Seek financial support for U.S. study.
It’s no secret that attending a college or university in the U.S. is expensive. On top of already pricey tuition and room and board costs, international students sometimes have to pay extra fees to a school for support services and student programming. Most non-U.S. citizens are not eligible for financial aid from the U.S. government, but there are other places prospective international undergraduate students can turn for assistance. Here are 10 scholarship resources international students can explore in their search for funding to help pay for a U.S. college education.
Institute of International Education
The nonprofit Institute of International Education maintains an online database of scholarships, fellowships and grants for prospective international students. The database includes information about both undergraduate and graduate-level funding opportunities. Prospective international students can narrow their search by such parameters as desired academic field and the U.S. state in which they would like to study.
EducationUSA
EducationUSA is a network of advising centers, supported by the U.S. Department of State, that assists prospective international students interested in studying in the U.S. The EducationUSA website contains a database of financial aid opportunities that students can explore. Prospective international students can also visit an EducationUSA advising center in their home country to get more information about potential scholarships. There are upward of 425 advising centers located across more than 175 countries, according to Charles Hornstra, EducationUSA’s regional educational advising coordinator for Southeast Asia.
U.S. colleges and universities — merit aid
Some U.S. schools offer merit aid scholarships to international applicants. These scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic, athletic, artistic or other types of merit, as opposed to a student’s financial need. A school’s website often contains information about whether merit-based aid is offered to international applicants. For example, Ohio Northern University‘s website says it considers accepted international students for merit-based scholarships ranging from $8,000 to $16,000 per year.
U.S. colleges and universities — need-based aid
Other U.S. colleges award aid to international applicants based on their demonstrated financial need, as opposed to merit. However, some schools that offer this type of aid do not have a need-blind admissions policy for international students. This means that a prospective student’s ability to pay is a factor in determining whether he or she is admitted to the institution.
U.S. colleges and universities — sports scholarships
Prospective international students who are skilled in a particular sport may be able to finance their studies with an athletic scholarship. But aspiring college athletes should not wait until the last minute to start looking for sports scholarships. According to EducationUSA’s website, international students should start researching athletic scholarships 18 to 24 months before they hope to arrive in the U.S. to study.
Two-year colleges
Four-year colleges and universities aren’t the only path for prospective international students. Another option is for students to begin their studies at a two-year school, sometimes called a community college, and then transfer to a four-year institution to earn a bachelor’s degree. Community colleges generally charge much less expensive tuition compared with four-year universities — and some offer scholarships to help international students afford the cost of attendance. For example, Green River College in Washington offers both merit scholarships and part-time campus jobs to international students, according to the school’s website.
Home-country government
Prospective international students may not have to look any farther than their own backyard to find a college scholarship. A foreign government or university was the primary source of funding for 7.9 percent of international undergraduates studying in the U.S. in 2016-2017, according to data from the Institute of International Education. Students can use the “Location” filter in the EducationUSA scholarship database to find government-funded scholarship programs in their home country.
High school counseling office
Some prospective international students have access to school counselors who can help them with various aspects of the U.S. college application process. These counselors may be aware of financial aid opportunities that students can look into. School counselors may also be able to help with tasks related to completing scholarship applications. For example, some scholarship applications may require letters of recommendation, and a counselor may be willing to write one of these letters for a student.
College Board’s BigFuture website
The BigFuture website has a scholarship search engine that allows students to filter their search results by citizenship status. Prospective international students can select the “International” option to learn about scholarships offered to students from outside the U.S.
International Education Financial Aid website
Another international student scholarship search website is iefa.org. While not all of the scholarships included on this website are for students who want to study in the U.S., prospective international students can narrow their search to only include awards for those who want to attend a U.S. college.
Learn more about studying in the U.S.
Discover the differences between colleges and universities in the U.S., and learn about on-campus employment opportunities for international undergraduate students at U.S. schools. For even more advice, follow U.S. News Education on Facebook and Twitter.
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10 Places International Students Can Search for U.S. College Scholarships originally appeared on usnews.com
