Is my university acceptance a scam?

Applying to College
1

<p>Ok so I am a student from India. I originally applied to Maryville University in St Louis for fall 2012. After 3 weeks, when i did not receive any reply, i emailed the director about my application status and this is what her reply was</p>

<p>'Hello , how are you? Thank you for your patience but we have been busy admitting new students. We are pleased to inform you that you have been admitted to MU for spring semester 2013. Congratulations!
You have also been awarded $3000 merit scholarship
The next step in your admissions process i that you need to provide bank statements of $40,000 (you can subract the scholarship) to 35,000. You sent the bank statements but not all are acceptable.
Once we receive your statement, i will mail you your acceptance package.
Thank you"</p>

<p>Is everything fine?
A friend said what does bank statement got to do with mailing the acceptance package and she thought its a lie. I asked a couple of people on yahoo answers and a few of them said its a scam. A few said the merit scholarship is a joke.</p>

<p>Whats wrong or its fine?!?!!!</p>

<p>It was over email and this message was sent by the director of international admissions. Plus by bank statement, it means that i have to provide the amount of money available to pay for tuition in form of a document.</p>

<p>honestly i was so happy but now my spirits are dampening.</p>

2

<p>No, it wasn’t actually sent by the directer of international admissions. Either you didn’t check the email address or someone was spoofing it.</p>

3

<p>No it was sent by the director of international admissions. I have been asking questions, sending docs on that email address since the day i applied.
Please serious answers, no jokes.</p>

4

<p>Well, as an international student, you must demonstrate that you are able to pay the full cost of attendance at the school. You can’t get a student visa approved until you do. So as long as that’s not the exact text of the email you quoted (the stuff in your quotes is definitely not written by an American native), I guess it’s not entirely unreasonable.</p>

<p>Still, it’s really strange that you would be admitted like this…</p>

5

<p>Sounds like a scam. Also, how is 40k minus 3000 = 35k? </p>

<p>Paying tuition/room and board isn’t a prerequisite for getting an acceptance. You get accepted, then they review the cost.</p>

6

<p>excuse me but i have contacted maryville the day i applied from this page and that person has been answering my questions
[Contact</a> Us | Maryville University](<a href=“http://www.maryville.edu/admissions/international/contact-us/]Contact”>Contact Us)</p>

7

<p>Bubbles1, no one is making jokes, it’s just that maybe the e-mail is translated? and it sounds more like a scam than an actual “serious” university. 40,000 a year seems like a lot for that school.</p>

<p>When my friend was an international student, he received a formal letter mailed to his country, and a er formal e-mail, and it outlined the steps for his visa application, and this was a state uni. </p>

<p>THe acceptance seems so informal, it seems like a scam.</p>

8

<p>oh my god have you read where i contacted them? and will you please check maryville university? its a real university and their websites state one of the best in US
the email was not translated.</p>

9

<p>Do you have the number to the admissions office? I know its an expensive call, but they can tell your for certain if you were really accepted since your email looks like it could be a possible scam</p>

10

<p>plus i received the student password and account making for a student id from their website</p>

11

<p>You are an international student. You will need to demonstrate that you can pay the full cost of attendance or you will not get your student visa. Some colleges and universities do ask international students to pay for the first year completely up-front. Pick up the telephone, and call this university and find out what is going on. Classes start soon. If you can’t get the money together in time, or if your visa can’t be processed in time, you may have to defer enrollment until second semester or next year.</p>

12

<p>“Oh My God” lol!</p>

<p>Really Bubbles1, why come to CC for opinions and advice from others if you will have a negative attitude about it? :slight_smile: </p>

<p>I understand your position because you come from a different country (I did as well) and making all this research is harder when you are abroad.</p>

<p>Just be aware that there ARE scams out there, and that if people were warning you , it’s for your own good, so you are careful, because those things DO happen. For example phony Schools like Devry will tell you they are the best, and they are really not. </p>

<p>And yes I do know that Maryville is an University and its ranked #157. </p>

<p>Some universities take foreign students for the money, offer them very little “merit aid” and I think that is why it seems you are being taken advantage of. </p>

<p>I had an international student friend from Singapore, she got into a school currently ranked #14, and got a very nice need base award almost full, but she was an exceptional girl. There are other schools that ( You did not post know your stats) may offer you something better, or that are higher ranked, if nothing comes out of this do not get discouraged, and keep looking :slight_smile: </p>

<p>This forum has a lot of information, and you can see how the acceptance was for other internationals.
[International</a> Students - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/international-students/]International”>International Students - College Confidential Forums)</p>

<p>You can also check you the Indian section, they might also be helpful and can give you tips on being an international from India and what you need, etc…</p>

<p>[India</a> - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/india/]India”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/india/) </p>

<p>Also, like the other poster suggested best thing to do is to make a call and speak directly with someone if you still have some doubts.</p>

13

<p>OP I cannot tell you whether the email you received is in fact legitimate. However, be aware that Maryville does require, as a condition to admission for an international, bank statements to show proof that you can afford the total costs of the first year minus any scholarship. See [Admission</a> Requirements | Maryville University](<a href=“http://www.maryville.edu/admissions/international/admission-requirements/]Admission”>http://www.maryville.edu/admissions/international/admission-requirements/) and <a href=“http://www.maryville.edu/admissions/files/2012/03/ConfirmationOfFinancia_Resources-Maryville.pdf[/url]”>http://www.maryville.edu/admissions/files/2012/03/ConfirmationOfFinancia_Resources-Maryville.pdf&lt;/a&gt;. Many universites require that information after they send you the admission package but many, like Maryville, actually do require it before they will send you the admission package.</p>

<p>Maryville is not in the practice of “taking advantage” of internationals. It is actually very up front about the costs to internationals, providing the information on its site and telling them that they cannot qualify for need based financial aid, that they need to show ability to pay as a condition to admission, and that the university offers to internationals scholarships only in the $1,000 to $5000 per year range.</p>

14

<p>Oh I apologize I did not mean to imply that MU was taking advantage of her, I was talking about places like devry or unaccredited schools. I realize I used poor wording on my response. Sorry! </p>

<p>Hopefully the OP got the info she needed from the school</p>

15

<p>thank you for your replies</p>

16

<p>US colleges require you to show (thru bank statements) that you have the money to go to the school otherwise your visa won’t be given.</p>

<p>You have to send those bank statements to the university…make sure you have the RIGHT address to send this info to. Email int’l admissions to make sure.</p>

<p>The scholarship may be small, but you’re a Spring admit. you’re lucky to get ANYTHING for as a Spring Admit.</p>

<p>You’d might get MORE merit if you were applying as a Fall Frosh for next year. FAll admits can get better aid sometimes.</p>