<p>I’m an international student that applied to Stanford REA, and noted that I wanted to pursue need-based financial aid. In the hypothetical case that I am accepted, how would the financial aid work?
The family’s income bracket is extremely low, therefore in such case that I were to be accepted, I suppose I’d be receiving bid aid. However, I was told that I had to get a SSN in order to receive the FA. As an international student, is that possible? And if so, what would I have to do?</p>
<p>If you are fortunate enough to get accepted as an “international”…you will be offered the same highly generous amount of financial aid that would be offered to domestic applicants through the Stanford Fund allocated for international students…it will all depend on exactly how much you would “need” to attend Stanford in lieu of your family’s income…</p>
<p>…I am not too familiar with whether internationals have to obtain SSN in order to receive financial aid or not…that is something you can easily discuss with the financial aid office when and “if” you get in…and now is not the time to worry unnecessarily about that…don’t you think?</p>
<p>…good luck!</p>
<p>You don’t need an SSN to receive the financial aid. However, part of the financial aid package will be student academic year job earnings (about $1000 a quarter). That means you’ll need to contribute about this amount yourself. Many will find on campus jobs, at which point they need to apply for an SSN (for the job itself). </p>
<p>Part of the financial aid might be taxable, which means you’ll have to pay tax for it. If you don’t have an SSN, you can apply to get an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). </p>
<p>In short, SSN is required for holding a job, not for receiving financial aid. </p>
<p>You can see more here: <a href=“http://icenter.stanford.edu/quick_reference/soc_sec.html”>http://icenter.stanford.edu/quick_reference/soc_sec.html</a></p>