Top Need-Blind Universities in USA

Need-blind universities in the USA offer admission to students and financial aid irrespective of the financial background of the applicant. But if an applicant does not qualify for financial aid at the US university they will have to reject the offer letter because they may not be able to cover the cost of attendance. Check out: Financial Sources to Study in the USA. 

This article aims to throw light on the need-blind universities in the USA and if they are applicable for international students as well or not because the cost of studying in the USA is relatively high for international students. Check out the article below for more details. 

Why apply to need-blind universities in the USA? 

Applying for need-blind universities in the USA is beneficial because of the following reasons: 

• Students are offered financial aid based on their merit and previous academic performance. 
• If they qualify for the need-blind scholarship, they can get either a full or partial scholarship. 
• Students who get selected to the universities claiming need-blind scholarships may or may not offer a scholarship under need-blind. Still, they may be considered for merit-based scholarships if at all available. 
• Finally, most need-blind scholarship offering universities do offer a full tuition fee as they claim to but only a handful number of students get it. Thus the possibility of getting a full scholarship is there, again depending on all factors. 

Apart from the need-blind universities, there are also need-based scholarships in the USA which are offered to international students in the USA. Though these are both different terms, students can still apply for these scholarships if they can’t make it to need-blind universities. 

List of Need-Blind Universities in USA  

There are around 15 universities in the USA which are need-blind, but only a handful of them are need-blind for international students. The following is a list of need-blind scholarships offering universities in the USA for international students: 

• Massachusetts Institute of TeKchnology (MIT) 
• Harvard University 
• Princeton University  
• Yale University 
• Georgetown University 
• Dartmouth College 
• Bowdoin College 
• Amherst College 
• Pomona College 

The above-given universities are need-blind and offer international students admission and need-blind aid irrespective of their financial background.

 

All Need Blind Universities in USA 

Except for the ones given in the section above, which are specifically for international students, there are other universities in the USA too which are need-blind. These universities are need-blind only for US nationals, eligible non-US nationals like refugees and undocumented citizens. Check out the full list of need-blind universities in the USA: 

All Need Blind Universities in the USA
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)	Brown University	Swarthmore College
Davidson College	Yale University	Harvard University
Grinnell College	Pomona College	Claremont McKenna College
Bowdoin College	Georgetown University	Amherst College
St. Olaf College	Princeton University	Wabash College
Denison University	Carleton College	-

The list of need-blind universities in the USA is not limited to here, universities may come in a year or not depending upon their bandwidth.  

Selection Process of Need Blind US Universities 

The selection process at need-blind universities in the USA depends solely on the university in question’s admission requirements. Since the majority of need-blind universities or colleges in the US are top-ranking universities in the US, it is likely that their admissions may be highly competitive.  

But a few pointers in terms of scholarships in US universities for international students must be taken care of: 

• If selected at a US university that is need-blind, there is no guarantee of getting financial aid for the applicant. 
• In case aid is promised to be offered, it will be mentioned in the offer letter of the applicant. 
• In case, the need-blind US university does not offer any aid, the applicants will have to see if they can pay for the college and then accept the offer. 
• Only meritorious students are considered for admission plus for need-blind scholarships.  
• Applicants' academic background and standardised test scores will be considered before they are considered for need-blind scholarships.  

Thus, applicants applying for need-blind US universities as international students must know about the selection process and should prepare in a well-planned and proper manner.  

If applicants are applying for admission to US universities, they can seek counselling from Shiksha Study Abroad counsellors for free. For this, they can just sign up here for free - https://studyabroad.shiksha.com/apply.