first things first- ask your counselor at school to help you identify colleges in Kenya (where you live now, correct?) and colleges in Turkey which your family can afford.
You are indeed a US citizen, but you don’t have an instate option, which is frequently the most affordable way to get a Bachelor’s degree. So start close to “home”- i.e. where you are living now. Travel to and from Turkey, even just once a year, is going to chew up a big portion of what your mom can afford to pay.
@blossom, well, with regards to traveling to and from, I think I’ll just have to stay in the US for the entirety of my college career there (assuming I go there).
You wrote this about your bio dad. Please understand…if this is the case, you will need to find colleges where his income and assets won’t be asked for…or considered…when institutional financial aid is calculated.
Fact is…in this country…parents are first in line to pay for college. Everything else kicks in after that.
You can’t afford the most inexpensive option in the US, which would have been an INSTATE school. You cannot gain instate residency because you gain that from where your parent lives.
You don’t have SAT scores.
Oh and “100% demonstrated need” means that the colleges decided what you need; you don’t get a full ride. They decide what they think they can give you.
College costs add up. Coming from out of the US, you need to pay for the basics and then some (bedding, travel expenses, lab fees, books/supplies, etc).
Your parent doesn’t have the money for this option, so anything else would be terribly expensive.
@aunt bea, full-ride is still possible, according to what I’ve read. Though yes, that’s limited to the cream of the crop. I have no other options; it’s either that or no college for the foreseeable future.
Once you have your SAT scores…not including the essay portion…you will get better help.
But you need to understand something. FULL FREE RIDES for college are not very prevalent here. Yes, they exist, but they are either at highly competitive colleges, or are as a result of highly competitive merit scholarships.
And even WITH that, many colleges require…read that again…require…a student contribution which can be several thousand dollars.
Those colleges that meet full need have costs of attendance exceeding $50,000 a year…some even higher than $70,000 a year. You are hoping to get aid in the full amount to attend. Sure…that mightnhappen…but I wouldn’t bank on that as my first college search option.
You need to find an affordable option of some kind. Hoping @twoinanddone and @happymomof1 will chime in.
You just can’t count on admission to these very competitive colleges that meet full need. But really…at this point it is all a guess until you get your actual SAT score. Even then…it might be a guess at schools that only accept 20% or less of applicants.
Do you have any friends or family in the US who you could stay with for a couple of months while you find a job and a place to live? In some states, that would allow you to establish residency on your own. Not the first thing that I’d recommend to most 18 year-olds, but it is a possibility.
Do you have any friends or family in the US who you could live with during longer school breaks? Many colleges and universities close their dorms for about a month at the winter break. You also will need a plan for how to spend the summer break. Scholarships don’t usually cover summer classes. You will be expected to find a summer job somewhere.
Unlike others, I do not recommend studying outside the US if your goal is to eventually live here. Even after you have your foreign academic records translated and evaluated, not everyone will know what to think of your foreign degree. You also will not have any of the career advising and placement that is available to graduates of colleges and universities in the US, and you won’t have an alumni network to tap into for the rest of your life.
Do you have any contact with your biological father? Where is he now? Where are his extended family? Are they in the US?
@paul2752 is an international student who is at one of the universities on the automatic scholarship list. He may have some useful suggestions for your search for an affordable education.
@paul2752 should have some options for applications for,you.
You are actually in slightly better shape than he is…as you might qualify for at least a portion of the Pell Grant…and you can also take the federally funded direct loan annually as you are a citizen.
There is no 2200 on the current SAT. You need to get a current practice test (free downloads at satpractice.org) Then you need to take the real test ASAP and hope you can get a full-ride scholarship at one of the schools on the automatic list linked to above.
Otherwise, you do not seem to have the money for an American college at this time. Make sure you have a plan B. You might take the 20,000 in savings and move to the USA, preferably to a city where you have a family connection or other help getting a start if possible. (Even though you are obviously bright, you will have culture shock coming from Kenya and need some help getting settled and learning how various systems work here.)
Next, you can get a job. From there, you can work while also studying a community college career prep program for a couple years. Even if you are out of state, your tuition should be affordable at community college and you will be eligible for federal direct student loans as a US citizen. From there, you can get a better job. Work that better job and save for a four year college. Learn what you need to do to get in-state residency. All students over age 24 are independent students. So, you will have state residency at that age at the very latest, regardless of where your parents are living.
@happymomof1, no contacts that I personally know. I may, hopefully, be able to establish contact with my relatives there. That would solve a lot of problems.
Thank you for the link.
Also, for the reference of others, I am 17, not 18.
@Slavic2000 - In addition to the college-placement team at your school, you might want to consult with the counselors at the EducationUSA advising center in Nairobi.
@Slavic2000 Yes, you would have culture shock anywhere. Going somewhere near extended family or a family friend would give you someone you trust to help you figure out, for example, how to lease a place to live for a fair price in a safe neighborhood, how to navigate getting a license and a car (if you drive), a few local introductions to people or communities (place of worship, club, hobby, or sports group, etc) that might help you meet people.
You will be more likely to settle well (and avoid getting ripped off or even homelessness) with someone you can trust talking you through things.