International student fin aid

b_r_um
Sat, 10 Apr 2010 14:15:52 +0000

The financial aid package covers the difference between our family contribution and the annual “cost of attendance”: tuition, room, board, personal expenses and health insurance (international students only) for the 8 months that classes are in session. For most students our estimated personal expenses are equal in amount to our expected work-study income. (A few international students get an extra allowance for airfare.) If you work 8 hours a week (average for first-year students), you will earn about $2000 a year. The college will let you work up to 17.5 hours per week on a regular basis.

You should ask the college about loan repayment terms. Not all international students have loans in their financial aid package. I was offered a $3,000 loan in my first year and my award letter stated that any tuition increase would raise my loan amount in the future. Domestic first-year students typically get the maximum amount of Stafford loans (currently $5,500) in their package.