Hello so I’m pretty depressed now that college apps are coming in soon. Basically I lived in U.S. for like 12 years ever since kindergarten but my parents are Canadians with TN visa status. So FAFSA isnt going to work with me , but are my chances for admittance for top-tier schools such as ivies going to be much slimmer since I’m in the international pool? Even if all my stats came from an american high school (gpa, extracurriculars, etc.) with all my testings based on the american system (APs, SAT/ACT/ Subject Tests), will I be at a disadvantage? Thanks …it sucks so much to know that my hard work at high school will ultimately get me no where :’(
Also, I know that Canadian Colleges are great (will definitely look into) but my dream college has always been to go to Princeton and I was considering “ED’ing” there.
Thank you guys.
You are an international applicant with a US education. There are lots of students like you. Don’t fret about what that might mean for admissions. Go ahead and apply ED to Princeton if it really is your first choice. Just be clear with your parents about what they are willing to pay so you can kiss Princeton good-by if you do get admitted with an unaffordable aid package.
“it sucks so much to know that my hard work at high school will ultimately get me no where”
Actually, your hard work in high school WILL get you somewhere very good. Whether it will be Princeton is unlikely. Princeton is a very long shot for pretty much any student. I see that Princeton has an admit rate of 6.5%, and you should be aware that the vast majority of students applying are very strong candidates.
Princeton has about 5,000 undergraduates. I have heard that it focuses on undergrad somewhat more than most of the other ivy league schools. I might guess from this that you want a very good university that is not huge and that have very strong undergraduate programs.
I gather from your post that you are a Canadian citizen. The well known Canadian universities (such as McGill and Toronto) are quite a bit larger than Princeton and have major graduate programs. However, there are some VERY good universities in Canada which are closer to Princeton in size and which also focus on undergraduate education. Some that come to mind are Mount Allison in New Brunswick, Acadia and St Francis Xavier in Nova Scotia, Bishops in Quebec, and Trent in Ontario. There are also a few that are further west (such as Lethbridge in Alberta, and the University of Northern BC). These are obviously not as famous as Princeton, but are very good universities in very attractive locations. They also are well known in Canada. Mount Allison and Bishops are quite a bit smaller than Princeton, the others are closer to the same size.
I would suggest that you apply to Princeton but that you also seriously consider these very excellent small universities in Canada and apply to some of them. Also run the NPC for Princeton and see what it is likely to cost, then have a chat with your parents about what they can afford. Note that if your grades are strong enough for Princeton to be a realistic possibility then you also have a very good chance at merit scholarships at the schools in Canada that I mentioned above (and given the cost of university in Canada for a Canadian citizen plus the current exchange rate, all will be very affordable).
Mount Allison has produced some insane number of Rhodes Scholars.
More than the top American LACs Williams/Amherst/Swarthmore.
BTW, fixating on a dream school is silly.
Can you articulate why Princeton? You don’t even seem to know that Princeton doesn’t have ED.
You are eligible for Canadian government assistance for post-secondary studies, assuming that you lived in one of the provinces for 12 consecutive months. The province you lived in last for 12 consecutive months would be the one to provide the assistance. This assistance extends to US schools, including Princeton.
@DadTwoGirls Ok thanks so much for the helpful information! I appreciate your time to go over all the possible options.
@happymomof1 Yes thank you it was hard after initially hearing about it but I’ve come to accept my status and will continue to move on.
@PurpleTitan Actually my dream college has similar stats like Princeton I just didnt want to give it away in case someone here recognizes me (which is doubtful I know but I’ve been stressing about this to too many people haha) . I know fixating a college is unhealthy but I can’t help it 
But can you elaborate on what Rhodes Scholar is? I searched it up but it talked about Oxfords scholarship that is only for U.S citizens (which, you know, is not exactly applicable for me). Is it for Oxford University? I am interested in that college too. Thanks!
@bouders Thank you! Do you know the specific name of the assistance that I can search for?
If you guys know any Us college scholarships for Canadian / international students, it’ll be amazing if you guys could let me know!
@KryptonNoodle Which province did you live in last?
The Rhodes scholarship applies to postgraduate studies. It’s a prestigious scholarship and I believe @PurpleTitan mentioned it as a proxy for an excellent school. The scholarship is not applicable in your case.
@bouders I was born in Ontario and lived there till I was 4 and then from age 4 to 17 I am here in America.
@KryptonNoodle You can apply for OSAP. The government changed the rules for OSAP and they come into effect this September. You can get an idea of how much aid you are eligible for here: https://www.ontario.ca/page/osap-ontario-student-assistance-program
And you can apply here: https://www.ontario.ca/page/how-apply-osap