I am a rising 12th grader getting started on her applications. I was born in New Zealand and have a Kiwi passport but I have lived in California for a while and attend a competitive high school with an UW GPA: 3.97 and a W: 4.66. My whole life I’ve wanted to study out of the US and this summer after attending a program I think I found my dream school (never had one). The University of Melbourne. One problem, Australia is in the Southern Hemisphere and the schedule is wayyy off of the US application process. ATM I’m unsure about what I should do
- Apply to US schools and then apply in June 2020 for the July 2020 mid year acceptance, therefore risking some school offers and if I don't get in I may not have a school to go to.
- Apply to US schools, go to one, and then when August comes around I apply to UniMelb (credits dont matter to me a ton, but the money I may have to pay for one semester here does) and then if I get in I go to school there March 2021, starting anew, dropping out the original college.
- Take a whole gap year and travel and then apply in august to all Australian schools.
I plan on studying bioengineering and living in Europe or staying in Australia for my future studies. I am very uncomfortable in the US and all its bureaucracy, the student debt is unlike any other and honestly I don’t know where half the money universities receive goes, unlike UniMelb. This is the beginning of my adulthood and I don’t want to make a mistake. Any help would be appreciated. If you are an American studying in Australia it would be awesome to hear your story and how you got there. Thank you!