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Applying to US universities

Hi, I’ve been wondering for a while now how to apply to universities in the US from the UK. I would really love to go to an Ivy League university, but I have found little/confusing information about how to apply and the requirements that I need. If anyone knows any information about this, please respond back to this. Thank you.
Also, are there any other ways of applying to Ivy League universities other than their application system e.g. scholarships
Hey all,

As far as I am aware the only way to apply to Harvard is through the US Common Application, which is essentially UCAS + additional questions about background and extracurricular + potentially extra supplemental essays per school.

There are two ways to apply to most schools:
Early Decision: due usually Nov 1st. Approximately doubles your odds at the expense of being "binding". This means that if you get in the University and the Common App force you to attend that University else they will blacklist you from any other University on the common app. You will hear you decisions around mid December.
Regular Decision: due usually Jan 1st. Hear back usually end of march early april.

These universities often have scholarships available to apply for however I am not aware of another way to apply to Ivies.

-An American graduating Year 13
Original post by willw155
Hey all,

As far as I am aware the only way to apply to Harvard is through the US Common Application, which is essentially UCAS + additional questions about background and extracurricular + potentially extra supplemental essays per school.

There are two ways to apply to most schools:
Early Decision: due usually Nov 1st. Approximately doubles your odds at the expense of being "binding". This means that if you get in the University and the Common App force you to attend that University else they will blacklist you from any other University on the common app. You will hear you decisions around mid December.
Regular Decision: due usually Jan 1st. Hear back usually end of march early april.

These universities often have scholarships available to apply for however I am not aware of another way to apply to Ivies.

-An American graduating Year 13


Just wondering, are all int students required to have SAT result? I mean, we’re in uk mostly have ur A level/IB, instead.
Original post by Çharmander
Just wondering, are all int students required to have SAT result? I mean, we’re in uk mostly have ur A level/IB, instead.


Oh I knew I forgot something.

So in the US system there are no conditional offers, everything is completed before applying. While I doubt not having completed A Levels or IB will be a problem I do think that you will need to sit the SATs or the ACTs.

These are the two primary standardized tests used in the US, in addition colleges may require up to 2 SAT subject tests which are subject supplements to the SAT which are not part of the main test.

Universities/Colleges post online the range of scores for the SAT and ACT that the middle 50%tile of their accepted class has.

SAT has 2 scores (200-800) in Math and Reading
ACT has 4 scores (1-36) in Math, Reading, English, and Science (though Science is really just graph analysis so it is still Math vs Reading)

IMO SAT gives more time however has trickier questions (answers designed to throw you off) while the ACT has easier problems but is much quicker.
Reply 5
I see many people who aspire to go to Harvard, Yale, etc. These schools are very hard for yanks to get into. You might have a slight advantage as a foreign student, but there are many other very good unis in the US which would be worth a look. Every state has at least one state university that has a decent program in engineering diciplines. University of Virginia and Ohio State University are both high quality, as are schools in California and Colorado. I live near D.C., and there are 14 or 15 unis within commuting distance of me that offer high quality programs. When you consider that the entire Uk, including the channel islands, Shetland, Scotland, Wales, Ireland(both of them), and everything else - total land area - is about 10% smaller than Nevada, and the Uk has about 1.8 times the population of California (which is located mostly along the coast), it's obvious that we must have many more unis than the Uk does. Any state uni is fully accredited. Many others are too. There used to be an organisation called the "College Admissions Assistance Service" - which specialised in matching students with unis seeking students. I used them myself in the past & they teamed me up with a nice little uni where i spent a year (and got myself off academic probation). I'm sure you can find a suitable uni with a little looking that would be not as nearly as hard to get into as the big "name" unis. In addition, you will not find yourself (for the first 3 years at least) in a lecture hall with 300 other students, trying to hear a TA (teaching assistant) who is reading the professor's lecture notes. At a smaller school, you'll even get to talk to the professor after class. Best of luck!!

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