Thanks, @aquapt, for your thoughts on Pathway programs. I’m going to have to study these links more carefully.
I live in a developing country and have observed that there are two co-existing streams in international admissions: Poor, high-achieving students may receive substantial aid from top colleges but the outcome is unpredictable.
Rich full pay students can be accepted to schools with a wide range of selectivity.
I wish colleges would be more transparent on their acceptance data so that international families (especially the poor ones) would know what the odds really are.