Type of high school: American-system high school with very little opportunities/ecs
Gender: female
Other special factors: none
Intended Major(s) Economics/business
GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
Unweighted HS GPA: 4.0
Class Rank: 1/55
ACT/SAT Scores: 32 act, retaking
Coursework
Marketing, AP calculus, English, Health, Econ, Comp Sci (school doesn’t let students choose classes)
Awards
1st in an intl marketing competition
Top consulting presentation chosen by a company representative
Regional volleyball awards
Top performing student award(s)
Passed first round of a university-level business pitch competition
Valedictorian + a few other certificates of participation
Extracurriculars no ECs offered by school
Internship at top consulting company (top 10% in cohort)
Research on a relevant economic issue in mena under a professor (might get published)
Competitive Volleyball outside of school (national and regional competitions)
summer business program (semi-selective)
Real estate marketing agent
Freelance artist and art related ec (>1k followers)
Graphic design/video editing account (>5k followers)
Executive member of a tutoring student led project (100+ students)
Harvardx leadership course with professional certificate
Additional info ECs; dance and piano (6+ years), internship at a tourism company, trilingual With a B2 level in German
Essays/LORs/Other
not sure about essays tbh
calc teacher (grades 11-12) (10/10) social studies teacher (grade 11) (8.5/10)
other lors from internship + research (8.5/10?)
Cost Constraints / Budget
20-30k, applying for fin aid
I am not sure that there are any universities in the US that would be considered a safety for an international student needing significant amounts of financial aid. That being said:
The first thing that pops into my mind is wondering how competitive you are for volleyball. Stanford for example meets full need for all admitted students, has athletic scholarships, and has a very wide range of varsity sporting teams. Their athletic teams are looking for the student who is both academically excellent and a strong athlete. As one example, the year that I got my master’s degree there it was rumored that the quarterback was also a near straight A student. Even if you are not recruited for volleyball, Stanford might still be worth an application, although it would be a reach. I am similarly thinking that Harvard may be worth an application. Harvard does not have athletic scholarships, but it does have multiple very good sports teams (surprisingly good for a school with no sports scholarships), does have a woman’s varsity volleyball team, and does meet full need for international students.
ECs do not need to be associated with your high school. Your listed ECs are very good.
In terms of safeties and matches, I am really hard pressed to know what to say. A safety for admissions would be easy to suggest, but a safety for both admissions and affordability is another issue. Hopefully others can make suggestions.
Stanford is one of the top volleyball programs in the country. OP would need to be a very high level player and athletic recruiting is often a years long pursuit. Ivy League players are also high level athletes and students. Probably not a viable avenue.
You’re applying/graduating this year? Or working on a list for next year?
In terms of a true safety (including being guaranteed to meet budget), Truman State would come in under 30K with auto-merit, and they have an undergrad business program. Very solid public honors LAC which would be far more in demand if it were in a more popular location (vs. rural Missouri). They also have D2 volleyball if that would be a fit.
Mount Holyoke takes a high proportion of international students and does give some aid. Full-need-met isn’t guaranteed for internationals, but you seem like a strong enough applicant to possibly get in with enough merit and/or need-based aid to get to your budget. The financial piece makes it a reach for affordability, though. They have D3 volleyball if that’s of interest.
Babson could be worth a look. They have a full-tuition “global scholars” award that could be a possibility, although I’m sure it’s quite competitive. The school is business-oriented and well-known for its entrepreneurship focus; students can also cross-register at Brandeis and Wellesley. They have D3 volleyball as well.
Agree that with your German fluency, studying in Germany could be a good and affordable option.
I will suggest Washington & Lee. It is a small school but does have a well-respected business school (and law school). W&L offers generous financial aid and competitive merit (Johnson Scholarship) plus is actively working to increase diversity in the student body (a plus for you). It is in a beautiful area of Virginia, but it is rural so travel can be a bit of a challenge for the international students.