Independent and international student

I’m not transfer student

Okay, but that’s because 25-year-old students just don’t apply because they have already graduated, not because they are treated “worse” during their application process, right?

It depends also what you did in the past 10 years. For example: stopped school at age 15 to help family, continued reading while there was light outside, managed to pass secondary school leaving certificate at age 21, has been working full time in a science lab since v. Went to jail till now v. Didn’t know I wanted to go to college because no one in village even goes to middle school let alone high school or beyond until x, y, and a happened v. always wanted to go to college but were never able to for x, y,z reasons…

Yes, I know that I have to show what I did during my school break, but the question was about finances and dependency status

The way your dependency status will be evaluated will depend on what you did during the possibly 7-8 years since you finished secondary school.
Contact all universities you’re interested in because there’s no “standard” answer but do specify how you spent that time and anything “unusual” for the US (usual would be middle school-> full time high school, graduation at 17 or 18.)

Your challenge is going to be that it is most likely MIT will still ask for your parent’s income and assets.

Even with students in the US, age 24 makes you independent for federal aid only. It does not automatically make independent for institutional aid.

Many schools have policies in place that you have to be 27 (age of the average college graduate is 22) to be independent for institutional aid, showing 5 years of self-sufficiency. As stated upstream, you will be a non-traditional student.

MIT does not have a separate process for older students. Right now, you will have to submit the documentation required and they will determine if you are a dependent or independent student

Ok, so the decision will be made after admitted to university, right?

Did you call MIT this week to ask how you would be treated with respect to dependent/independent and needing your parents’ financials?

Admissions and FA work in their respective areas, at the same time. So…FA could ask for your parents’ financials before admissions decisions come out.

Are you also intending to apply to less selective schools in the US and/or elsewhere?

Did you submit all of your financial aid documents (including your parent’s financials?

If you have an incomplete financial aid application, you will not receive any financial aid. This will effect whether you get a visa to study in the US (if you are not already here).

Admissions and financial aid work as 2 separate entities. Admissions does not know the status of your financial aid information.

Remember, the number of international students admitted to MIT is very small. It is one thing to apply and hope for the best, but by no means should you put all of your eggs in the MIT basket.

Pi day is tomorrow. Did you apply for admissions this year?

When you say that you are applying for admission, are you talking about school year 2022-2023?

OP hasn’t applied yet, they would be applying for class of 2026

Not sure it’s completely relevant because MIT may handle things differently but an international student who applied to URichmond was waitlisted because her FA was incomplete. Seems worth sorting out the FA piece prior to admission.

It appears MIT accepted 2.2% this year. That is, according to the MIT decision thread.

How many in that 2.2% accepted international students were 25 year old independent students?

That was just for RD.