Will I be able to apply as freshman?

I was late in knowing about US. I will give standardized tests this year but will also join college in India this year. Will I be able to apply as freshman if I leave the college just before first year? Has anyone transferred from India? Please help me.

No. You will be a transfer student. Will you require aid?

Most probably I will need aid. Are transfer students disadvantaged on any other ground compared to freshman in admission process other than missing on scholarships? Will US universities focus more on college grades than SAT or ACT scores in case of transfer? I heard that one requires a certain number of credits before being considered as a transfer student. Is it so? Thanks for helping me out.

I am not really sure about the credits part, but it varies from college to college. Other than HYDM and Amherst, applying for aid will be a huge disadvantage for you. A lot of places don’t even provide aid to international transfer students. Also, the no. of vacancies in these colleges are minimal, so you need to be among the best to have any chance of getting in.