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Americans applying to university in the UK

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Original post by magicspell
Unfortunately I don't have a well-established relationship with any teacher who teaches a course that has a direct link to the course I'm interested in. In my Working with my Tech teacher for two years has allowed her to see my skills in research, communication, etc. and not solely leadership. I looked up the Oxford guide and it recommends focuses on the student's academic skills and experiences - would this not be sufficient then?


Honestly, just take that teacher. The reference doesn't account for much, unless it specifically states extenuating circumstances detailing why you couldn't have achieved a certain grade. If it's just an average reference, the unis really don't care about it. They know the teachers blag about their students to a certain extent, so it's definitely not the defining factor.

Don't worry about it, basically.
Reply 4201
Hi! I've posted on here before, but now that I'm ending my junior year I'm starting to hyperventilate. I wasn't able to take any AP tests this year - long story having to do with my school incoherent administration - but I will be taking 3 or 4 this coming year (AP GOV, AP Physics, AP Stats, and possibly AP French). I have taken the SATs, but I will be retaking this fall to get a much better score. Should I take SAT IIs as well, Math 1, physics, french w/ listening, french, and maybe literature? I want to Major in French or French with another language as a beginner. I'm super stressed about this because I feel like I'm way behind in my testing. Also, would it be worthwhile to take the ACTs? My first choice school at this point would be Sheffield.
I grew up a couple of hours outside of Atlanta and moved before my senior year of high school to the UK and will be studying at University College London in September. Because I didn't finish high school in the US, I opted for doing two years of A-levels, which in the UK are almost like your first two years of college, except the age range is between 16-18. I figured if i did this, I could have extra qualifications to boost my university application, especially since my SAT scores were fairly average, and I only scored 4's on the three AP exams I took in World History, US History and AP Lit. Anyway, when you start your a-levels, you pick between 4-5 subjects ranging from government and politics to textiles to do for your first year and then drop 1-2 subjects and continue with a minimum of three subjects for your second year. Depending on your grades (the UK system is very heavily exam based, exams usually given by an independent examining body, no homework is accredited towards your final grade unless it's coursework) students begin their application process an entire year before entering university. Personally, I took a gap year so waited a year before starting university.

The UCAS process is extremely important when applying. Your personal statement is very heavily looked at, with a very strict word limit. I recommend using a simple template: first talk about why you want to do the course you're applying for and how you became interested in it, then talk about any relevant work experience or any other extra curricular activities having to do with the course, then talk about any extra curricular activities OUTSIDE of the course you're wanting to take, then your conclusion. The point of the personal statement is to advertise yourself. You'll go through several drafts before you get it right, trust me. This isn't something you can write in one sitting and I recommend having your English teacher look over it. Remember, you are competing against students who have been thinking about what to write for at least two years and have purposely been doing extra curricular activities just so they can be written about in their personal statements, so don't take this part of the application lightly. It can be the difference between being accepted or rejected, especially if your grades are on the borderline of their requirements.

Another part to remember are your choices. Unlike the US, you are not allowed to apply to more than five universities at a time, so choose wisely. Once your choices are made and confirmed by UCAS, it's very difficult to change your mind and you can't make more than one application a year.

Also, do research about what course you are wanting to do, as many, such as law, philosophy or medicidine require entrance exams to be taken if you are applying to certain universities such as Oxford, Birmingham, Nottingham, Bristol, UCL, or King's. Cambridge even have their own entrance exam to be taken for law. If this applies to a universities you'll be applying to, I recommend doing your exam as soon as you can. The sooner the university gets your results, the sooner you're likely to get a reply. However, remember that once you take the exam, you're stuck with your score and can't take it again for another year.

Another big part of your application is your reference. This is usually done by a teacher or a school mentor, preferably in the subject area you are interested in doing after uni. When you begin your UCAS process, you will be given an option to apply independently or through a school. If you do it through a school, ask the person whom you want to do your reference to be the referee on your application. UCAS wil then email them with instructions on how to attach their reference to your application.

Once all of that is over and done with, universities will send you replies to your application via UCAS. You'll learn that every time you receive an email from UCAS saying "The status of your UCAS application has changed..." you'll practically have a mini heart attack. Once you've been accepted to your universities, there are very clear UCAS deadlines to when you have to reply to these offers, again via the UCAS website. This varies from year to year but usually ranges from sometime in late May to early June. If you know where you want to go and you've already been accepted, don't wait until the deadline and do it as soon as you can. This will mean you'll receive your accommodation information sooner and, although most universities guarantee accommodation for at least all first year international students, you're more likely to get your first preferene in type of room if you apply early. Usually applying for accommodation or dorms is done online and once you've accepted your place at a specific university, you'll be emailed instructions on how to fill out this application. Again, because some universities do operate under a first come, first serve basis when it comes to accommodation, fill this out as soon as possible to guarantee that you'll receive the room you want.

And that's about it really :smile: sorry about the long post but I hope it helps anyone who wants to move and study in the UK :smile:
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by KFisch
Hi! I've posted on here before, but now that I'm ending my junior year I'm starting to hyperventilate. I wasn't able to take any AP tests this year - long story having to do with my school incoherent administration - but I will be taking 3 or 4 this coming year (AP GOV, AP Physics, AP Stats, and possibly AP French). I have taken the SATs, but I will be retaking this fall to get a much better score. Should I take SAT IIs as well, Math 1, physics, french w/ listening, french, and maybe literature? I want to Major in French or French with another language as a beginner. I'm super stressed about this because I feel like I'm way behind in my testing. Also, would it be worthwhile to take the ACTs? My first choice school at this point would be Sheffield.


Don't worry about not having ap's yet, but make sure you study hard as you will probably receive conditional offers. Also I would definitely recommend taking the SAT II, especially the french ones. I submitted SAT scores, 3 ap scores, and 3 SAT II scores and found that most unis cared the least about SAT I's. Really focus in on French for next year and you should be fine! Good luck!
Hi,

You do not have to do LNAT for all UK law schools. Some of the top ranked law schools such as Exeter, Reading, Newcastle, Kent, they do not require LNAT or LSAT. But yeah universities like Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol do require LNAT as one of the criteria for their law school admission.

Good luck with your admission
Reply 4205
Original post by luceyinthesky8
Don't worry about not having ap's yet, but make sure you study hard as you will probably receive conditional offers. Also I would definitely recommend taking the SAT II, especially the french ones. I submitted SAT scores, 3 ap scores, and 3 SAT II scores and found that most unis cared the least about SAT I's. Really focus in on French for next year and you should be fine! Good luck!


Thank you! This makes me feel much better, should I take both the AP French test and the French SAT IIs? AP French isn't offered at my school, so I would have to self study. Also do you know which schools I should apply for, for Language. As I said before Sheffield is my number one choice, but I'd like to have a fall back school that is almost for sure I'd get into.
Question for anyone who took ACTS and had it sent to a school in the UK: How long did it take?
I had mine sent back in March and the school still hasn't received it. ACT has now sent it three times, but there seems to be some sort of mix-up. I've contacted both the school and ACT and neither of them seem to know what the issue is. Did anyone experience something like this?
Original post by KFisch
Thank you! This makes me feel much better, should I take both the AP French test and the French SAT IIs? AP French isn't offered at my school, so I would have to self study. Also do you know which schools I should apply for, for Language. As I said before Sheffield is my number one choice, but I'd like to have a fall back school that is almost for sure I'd get into.


Take the ap test if you think you can pass, or if you don't do well on french subject tests, but honestly the schools are pretty lenient with international students and for most unis the minimum requirements listed will be fine. I am not really sure in regards to which schools are easier to get into but this link http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2011/may/17/university-guide-modern-languages-linguistics has the unis by rank for modern languages and the lower you go down the less competitive it will probably be. Hope that helps!
Reply 4208
Original post by luceyinthesky8
Take the ap test if you think you can pass, or if you don't do well on french subject tests, but honestly the schools are pretty lenient with international students and for most unis the minimum requirements listed will be fine. I am not really sure in regards to which schools are easier to get into but this link http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2011/may/17/university-guide-modern-languages-linguistics has the unis by rank for modern languages and the lower you go down the less competitive it will probably be. Hope that helps!


Yes thank you!! I want to thank everyone for being so helpful! I will probably have a hundred more question from here until I hit submit. UCAS for 2013 applicants is now open and I wish everyone applying the best of luck, and those waiting on conditional offers best of luck too!
Original post by KFisch
Yes thank you!! I want to thank everyone for being so helpful! I will probably have a hundred more question from here until I hit submit. UCAS for 2013 applicants is now open and I wish everyone applying the best of luck, and those waiting on conditional offers best of luck too!

I'll give you an updated link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2012/may/22/university-guide-modern-languages-linguistics

This is this year's ranking for The Guardian but even then I'd only take it as an approximate measure due to it's methodology. It ranks some universities higher than they should be and other lower than they should be. This may be worth a look: http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=French
Reply 4210
Original post by alexs2602
I'll give you an updated link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2012/may/22/university-guide-modern-languages-linguistics

This is this year's ranking for The Guardian but even then I'd only take it as an approximate measure due to it's methodology. It ranks some universities higher than they should be and other lower than they should be. This may be worth a look: http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?s=French


Thank you that was really helpful! :biggrin:
Also, would anyone know if they accepted community college credits in place of AP tests? or should I contact the Universities individually?
Original post by KFisch
Thank you that was really helpful! :biggrin:
Also, would anyone know if they accepted community college credits in place of AP tests? or should I contact the Universities individually?

I would contact the universities directly but I'm fairly sure others have got into university using community college credits/GPA. Contact them first though. You don't want to apply and find out they don't accept them.
Reply 4212
Original post by alexs2602
I would contact the universities directly but I'm fairly sure others have got into university using community college credits/GPA. Contact them first though. You don't want to apply and find out they don't accept them.


OK, thank you, I will :smile:
I won't have my AA degree but I've taken 2 years (soon to be 3) of Community College French and CC Pre-Calc
Whoahkay.

So, I'm obviously new to this board and I have a lot of questions (which have probably already been covered- I'm so sorry about that).

I'm an American rising Junior who's looking to apply to Oxford in the future (SHOCKER, right?) for English Language and Literature. And I'm sort of terrified.

I've done some research and I know that my GPA and extracurriculars don't matter, and that my minimums are 3+ relevant APs at a score of 5 or better, an SAT of 2100, and 3 relevant subject tests at 700 or better.

So, this year I could only take AP World History; I feel like I definitely could've gotten a 4/5, but I'm really pulling for a 5. I also took the subject test, and I'm kind of unsure of how that went.

My AP schedule for the next two years looks like this:

Junior
AP Language and Composition
AP United States History

Senior
AP Literature
AP United States Government and Politics
AP Spanish
AP Calc (I know it's irrelevant, but the list felt incomplete without it)

My PSAT was pretty awful (I think it was 1985... or something like that), but I didn't prep for it, and goodness knows I'm prepping now.

So, erm, any advice would be gladly appreciated beyond measure. Any links to related threads would also be welcome. I know the interview is a killer as well as the personal statement. Oh, and not to mention the "minimums" or near-perfect APs and SATs!

It's just that I'm truly being honest, Oxford has always been my dream school; it's just that I've never let myself imagine that I'd ever get in. And I recently decided that I have to apply or I'll be living in a world of "what-ifs". I'm fortunate enough to be able to afford it, I love the UK too much to only spend a semester abroad there, and I want to start English right away instead of waiting to declare my major. My parents think I could do it (and would kill me if I didn't apply, anyway). So. Why not?
Original post by 221bTARDIS
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English Lit in Oxford is really competitive. Even for domestic students. You need to start prepping for the ELAT as soon as possible. What kind of reading have you been doing lately?

Which colleges are you looking at?

By the way, the PS really isn't THAT important as you seem to think, especially since the ELAT is there to decide whether or not you get an interview. It is very important, sure, but it's far more important to prepare well for the ELAT and if you get an interview, prepare really well for that. The grades aren't THAT important in the grand scheme of things, either; see above.

You might want to consider taking something like Philosophy to boost your crit thinking skills (I don't know the US system that well, so I'm not sure if it exists).

What other unis are you considering? UCL, surely? It's ranked higher than Oxford.
(edited 11 years ago)
Reply 4215
Original post by 221bTARDIS
Whoahkay.
I've done some research and I know that my GPA and extracurriculars don't matter, and that my minimums are 3+ relevant APs at a score of 5 or better, an SAT of 2100, and 3 relevant subject tests at 700 or better.

Not necessary to have all of those- for applying 3 or 4 (relevant) exam marks (AP or subject tests) should be enough- remember that they will want to give you 'conditions' if you are offered a place- think through what those might be b/c you will have to put it down as part of your application- and you want it to be something that you can achieve!

My AP schedule for the next two years looks like this:

Junior
AP Language and Composition
AP United States History

Could you switch Lit & Lang? Lit is more relevant, and the prep will be more useful for the ELAT

I know the interview is a killer as well as the personal statement.

Interview is critical but not necessarily a killer- it can be kind of fun (like a roller coaster- when you are not scared to death, it is exhilarating).


fyi, when the Oxford / Edinburgh road show came through the Oxford rep said that most Americans apply to English or PPE, both of which are pretty competitive already. Although most student room-ers are dismissive of outfits such as Oxbridge Applications, I think that sort of help can be useful for an American, esp. if you do it a la carte (obviously going for their weekend type things is not practical). Like SAT prep, it shouldn't be necessary, but a bit of familiarity with the system can be useful.

Also, do you have a teacher who is really strong in literary analysis? If so, have them work with you. Read a lot- then practice taking it apart. And, what are you doing with your summers? As Punctuation suggested, a critical thinking, logic or philosophy course at a local community college might be helpful (and btw, listen to Punctuation in all things-- she has earned her title of VIO).

Good luck....
Yes, I'm a VIO... mwahaha.

Anyway, I think if you find this teacher who is strong in literary analysis, get her to a) write your reference b) look over your PS c) help you prep for the ELAT but most importantly, if you get an interview d) create a mock interview environment for you. For English applicants, I think you only get one or two interviews maximum, so you really have to make a good effort in that short amount of time.
Original post by 221bTARDIS
Whoahkay.

So, I'm obviously new to this board and I have a lot of questions (which have probably already been covered- I'm so sorry about that).

I'm an American rising Junior who's looking to apply to Oxford in the future (SHOCKER, right?) for English Language and Literature. And I'm sort of terrified.

I've done some research and I know that my GPA and extracurriculars don't matter, and that my minimums are 3+ relevant APs at a score of 5 or better, an SAT of 2100, and 3 relevant subject tests at 700 or better.

So, this year I could only take AP World History; I feel like I definitely could've gotten a 4/5, but I'm really pulling for a 5. I also took the subject test, and I'm kind of unsure of how that went.

My AP schedule for the next two years looks like this:

Junior
AP Language and Composition
AP United States History

Senior
AP Literature
AP United States Government and Politics
AP Spanish
AP Calc (I know it's irrelevant, but the list felt incomplete without it)

My PSAT was pretty awful (I think it was 1985... or something like that), but I didn't prep for it, and goodness knows I'm prepping now.

So, erm, any advice would be gladly appreciated beyond measure. Any links to related threads would also be welcome. I know the interview is a killer as well as the personal statement. Oh, and not to mention the "minimums" or near-perfect APs and SATs!

It's just that I'm truly being honest, Oxford has always been my dream school; it's just that I've never let myself imagine that I'd ever get in. And I recently decided that I have to apply or I'll be living in a world of "what-ifs". I'm fortunate enough to be able to afford it, I love the UK too much to only spend a semester abroad there, and I want to start English right away instead of waiting to declare my major. My parents think I could do it (and would kill me if I didn't apply, anyway). So. Why not?


Hi,
I applied to Oxford and got interviews for Law, but messed up my interviews so I didn't get in. But I sense that the interviews are the "make it or break it" bit, so your academic credentials are not going to matter that much after you get an interview, as they use your academic credentials to decide who gets an interview (the admission people from St. Catz and Queen's told me.) Mine was over Skype and it was really awkward and I messed up! So if you could afford to come you totally should just come for the interviews. Also, on UCAS you don't really have to enter all your APs, I only entered 5APs and 3 SAT subject tests and my ACT. They don't really care as long it's above 2100 for SAT, 700 for SAT subject tests, 32 for the ACT, and 5 for AP, so if you don't get your 5 on AP you could always take the SAT subject test to substitute your not-5 AP.
Also, I would suggest taking more APs your junior year if you could, so you could apply with the scores you already have (otherwise your offer would be conditional upon you receiving those grades, and that's a lot of pressure for your senior year.)

Let me know if you want to know about anything else! :smile:


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Hi its right that the america is the better universities.
Reply 4219
Original post by kellysmith
Hi its right that the america is the better universities.


yes, this is true

do not bother rejecting this fact. I will not respond to crying babies who reek of virginity and patheticness
(edited 11 years ago)

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