Question from International MIT hopeful

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1

<p>From what I have read so far, MIT evaluates non-US citizens/international applicants separately due to limited financial aid available for them. So international students represent a small percent of accepted class each year.</p>

<p>Question: How would the following applicant be treated: A dual citizen (US +other nationality) who grew up overseas and studied in the local schools of the foreign country. Then for high school switched to a school that offers the IB curriculum. This foreign country does not offer local, regional or national academic competitions, nor any organization that has organized program for volunteering youth. However the student will do whatever he can to contribute to his society in a positive way.</p>

<p>On the one hand, this applicant is a US citizen so MIT admissions will place him in the "USA Domestic Applicants" pile which will allow him to obtain student aid. However due to his education overseas, he did not have the resources that were available to his US counterparts (academic competitions and awards, volunteer opportunities), so it would be unfair to compare him to the rest of the US applicants.</p>

<p>Grouping him with the non-US international applicants is not fair either as it would reduce his chances for acceptance considerably.</p>

<p>So how would his app be treated?</p>

2

<p>US citizens are considered in the domestic pool regardless of where they live or go to school.</p>

<p>And all applicants are considered in the context of the opportunities available to them at their high schools and in their areas, not in comparison with other applicants. </p>

<p>For the record, MIT is need-blind and meets full financial need for all applicants, international and domestic alike. The international quota is related to the financial aid budget, but doesn’t only exist because of the financial aid budget – it’s set by MIT administrative officials above the admissions office, because MIT gets a great deal of federal money, and the US government likes to see that money going to educate US citizens.</p>