<p>Hi everyone... I'm an 11 grader in Austria and I seriously want to attend college in the United States!!! I work really hard to get good grades, and I have a lot of hobbies which I pursue...
I don't have loads of money and I'm not super super smart. But I speak English, German, Chinese fluently, I also speak French but not as well as the other languages, plus I have lessons in Latin. I have already spent a year in the United States as an foreign exchange student (in Iowa) and I liked it a lot. My grades are overall good since I work very hard on them. However, I'm probably not good enough to be admitted to one of the best universities in the U.S. ...
I'm looking for good colleges that are not too expensive but still of good quality and ones that would give me a good experience as well as education and prepare me for the world!!
Does anyone know any colleges I could consider??</p>
<p>Without knowing your SAT scores and your high school GPA, I can’t even begin to recommend universities to you. But I will recommend that you check out some universities in Canada, because several of them have great international reputations and are both cheaper and easier to get into than American schools of similar repute.</p>
<p>hm I have no idea how to calculate a high school GPA but I’m a A student, I almost have only As. I haven’t taken the SAT yet.
Not too expensive means no more than 20 thousand dollars tuition fee a year!
btw, is there a great difference between American and Canadian schools?</p>
<p>Well, if you have mostly As, you’d probably do well on the SATs. But for Canadian schools, your Reifezeugnis/Maturazeugnis will suffice.</p>
<p>I’d recommend applying to McGill University and Queen’s University, the two top-ranked schools in Canada. At either one, the annual tuition fee for a course of study in Faculty of Arts and Sciences would be around CAD 17 000. That’s about as cheap as it gets for universities of this calibre.</p>
<p>To answer your second question, yes, there is a fundamental difference between American and Canadian schools, a social-cultural difference: Canadian universities are less likely to have cohesive campus communities; they’re less likely to offer you a lot of guidance (unless you request it); and they tend to have larger class sizes in the first two years. Queen’s University is the closest thing you’d get to the archetypal American collegiate experience – it has a relatively close-knit student body in a small-ish city (~ 100 000). McGill, on the other hand, is right in the middle of downtown Montreal, a city that has a very European yet multicultural feel to it. It’s the most exciting city in Canada, and in my opinion the most exciting college city in North America after New York. For fun, you’d likely go out clubbing with friends every other weekend (drinking age is 18 in Quebec), or, if that’s not your thing, checking out Montreal’s myriad of cultural sites.</p>
<p>As you probably tell, I’m a big supporter of Canadian universities. They’re often overlooked by Americans and Europeans alike. But the two I’ve mentioned seem to fit your budget, and they’d be even more affordable if you won some of their scholarships for international students (and you might considering your high grades). Also, if you come to Canada, you’ll find that the academic culture here is not too dissimilar to that of Europe.</p>
<p>PS. If you’re worried about getting a job in the US after going to a Canadian University, don’t be: all major US employers (and grad schools) are familiar with the quality of Canada’s top universities.</p>
<p>I’ll ask another money question just because I think finances are very important to think through carefully. When you say no more than $20,000 for tuition, are you aware that (depending on location) you might very easily need another $15,000 for living expenses and that you cannot expect to earn more than $2,000 during the school year by working?</p>
<p>The most selective university I know in your price range is the University of Minnesota: Twin Cities. If 45,000 students is too much, there’s Trumann State with 6,000 students. Somewhere in between are the Universities of Alabama, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Wyoming.</p>
<p>All of the above are public universities with tuition less than $15,000 a year. I thought it would be a good idea to stay below your limit of 20k because tuition increases every year (by 7% on average) and a $20,000 bill in your first year can easily turn into a $26,000 bill in your fourth year.</p>
<p>Depending on your SAT scores, you may choose to compete for scholarships or need-based financial aid at private universities but that’s something to think about once you have your scores.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that there are a number of expensive schools ($30,000+ tuition) that offer good merit aid to international students, so going to these schools may be cheaper than going to the ‘reasonably priced’ schools.</p>
<p>It seems to me that you need to google US colleges that give aid to international students (theres also a thread on cc that talks about that) There are some that will be happy to give aid for an international with A average. You need to start doing the SAT to know if you have a chance. You should also look at Bates which doesnt consider SAT (you must get highest rank Toefl though) and does give aid to internationals.<br>
In terms of Mustafas advice about US job market knowing Canadian Universities – true, but there is very little chance that you will get a job in the US after graduating from an American or Canadian college, so you should consider what colleges will be most acceptable to Austrian job market.</p>
<p>wow, seems like the SAT is very important? but I’m really not confident that I’ll score a competitive score on it…
it’s very nice to hear that some colleges will be happy to give aid for an international with A average. i wonder how to find them? </p>
<p>This is why you should consider Canadian universities. McGill is affordable yet still ranked #20 in the world in the Times Higher Education rankings. This means a degree from McGill is likely to get you a good job in Austria. Queen’s, less so, because it’s not as well known outside Canada; but even Queen’s has a better international reputation than all the universities mentioned by barium.</p>
<p>Bottom line: I highly recommend you applying to McGill and Queen’s, especially considering your high grades. Also check out the University of Toronto, although it’s a little more expensive than the other two.</p>