<p>I am an international applicant with no visa. I am pretty much applying to schools that I know can give me aid without federal funds.</p>
<p>I know to get aid, it'll be much harder for me.And I pretty much need full financial aid. But will a college reject me if they can't pay for my whole package or will they accept me and offer me what they can?</p>
<p>I applied to like most of the Ivies except for Harvard and am still considering Cornell. And some state schools with the hope of merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Some schools (like Cornell) are “need aware” for int’ls. That means that they will look at your finances and decide whether to accept you.</p>
<p>If you have a LOT of need, that can affect admission at full need schools…it just depends on how badly a school wants you. </p>
<p>Keep in mind that some schools will NOT accept you (even if they award you some merit money) if you can’t show that you can fund the rest of ALL costs. </p>
<p>Some schools are now insisting that int’ls show that they have the funds for all four years before they will accept you.</p>
<p>What are the other schools you have applied to?
The Ivys, as you know, are need blind. Anywhere else, you decision will be affected. Cornell, for example, is known to be stingy with aid for international students. Perhaps consider applying to more state schools?</p>
<p>You could have applied to USC and BU for merit scholarship (USC has 150+ full tuition awards, BU 20+). But the application date may have passed (these scholarships usually require you to have applied by the 1st of Dec)</p>
<p>In a word, YES. Applying for financial aid can hurt your chances of admissions at those schools that are need aware for admissions for international students.</p>
<p>If you can’t afford to attend without financial aid (and I presume that is your situation given your family’s undocumented status), then you need to apply for aid. If you don’t get in, perhaps it will be because of need, perhaps it will be for other reasons, so don’t worry about “why”. Kick the we-don’t-want-you-kid institutions to the curb, and move on.</p>
<p>Most schools are need blind. The admissions office does not bother to figure out who can afford to come and who can’t. They process the apps, give them some priority code as to how desirable the person is and let financial aid decide how much the students get. It’s up to the students as to how to get the money to get there. </p>
<p>I don’t know if most schools like that treat international apps any differently but if international students looking at US schools and who need or want money should make sure that they do not apply to schools that out and out have NO funds for foreign students because that gives them a zero chance of getting money. That a school is not need blind in admissions is not a big deal if there is money there to distribute IF you get accepted. For all you know, you might be one of those accepted. But if the schools says no financial aid, no scholarship money for internationals, then it should go off the list as it is a total waste of time to pursue anything there.</p>