<p>International student from Romania GPA (UW): 9-10 - 9.8/10
11th grade - exchange students at a very selective all-girls school in the US: 4.83 (w) - 4 ap's - AP Lit - 5, AP CAlc AB - 5, AP US Gov - 4, AP Bio - 4</p>
<p>ECs: 8-12 grade - Mountain Scouts of Romania (Volunteer Activity + High Adventure)
10th grade - volunteer at a children's shelter
11th grade - Model UN (Won an award at my first conference)
11th grade - school newspaper
...i guess there's more but nothing really spectacular </p>
<p>I'm interested in studying political science></p>
<p>Could you recommend some safety schools(preferably LACs or other colleges that would offer need based aid to internationals) preferably in the NE?</p>
<p>i don't know....quite a lot...but i'm also looking at outside scholarships and loans and stuff so the most important thing would be that the school is a safety for my stats and that it's also quite strong academically...so...anyone who has any suggestions...it would be greatly appreciated!</p>
<p>Familiarize yourself with the Patriot League. Some of the oldest and most prestigious LACs in the nation coupled with Division 1 athletics. The</a> Patriot League - Official Athletic Site</p>
<p>In the NE, Clark U comes to mind. In the Mid-Atlantic, American U and Goucher, in the Northwest, Lewis & Clark. I'm sure there are lots of others--these are ones I'm familiar with. In the Midwest, Macalester, Grinnell and Oberlin--while not exactly safety schools-- might be good ones to look at. Maybe Pitzer in CA. The NE is the hardest place to find safety in admissions and it's no better than the rest of the country.</p>
<p>Macalester, Goucher and Lewis & Clark are very internationally focused and Grinnell is improving its aid to international students in order to attract more. This year's entering class was 15% international.</p>
<p>GREAT LOCATION: half an hour away from downtown DC and walking distance from Embassy Row...a beautiful, wooded, ivy-covered, red-brick neighborhood</p>
<p>ACADEMICS: well-connected! When I visited, there were a bunch of important-looking agents with earpieces chatting over cans of diet Coke in the cafteteria. The program there is an awesome combo of job experience and liberal arts. On Wednesdays, most students take the day off to do some awesome internships in DC. There is an interesting CLEG major (Communications, Law, Economics, and Government). There is a grad law school that is pretty well-known. The JOB PLACEMENT program is one of the best in the nation.</p>
<p>CAMPUS: Not stunning, but well-maintained and of manageable size. It's not a huge school, but not tiny. There is a huge amount of international students there...my tour guide was born British, raised in France, and educated in America.</p>
<p>The only downside is that as it is not as selective as competitors GW and Georgetown, its name-recognition is not as good. I've heard some mixed reviews about the quality of faculty...it depends on who you get.</p>
<p>Financial aid, I'd imagine, is pretty good...my other tour guide was from a poor rural area of Kansas.</p>
<p>Take a look at Fordham (New York) and Holy Cross.</p>
<p>Thanks for the answers so far and please keep them coming! I'm not looking for anyone to do my research for me but I really have no way of knowing what these colleges I'm applying to are like so I would really appreciate some personal impressions.
I'm already applying to American but they are not to generous with their financial aid so I don’t know how that’s going to turn out and I'm also applying to Macalester. I've been looking at Grinnell since it was mentioned and it looks awesome except for the part that it's really isolated. I want to do internships in the political field so a big city would be best.
2-iron - I looked at Frodham after you mentioned it and it's awesome that it's in New York but I'm a little worried about the location - the Bronx - is it dangerous? Also, is it a really strict conservative catholic campus? I'm really not into that kind of thing. But except for that it looks nice and open towards internationals so I'm considering it!
I already have my reaches that I’m applying to but I don’t want all rejections come spring and I’m definitely not going to college here! My year in the US just opened my eyes to how much more practical and interesting education is there and it’s also a much better start for a career in politics.</p>
<p>At the time, it was primarily prep-school Catholic and one-dimensional...made my Jewish mom a little uncomfortable.
HOWEVER...
Things have changed. Fordham is now fairly loosely affiliated and more diverse. They've got an awesome law school, too. If you look at the websites of the top law firms in the country (try WilmerHale), and go to the page where it lists all the lawyers and bios, you'll see they all graduated from Princeton, Harvard, Columbia, NYU, Georgetown and...Fordham.</p>
<p>Holy Cross, despite its name, is also fairly secular.
If you want a city atmosphere, try Boston University, George Washington (they're a block away from the White House).</p>
<p>The neighborhood Fordham...can't say as much. My parents were born and raised in the Bronx and are well aware of the good neighborhoods and bad ones. Fordham is across the road from Roosevelt High School, one of the worst HS's in the country.
HOWEVER my mom says Fordham is gated and well-protected by excellent security systems. Just stay off the streets late at night and keep in mind that the Wall Steet and Central Park are 20 minutes away.</p>
<p>Surprised that American wasn't too generous with financial aid.</p>
<p>Some liberal arts colleges in the northeast and mid-atlantic to check out that would be likelies or safeties for you...</p>
<p>Skidmore College (NY), Gettsyburg College (PA), Wheaton College (MA), Dickinson College (PA), Union College (NY), Franklin & Marshall College (PA), Ursinus College (PA), Providence College (RI), Marist College (NY), St. Lawrence University (NY), Clark University (NY), Allegheny College (PA), Drew University (NJ), Hobart & William Smith Colleges (NY), Juniata College (PA),</p>