I am currently an 8th grader and will be applying for 10th grade.
They like A’s. A couple B’s won’t kill you, especially if your current school is challenging, but A’s are an easier sell.
@momof3swimmers I am an international student and my school is very challenging.
Keep in mind that plenty of applicants have straight A’s and still get rejected. There is no magic formula. be the best you can be and give it a shot, but don’t assume it will be a slam dunk simply by meeting a list of requirements. I realize this sounds harsh, but it is important to be realistic. I suggest you use the search function on these boards and read every post about the school(s) you are interested in. All the best!
Grades are not going to get you in.
@london203 I am reapplying. I have done plenty of research and decided to apply to Exeter/Andover next year because they give larger financial aid awards. I don’t know about financial aid awards to international students though… I wasn’t accepted anywhere this year because of my low SSAT scores. I play 4 sports and participate in many extracurricular activities so I am focusing on getting my scores better.
Admissions officers are well versed on international grading systems and know there is far less grade inflation at international schools.
Being international will automatically put you at a disadvantage. The acceptance rate for international students at many top schools is roughly half the overall rate as many schools have a hard or soft cap of the percentage of internationals in each class.
As I have said many times on other threads - there is no magic formula, sorry to say. Pursue your passions, get good grades, score high on the SSAT, nail the interview and essays, and let the chips fall where they may.
I love how @skieurope has that last sentence copied and ready to be pasted at all times :)) . Seriously @nikolaanna : read that 300x over! It’s so so so so so so so (so so so) hard to guarantee anything, so just do what you love and work hard.
I’ve been here a while, so I have a whole page on a word doc of cut-and-paste ready to go. 
@“Nico.campbell”
How about “cast a wide net”? Andover & Exeter aren’t the only schools giving out a meaningful amount of FA.
@GMC2918 is totally correct. Other top schools offer very similar amounts of FA to applicants. 48% of kids are on FA at PA, Choate is 35%, Deerfield is 35%, Hotchkiss is 33%, so they’re all within the same-ish range. But then again, maybe less kids who need FA are applying to some schools, so a more accurate measuring stick maybe would be each school’s budget-student ratio?
^
Keep in mind that those percentages include domestic students as well as int. students. A majority of that FA would be towards domestic students. MX also has 35% of students receiving FA. Most of the schools mentioned on CC have at least a respectable if not good FA program. Call the school and ask about FA for int. students. Ask if you will be able to get FA as a int. student and what are the ranges of the grants…
From MX website:
I suspect its something similar for most of the other schools as well…