I think you will be getting a good education in the US at a cost you can afford. It is not one of the US’s more prestigious colleges and it is not a college that most people outside of North Dakota will have heard of. But it appears to offer a good, solid education in various areas of CS and you will be able to go to college in the US, which you have stated numerous times is your main goal. It is also a fairly small college (about 3,000 students) and it is in a very small city in the middle of a very rural area so I would definitely expect that there is a strong sense of campus community —if for no other reason than that there is likely not much to do socially outside of the campus and the nearby surroundings.
And unbelievably, it also has a small international airport in Minot, North Dakota itself.
You need to look at each college’s deadlines. In the US a deadline is final: so if it says January 2, if you send your application January 3 it’s too late.
Financial aid also has deadlines, which can be the same or different from the application submission. Each college decides.
Finally, there’s communication with the Admissions office or the International Admissions officer : they could well be on vacation or at some colleges work on Monday and Tuesday. The period December 24-January 2 is going to be closed and at many colleges Admissions closed on Friday.
And don’t wait to the deadlines - beat them. Some kinds fit out they completed late because the deadline was in the local time. Or they had internet issues. Get it in early.
Has this student been accepted to Minot already?
There seems to be a lot of supposition about this student’s life already attending there. Lots of factors will impact this student who will definitely need some mental health support.
The winters are brutal. The lifestyle is different. You have to fit that environment to be successful. A very good friend of mine has a huge property there, but she also has funding to drive or fly out.
The suppositions were set forth to determine if the OP could afford to attend, since budget is very tight and flights to and from India are costly.
But his GPA and SAT give him good likelihood of acceptance and the cost is just slightly above his budget. No other US school seems to meet both of these criteria.
But yes, the culture shock from India to rural North Dakota is going to be significant. But I think there will be a similar culture shock to most/all US colleges and because the OP will be at the top of the heap academically vis a vis the other applicants / students, hopefully that will give him a little less stress with the academic adjustment to US style academics.
North Dakota is a very different environment than the rest of the US. Given that this person‘s mental status appears to be very fragile, I would be hesitant to push an environment that might be really limited for support systems.
Additionally, if this person is looking to major in CS, and has to return to India after four years, future gainful employment may be adversely impacted by location and a saturated market. My daughter and son were CS majors; their colleagues who are not already employed, or were recently laid off, are feeling the pinch of the current job industry.
I think it is been presented as an option, and a much more likely admit for the budget than a lot of the other schools on the list. A very different culture but not necessarily an unpleasant one. The people are really nice. They have activities indoors for most of the winter as it is too cold for ANYONE to be outside too much. OP has to have an open mind about it.
Yes, he won’t be waiving an Ivy League diploma, but will have A diploma which is better than OP’s other options (as presented above). If he really doesn’t want to go to Minot, that’s fine but there may not be other options and the Plan B may be to go to a coding school or take a gap year (which has been turned down).
It’s not so different from the advise we give to domestic applicants who want to live on a beach but also want to go to a top 20 school and they only have a 3.5/ 1300. They can apply to UCLA and USC but they should also apply to Florida Atlantic or UNC Wilmington if they don’t want to get shut out of all schools.
Better than attending a school in India? I’m not convinced.
If the student returns to India after graduation, how competitive will he really be with a degree from a college that’s almost surely unknown there, versus a well-known local name? The OP would be spending a significant portion of his family’s savings — and has mentioned possibly taking on loans as well. I’m not sure that’s a worthwhile trade-off just to have a “U.S. degree”.
But the OP seems unwilling to attend college in India.
OP, is college in India something that you would consider if it would lead to better job options than college in the US, if DadofJerseyGirl is correct in his assumption?
One student here said their friend got a full ride at Southern Miss - and Texas A&M International - I don’t know if OP reached out to see if merit is valid but it looks like $35K for tuition, room and board (in 24/25). WIth a 1360 SAT, it’s $30K off.
It doesn’t say must be domestic - so if I’m OP I’m asking or simply applying. I mentioned this weeks ago - so not sure if he followed up with the school.
It seems OP has dedicated his time to the US process and as a result NOT the Indian process. Sometimes it’s a choice of one or the other, especially in Asian countries with specific competitive exams - students may be on the international track OR the national track.
In any case based on what he said upthread, the option of a well-known local name is not on the table.
I don’t know what to say, My SAT examination was disturbed because of a laptop issue I got with collegeboard, I lost 5 minutes, I gained anxiety test got messed up.