International student from Brazil

Student Lounge International Students
1

<p>Hey, so I'm here because I need some honest opinion about my current situation and I think that american college student's opinion would be best here. =)</p>

<p>I'm originally from Texas, but moved to Brazil when I was little, so I qualify as an International Applicant. I graduated from High School last year, and now I'm planning to go to college in the US.
If anyone could please give me an opinion whether I could or not get accepted into the following Universities I'm considering, it would be so helpfull!</p>

<p>I'm thinking about applying to University of Texas, Texas A&M, PennState, Purdue University, University of Arkansas, University of Maryland, University of Oklahoma, and Rutgers. I have some relatives that went to UT, A&M and U of Arkansas, I don't know if this would make any difference.</p>

<p>I took my SATs last year, but I'm retaking them this year.
- Math - 610
- Reading - 580
- Writing - 560
Yes, I know they're not great scores, but I didn't really prepare for the test.</p>

<ul>
<li>Also I was the top student in my class, even though there were only 27 students in my class. I mostly A's and little B's.</li>
<li>My principal and 2 of my teaches are going to write me good recommendation letters.</li>
</ul>

<p>EC: I don't have many important ec activities, but these are some of the things I did through High School
- Won 4 years in a role prize for good writing at my school
- 2 years of a drama group
- 2 years of private hip-hop dance classes
- 1 year of private flamenco dance classes
- Won 1st place in a group musical play at my school
- Won 2nd place in a flamenco presentation at my school
- Won 2nd place in a hip-hop dance group at my school
- Won Revelation Prize for my group musical play at my school
- 2 years of private Spanish classes
- I play the keyboard ( don't know if it really matters)
- 1 year of basketball
- Scored five times through HS 100% in a simulation exam ( important in my school)</p>

<p>And yeah, I would be applying as an Engineering major.</p>

<p>And also, does my place of birth influence in some way the admission process? And would I be considered as someone who brings diversity to the college?</p>

<p>If anyone could please give me an opinion, if a have a chance to get into any of these colleges or not, I would be so thankfull!</p>

<p>Thanks ! =)</p>

2

<p>If you were born in the USA, you should still be considered an US applicant. You probably qualify for some government financial aid so you really should find more information about your status as an applicant.</p>

<p>The great benefit of being an US applicant living abroad is that describing your adaptation to another culture will be great material for essay writing.</p>

<p>Out of curiosity, I want to ask about the 2nd place in hip-hop. Was it a hip-hop only competition? I think it sounds better if it’s a broad dance competition rather than a specific dance one, but it’s not that important.</p>

<p>The top ones in your list are U of Texas, A&M, and Purdue. I’m sure you are a very strong applicant as long as you boost up a bit your SAT (around 2000 composite will make your chances extremely good), and write good essays. I hear that U of Texas ask for two essays instead of the customary single one so it will be all that important.</p>

3

<p>I would apply as a US student living abroad. Being a US citizen it will entitle you to participate in FAFSA and there would be more scholarships available. All schools have unofficial quotas for international students, usually ~ 10% of student body, and you will be competing against a larger pool (think the whole planet!), with significant higher scores and extracurricular. You should focus on how the cultures differ and how it contributed to your personal development.</p>

4

<p>About the essay, thanks for the tips! I was acctually thinking about writing about how different these countries are and how it affects me.
University of Texas really asks for 2 essays, and I think there’s also another one that is optional, but I’m not sure.</p>

<p>And about the 2nd place in hip-hop, it was a competition with other groups from my school, but not only about hip-hop; there were also plays, other dances etc.</p>

<p>I guess I’ll be applying as a US applicant. I just thought that being an International applicant would actually benefit me because of the diversity and everything, but I think I was wrong, even though I have a brazilian citizenship. </p>

<p>So I’m considered an out of state applicant?</p>

5

<p>

Most likely, although there are a few exceptions. For example, students of military families stationed abroad often qualify for in-state tuition in the state they lived in before the military service. If your families kept any ties in the US (e.g. property) or only went overseas temporarily with the intention to return, check if you might qualify for in-state tuition.</p>

<p>

There’s no box you can check that says “US applicant” or “international applicant.” Everyone uses the same application form that asks about your mailing address, citizenship(s), schools you have attended, activities you have participated in, etc. A few supplementary forms are specific to particular groups of applicants. For example, all US citizens, regardless of place of residence, qualify to apply for federal financial aid. Everyone who attends a foreign high school, regardless of citizenship status, needs to complete the International Supplement to the Secondary School Report. (That’s for colleges using the Common Application, anyway.)</p>

<p>Forget about labels such as domestic and international, and check carefully which requirements apply to you. The college admission process is confusing enough as it is, and even more confusing for intercultural students who need to navigate even more rules and regulations.</p>

6

<p>I suggest you do everything possible to try to qualify as a resident/US student, well, you were born in the US. So, you really got nothing to lose. N</p>

7

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<p>There is when you apply online.</p>

8

<p>No, there’s not. I just created an online account and checked. </p>

<p>There are finer distinctions to be made than “domestic” or “international.” US citizens living abroad will follow some of the directions for pure international and some for pure domestic applicants, as do foreign students living in the US. At no point do intercultural applicants get to decide if they want to apply as “international” or “domestic” students.</p>

<p>Occasionally universities with their own application forms might have different forms for different groups of applicants. In that case they will tell you EXACTLY who should use which form(s). No choice involved.</p>

9

<p>Oh, how nice! Another person that speaks portuguese here! </p>

<p>Well, I’m going to take Math II, but I’m not sure about taking Physics and Chemistry, even though I have good grades in these subjects at school. I’m just concerned that with the test being in english, I won’t be able to recognize all the specific vocabulary and get a bad score. I was thinking about taking Spanish since I study it a lot.</p>

<p>And for my ECs, I know it is no excuse, but my school didn’t have clubs for students to get involved. There was only a drama group which I participated. And regarding sports, it was pathetic; there was only a volleyball team. I played basketball for one year and by the end of it, we still didn’t have a full team. And for science and math, there was only a annual nacional math exam, but we didn’t get a good preparation for it because the school wasn’t really interested in the event.</p>

<p>And thanks for all the help! I emailed some colleges and they replied saying that I would be considered an domestic applicant. I’ll just have to take the TOEFL like other students that studied abroad and I’ll have some other specific requirements.</p>

10

<p>Well, I speak because I’m from SP.
So you went to a regular colegial here in Brazil and not an international high school?
If so, you’re probably gonna have to get your transcripts translated and verified, that kind of stuff.</p>

11

<p>Oh nice! I actually live in S</p>

12

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<p>What kind of account, where?</p>

<p>All the universities I applied to had the distinction of international and domestic applications in their websites.</p>

13

<p>My initial post explicitly talked about the CommonApp, and that’s also where I started an online application.</p>