<p>I'm thinking in like the top universities here.... Stanford, MIT, etc...Generally, what are the applicants like? If you don't have any national/international awards does that spell rejection?? Do you have to have SAT scores > 750?? What about if you don't require FinAid? ..... have you heard any miracle stories??</p>
<p>If you don't require financial aid, and the school is need-aware for internationals, it will be slightly easier to get in (compared to if you do require aid)</p>
<p>No national/international awards is not an auto-rejection; I only had awards at the local/provincial level, but I'm headed down to Philadelphia next year.</p>
<p>Best of luck! With admissions to top schools like Stanford and MIT, the admissions process can seem incredibly unpredictable. Just hope for the best at this point =)</p>