<p>I'm soon to finish my 4 year service in the Israeli Defense Force (Army) and I'm already starting to think about my academic future. I have number of questions in which I would like to hear your thoughts/comments about:</p>
<ol>
<li>Is my military background an advantage or a disadvantage when applying for a scholarship?</li>
<li>Generally speaking: What are my odds to make it to one of the top schools (Ivy league?) without having to pay 30,000-50,000$ a year?</li>
<li>How do I contact a school in the US? What is the most common way? (I know it sounds stupid but I really don't understand how it works)</li>
<li>How can I attract a scholarship/grant? How big are scholarships for international studies (in average)?</li>
<li>Taking into consideration I've visited the US 3 times in my life - Could I face any difficulty getting the proper visa for my studies?</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li><p>You will need several letters of recommendation to apply to selective colleges or scholarships. That can be tricky when you have been out of school for a while.</p></li>
<li><p>These are two separate questions. (a) What are your odds of getting into one of the top schools? That obviously depends on how competitive of an applicant you are. (b) What are your odds of getting the financial aid you need? The top universities promise to meet your “full demonstrated need” if they accept you. However, it’s up to them to determine your need. Given that you have been financially independent from your parents for four years, I am not sure if colleges would expect your parents to contribute to your education financially.</p></li>
<li><p>Contact them about what? First you should decide which office that can most likely address your questions (e.g. the admissions office, an academic department or access services) and then you can get their contact information from the university’s website. If you are unsure which office to talk to, the admissions office is a good place to start.</p></li>
<li><p>There are many different sources of financial aid: need-based grants (most commonly found at the top universities), academic scholarships (more commonly found at less selective universities), athletic scholarships, diversity scholarships, etc. Scholarships can range in amount from $500 to $60,000 per year. Most scholarships for international undergraduate students are awarded directly by the universities, not outside organizations. Your best bet is to start with a list of colleges that you might consider applying to, and then check the scholarship opportunities at each of them. You can start your college search here: [College</a> Search - Find colleges and universities by major, location, type, more.](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)</p></li>
<li><p>That really depends on why you have visited the US in the past and the mood of the consulate officer who interviews you. They can reject your visa if they believe that you intend to immigrate to the US. Close family in the US might raise a red flag, US vacations typically don’t.</p></li>
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<p>Concerning financial aid for international students- there is a website which shows how many international students in a school get merit based aid and non-merit based aid in a school. I am not going to look for the website for you- you could that- but it gives you an idea of how many people in a school get financial aid.</p>
<p>An easier source is the collegeboard. The collegeboard link barium gave u has a link which shows the number of internationals in a school that get aid</p>
<p>"Close family in the US might raise a red flag, US vacations typically don’t. " </p>
<p>-Close family who live in the US. Or if your brother or sister have gotten an H1B or converted to immigrant status. I have always been puzzled by this because I know tons of people who have families who converted to immigrant status and they have no probs getting visas.</p>
<p>I think it dpends more on the economic situation of your country.</p>
<p>Of course ties of the US don’t automatically make you ineligible for a visa. I apologize if that’s how my previous post sounded. However, the more ties you have to the US, the easier it becomes for the interviewer to reject your application based on a suspected intention to immigrate. </p>
<p>One year when I was assisting at the international student orientation for my school, 3 students didn’t come because they couldn’t get a visa. That’s a small number compared to the 40 or so students who did get their visas, but it’s significant enough to be worth mentioning.</p>
<p>Another related question: Is my military background (described below) in particular could help me getting into a good international relations program?</p>
<p>During the last year, I have served as an international organizations liaison officer in the West Bank (Lieutenant). In the past I served an international organizations liaison officer in the Gaza Strip for a year including during the Cast Lead Operation (December 2008) and also in the IDF headquarters in Tel-Aviv. I speak fluent Hebrew and English and I also speak Arabic in medium level.</p>