He was planning to fund three years of college with loans? Were you planning to co-sign those loans or take them out. Even so, have you checked lenders to see if you qualify for these large loans…because some lending institutions won’t lend to folks who aren’t citizens because you could go back to your home country and they would never be able to collect these loan payments.
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We live in PA. Any information for PA state colleges will be much appreciated.
He has a > 4.5 GPA. Always scoring As in all subjects. He is a math jumper and is considered a gifted student. Consistent winner in science competitions at state level. Youngest in his class for Calculus and Physics. Taken maximum APs with all 5 so far.
I will surely check. Thanks.
How much can you afford to pay before taking loans?
I know you said “one year” - but one year at your in state public is not the same as one year at a private school.
I understand the fees is different for state vs private.
So far the story was (which is no more true) that if he goes into Ivy we will do something or the other. We saved around 100-125 k and then we would have borrowed from relatives or taken loan from home country. Basically, do anything.
On another note. Who can imagine that a GC process with priority date 2015 when he was a small kid will be stuck for ever.
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I had very good students who were limited to in state schools or oos less selective schools with merit, or less selective private schools with merit. I think you need to do a deep dive on the financials, our one income family of 7 wasn’t offered any need based aid, even though we are US citizens. College is very expensive.
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Thanks. I surely will.
Thanks. I will get back to you with more info wrt PA.
His hard work will NOT be wasted. It may mean the difference between attending a challenging college … or not.
Would he qualify for Questbridge financially (65k income/reduced or free lunch)?
Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Amherst, Bowdoin, Brown, Dartmouth will consider him no differently than an American applicant.
Can you run the NPC (net proce calculator) on EACH of Princeton, Amherst, and Brown ? What result do you get?
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Lots of HS students take AP or BC calculus junior year, how are his ACT and SAT scores? I assume his unweighted gpa is a 4.0? That’s very good, my kids had a B. Unfortunately, many students with perfect grades, test scores and great EC’’s get rejected from top schools, there isn’t nearly enough spots for all of them, and colleges themselves are looking for particular students to create a class. Families that can fully fund expensive schools have better shots because they don’t need FA. PA is a state that does not really offer great deals to in state students like some other states like Georgia or Florida, but in state is still a good option for residents.
No we don’t qualify for Questbridge. I have not yet but will run the calculator.
This does not seem right from the past answers
He is yet to give ACT/SAT. I agree to what you say about funding expensive schools.
Anyone please share information about PA state schools or direct me to some link/place where I can find.
I will definitely do the hunting from my side too.
I’m not sure this is the right way to think about colleges. First, do you have financial need? (run the NPC on Princeton’s website for example). If your NPC comes to $25-30k/year then the Ivies and others meet-full-need colleges will bridge the gap for you if accepted. And if you don’t have financial need, taking a $200-250k loan by “doing anything” isn’t wise if you’ll struggle to pay it back.
Also, on the other hand if your son gets into another excellent non-Ivy school like Georgia Tech which costs almost half of an Ivy school why wouldn’t you try to make that affordable?
Finally, as others have pointed out: college is very expensive in America and it’s unaffordable for many US citizens too. So your not being able to afford OOS or private colleges has nothing to do with your visa status. You need to pick a list of schools you can afford.
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I know it sounds ridiculous, but if you cannot afford international tuition, his only choice will be a community college for 2 years and then transfer to Upitt or PenState.
We had friend’s family in the same situation, but they got lucky and were approved for green card when their child was senior in college. So child with a minor scholarship went to state flagship.
I would not focus on Ivies, UCs and Gatech. I get it, he is very smart and hard working. Unfortunately there are thousands very smart and hard working kids from middle class who can’t pay for top schools. These kids “survive” in local flagships.
Also I would explore some small private LACs. They are not controlled by state policies and can give big scholarship to a smart kid that they want.
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I agree to all you are saying. Thanks.
I see finance as an issue (as you mentioned) . Now say Georgia Tech. He is will be OOS or considered in international pool. Which again lowers the chances considerably. There will be other international students who are best in their country competing for all good colleges. So now saying him to go to Ivy league in Indian context (assuming some here are Indians) is like you can be admitted to IIT only if you are in the top 20 in nation.
Maybe I am having a very narrow focus but just wanted to tell how I feel. Finance will be my deep consideration going forward.
Start with looking into U of Pittsburgh. Here’s what they say about non residents:
B. Non-U.S. Citizens Immigration Requirements
In addition to meeting the 12 Month Requirement, Non-U.S. Citizens must demonstrate that they fall into one of three immigration categories to be reclassified to PA Resident:
- Asylee, refugee, or U.S. Lawful Permanent Resident (green card holder); or
- Has an approved I-140 or I-130, along with Form I-797, the Receipt Notice for the filing of Form I-485; or
- Has an approved I-140 or I-130, along with evidence to support that they intend, but are unable, to file a Form I-485 because they do not have a current priority date as determined by the most recent U.S Department of State Visa Bulletin.* To provide sufficient evidence under this category, the student must provide evidence of their country of birth; in most cases, a copy of the passport identification page meets this requirement.
Source: https://www.payments.pitt.edu/tuition-fees/pa-tuition-rate-eligibility
Even if they classify your student as “out of state”, the all in tuition is $40K +/- $2K depending on which college your student applies too.
I don’t know the intended major of your student but if it’s a STEM field, Pitt has a very very strong program and great student outcomes.
Purdue which is also very strong in CS/Engineering/STEM fields (and ranked in the top 10 for engineering) is also the same price point for out of state applicants and there is a large international student population.
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Much appreciated. Thanks. We fall into exactly this category. I will check more on fees.
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Is college in the country of your S’s citizenship an option? Have you looked at UK and/EU options?
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Colleges in my S’s citizenship country are open to him. Will he be able to adjust there is another question. He has lived all his life here.
Not looked at UK/EU yet but I will.
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Sorry, I’m unclear what you’re saying. But the bottom line is: you need to identify affordable colleges. I’m tagging @AustenNut who is excellent at helping identify suitable colleges.
First, please check if you have financial need. Use the Princeton NPC and let us know here what they would expect you to pay.
Second, let us know what other criteria are important for you and your son (including choice of major) in selecting a college. So far, I haven’t heard anything other than “Ivy”.
Keep in mind that even US citizens with perfect GPAs and test scores and amazing ECs get rejected at the most selective schools (like the Ivies). They are also very hard working, motivated and highly accomplished. In fact, the vast majority of applicants are.
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I did the NPC and it says Total Estimated Family Contribution is around $ 24,000.
Don’t get it - please explain. Being on H4 he is not eligible for FAFSA I suppose
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