United States Colleges & Universities that Give Financial Aid to International Students
These lists are NOT comprehensive. Rather, they are meant as a starting point.
Need-based aid
Amherst College: link
Bates College: link
Barnard College: link
Berea College: link
Brandeis University: link
Brown University: link
Bryn Mawr College: link
Bucknell University: link
Carleton College: link
Clark University: link
Colgate University: link
College of Wooster: link
Columbia University: link
Cornell University: link
Dartmouth College: link
Davidson College: link
Emory University: link
Franklin & Marshall College: link
Gettysburg College: link
Grinnell College: link
Harvard University: link
Lafayette College: link
Macalester College: link
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: link
Mt. Holyoke College: link
Occidental College: link
Oberlin College: link
Pitzer College: link
Pomona College: link
Princeton University: link
Reed College: link
Rice University: link
Smith College: link
Stanford University: link
St John’s College: link
Swarthmore College: link
Trinity College: link
Tufts University: link
Union College: link
University of Chicago: link
University of Notre Dame: link
University of Rochester: link
University of Pennsylvania: link
University of Wisconsin - Madison: link
Vanderbilt University: link
Vassar College: link
Washington and Lee: link
Washington University in St. Louis: link
Wellesley College: link
Wesleyan University: link
Williams College: link
Yale University: link
Merit-based (or “scholarships”)
General
#YouAreWelcomeHere Scholarship - See website for participating institutions
Beginning in Fall 2019, participating colleges and universities will each offer two annual, renewable scholarships that cover a minimum of 50% tuition to selected international undergraduates dedicated to furthering the #YouAreWelcomeHere message by bridging intercultural divides. Applicants will answer a short essay question or present a multimedia project about their ideas for advancing intercultural learning and understanding on their future campuses.
“121 of the Best Merit Scholarships Open to International Students” - Click here for participating universities
Other University-specific Funding Options
Centre College: Lincoln Scholars Program
Offers 10 students a full ride scholarship, renewable for 4 years. Students will receive individual mentoring and have the opportunity to pursue career building and leadership enhancing experiences. Although nominations are not required, the admissions office welcomes nominations to help learn more about applicants. Competitive applicants must demonstrate strong leadership potential, intellectual curiosity and marked participation in extracurricular, service or community activities. International applicants must have a minimum score of 90 on the TOEFL, or 7.0 on the IELTS.
Davidson College: Belk Scholarship
High schools abroad are invited to nominate outstanding students with extraordinary potential to compete for the John M. Belk scholarship. A candidate’s records must demonstrate academic excellence, intellectual curiosity, and purposeful engagement in the classroom, in student and civic organizations, on the athletic field, or in the arts. The Belk scholarship provides full funding plus special study stipends to allow students flexibility in the on and off campus opportunities they choose to explore.
Indiana University - Bloomington: Wells Scholars Program
The Wells Scholars Program is a full-time merit based scholarship offered to between 18 and 22 students each year. IU Bloomington’s admission office will consider students with an outstanding record of accomplishment who are home schooled or who attend a high school that is not eligible to nominate candidates for the Wells Scholars Program. In the past, successful applicants have typically been ranked in the top 5% of their class and show a pattern of serious commitment to one or two activities outside of class.
Lynn University: Watson Institute
Are you a social entrepreneur? An innovator? A changemaker? Looking for a university that will help you launch your projects and change the world? Then the Watson Institute may be right for you. Their three-year bachelors’ degrees or four-year degree + project incubator programs offer social entrepreneurs a unique launching pad for success.
St. Lawrence University: Kenya Scholarship Program
St. Lawrence University has had a long relationship with and commitment to Kenya. Over the last several decards, the University has helped educated numerous Kenyans. Several of those graduates have chosen careers in civil service, as was evidenced in the Kenya national election of 2013 when four St. Lawrence University alumni were elected to the Kenya National Assembly. Additionally, St. Lawrence continues to operate a study abroad program in Kenya and uses its own campus compound in Nairobi as the center for the students. In an effort to maintain this special relationship with Kenya, St. Lawrence University continues to offer two full scholarships to qualifying Kenyan students on an annual basis. The scholarship covers tuition, fees, room and board. The scholarship does not cover transportation to/from the US, books or personal expenses.
University of Wisconsin - Madison: King-Morgridge Scholars Program
The King-Morgridge Scholars Program is an exceptional opportunity for enterprising, creative, dedicated young adults committed to applying their talents toward poverty alleviation. Selected for their drive, academic success, and commitment to addressing problems of poverty in their own countries, King-Morgridge Scholars will hail from countries in Africa, Latin America, South and Southeast Asia, and the Caribbean. They will receive a full time, four-year/eight-semester scholarship to the University of Wisconsin–Madison that includes tuition and fees, on campus room and board, health insurance, airfare, and a stipend for miscellaneous expenses. Made possible through generous gifts by the King and Morgridge families, this endowed program will provide six scholarships each year.
Washington University in St. Louis: Danforth Scholars Program
The Danforth Scholars Program honors the student who embraces high ideals, whose life choices are guided by personal integrity, selflessness, a commitment to community, and a dedication to leadership and academic excellence. Danforth Scholars may receive full or partial tuition scholarships. The scholarship is renewed each year for the duration of the degree program, provided the scholar progresses academically and upholds the high standard of character required of scholars. The program is open to prospective graduate or undergraduate students applying to Washington University. Undergraduates must be nominated to receive consideration.
American University in Washington DC: Emerging Global Leaders Scholarship
The AU Emerging Global Leaders Scholarship is awarded to an international student who has shown academic excellence, leadership and global engagement. The AU EGL awardee is dedicated to positive civic and social change, and will return home to improve underresourced communities in his/her home country. The scholarship covers tuition, room and board, and is renewable for a total of four years of undergraduate study, based on continued satisfactory performance.
New York University: NYU Wagner Dean’s Scholarship
Full tuition scholarship awarded to applicants based on merit.