<p>One of the scariest things to me about applying to an Ivy League school would be the fact that I would be entering into a foreign country with no money. I read that, if your family earns an annual income of lower than 60k, some of the schools will pay for all of your education. Does this apply to me? I’m not sure what my ‘family’ would be - I have a very sick mother who’s basically bankrupt, but if they mean my foster mother, she’s not well off and irregardless would not support me, and I don’t think social services will support me in another country. What kind of financial aid could I get in the US?</p>
<p>I think you should tread carefully. You can direct your questions to the financial aid office of the schools that appeal to you – don’t assume that Yale’s policy is the same as Cornell’s – ask each place! </p>
<p>I would expect the typical response will be to encourage you to apply and that they can’t give you specifics until you’ve been accepted. Alas, that is after you have ponied up application fees and gotten your hopes up. </p>
<p>Many US colleges look to the “foreign” students to be full pay kids – that means they are an income stream for the college. Think about it – there are gazillions of great but struggling American kids. Why should an American school give you a free meal ticket? The harsh answer: they won’t unless you have something major to offer (like being a Gold metal gymnast or winner of an international math competition). </p>
<p>You need more information. You are partially correct on some of what you know. A number of Ivy League colleges will waive TUITION costs for low income students. But they may not provide room and board . . . or books. . . or incidental money that a student needs for laundry, toothpaste, etc. You also need to find out, FOR SURE, what Canadian social services will pay for you – and if there are any special rules/ applications/deadlines/forms that you must meet. </p>
<p>Americans love long shots and scrappy fighters. By all means, pick an American college that appeals to you and apply – but be smart about this and make some serious back up plans. Look at what Canadian schools have to offer and keep in mind a clever strategy might be to attend a smaller and/or more remote college in Canada and then come to the US as a graduate student (There’s two ways to do graduate school: 1) you pay or 2) the college pays you to attend school and work on research or teach – I am a strong fan of #2). </p>
<p>Hang in there. You sound like a smart kid whose getting a challenging start to things. You need a lot more information to get all the challenges conquered. Good luck!</p>
<p>That deal is offered by a few schools to a relatively small number of kids. If you have the superstar stats to get in, yes, they will give you the money you need.</p>
<p>If you have a foster parent, then you’ll probably be considered “independent” when you turn 18 years old.</p>
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<p>Mom2, this student is a Canadian citizen. This student will be applying to U.S. colleges (well…the Ivies in most cases…she will need to check each one) as an international student. I do not know if the status of a Canadian foster child is the same as a U.S. one…someone with more knowledge than I have about this will have to check.</p>
<p>If this IS the case, this student’s family contribution would likely be $0. However, being an international student, she will not be eligible for any federally funded need based aid (she is not a citizen) and would need full institutional aid. I think most of the Ivies meet need for accepted international students. However the first hurdle is getting accepted to one of these very generous schools. About 90% of students who apply do NOT get accepted.</p>
<p>The foster care dependency issue is moot, as this is for federal financial aid. OP does not qualify for federal aid. How a school would treat an international, foster care or not, varies by school. OP, you must call the school to find out.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>I know that the child is an int’l and wouldn’t use FAFSA. Are you saying that CSS Profiles doesn’t consider foster children (from any country) as independents? </p>
<p>If it’s up to each school to determine whether the student is independent or not, how would such a student fill out CSS? That would mean that the student would have to fill out CSS two different ways…depending on the school.</p>
<p>What I am saying is that many schools do not even give aid to internationals. Schools can do whatever they want in terms of international aid. If an international student has an unusual situation, that student really needs to contact each school to discuss it.</p>
<p>What I am saying is that many schools do not even give aid to internationals.</p>
<p>Oh, I know that. :)</p>
<p>The student was asking about ivy league schools, which do give aid to int’ls.</p>
<p>I’m just wondering how the student needs to fill out CSS…with the student’s info only (since she was a foster child) or with the mom’s? Does CSS have any guidelines?</p>
<p>While I fill out the CSS every year, I don’t pay any attention to the dependency questions. I suppose they are probably the same as FAFSA, meaning if the student was in foster care after the age of 13 she can skip parent info. I work at a public U & we require documentation from all students who check this box; I assume ivies will, as well. Whether the school might require additional info is what I am unsure about.</p>