My Son was born in the USA and holds USA passport. He is studying American Curriculum in Dubai, UAE where we currently live. All of his grades are A and A+. He is mostly interested in Engineering. I (his father and single parent) don’t have US citizenship. I did go to college in the US and worked for few years in Maryland and Pennsylvania. I also was paying taxes. But since I am not a US citizen, I don’t pay taxes now since I am working abroad.
I would like to know what is the process for him to apply to american colleges. Would he be considered as out of state or resident? Would he be able to get scholarship? What are the sort of things he needs to be aware before applying. I am not sure where to start as I have been away from the academic field for a while.
Your son is a US applicant for financial aid purposes. Get familiar now with the FAFSA. For ideas on that, see the Financial Aid Forum.
Since you are no longer paying taxes in the US, he will be considered OOS for any public universities.
Scholarships will based on academics (GPA/Test scores), EC’s (leadership/community service) etc…
I would run the Net Price calculators for each school of interest.
Let each of the college that he is applying know very early in the process that he is a US citizen living abroad. Some of them will have different steps that you will need to take because of that.
Each college and university sets its own admission policy and procedures. Do not be surprised if every place he applies to has something different that you will need to do.
Read through everything at https://www.educationusa.info/ Some will not apply because he is a citizen, but some will. Then get in touch with the counselors at the advising center closest to where you live. There are scads of US citizens just like him who apply to colleges and universities here. If no one at your local advising center has worked with a US citizen lately, they can help you find someone at another center who has: https://www.educationusa.info/India EducationUSA is a not-for-profit organization. You will get accurate, unbiased information there. Any fees charged will go directly to maintaining that office.
FYI: Much of this information was given by @happymom1 a frequent CC poster with a wealth of excellent information.
Here is a link for the advising center in Dubai. AMIDEAST is the EducationUSA affiliate there: http://www.amideast.org/uae
Because his high school follows a US-style program, the counselors there should have some experience with the US application process. They will have useful ideas about the likelihood of admission here.
Do spend time in the Financial Aid Forum here to learn more about that process. Read anything posted by kelsmom who is a college financial aid officer. When you file the FAFSA, you will use your current financial information converted to US $ at the exchange of the day. Here is a link to the current formula (it changes a bit every year). You can print it out and work through it on paper to get an idea of the type of federal financial aid your son might qualify for: http://ifap.ed.gov/efcformulaguide/attachments/090214EFCFormulaGuide1516.pdf At minimum, your son can borrow the standard student loans ($5,500 freshman year, $6,500 sophomore year, $7,500 junior year, and $7,500 senior year).
Your son’s grades and ACT or SAT test scores will determine where he can be admitted, but what you can afford to pay will determine where he can attend. To get a notion of what the places on his list might cost, run the Net Price Calculator at each website. His grades are excellent. If his ACT or SAT score is in that same range, there will be some places that will offer significant merit-based aid. Provided he isn’t overly picky about where he goes to college, there can be some very affordable options. Here is a good thread to look through for ideas: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1678964-links-to-popular-threads-on-scholarships-and-lower-cost-colleges.html#latest
You have to estimate how much you can afford, per year, and calculate your EFC.
If your EFC is “low” (below 10,000 for instance), your son should primarily apply to colleges that meet 100% need.
If your EFC is too high (as is the case for most American parents), your son should apply to colleges with merit scholarships that place them within budget for you. The #1 source of scholarships is the university itself.
He will need to prepare for the ACT or/and the SAT very seriously because those scores may determine how much money he gets in scholarships.
You mention that you are a single parent. If his mom is still alive, she (and usually her spouse if she is remarried) would be required to provide financial information to many colleges if you apply for need based financial aid.
Thanks for all of your help. Since my son is living outside of the US, he will be considered as out of state for tuition purpose. Does anybody know of universities that are willing to waive nonresident fees and charge resident fee. My son is interested in Engineering.
This typically depends on test scores.
Note that private universities do not distinguish between in state and out of state. Some states, like Missouri and Utah, make it easy for students to become residents whereas in popular states this is impossible.
“Out-of-state” status is only relevant for PUBLIC universities. For expatriate American students w no U.S. state of residency (like your son), a PRIVATE university offering attractive financial aid and/or merit scholarships might make better financial sense.
A few public universities do offer merit scholarships for OOS students. University of Alabama (the flagship campus is in Tuscaloosa) gives very generous merit scholarships for engineering.