International Financial Aid

<p>Hello !:)
I am an international student who was just recently admitted to the Mellon college of Science as a mathematical science major...</p>

<p>I just wanted to ask you guys if there is ANY possible way that I could receive financial aid? For example, would being a top-student in my freshmen class at CMU help my chances?
I know the university's official stance is not to award any type of aid to international students, but have there been any cases in which an international student was awarded some type of merit-based scholarship?
I don't actually need money to pay for my freshmen year, but I don't want my parents to continually pay $70,000 per annum.</p>

<p>No matter how many times I’ve asked my fin aid advisor she’s always said the same thing: the only time you can get a merit-based scholarship is when you were admitted, aka based only on your pre-college stats. Unless you were considered for/offered a merit-based scholarship on your admission to CMU, they will not consider you for it after your freshman year.
The only thing that does change is if you were offered the Carnegie Undergraduate Grant, which is calculated from your FAFSA (domestic & need-based) and based on your academic status (gotta maintain full time student status/keep decent GPA).
I know quite a few international students who pay the full price and they said that they were not offered any scholarships.
Does your school/country offer any abroad scholarships/grants? My best bet is to look for aid in your country.</p>