<p>Hey I'm from Italy and my dream is to attend Stanford, but I need financial aid. Is it really impossible for me to get it?
I'm a freshmanin high school, I can speak Italian, English (fluently), Greek, Latin and a little of Spanish. I play the piano since I was 6 and I'm trying to get the 1st grade degree at the Conservatorio, which is a very prestigious musical school in Milan. I'll also attend for a whole academic year an american high school when I'll be 16, so I'll improve my English. So far what are my chances to get in? Do I have to try to do something more, maybe learning another language? It's fun, I'm yet 14, but I'm planning everything!!! I dream to get accepted at Stanford since when I was baby!!!!
So tell me the truth... is it possible???
I look forward to see your replies...!</p>
<p>hello giulia!</p>
<p>i don't know to much about this topic, as i also am an international student craving to get into princeton. I've also got an obsession with pton, so i can understand your fixation... (although, after all, i/you wouldn't be too unhappy at yale, harvard, columbia, mit, caltech... :D) </p>
<p>anyway, i suppose your dream is harder to acomplish than mine is, and the darn reason is this dirty thing called money. As you have probably already seen, stanford says, on the website, and with rather harsh words in my opinion, that fin aid for intl is scarce... </p>
<p>of course it's not impossible to get in, and considering your commitment, i'd say that in 3 years you can make miracles... what i would do if i were you is i would try to acomplish something remarkable, that would really draw the attention of some future adcoms, and that would, at the same time, represent me (i mean you:D) vividly...</p>
<p>what that thing is for you, i don't know... for me i now know, but i woke up too late... almost :)</p>
<p>so, i think it's very possible, and anyway you have to try! it's your dream, isn't it? :)</p>
<p>and if i don't make it... oh gosh, I just can't even think about it!... what are the best universities (I mean something like Harvard, Dartmouth..)that offer the best finaid and that are more open to international students?
reply soon!!</p>
<p>ok, i know about princeton:), harvard and yale that are need-blind and meet full need. </p>
<p>need-blind means that they accept or reject you without regard to financial matters (this doesn't automaically mean they give you the money afterwards). "meet full need" means they give you all you need</p>
<p>So except for the differences regarding school systems and everything, applying as intl at these schools is very "fair" :)</p>
<p>i think mit is like that too, caltech?</p>
<p>anyway, these are univ that clearly state it as a rule not to consider fin need as an admission factor, but there are many others that do so without the constraint of this being a rule.</p>
<p>somebody who knows more should complete the list, because i'm sure it's long.
I'm thinking about duke, colgate, vaderbilt, brown?, yes dartmouth, !??! cornell...
i dunno :|</p>
<p>
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and if i don't make it... oh gosh, I just can't even think about it!...
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<p>tell me about it! i've got 10 days until that <em>special</em> moment when i'll find out if they "like" me or not... gulp...</p>
<p>but then again i think, as i said, that there are lots of places where people like us would feel great... anyway, what is it about stanford that tickled your (baby-time-since) dreams? is it nothing in particular, just a fixation?</p>
<p>i started with that on princeton, but i have a few friend there and read about it, saw photos:D, and now i totally, and kinna apprehensively, love it... :)</p>
<p>actually I don't know why stanford is my favourite... maybe because it's like Harvard but it's in California!! and my father told me that it's the best for business degree, although it isn't in the famous Ivy League... Above all, my ultimate dream is to live in US, and I'm gonna do everything to suceed! So, If I get accepted in an american college, it's like I've made it at 50%! Cause then i'll get a great job in the US, and I'll can live there.
My second choice would be Columbia, what do you think about it?</p>
<p>Stanford? Best for business degree? I would agree with you if you were talking about the its Graduate MBA program, but they don't have a business program for undergraduates (please correct me if I am wrong). UPENN has the best undergraduate business program, and I think (because you are fluent in so many languages) you should look into the Huntsman program that UPENN offers. It is one of the most prestigious programs (only accepting around 40 to 50 people). Look into it.</p>
<p>More then worrying about getting financial aid, you should worry about how much you are minimizing your chance of acceptance by applying for Financial Aid. These colleges are not need-blind. That means, your acceptance is somewhat based on how much you are asking for. So, you MAY not get accepted because you ask for financial aid. Make sure your stats are SUPERB, but I am sure they will be. Good luck.</p>
<p>Yeah, Kimqwerty is right about the business degree. But what I don't get is why is every international obsessed with the US? There are many better places to live than the US (Switzeland, London, Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai). Trust me, you would think living in US will bring you better life but it just gets stressful with your job and dealing with immigration. Other places are more immigration friendly and you get good quality of life and stress-free living. This is why my parents moved to Singapore from the US.
Although, I agree that the US has the finest universities in the world; getting into them as a international needing financial aid will be really HARD. The top universites want students who are nationally recognized and have superb academic record. You should improve your english so that you can get high scores on the SAT and SAT II's.</p>
<p>boomer01 - A lot of int'ls don't go to study in the US to live there, they plan to go back to their countries and use their US degree, which is very respected and in most cases will make them more competitive than someone who has a degree from that country (obviously depends on the country).</p>
<p>As for those who study there to immigrate, well, it may be the American dream hype, and you're right, if they just want to immigrate into a country with better living standards there are plenty which are great and have relatively more lenient immigration laws and procedures.</p>
<p>The higher education in Dubai is CRAP!!!!!
Plz dont mislead ppl on this board</p>
<p>Dude.. I am not talking about higher education, I am saying the standard of living and pay are as good as the US if not better. My dad got an offer from Dubai and it paid the same salary compared to US, plus it's tax free and living is relatively stress free than compared to US where people constantly worry about losing their jobs.</p>
<p>I never said anything bad about the US education system, I mean you can go to a US for studying in university and come back to your home country and make a handsome salary while living a comfortable life.</p>
<p>Ah ok, understood... But you do know that whether someone will get paid more in a country other than the US depends more on the company they work for. Let's take your example of Dubai... Which company offered your dad a job? I'm guessing that it's either American and/or a multinational because I doubt that a local business there would be paying as much. JP Morgan managers get paid loads no matter which country they work in but I'm sure that for some countries if a person were offered a management position in a local business (local meaning operating only in that country) the job wouldn't necessarily be as high-paying or secure.</p>
<p>Thanks for all your suggestions!!! Anyway I'm dreaming of the US since a long time, I just can't even think about anything else. I ALWAYS talk about USA !!! I've already planned everything! Maybe I love America so much cause I go there on vacation every summer since I was six! That's how I learned to love it!</p>
<p>i just like the castles the ivy's have - you know, the ones on their websites and stuff?
oh and I also like being in a place with lots of people -eg, nyc
oh and i like the names - stanford and columbia and washington - they sound pretty and posh
I'm not really looking foward to the education.. I've seen programmes on tv about life in harvard and stuff - students really seem to work their asss off.. but i'm prepared to do that if I can live in a pretty castle.</p>
<p>They are the reasons why I like america</p>
<p>im going in just for the name...gets u a couple of hundred grand more than u would otherwise. its just a freakin investment for me. I hate america - esp their politics, and SOME of the ppl there...but i still like the names. Thats why im applying. oh yeah.btw the girls there aint bad - if uv got the keen eye like me ;)</p>
<p>Giulia, I would say it is DEFINITELY possible for you to get into college in the US. You have 4 years ahead and superbe prospects to start with. You should focus into improving your stats all the way through high-school.</p>
<p>giulia90 your credentials are stellar; i am certain that you will at least be accepted to one fo the top US schools (be warned that selection does have a certain amount of randomness to it, so apply to other places as well like Harvard etc...) right now you should maybe start working during the summer/holidays etc to build up a college fund, because Stanford are very stingy with respect to financial aid!</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>echo that "Hello"... same here in muscat..</p>
<p>btw.. which school in Dubai?</p>
<p>I know a guy that got in to stanford (international) w/ f.aid. so you know. it happens.</p>