My Ukranian Friend

<p>Well basically, I have a friend (he is now 14) who lives in Ukraine whose parents want to send him to college in America (in time of course), since frankly, he really has no future in Ukraine. The problem is that while they are pretty well off by Ukranian standards, they are very poor off by our standards. Therefore, he doesn't have a lot of money to attend American college, pay for accessories such as laptops/etc, and pay for plane tickets. In addition, while he is a smart kid and is a great student at his school (only 20 people, school is considered nothing special even by UKRANIAN standards), he is not some math prodigy who won the IMO. Are there any colleges in the US (ANY - state, private, community, etc) that would accept someone like him and give him need based aid? I have no experience in things like this and wouldn't know where to start figuring out a way for him to come to the US.Thank you for your input.</p>

<p>DaTurtle, it's a great thing that you are interested into helping your friend!
Let me dispell a myth here - you don't have to be a math prodigy to get a full scholarship (which I understand your friend needs) at an American uni/college as an international student - in fact, you don't need to be any kind of prodigy for that.
What you do need though, is to show dedication and passion both in your school and activities and to find a way to convince said institution of your potential.
There are quite a few institutions in the US which award need-based full-need-met scholarships to international students. Besides the usual suspects, like the Ivy League and most of the top 50 Colleges, there are other, less-known institutions which are also very welcoming of international students - Berea College in Kentucky would be just an example.
Also, there are institutions which, although they do not award full scholarships, require the student to pay much less than the comprehensive fee - Ohio Wesleyan University, McKendree College, Wabash College come to my mind here.
Another thing to keep in mind is that there are universities outside the US which teach in English and use the US admission system, which could also be appealing to your friend - International University Bremen, International University Germany (Bruxhalle), Richmond University in London, Webster University etc.</p>

<p>Just one more thing, your friend could go to the nearest Fulbright Educational Advising Center (most likely in Kiyv) to find out more info on scholarship opportunities and on the application process.</p>

<p>Ok thanks a ton guys!</p>

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Webster University

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<p>Don't go there, seriously. I'm studying at Webster Thailand right now and it is a waste of money. Planning to transfer somewhere in the U.S.</p>

<p>As for your ukrainian friend - check this out <a href="http://www.ukrainianscholarships.org/americanscholarships.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.ukrainianscholarships.org/americanscholarships.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Pavel, I'm not sure where you are from, but could you say comparatively how bad is Webster to Ukrainian Universities?</p>

<p>I'm Russian/Ukrainian/Polish living in Thailand. </p>

<p>Webster in St. Louis is alright, but the other campuses are underfunded and understaffed. The top ukrainian universities are probably better, but if you're planning to study at an american university - do it in America (I'd rate Webster as a safety). Don't go to an "international" university, although I've heard good things about the ones in Germany.</p>

<p>German International Universities (at least IUB) are OK, really. I've seen it for myself and it has been confirmed by lots of people. Of course, IUB does not have the funding of an established US university, but they're going to be big.</p>

<p>I just copied this link from Pavel, make sure to pass it on to your friend!
<a href="http://www.bibl.u-szeged.hu/reac-europe/intfinaid_awards.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.bibl.u-szeged.hu/reac-europe/intfinaid_awards.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Wow so much advice, thanks a ton guys, I'm sure it will help my friend.</p>