List of Schools ¶
This list is available on Google Sheets .
Terms ¶
If a school has 10,000 applicants, and accepts 1,000 of them, then its acceptance rate is (1,000 / 10,000) * 100% = 10%.
A closely related measure is the yield rate. Continuing with the same example above, if 800 of the 1,000 accept the offer of admission and matriculate into the school, then the yield rate is (800 / 1,000) * 100% = 80%.
Schools that practice need-blind admission do not take into account an applicant’s financial status when deciding whether to accept them. As of 2023, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, MIT, Amherst, and Bowdoin have need-blind admissions policies that apply to international students as well.
Some schools are need-blind for US citizens but not for international students. We’ve listed those as need-aware because your ability to pay does factor into whether you’re granted admission.
When researching financial aid policies for a given school, ensure that you look in the international students section as the policies may differ.
Building Your List ¶
The conventional approach is to have a mix of reach schools, match schools, and safety schools. These terms are based on the chance of admission, with reach schools being the ones with the lowest chances of admission. For example, a reach school is one for which your academic credentials are in the 25th percentile of the typical incoming class. ↩
The conventional reach/match/safety framework breaks down when you’re an international student who needs substantial financial aid . For example, while the University of Washington accepted 46% of non-residents in 2023, it doesn’t offer financial aid to international students. ↩ ↩
The fact that we need universities that offer financial aid to international students pretty much limits us to reach schools. That said, there are finer levels even within the reach schools, e.g., you have a higher chance of getting into Amherst than getting into Harvard.
One typically applies to 8-10 schools. When building your list, try to stagger the admission rates as much as you can. Your list should not be Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Yale, MIT, Brown, Princeton, and Dartmouth.
In schools that practice need-aware admissions, international students that need significant financial aid tend to be in the most competitive applicant pool. The moral here is that you shouldn’t take any application for granted – if you want financial aid as an international student, craft the best application that you can.
Two examples to illustrate this.
Although the general admissions rate at Oberlin College is ~33%, the rate for international students is ~8%, and even then, applicants who can afford at least $35,000 USD per year are the most competitive. ↩ ↩
While St. Lawrence University’s general admission rate is 58.5%, it has only two full-scholarship slots per year for Kenyan students. ↩ ↩
School Admission Factors ¶
School Locations ¶
References ¶
- What are reach, match, and safety schools? bigfuture.collegeboard.org .
- Freshmen by the numbers | Office of Admissions. admit.washington.edu .
- International students | Student Financial Aid. www.washington.edu .
- Applying for Aid: International Students | Oberlin College and Conservatory. www.oberlin.edu .
- Class Profile | Oberlin College and Conservatory. www.oberlin.edu .
- SLU Quick Facts | St. Lawrence University. www.stlawu.edu .
- Financial Aid for International Students | St. Lawrence University. www.stlawu.edu .
This is not a complete list. If you know of an American university that has scholarships available for international undergraduate students, we’ll gladly appreciate the tip. Either comment on the Google Sheet, or use the feedback form . Thanks!