No Green Card = Doom?

<p>hi i have been living in the US for 5 years now, but i still do not have a green card ( immigration is rly hectic for Chinese ppl i think), so that means i will be considered an international student. </p>

<p>i know it is extremely hard to get financial aid, even lower chances of admission</p>

<p>i am really heartbroken, so can anyone tell me any good colleges that i might have a shot at?</p>

<p>Wah wah, cry me a river. I have a Korean friend who's been in the United States for 9 years now, and still doesn't have a Green Card. She's basically at the point where she can speak English so fluently that it's like talking to an American. You don't see her fretting about it now.</p>

<p>I guarantee you that your English and Writing skills will be far more of a hindrance to you than whatever disadvantage comes from not having a Green Card. Seriously, I can tell from your posts that you're somewhat fobby.</p>

<p>Try good state schools. UMich, the UCs, etc</p>

<p>OP, I have no idea what post #2 trying to say, so I am going to ignore it. </p>

<p>A good friend of my son was in your position (not Chinese), but in addition to being without a green card, his family was very low-income. I wish you a lot of luck. This young man is brilliant, and had a fabulous high school record, but pretty much hit a brick wall getting into the kind of colleges any American kid with his record would have been welcome at. The state flagship public univ. was very happy to admit him, but insisted on charging him international tuition rates, even higher than out of state. A financial impossibility.</p>

<p>In the end, a professor at the univ, who knew him well, intervened on his behalf, spent a HUGE amount of time twisting arms deep into the bureaucracy to get him enough "special scholarships" to reduce his tuition to in-state rates. At that point, the engineering college stepped in with additional scholarships, because they knew he was very much a keeper. He landed a job with a faculty member that started over the summer before freshman year. With help from the parents of friends, he will make it, and he will be a fabulous addition to US productivity and society in general. </p>

<p>Unless someone else on this board can step in with specific schools that can help you, I suggest you start trying very hard to find a personal connection that will be willing to take up your cause. And I strongly suspect you will have to redefine what is a "good college" for you. BEST OF LUCK.</p>

<p>I think if you look thru the boards you will find people with your experience. I cannot give you any specifics, but my son had a friend who had a green card, but spoke perfect (if slighly accented) english. He was an excellent student, and applied to top science schools. He got turned down my Caltech and MIT but got accepted at HYP. He got good scholarship offers.</p>

<p>I think you need to email all the schools you are considering, and ask them outright - how will the view your app w/r/t acceptance rates and finaid. While you are at it, ask about TOEFL. (I recently had to write to my son's 3 ea schools to ask a question about letters of recs - All answered within 24 hours.)</p>

<p>Good Luck.</p>

<p>I know that MIT is one of the few schools that offers full need based financial aid to international applicants. On the downside, they also have a strict 8% quota for international admissions. With over 2,000 international applicants for less than 100 spots that makes for a less than 5% admit rate. </p>

<p>I also don't know of any college that offers ED or EA to international students, so you have to apply RD everywhere.</p>

<p>
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In the end, a professor at the univ, who knew him well, intervened on his behalf, spent a HUGE amount of time twisting arms deep into the bureaucracy to get him enough "special scholarships" to reduce his tuition to in-state rates.

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</p>

<p>I find these stories upsetting. Significant public financial resources appear to have been expended to provide an unqualified student an opportunity that is thereby foreclosed to a tax-paying citizen. The subjective "contribution" to American society is irrelevant and arrogant.</p>

<p>If this student is somehow so valuable, then a university in the country of his/her citizenship would likely offer scholarship money there.</p>

<p>Um. The student wasn't a "tax-paying citizen", no, but his parents were probably tax-paying immigrants. </p>

<p>Sometimes, leaving one's home country is not a choice, especially for children. Students come from all over the world to study in American universities because they are some of the best, and American universities in turn enjoy what these students have to bring to their academic/social environments. I think your last sentence paraphrases into, roughly, "Go back to where you came from", but keep doing what you're doing. Denying education to one alien at a time. It's exactly that attitude which makes for such limited college options for immigrants in this country.</p>

<p>I find the anti-immigrant attitudes here more than upsetting. </p>

<p>The OP and the other young people described here are academically talented immigrants who had no choice as to whether or not they would come here, and have no power over how many years it takes to receive a green card. (Waiting for a green card, by the way, would seem to be an indication that the OP is going through legal channels on his way to becoming an American citizen; why would anyone have a problem with this?)</p>

<p>In fact, these young people would seem to have the potential to make great contributions this country -- but not if they are denied the opportunity to recieve the higher education for which they are qualified because they don't yet have the green cards for which they've applied. </p>

<p>I want to second the suggestion that the OP contact colleges directly to explain his immigration status (not just without a green card, but the fact that he has applied for and is awaiting a green card) and see what they say. I would also suggest that it might make sense to get in touch with the Asian Pacific Legal Center (apalc.org) to see if anyone there can shed some light on his situation.</p>

<p>Finally, I would like to add that the idea this student should be looking for an education and financial aid in the country where he was born makes about as much sense as having the rest of us (not including the Native Americans on CC, of course) contemplate sending our children back to the University of North-West Belarus, or Aberdeen, or wherever it is our ancestors came from. But then again, the suggestion wasn't intended to make sense, was it? It was intended to wound a teenaged boy coming to CC for help. Way to go.</p>

<p>Generally, administratively, there's nothing any college can do about changing your international status if you are waiting on a green card. Some of my friends had to go through it and ended up in more international-friendly/merit-heavy colleges such as USC and UVA. If financial aid is a big deal, I would look to schools with lots of merit scholarship programs (rice? duke? caltech (for girls)?) but are also a little easier to get into for internationals (some state schools and 2nd tier privates and many liberal arts colleges (those usually welcome international students-- off the top of my head, Wesleyan is an example)).</p>

<p>Anyways, good luck and do your research :)</p>

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But then again, the suggestion wasn't intended to make sense, was it? It was intended to wound a teenaged boy coming to CC for help. Way to go.

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<p>"Umm," last time I checked, China has some of the best universities in the world.</p>

<p>My post referenced midmo's example, not OP. Nevertheless, some states (i.e., Calif) already offer in-state tuition to applicants such as OP who have resided in the state for 3 years or more, regardless of immigrant status.</p>

<p>Finally, placing some sort of ethereal subjective value on a immigrant's potential worth to our society as a measure of whether s/he should be admitted to a U.S. university outside the usual parameters for admission is insulting (to say the least) to qualified American students.</p>

<p>I don't think the student in question was admitted "outside the usual parameters". Instead, upon rereading, midmo stated very clearly that the student was "happily admitted" to the flagship state university and the financial aid (or lack there of) became the issue (seems to even be implied that it was an in-state flagship which clearly then did not "offer in-state tuition to applicants...regardless of immigrant status"... if he had to go through those means). In fact, it seems quite the opposite to me. No special exception was made for him at the expense of "american" students, since they already enjoyed in-state tuition, instead, he had to go through extensive efforts to level the playing field for himself.</p>

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China has some of the best universities in the world

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<p>And a student who has been educated outside China has what kind of a chance at those "best universities"?</p>

<p>The US has known to be the most self-centered countries to those that are not from the US. people outside US thinks US ppl are ignorant about other countries, and often unable to show any empathy for the lack of resources of other countries. although not every one of us are like that, it's a same few of us show such ignorance.
Needless to say, someone on this thread is obvious one of them.
Hopefully ppl can broaden their verizons and learn to adapt to the international community. </p>

<p>to Bay: international applicants increase the competition for our universities b/c most of the top universities have much harder chances for internationals. when i visited MIT years ago, ppl have been telling me inter'l students are by far the best students at MIT. they increase the competitive edge for that university, but doesn't ddecrease us citizens b/c they're generally placed at a different pool, one MUCH harder.
are u just scared of competition or what?</p>

<p>It really P***** me off when people think that immigrants don't pay taxes, and thus shouldn't be eligible for in-state tuition's or scholarship money etc. How ignorant. </p>

<p>To the OP. Don't worry about it. You'll get it soon enough. I am in more or less the same position as you.</p>

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And a student who has been educated outside China has what kind of a chance at those "best universities"?

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<p>If this is directed at me, my answer is that I have absolutely no idea. I do know, however, that American students educated abroad are often very attractive candidates for admission at American universities due to their diverse and unconventional backgrounds.</p>

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are u just scared of competition or what?

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<p>Not at all. The only thing on this thread I object to is bending the in-state tuition and scholarship rules for certain NON-permanent resident aliens who are somehow determined to be more "worthy" due to someone's opinion that they will "contribute" more to American society.</p>

<p>I had to stop for a few seconds just to figure out whether you guys were pretending to console the OP with a bunch of plain, useless information on stuff that he should have already known, or are ignorant morons who clearly did not see into the OP's motivations. Are you guys so out of touch in dealing with people that you can't tell that the OP clearly feels entitled to a top-tier college?</p>

<p>It's funny that my original post still lies more in tune with the OP's line of thought than anything else posted here, and actually gives him something to work on instead of worrying about stuff that's completely out of his control. Excellent.</p>

<p>Not only that, but other posters have chimed in on what seems like they feel that the OP is entitled to at least several top public, if not top-tier colleges. The OP isn't entitled to anything, and he certainly should look into more schools than those included in the CC bubble like the aforementioned USC, UVA, Rice, Duke, Caltech (***), Michigan, the UCs. I would encourage solid, state Universities where you'll get a great education but still fare well in the admissions process - UGA, Texas, Florida, UNC-CH, Washington, SUNY, etc. Really, you can't go wrong with a lot of the flagship state Us, and even some state Us which are not flagships (I would know - I was at one last year). Absolutely strive for the best colleges you think you have a shot at, but also go for some reasonable schools and at least make an effort with their applications, scholarships etc. Don't buy into this CC bubble about certain brand-named colleges. I'm absolutely positive you can find a fit here and if you can't, then that's ultimately your own fault.</p>

<p>So you don't have a Green Card? So what? I'm also an International student, but while I did a lot of stupid things back in my senior year of high school from which I sit back and laugh at today, crying about your specific situation wasn't one of them.</p>

<p>For all of you guys complaining about the inherently unfair admissions practices of schools, get off your high-rocker and and actually post something that people will actually give two-s**ts about. Seriously. This is life. Get over it.</p>

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<p>Boy I can tell you that if your post is representative of how you actually write, then I'm scared of nothing.</p>

<p>^seems like u learned it in the hard way. :(
to the OP: I shud say that u'll face some good amt of trouble w/o GC. Fin Aid will be almost unavailable. So, I'd advice u to start w/ big city school which isn't selective at all, then, from there, with awesome grades and test scores, u can have a chance of getting grants and scholarhips (again, tough, but try it, doesn't hurt right?)
if nothing is possible, start w/ CC, and then slowly go up.......it IS possible to gain higher education...may have to take the harder way...but if u've the motivation and desire...'tis possible!</p>

<p>
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...or are [you] ignorant morons who clearly did not see into the OP's motivations. Are you guys so out of touch in dealing with people that you can't tell that the OP clearly feels entitled to a top-tier college?

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<p>No, I must have missed that. I'm 'clearly' not as insightful when dealing with people as you are. You sure are one hell of a people person.</p>

<p>I don't think you're saying anything that the other 'morons' before you haven't said. Shoot for publics, shoot lower. Go for merit. But if the OP wants some reach schools (which are also affordable), who are you to tell him he can't try? He asked for possible, not probable.</p>

<p>Also: is the OP even reading this thread?</p>

<p>
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If this is directed at me, my answer is that I have absolutely no idea. I do know, however, that American students educated abroad are often very attractive candidates for admission at American universities due to their diverse and unconventional backgrounds.

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<p>While I respect that you admitted your ignorance of the situation, it might be wise to educate yourself a little on the realities of any "alternatives" you suggest. The American system isn't a metric onto which one can cast the rest of the world, the Chinese higher education system and selection process is nothing like the one with which you are familiar. It is almost impossible for an American educated student to score well enough on the College Entrance Examinations (overall) to be admitted to the best universities in China.</p>