participating in any extra-curricular activities? Now that you are in the States, you would be expected to get involved in your high school and community outside of the classroom. Colleges are seeking to admit students who will make a positive contribution to their campus community.</p>
<p>I am not trying to down-play your achievements and the hardships you had to overcome. But what you have posted above does not look like a competitive Harvard application to me. Of course, I have never met you nor read your letters of recommendation, and admission officers are a lot better at their job than me ;)</p>
<p>b@r!um, thank you, that was very…sobering. Do you know of any school that could be considered a safty for me? (if such a thing exists – with need-based financial aid for internationals). I can possibly afford room and board (I’m working my tail off right now), but am not sure, and it would be a huge burden. And how high would you say I need to raise my SAT scores to get into these schools? 600’s? High 600s? 700s?</p>
<p>I am currently taking:</p>
<p>AP European History
AP Chemistry
Advanced Rhetoric (writing)
Lexicon (more English – for foreigners)
Analysis (post-AP Calculus BC math)</p>
<p>I did not list any ECs I have been involved in since comming to America, but in China I was (high school in China is three years – 10th - 12th):
Student Body President (11, 12)
Editor for Newspaper (12)
Newspaper staff (10,11,12)
and a few others I can’t remember right now</p>
<p>I forgot to mention that I have also applied to:
Syracuse
Williams</p>
<p>There are three colleges I would like to direct your attention to in particular: Mount Holyoke, Smith and Bryn Mawr. All three are women’s colleges (keep reading!), all three have a <em>lot</em> of financial aid for international students (Bryn Mawr and Mount Holyoke in particular), and all three get less international applicants than comparable colleges. </p>
<p>Attending a women’s college would not confine you to live in a nunnery for four years. In fact, all three colleges cooperate with neighboring co-ed schools. Bryn Mawr students can take classes at Haverford, Swarthmore and the University of Pennsylvania (the Quaker Consortium). Students at Smith and Mount Holyoke can take classes at Amherst, Hampshire and UMass-Amherst (the Five College Consortium). </p>
<p>The cooperations go beyond a purely academic exchange. For example, Bryn Mawr students can live in Haverford college dorms, participate in all social activities at Haverford, eat in the dining halls at Haverford and Swarthmore on their Bryn Mawr meal plan, and even declare a major at Haverford or Swarthmore! If you wanted to, you could get financial aid from Bryn Mawr and pretend to be a Haverford student for all practical purposes (major there, live there, eat there). You would also get access to the academic resources of the University of Pennsylvania, which is one of the best universities in the country!</p>
<p>I am encouraging you to consider women’s colleges because they are naturally less selective than their co-ed counterparts (they only have half the applicant pool, after all) and provide more academic and social opportunities (through the consortia) than most big universities!</p>
<p>Harvard - u never know with the ivies but u have a shot
Yale
Dartmouth
MIT - good chances with great sat 2 scores but u HAVE to improve ur SAT
Duke - u have a shot but since u need FA its gonna be harder so i’d say u have bigger chances at ivies
Middlebury College - match
Stanford - reach
Vanderbilt - match</p>
<p>American University - idk
Boston College - idk
Brandeis University - match
Wesleyan University - match</p>
<p>Check some all women’s colleges. They have great scholarships for internationals! Smith, Mount Holyoke, Barnard, etc…</p>
<p>If you can afford > $12k/yr try Hampshire. If >$14k/yr, try Ohio Wesleyan.</p>
<p>Apart from that safeties are hard to come by, unless you want to go to the much lower ranked colleges (like LMU or Adelphi for example). I won’t go to these places even if I got full scholarship. You might as well study in your own country. Obviously you’re talented, I doubt you’ll enjoy being way better than your peers at college. I won’t.</p>
<p>b@r!um, thank you so much for your suggestions! I am now applying to Mount Holyoke, Smith, AND Bryn Mawr!!! As cheesy as this sounds, YOU REALLY ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE!</p>
<p>tagbanda, my parents cannot afford to pay anything for my college (we have pounded-dirt floors, enough said). But I would be willing to go to a lower ranked college – it would not bother me to be as you say “better” than my peers at college, so long as I go to college! </p>
<p>gapyearstudent, yes, I am a first generation (father didnt’ finish 5th grade, mother didn’t finish 3rd), and this was included in my application. And thank you so much for suggesting Lake Forest! I will definitely apply!</p>
<p>luluzg, thanks for “chancing” me. But do you really think I am a match at Vanderbilt, Wesleyan, and Brandeis with all the financial aid I need?</p>
<p>If anyone has any other suggestions, that would be great!!!</p>
<p>Good luck with your applications! It is quite stressful now, but it will be SO REWARDING when the first acceptance letters start coming in. I will keep my fingers crossed for you!</p>
<p>P.S. If you end up considering attending Bryn Mawr, drop me a line :)</p>
<p>Iuileb, thanks for the suggestions. I think both Bucknell’s and Oberlin’s deadlines are Jan 15, so that’s good :]</p>
<p>I am a little confused though…my SATs (aside from math) are about 100 points below the 25% line – where I heard only legacy-recurited-athlete-development-office-case conglomerates dare to venture…</p>
<p>Is it my “story”? Because I’ve been looking (ok, obsessing) over the “Internationals-Post Your SAT Scores” thread, and I’m not fareing so well. I’m getting the feeling that internationals are not given a break on their SATs, despite English being their second/third/whatever language. </p>
It’s actually the opposite of getting a break. International students who ask for financial aid often need higher scores than their American peers because the competition for financial aid is so keen. </p>
<p>With your test scores, your fate lies in the hands of the teachers writing your letters of recommendation.</p>