Hey everyone!
I am an international student from Belarus who applied this year to a bunch of US schools. My family does not earn a lot, so I need a full ride. If I get accepted with the required amount of financial aid, will I be required to take student loans? I have literally nobody in the US, and there is nobody to cosign a loan. I know that some unique schools like Princeton are more generous and don’t require students to take loans, but what about the rest? Can it happen so that I get accepted but still unable to attend because of the loans?
P.s. I am talking about need-based aid. I know that was a mistake, but I didn’t consider merit-based.
I applied to MIT, Stanford, Princeton, UPenns, Johns Hopkins, U of RIchmond, Skidmore, Trinity College, Macalester College, F&M.
My stats, if it matters:
SAT I is 2240 (730R, 800M, 710W), SAT II 800 Physics, 800 Math II, TOEFL 112, EC - a lot of programming contests and science fairs. Intended major: computer science.
The way it usually works when an international student is accepted to a college is that they are told what the college will give to them. It usually does not include loans because international students cannot get loans from the usual federal sources, The only time loans are included is if there is a mistake or the school itself is underwriting them (rare, don’t count on it). The aid package tells you how much you are being offered in financial aid and YOU have to come up with the rest, from your savings, work, your parents, other family or LOANS that YOU and your parents can get and the school doesn’t get involved in what options are available to you. If you do not have a source to get the money to meet your expected contribution, that is your problem, and no, you cannot attend if you cannot show you have the money. You cannot get a student visa from immigration without showing you can pay.
US students also have an expected contribution and many of them find themselves, for any number of reasons, unable to come up with it Sometimes they or their parents cannot borrow enough to be able to attend either But in the case of an international student, a lot of the US lending options are closed to you and your parents. You have to pursue those in your own country or elsewhere. If you can’t come up with the money, you cannot come to the US to study.
Yes, it can happen that if accepted, you would still be unable to attend if you need a full ride and can pay nothing. You expect the university to pay 100% of everything - tuition, books, dorm, food, notebooks, pens, pencil, laptop, international flights to and from Belarus and US, health insurance in US?
Do your parents work? What do they do? How much do they earn? Do you have a job?
@Madison85 I don’t work yet, but my parents do, of course. They earn about $15k a year (not much, but that’s pretty good for Belarus), and can contribute $2k a year to my education. I need help with tuition and housing, as these are the most substantial expenditures. All the rest I think I can cover from my and my parents’ savings.
So $2k per year from your parents to cover roundtrip flight, food for 9 months, school supplies, incidentals? That’s not enough.
Vlad. At this point, you will just have to wait and see what kinds of financial aid offers you get. If the money isn’t sufficient to attend any of these schools, you will need a Plan B.
Too late to edit.
Vlad…hope you applied to one college in YOUR country that is affordable.
@thumper1 Don’t worry, I have a back up plan ready of course. If not accepted to any US school, I will study in Poland for free, even with a scholarship 
I haven’t seen any recent postings of FA offers from low income int’ls who got into “full need” schools to see how much is actually covered.
I don’t think int’l travel is really covered, and health insurance…those two expenses alone are about $4500.
I also don’t know what those schools do about “student contribution”…like they do for domestic students. Domestic students generally have to come up with about $2500 from “summer work” to cover books and personal expenses (colleges really don’t want to be paying for your toothpaste and shampoo… 
)
Yes, as @mom2collegekids said, most schools may give you aid but they will not cover certain expenses.