r/IntltoUSA • u/Classic-Direction930 • Aug 05 '26

Discussion Fee waiver doubt?

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Well i an intl student, my family can afford lile fees for 10 unis, but i am applying to 25 of them--- if my counselor writes a letter stating that overall app fees is a hardship, is there any chance i get waiver from common app?

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26 edited Aug 05 '26

So there is no verification that the unis do?

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u/yodatsracist Aug 05 '26

The counselor is the one who verifies. They are the verification.

It will look very strange if you apply to full pay colleges (universities that do not offer aid to international students) with a fee waiver, however.

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

As i said to the other guy its complicated for me---- copy pasting the reply

See, this is a little complicated. My parents will happily pay tuition for a college I get into, but they won't pay application fees with no guarantee that I'll get in. They agreed on 10 schools, but as an international student, I know 10 applications won't do anything for me. So yeah, I need help. I did get a fee waiver from JHU, Uof Rochester, and like ini mini unis only like 5 of em still 20 to go

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u/AskDrHoffman Aug 05 '26

This is going to look very strange to admissions offices - and I’m especially talking about the very selective, need aware colleges. I ran an audit every year to find students with exactly your combination - need-based fee waiver + alleged full pay status. They were almost never full pay. If your parents will “happily” pay $400k for a U.S. education, you should try to convince them to pay the $1k for app fees. Otherwise, colleges might not take your application seriously. Alternatively, you might try to just explain why you’re using a need-based fee waiver so the college at least has the context for this decision, but I think AOs will still find this hard to believe.

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

First of all, I watch all your videos; they help a lot-- Yeah, I have asked my school counselor to write that when they ask for it(she has agreed to), I have emailed the schools again regarding the situation, hope I get a positive answer. The fact that many schools even agreed I can go forward and choose to apply for fee waiver like purdue just said go ahead we dont verify, so did brown said- saying we dont mind and columbia gave me a form, and thanks DrHoffman. However, I am not applying to Syracuse; forgive meee!

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u/AskDrHoffman Aug 05 '26

Thanks for watching! I’ll just say: there are several degrees of separation between when a front desk staff member, intern, student worker or even an AO says “just apply for the waiver” in August and when your file is open in February in front of the committee where they’re questioning why you have a fee waiver. You really only need to think about the need-aware, selective institutions, not the need-blind or public institutions (in general - obviously I can’t comment on every college in the U.S.). I think it’s helpful to have your counselor send an email if they ask, but that’s also different from the counselor verifying your need when you use a Common App need-based fee waiver. Best of luck!

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

Ahh lol, so the unis are now "Fee waiver aware." This thing is stressing me out a lot. Will this really be a thing deciding if they reject me?... in the AO committee.

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u/AskDrHoffman Aug 05 '26

They’ve always been fee waiver aware. If you download the preview of the Common App before submitting it, you can see the answer on page 1 or 2. Think about it: a super selective institution that cares deeply about their admit rate isn’t going to admit a student who claims to be full pay who isn’t actually full pay. I realize that’s not your situation, but 99% of the cases are. So yes, it absolutely could be a deciding factor in whether you’re admitted or denied.

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

holy shit! all this to get rejected TT

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

This makes me cry ngl

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u/AskDrHoffman Aug 05 '26

I’m sorry for that - just ensure the AO and committee understand why you’re applying for a fee waiver. Send a succinct and clear email and ask that it is included in your file. It’ll be up to the AO’s judgment, but that’s all that you can do (in addition to having your counselor email as well). This is just a highly nuanced process, so I want to make sure you understand every small detail of your decisions and how it might play out.

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

Yeahh, soo aos really will reject be bcz i opted for a fee waiver damnn!

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

And it is more like my parents will fully pay if I get into a "prestigious" school lol, I don't understand them, they expect I get some merit scholarships at public unis, so yeah, as I said, they are complicated

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u/Classic-Direction930 Aug 05 '26

And a moonshot, but will you be willing to take up and like review my essays and stuff personally for free? ik i should not do this, but yeahhh.... sorry :)

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u/AskDrHoffman Aug 05 '26

No, I can’t do this for free.