A message from a UK applicant

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>I would like to say how impressed ive been with the US application system and the applicants like you. I applied to Harvard and Yale and was rejected by both, I applied as it was an ambition to merely apply. The thing which I realised is you have it much harder over there, not necessarily in terms of school work but the fact that there are so many qualified students with amazing scores. </p>

<p>In the UK I had the top grades etc. etc. and have got into Cambridge, LSE, UCL, Durham, Nottingham these 5 are all in the top 7 or 8 in the country. Many would argue that Cambridge is the Ivy league's equal but the fact is our smaller population and bigger intake at schools like Cambridge means I had a 15-20% chance of getting in. Yes the applicants are all amazing but to see, last night, that Yale admit 9.7% and Harvard even less was a real awakening as you cant bank on anything there. So, this is basically a compliment to all you people who go through the protracted process never really having any reassurance, even with perfect scores, that you have a definite chance. </p>

<p>Therefore when my friends moan about how hard it is over here, ill spread the message that they dont know the meaning of 'competition'.</p>

2

<p>...hi, I'm from the UK too. I feel I should point out, having been accepted to Harvard, it's not just about the scores - I have 1390 on the SAT (not a bad score, but below Harvard average), a 620 on the Writing SAT II (no idea what happened with that - did a retake, came out the same), OK GCSEs (4xB, 3xA, 4xA*), and not exactly Oxbridge quality A2 predictions (currently standing at A, B, B for my three subjects).</p>

<p>My not particularly impressive scores are one reason why I really do favour the US system over UCAS, despite the vast increase in paperwork - for those who don't know, here in the UK you write a single "personal statement", which is basically information about yourself and why you think you'd enjoy the course you're applying for. You don't really get a chance to be creative, and there's only one general school rec...so I'm really grateful for the masses of space allowed for expression in the US apps (compared to the UK, at any rate), because it helps me make up for my low (well, low for Harvard, Oxbridge etc) scores.</p>

3

<p>hey nick04, where r u from in the UK, what school do u go to, I go to Bishop Wordsworth's in Salisbury, its a state grammar school. Did u have any wildcards extra currics etc. r u a legacy or anything, where else did u get in in the US or UK?</p>

4

<p>I'm from Bristol, at Bristol Grammar School - it's a private school, but I get some scholarship. I'm a talented musician, but certainly nothing special on the solo front - national level ensemble wise, but no major awards as a soloist. I also do technical work for the theatre on a national level. I'm not a legacy, with no connections to the US at all, and my school doesn't have any previous history of sending people stateside. I did have a really good interview, which I think helped quite a bit.</p>

<p>My grades weren't good enough for Oxbridge, so I applied to King's College (rejected), Goldsmith's (accepted), and a few ex-polys to study music technology, and over in the US I was Georgetown & Yale Rejected, Vassar, Cornell, Penn, and Harvard accepted. I actually really wanted to go to Yale, so I've got a tough choice over where I'm going to go...</p>

5

<p>I got into Imperial college for electrical and electronic eng with managment Meng...+ Southampton for CS, Lancaster for mechatronics, U of York, and Warwick. got rejected at UCL. Im really surprised that as an Imperial acceptee, I got rejected from Duke, Dartmouth and cornell. Im an indian national, PR of norway, applying from S. Korea. Im sick and tired of these random decisions...nick, ur the only hope as an international for me, for getting into princeton....</p>

6

<p>On the other hand, I applied to Cambridge (and was rejected) for medicine as an overseas applicant. Those quotas make things just as competitive as anything here, I'm sure... ;)</p>

<p>mega-congrats on Cambridge, trachea!</p>

7

<p>yeah. Cambridge is a GREAT place. Good luck!</p>

8

<p>nick,
will you be attending Harvard?</p>

9

<p>I'm leaning towards it. I have to wait for the rest of my fin aid forms to come through...</p>

<p>mea: Interestingly, there have been quite a few stories in the last couple of months in the UK papers about British unis increasing the number of International Applicant places at the expense of domestics, because they pay full fees (for those who don't know, a non EU international student studying medicine could pay up to £19,000 per year, whereas EU students currently pay £1150, soon to be upped to around £3000)...</p>

10

<p>nick - yea, I've heard those too. Hehe, money-mongering huh? But for medicine, there are strict quotas which have remained fixed for a while. 7 and 20 students for ox and cam respectively, if I'm not mistaken.</p>

11

<p>from the UK too.. but I do think that the american admissions process is a lot more random than that of the UK. The SAT I think really doesn't test anything useful, it seems a bit stupid and the verbal portion of it relies on how fast you can read and what vocab you learn. Obviously admissions in the UK isn't great what with so many people getting A grades at A-level but it seems like there are less 'mistakes' - most of my friends who deserved to get into Oxbridge have gotten in. However, that may be more as a result of the interviews which don't always happen at all the other unis. I'm off to cambridge anyway so I'm biased!</p>

12

<p>hey, jessica_h, where r u from in the uk, which college and course did apply for at cam. Did u apply to Harvard, anywhere else in the US</p>

13

<p>I'm from london, and applied for biological natural sciences at cambridge. I applied to Harvard (rejected), yale (rejected), columbia (accepted+science scholar), stanford (waitlisted), brown(accepted), georgetown(accepted), and tufts (accepted)</p>

14

<p>congratulations everyone!</p>

<p>i'm from england as well (london) and have just received admissions decisions from US colleges. i think the difference in results, ie. a student getting oxbridge and not ivy leagues and vice versa, is a result of the differing standards that US elite universities and oxbridge hold. i feel, that having applied to both places, that oxbridge is so hung up on GCSEs and A-Levels as well as how much you know about the subject you're applying for. they don't seem to care so much for your extra-curriculars, or the diversity of your experiences, or how "well-rounded" you are. US elite colleges, on the other hand, prize all the qualities that oxbridge seems to discard -- they strive to create as diverse and interesting a campus they possibly can, and as a result, look beyond "how good a mathematician/historian/linguist/etc" an applicant can be, to how much an applicant can contribute to the learning and living environment at the place. </p>

<p>in any case, been accepted at yale and columbia, waitlisted at princeton and stanford and rejected at harvard. not too shabby if you ask me :)</p>

15

<p>Since a lot of you know about schools in both countries (US and UK), which do you think is better NYU with $19,000 in aid, or St Andrews paying "Home" tuition. I'm having a really hard time decideng, and many people here (I'm from England, but live in Texas) can't compare the two. Thanks!</p>

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<p>You should take into account any debt you might amass - I guess seeing that you're paying "home" tuition fees and your user name is "English05" you're a British Citizen, so if you attended St Andrews would you be taking out loans with the Student Loan Company? Does your fin aid offer for NYU include any loans? Remember, loans from the SLC are interest free for life, although if you work in the US you'll have to make the effort to pay them (rather than being deducted from your salary).</p>

<p>Basically, even with your aid you'll probably still pay more in total going to NYU than St Andrews, but obviously there are many, many factors to take into account - living costs in the UK are generally higher than the US, etc. etc.</p>

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<p>Yeah, I'm a British Citizen. NYU was my dream school, but then I went through this period where I thought I had no chance at getting in so I fell in love with St Andrews. Well I got in with money! So now I have to decide. How do both of these schools compare? Would I be stupid to pass up an offer at either of these schools? Which school is better overall?</p>

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<p>It's very hard to compare - it's really more about what "kind" of education you want, rather than which school is "better". At St Andrews you'll jump straight into your "concentration", as you no doubt know, with little room when compared to the US system for exploration outside your course. US unis offer a far more broader education, which you may enjoy. This is reflected in the length of courses - typically 3 years in the UK, 4 in the US.</p>

<p>Aside from the actual course content, you might want to consider:</p>

<p>Employment: If you're planning to go straight into a job after graduation, do you want to return to the US to work or stay in the UK? Obviously, UK employers will be more familiar with St Andrews, and the UK system. Vice Versa for US employers, who likely won't have heard of St Andrews.</p>

<p>Graduate Study: If you're thinking of graduate study, where do you want to go? You'll obviously get into graudate study a year earlier if you study in the UK.</p>

<p>Living: As a British Citizen, I imagine you won't be classed as an International, and so it's likely you'll only get uni housing for your first year. Are you going to be happy renting with fellow students, or do you prefer the life of a residential hall?</p>

<p>Tutor Contact: Generally speaking, you'll be far more involved with your professors and lecturers at a UK uni, with regular tutorial work, small group discussions etc - I did say "generally", and it's worth checking with your colleges.</p>

<p>Style of Life: ...finally, the big question - do you want to live in New York, or in a small town (the St Andrews website calls it a "city", but with a population of 16,000 it's a small town. 1/3rd of the people living their work/study at the uni) in the middle of Scotland. The busy life of NY, against the beautiful landscape of Scotland, and Edinburgh (and the truly amazing Edinburgh Festival season) nearby (you can probably tell I'm a bit biased. I love Scotland, and have never been to NY, so probably can't offer you a decent opinion).</p>

<p>Hope this helps :)</p>

19

<p>if u can feasibly afford it and bear the brunt of debt etc there is NO CONTEST. NYU all th way, plus the Olsen twins have only just started there, Prince William is in his last year at St Andrews.</p>

20

<p>LOL, i'm a girl so i'd rather have William over the Olsens. I kind of have no idea where I want to live when i'm older, I'm pretty sure NYC is nothing like Texas (if it was i'd chose Scotland in a heartbeat)</p>