<p>I'll apply for some universities at the end of the year,but before that,I must know whether I have a chance at good universities.First of all,I'm a brazillian student that finished high school last year,when I was 16 years old:that's because I skipped 1 year at school when I was a kid(the school principal and all teachers said I was above all class),so,do colleges consider it as a advantage?</p>
<p>Second,my high school grades are at least 9/10 at my first school,but then I moved to a very difficult one(almost half of class always failed math/physics/chemistry/biology tests),my scores are at least 7/10,going to 9/10,and I was one of the best students.The question is:do they consider the school's difficulty level?Am I almost automatically out of top universities with these test scores?</p>
<p>I'll go to California in August,if I apply for some college there,will I be considered an instate if I live and study there for some months? Is it easier to get in whether you are instate?</p>
<p>And my last question subject,do athletes have some kind of vantage when applying,for example,do they usually need lower grades to get in?Do they need to have medals or play for some team,or just say you play soccer is considered?</p>
<p>This year I'm studying exclusively for SAT and TOEFL,so every help is useful.</p>
<p>you’re not considered in-state for tuition just because you’re “in the state” at the moment you apply - you’re considered a state resident for tuition purpose if your parents have paid their taxes there for over 12 months and you haven’t moved there for your education.
CA public universities cost $50,000 per year for internationals and out of state students so unless your parents have 200,000 in a bank for your education, you shouldn’t consider applying to UC’s.
Being a recruited athlete means having top-level recognition in your sport. So if you’ve been captain of a recognized team you can apply to a division 1 college (= good enough to be a professional) or a division 3 (= excellent student, excellent athlete, does not aim at being a professional) college. You need to have a list of your stats (how fast you run, how far you throw, your records, points per game…), awards, team stats, etc. plus a video of your best plays.
You will need a school profile describing the schools, their grading policies - what percentage students at each school get a 2? a 4? a 6? a 7? More than that? … and typically, a student who get a 6 gets what type of score in the national exams - a 6, so the school grades “on level”, or a 7, so the school grades severely compared to national standards, or a 4, so the school grades easy compared to national standards?)
In the US, a 7/10 isn’t very good but in Brazil it IS, off the bat -then in a top-flight school it’s excellent. But without a school profile and a description of grading policies, nobody would know.
Of course top colleges that are used to having applications from Brazil will know, but don’t assume all will and have your counselor prepare your school profile in consequence.</p>
<p>You should take the SAT or the ACT and see how much you score. For Internationals especially since you are not getting a gpa, colleges will focus more on your SAT or ACT scores. The score you get will help you know where you should apply and where you stand. What major do you plan on doing in college? </p>
<p>Internationals are not compared to Americans, so that an American GPA is not necessary - an approximation is useful, if it can be trusted, but unless your counselor knows what they’re doing and doesn’t think a Brazilian 7 will look good as a 3.4, don’t do it. Provide a good school profile (do all kids who started kindergarten attend your 12th grade, or has there been a selection/orientation/tracking along the way? was there a selection to start with, an exam, an interview, an application…?), the percentages for your school (so that they know where you stand), and in relation to national exams (so that they know whether your school grades harsher, similar, or easier than the national scale). You’ll be compared to other Brazilians and, percentage-wise, to other internationals. </p>
<p>@SD1996 I want to do Mechanical Engineering,and I’ll take the SAT first after the middle of this year</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 Got it.All students attend the 12th grade without any kind of orientation/selection.We just study for ENEM(our SAT version)in order to try to get into a college.
Most of the schools don’t have class rankings,mine has just of some special tests,and it’s way better than national average,probably on Brazil’s top 50 and best of my region,and that can be proved by showing the school’s average on ENEM</p>
<p>I don’t know if you can help me in this question,but:
when I was a kid I was able to skip one school year,so I went to the 1st grade to 2nd grade,after one month of perfect scores,I did an test to see if I could go without problems,and I passed.The question is:can it be considered as an advantage,as something I could put in my essay because it’s important?</p>
<p>Also,I don’t have any medal from competitions,so am I almost out of the best universities(Ivy League,…)?</p>
<p>Skipping one grade in grammar school doesn’t give you an advantage over other students unless it helped you win an international competition. You need to take the SAT to give the colleges an idea of your academic ability level. Without that SAT score, you will not be given any kind of advantage for any school. </p>
<p>If you don’t have any national or international prize, yes you’re almost surely out of the Top 10 universities/LACs. You could apply to 1-3, but keeping expectations low.</p>
<p>Your essay should be about who you are now and what shaped that person. So skipping a grade can be mentioned, but only as a “starter”, as something that started something else that led to…</p>
<p>Damn,I should’ve done some competition,but never liked it.one more question:if i get an almost perfect SAT score + good ECs+excellent essay,do I have a chance on top 15 universities?also,technical courses,confresses participations can be added as a positive point somewhere(essay,…)?</p>
<p>You have to realize that the US has 3,700 university; anything within the Top 50 LAC/University is excellent. Anything within the Top 100-125 LACs/universities, plus the top 20 regional universities is good.</p>
<p>With your record as you describe it, you’re a strong contender for colleges and universities ranked 35 to 55, and you may be in contention for universities ranked 20-35, but LACs and Universities ranked 1-20, which are reaches for everyone anyway, are almost out of reach of an international who is certainly among the best academically but doesn’t have any outstanding national/international qualifications. You could pick 1-2 university and 1-2 Lac in that category, “just to see”, but I’d focus on the other categories.</p>