<p>So the odds for ANYONE from anywhere to get into Yale are very, very small. But I will say that they probably get very few applicants from Finland, and they do like a diverse student body, just like everyplace else does. You can certainly add explanation of the Finnish education system in “additional information” for your application. Look at the individual college websites for their requirements for other testing, but I would think the average Finnish student would do fine on the TOEFL or whatever they required (my kid spent a summer on a study abroad with a Finnish family and then a semester at U of Helsinki, so I am familiar with how well everyone in Finland speaks English!). </p>
<p>So is it a waste of your time? No.</p>
<p>That said, there are many, many other great colleges in the US besides Yale and the Ivies. Don’t just get pulling in by a prestigious name… that said, I also know there is no tuition at U of Helsinki. Yale (and most US colleges) are going to be much pricier. Even with good financial aid, it is hard to beat “free” with minimal travel expenses. If you apply to colleges in the US, you will want to apply to those that offer need based aid to internationals and meet need. This is a thread you may want to read:</p>
<p><a href=“Looking for colleges&full need-based fin aid to apply to - International Students - College Confidential Forums”>Looking for colleges&full need-based fin aid to apply to - International Students - College Confidential Forums; </p>
<p>I thought there was a thread somewhere on FA for internationals (just on that topic), but I didn’t see it right offhand. Maybe someone else can find it and link to it.</p>