Confused about American system

Applying to College
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<p>I'm a British student, currently studying A Levels and hoping to apply in Autumn 2014.</p>

<p>I plan on applying to MIT, Yale, Harvard and Princeton, and maybe Stanford. (Although I know that it's not need-blind for internationals). I am planning on taking the SAT I, and SAT Subject Tests in Math II, Physics and Chemistry.</p>

<p>There is a lot I don't get about the system.</p>

<p>1) When do I start my application? and When should I start putting it together (essays, etc)?
2) Do I have to take the SAT Subject Tests and SAT I on the same day?
3) How does the US College system work, ie, if I wanted to gain a Mathematics degree, would I just pick lots of Maths modules?
4) Would I get financial aid at those universities if I require it? (Because otherwise I cannot afford the fee; I have a specific situation)
5) Where would my interview be held if I were to get one?
6) Is there anyway to find a specific syllabus for my subject tests? I only found very general information on the collegeboard website.
7) If I decide to retake the SAT I or a SAT Subject Test, will colleges see my previous score?
8) Do you submit completely different essays to each university that you apply to?</p>

<p>Thanks for any help.</p>

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<p>This website may be helpful: <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Wait, you’re hoping to apply so you can attend in Autumn 2014…? Deadlines for the schools you listed were all 1/1/14 or something like that, mate :confused: </p>

<p>1) When do I start my application? and When should I start putting it together (essays, etc)?</p>

<p>During the year right before you graduate from your highest level. (Grade 12?) Typically, at the very beginning of that school year. (Start work September-October 2013 if you’re applying to start at MIT August/September 2014; deadlines, generally, were around 1/1/14) </p>

<p>2) Do I have to take the SAT Subject Tests and SAT I on the same day?</p>

<p>No; different days</p>

<p>3) How does the US College system work, ie, if I wanted to gain a Mathematics degree, would I just pick lots of Maths modules?</p>

<p>It varies by school, but is not as subject heavy as the Oxbridge. A student picks a major or concentration by their 2nd year, after fulfilling general education requirements (in most cases), then takes the amount of classes they need to get their degree in the field they’re majoring in.</p>

<p>4) Would I get financial aid at those universities if I require it? (Because otherwise I cannot afford the fee; I have a specific situation)</p>

<p>As an international student, it would be…difficult. However, Harvard and other top-tiered schools are sometimes friendly for international aid. If you post in the finance section, people can give you lists of schools with generous aid to international applicants.</p>

<p>5) Where would my interview be held if I were to get one?</p>

<p>My best guess? Skype. </p>

<p>6) Is there anyway to find a specific syllabus for my subject tests? I only found very general information on the collegeboard website.</p>

<p>Yes and no; try looking at the syllabus for the relating classes if there are some (i.e. look at AP US History course description for SAT II US History), but some classes won’t have them. You might be able to purchase some review books on ebay or amazon. </p>

<p>7) If I decide to retake the SAT I or a SAT Subject Test, will colleges see my previous score?</p>

<p>Varies by college; look up specifics on their website. Typically, at top-tiered U’s, they look at your best scores from each section. For example, if you take the test three times (which is the typical amount; I took it twice), and get (CR Math Writing) </p>

<p>Test 1: (CR Math Writing) 600 650 700
Test 2: (CR Math Writing) 700 700 650
Test 3: (CR Math Writing) 500 500 500</p>

<p>Most colleges would take that to be</p>

<p>Overall (CR Math Writing) 700 700 700 </p>

<p>8) Do you submit completely different essays to each university that you apply to?</p>

<p>It depends. Usually, people tweak their essays a tad to conform to each school. Also, it’s common to use the CommonApp, which has one “main” essay with different supplemental essays per school. </p>

<p>Hope I could help a bit :)</p>

<p>(Note: I know I had some generalizations in there, but this is just an extremely broad explanation)</p>

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<p>1) The application material will be available around August 2014. It’s up to you when to start, but of course the earlier the better. Deadlines are around January 1st, 2015.
2) SAT and SAT subject tests are on different days, in fact you cannot take them on the same date. You have to sign up independently for each.
4) Look up their homepages. They offer generous financial aid but I am not quite sure which schools are need-blind and which need-aware. If admitted, however, they will meet 100% of your demonstrated need.
5. It might be held via skype or phone or their might be an interviewer in your area.
6) There is no specific syllabus. Their are tons of preparation books but the best review is taking rigorous classes of the subjects.
7) Some will, some won’t. Some colleges allow you to use score choice( to choose which ones to send to them), some require all scores.
8) Mostly, yes. You might be able to use an essay for more than one college but they are college specific.</p>

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<p>ups sorry, didn’t see Vctory already did a great job answering your questions. :)</p>

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<p>Thanks for the reply, it was helpful.</p>

<p>I’m starting my application in Autumn 2014, so I would start at the university in Autumn 2015.</p>

<p>I checked the collegeboard website, and the only dates shown were May 3 and June 7, so would I take SAT I on one day and SAT Subject Tests on the other? Or is any overlap at all impossible (So 4 separate dates?).</p>

<p>As MIT doesn’t use CommonApp, would it be acceptable to use parts of my CommonApp/MIT essay(s) in the other?</p>

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<p>Sounds great!</p>

<p>1) You can take up to three SAT subject tests on the same day (June tests have the most options of mix and matches! SAT World History is not offered in May but is offered in June), but you cannot take the SAT I and SAT II on the same day :slight_smile: So, you could take SAT I in May and SAT Subject Tests (SAT II’s) in June. </p>

<p>2) It would be completely acceptable to recycle parts from each essay, or the essay in its entirety, prompt permitting!</p>

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<p>And no problem book! You provided some great additional info :)</p>

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<p>:) I am an international student as well and never never been as stressed as I am with college applications at the moment.</p>

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<p>Thanks to everyone for their helpful and fast replies.</p>

<p>My last question (so far :p), is do I have to declare any SAT results on UCAS when I apply in the UK?</p>

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<p>From what I found in a few minutes of a google search is yes, you do have to declare them :)</p>

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<p>Am I right in thinking that I only need to take 2 SAT Subject Tests including Math II (Either Physics or Chemistry and Math II).</p>

<p>Would it help an application if I took all three?</p>

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<p>6) Kaplan’s books are great for the SAT II preparation!
Good luck with your application :)</p>

<p>Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk</p>

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<p>Yes, you are correct. Very few, if any, schoosl require more than two Subject Tests. </p>

<p>Whether to take a third one depends on how confident you are of getting a good score on all three. Two excellent scores are better than two excellent scores plus a mediocre one. Once you get two good scores in the bag there is no reason to risk putting a smudge on your application by taking a third.</p>

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<p>On the other hand, three excellent scores, including one in a non-science, are always a plus for a student to a highly competitive tech university such as MIT.</p>

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<p>

This is a good starting point. As with anything, please be sure to verify with each individual university as policies due change. As you can see schools with the most generous policies are also among the most competitive.</p>

<p><a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need-blind_admission[/url]”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need-blind_admission&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;