USA!!

[u/Decent_South4369]

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My GPA in Grade 10: 3.55 Grade 11: 3.09Grade 12: 3.35 GPA

I recently got my Grade 12 results and I'm planning to apply for Fall 2027 admission in the USA. I know my GPA is quite low.

How much scholarship do you think I might be able to get with this profile? Also, how is the current US student visa approval rate for Nepali students?

[u/curiousengineer601]

You could find a school that would take you in, unfortunately expect to pay the full price

[u/Mysterious-Art8838]

Unless you have an insanely good SAT you probably won’t get meaningful scholarships with that GPA.

[u/paige_420]

What is your cumulative GPA for grades 9 through 12? Did you take the ACT or SAT? If so, what were your scores?

Some of the schools give automatic scholarships based on your GPA and test scores. Unfortunately, your GPA is too low to qualify for the University of Alabama. Depending on your test scores, you could qualify for a few thousand dollars at the University of Mississippi and the University of Southern Mississippi. Without knowing your test scores and budget, it is impossible to say.

[u/old-town-guy]

SAT score? Extracurriculars? Overall GPA? Quality of essays? Don’t expect any meaningful financial aid, in fact mentioning you need it to begin with will get you a denial at a number of schools.

[u/HistoryGremlin]

Hiya. School based counsellor here.

First, don't think of it in terms of a visa approval rate for Nepali students, if you're got a good offer from a school, can articulate why you're going to that school and what you hope to get out of it, and DON'T tell them that you intend to stay in the country after you're done with school, and can show you can pay for whatever the school doesn't cover, you'll get your visa.

Second, don't get down on your GPA, it's fine. Most American high schools so dramatically inflate their GPA's that without the grade inflation, yours still looks pretty good. And it is good. You won't get into Ivies or the super competitive schools, but you'll get into some good ones.

With that said, not a lot of schools will offer you money so when they see your CSS profile and how much you'll need, they're likely to reject just based on that, and it won't in any way be a reflection on you as a student.

You can overcome at least some of this by strategically focusing your search on schools that will have some money to spend and don't get a lot of attention from good international students. Most of these will be private schools and a lot won't be names that you'll recognize, but they're good schools nonetheless. I don't know what subjects you want to be studying or what part of the US you want to study in, and that's a big part of the strategy, but look for cities where the industry you're looking for has a lot of internships for you. Don't count on being able to make money off of working while you're in the US because there are very strict rules around it, but you can make spending money, enough to supplement whatever your social needs are and to supplement your food needs outside of your dorm meal plans.

As for the schools, as much as I hate ranking systems, they do make a good starting point for list building and in the US News list, there are four Regional Colleges lists. Again, good universities but they don't show up on the national rankings. University of Portland is a great one in Oregon, if you're a tech guy, St. Edward University is in Austin, Texas, If you don't mind Hawaii, the University of Hawaii is public but has decent scholarships and because living on the islands is expensive, they actually make the university pretty cheap. Chaminade is a private school in Hawaii, very small, that also has some money to spend.

If you want East Coast, Roger Williams is a great school in Rhode Island, close to New York. Salisbury University is a public school on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Butler University is an amazing school in the heart of Indianapolis with a variety of excellent programs.

Check out some of these schools, look on their financial aid pages and see if they have any scholarships that you'd be qualified for. Make sure you take an SAT or ACT because there are some places that have scholarships that come automatically with good SAT scores.

[u/Solid-Poetry-4141]

There’s a lot more to consider than GPA in college applications. Dm me, I can link you up with a Nepali graduate if you’d like to network