A general plea for suggestions & help re: documents & formalities!

International Students
1

<p>Hello everyone,</p>

<p>I am Laya Maheshwari. I've been born & brought up in Nagpur but moved to Mumbai a month ago. I've completed my High School - appeared for the 2011 Board Exams - and am currently studying in St. Xavier's College. But this is just a stopgap as my real aim is to go the US and do my undergrad. Now, here are some details of my situation.</p>

<p>**SAT I: **Appeared in June 2010. 2280 / 2400
**TOEFL: **Appeared in June 2010. 120 / 120
**SAT II: **Appeared in October 2010. English Lit - 760 / 800 and Math (Level 2) - 790/800</p>

<p>Class 10th: 95.4%
**Class 12th: **87.4% (Science)</p>

<p>Now, I wish to submit my application by December-January so that I can start college there in Fall 2012. I will be applying as a freshman and the courses I am interested in are Media/Film Studies (BA/BFA) and International Relations. I have not finalized the degree I will pursue. Plus, the two courses do have a major/minor relation in some colleges, and I did notice a double-degree in one place too.</p>

<p>Last year when I was in 12th, I did go through a lot of college websites and made an Excel spreadsheet judging them on various factors. I'm attaching that to this post. Bear in mind that the file has not been updated in over an year.</p>

<p>Now, the help I need is this - I've already appeared for the requisite tests. I've already finished high school and those exams. I've already done some amount of research on the colleges that would be best for me & my course.</p>

<p>The biggest problem is the application. I have a deep-rooted phobia of documents, forms, formalities and anything else that requires pin-point precision in filling up. I look at the Common App and am confounded by how I'm supposed to fill it. Moreover, the problem of Letters of Recommendation, Essays etc. cannot be underestimated. </p>

<p>In Nagpur, especially the circle where I come from, going abroad isn't a popular option and very few people know the process for it. I had to explain to my teachers what the SAT is and how it works. I'll require Letters of Recommendation from them but don't know the appropriate format myself. </p>

<p>And this is not even including the REAL big deal, the documents that are special to International students. What about the Bank statements, nationality proof and whatever?</p>

<p>So, can you guys help me in this? People who've already gone through the application process or are going through it now and know more than me (very high chances), can you please help me out? Or could you suggest good overseas education counselors in Mumbai who would do the work for me? I visited Edwise's office one day but didn't like what I saw.</p>

<p>any other advice/suggestion/opinion/anything you offer me can and will be appreciated. Please help!</p>

2

<p>Where is the attachment you mentioned? lol :slight_smile:
Don’t worry about the process. Have you seen the common application demo? If not, here it is: <a href=“https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/FAQ.aspx[/url]”>https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/FAQ.aspx&lt;/a&gt;
By the way, aren’t you already in college? Wouldn’t you be a transfer student instead because you would have already spent your freshman year at the Xavier College? Or are you opting to restart your freshman year altogether?
Anyways, Grinnell college has a good list of what you need to include in the common app (not that common app doesn’t include it itself) but just for your knowledge: [Application</a> Instructions for International Students - Admission | Grinnell College](<a href=“http://www.grinnell.edu/admission/apply/international]Application”>http://www.grinnell.edu/admission/apply/international)</p>

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<p>Post this in the forum for Indian students (under International Students) on this web site.</p>

<p>And include the list of schools you are considering.</p>

4

<p>I’m really confused m’s mom…because THIS is that forum you are referring… She is asking in the right place ?:z</p>

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<p>Oops! I’m so sorry! I completely forgot to attach the Excel spreadsheet. :expressionless: I can’t see any option for attaching files in this reply window so I just posted the file to Google Docs. Here is the link - <a href=“https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ajc8_LBxuQZqdGc5NldSS0taZ0hPWmNENXZKRkt6d3c&hl=en_US[/url]”>https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ajc8_LBxuQZqdGc5NldSS0taZ0hPWmNENXZKRkt6d3c&hl=en_US&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I’ve listed colleges, ranked them on different factors in comparison with University of Southern California, which is my 1st preference and hence, default. Green means the university in question is better than USC in that aspect and red means it’s worse. “S” means similar.</p>

<p>Yes, I do know that studying 1yr in college here means I could go as a transfer student but I don’t want to. I’ll restart my undergrad there as a freshman.</p>

<p>I think I forgot to add this yesterday, which is why I’m mentioning this right now: I studied in CBSE for 10th and 12th. Both, my secondary school and high school, are not well-versed with such procedures. On top of that, most of Common App and other forms are online - which raises the problems for them. This is why I was keen on getting counselors/specialists for the documents.</p>

<p>And, M’s Mom, I did post in the right forum, didn’t I? ;)</p>

<p>Finally, thank you for the links! I’ll look into them and hope they clear a lot of my queries.</p>

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<p>By the way, I didn’t see florida state university in there. It is ranked 4th in film school ranking: [Top</a> 10 Film Schools | Best Film Schools in the Nation](<a href=“http://education-portal.com/top_10_film_schools.html]Top”>Top 10 Film Schools | Best Film Schools in the Nation)
Your rankings may not be up to date, but I do like the schools you have listed. Have you heard of the New York Film Academy by any chance? Just thought that you may want to check that out. But yes, if I were you, I would put University of Southern California at the top of my list as well. It can be of help for job opportunities. Also, Cal Arts will certainly allow you to meet the top ppl in the media industries. I know because it’s extremely prestigious for acting.
In terms of your common app phobia, here is a small thread that helps a bit with what you may be seeking: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/common-application/813368-please-help-international-student-commonapp-please.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/common-application/813368-please-help-international-student-commonapp-please.html&lt;/a&gt;
You can also apply for UVA :smiley: if you’re aiming for international relations lol. Some other schools for IR that are top in this field include Georgetown, JHU, and Tufts. </p>

<p>Basically, you really shouldn’t worry. I think the process is stressful for both domestic and international students when they start it for the first time. I would basically send in your scores for your Board exams, Sat, SatII, and TOEFL in. For recommendations: choose a math/science teacher and another who is trained in the arts area. Once you have chosen these ppl, you will have to ask for their email addresses. They will have to check the spam area…in case their email (which might just be yahoo) sends it in there. They will have to do an evaluation for each one of your schools and write an essay, which can be sent as a copy to every one of the institutes you apply. When the common app opens in August, start adding the institutes you are sure to want to attend, and go immediately to the “teacher recommendation” section and send that in for the schools you are applying EARLY ONLY. I hope you are familiar with the EARLY and Regular deadline. If not, you can ask about it, and I will reply. </p>

<p>In terms of bank statement…I think that you need to send a signed form, from the notary via snail mail to the college(s), which states that you are able to pay for the institute. It’s something that is required from all internationals, since they don’t receive much aid from the u.s. The same goes for nationality proof. </p>

<p>You should actually contact OIS, which is available for internationals at USC. The contact is listed her: Contact OIS | Phone: (213) 740-2666 | Fax: (213) 740-5194 | Email: <a href=“mailto:ois@usc.edu”>ois@usc.edu</a>
I think that you should consult their services because admissions for internationals is pretty weird and will make you and normal admissions confused. OIS specializes in your circumstance, so you should call/email them immediately. Just so you know, you are starting at the right time. They have counselors for you outside of US, but they are only 2 and they don’t focus on indian students. That is why you should call the office. Hope this info helps you :)</p>