<p>I am an international student with offers from universities in the United States which, unfortunately, did not offer me any aid. I am now stuck between going to a local university or finding another way to finance my education in the United States. Btw, I am South African. Is it possible to finance an education otherwise? I have heard of private loans in the US, however, in general they require a U.S. co-signer which is not an option for me.</p>
<p>Has anyone else perhaps been in a similar situation and managed to make it work?</p>
<p>Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks</p>
<p>Join the club, sweetie
Well, you have a bunch of options to finance your US education…
1- little Scholarships from outside your college: go to fastweb or internationalscholatship.com. Visit the US embassy website, they have a plenty of financial aid options. Simply google the words “financial aid under graduate international students US” and don’t get bored. Also A good hint would be: embrace rejection. Apply to EVERY scholarship that you are eligible to, even if it was as much as $500, still, you’d be $500 closer to your dream school.
2- check out loan options at YOUR country. Almost always people get so caught up about international student loans from the US & forget that plenty of banks back home actually offer loans. You could mortgage your house (if your family owns one)…or just browse your loan options.
3- check out for scholarships from your own country. Sometimes, the government would send 200 (more or less) students to the US, they sure have their strict conditions (being obliged to come back/work at the government/army). But hey, a full ride to your dream school in exchange for serving your country does not sound bad to me…
4- improvise. Just look around and be creative. You can write to a really rich uncle or maybe a mega corporation, you can tell them your story & who knows, something might turn up…</p>
<p>A rule of thumb would be: do not give up, do not get bored. Trust me, it’d eventually pay off.</p>
<p>If you need the full cost of attendance, unless there are scholarships from your own government, it will be almost impossible for you. If you only need part of the cost, that would be a different story. Your family might be able to borrow from a local lender on affordable terms.</p>
<p>To be completely honest, however, your best option would be to attend university in your home country and then come here for graduate school. It is easier to get aid for that.</p>