<p>it's your personal opinion, and i know it is your opinion because if english was the number one language in the world, than everyone would agree it is</p>
<p>I know how important it is but if you are a naitive and born in the English speaking counryies (or lived most of your life there, therefore your bases of mind is set in English if you know what I mean) , it wouldn't be so hard but for my case, I came over to New Zealand when I was 12(some might believe it's quite young) but when I was 12, everything of me was already formed by Korean.</p>
<p>For me, it feels like impossible to be as good as naitives as there are endless vocabs that I don't know (it is same for even naitves but not as much as me) , I think in language that isn't English and more.
I think I am quite clear what I clearly want to know.</p>
<p>Do top universities want my English to be as good as those whose first language is English?</p>
<p>well if i understand what you are saying, your english is good enough. just do well on your toefl and keep on studying.</p>
<p>I know about my English more than anyone mate.
Believe me, I may seem to be good enough, but when it comes to things like hard literatures(books like I tried e.g Great Expectation or Catch22) I totally suck! There are tons of words that I haven't even heard of and many sentences that seem impossible to understand.
These factors make me sure that I am surely not good enough to compete with most of students. For English exam, I don't actually get a
bad mark(actually quite good), but I believe exam isn't the thing that universities only look for. Does anyone know? and please suggest me to be as fluent in reading and writing as top people in the US</p>
<p>mingun119, because you are an immigrant, just as I am, I have several advices for you.</p>
<p>First, you're vocaublary must be weak. Although many will disagree, I believe that memorizing SAT words is a GREAT way to improve your reading and writing skills. But most importantly, read a lot. I read on average one book per week.</p>
<p>Second, try to get additional help from someone, whether it be a personal tutor or a teacher. I was lucky to have an excellent English teacher, who has helped me VERY much. In addition, don't worry--your English is ought to improve as years go on, and as you write more essays.</p>
<p>Although not much, I hope this helps. I'll try to think of more things after I 'm done with my last college app. essay!</p>
<p>Yes English matters DHA_3000 but what everyone on this thread is stressing is that minigun119 shouldn't get rejected solely because of lack in fluency in English in spite of other OUTSTANDING accomplishments. Not everyone applying to Harvard expects to work in the United Nations, so let minigun119 try to learn English and don't impose the rest on him/her. I have faith in minigun119. If anyone is as driven and dedicated as s/he is, then they have a shot at getting in, provided their credentials are on par with the rest of the applicant pool. I see the language problem as something s/he could improve - and something which if mastered, could put him/her well ahead of the average applicant!
I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving! Good luck to you Minigun119!!</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>Thanks man....
I know it would be a challenge but I will do my best.
It wouldn't do any harm even I fail! Lucky I am to find this forum so early!</p>
<p>"i personally think that its lame that you can get rejected from a college because you dont speak english very well."</p>
<p>Apparently, you haven't considered the ramifications of the fact that English is Harvard's language of instruction.</p>
<p>At most universities in the world, one needs to be fluent in their language of instruction in order to be accepted. To me, such a policy follows common sense.</p>
<p>I know a lot of international students attending the University of Toronto (mostly through my parents), and they tell me that not being fluent in the language of instruction is a severe impediment. At the least, it means more time spent poring over books and notes to absorb the material.</p>
<p>Your English doesn't seem that bad, Minigun, but if you want to improve it, the best way is to hang out with people who speak it! Even if it's online, it can really help build your vocabulary and develop a grasp of English grammar... (I do the same thing to improve my French :P)</p>
<p>I'm lucky I moved to North America at such a young age, though my Mandarin has suffered greatly :P</p>
<p>don't forget that being able to speak another language is an advantage to you as well. all the previous suggestions for learning how to speak english is great and another one is to watch English movies, etc. Most of everyone I know who learned English as a second language did it through simply watching tv and picking up the language that way.</p>
<p>besides, nothing is impossible ( if you really work at it )</p>
<p>I only hang out with those people who's first language are English and don't really have much problem , however, English what I am wanting to improve on differs from what I call "conversational" English which can easily be achieved just by living in any English speaking countries</p>
<p>mingun119-</p>
<p>There's one sure fire way to improve your English, and that's to read. However, most people will tell you to read books of "literature" (like those you mentioned) that can be very difficult for new English speakers to understand. Even worse, these books can often be very dry and boring. There's nothing worse than trying to read a boring book in a language you don't really understand (I'm having that experience with Antigone in French..ugh). </p>
<p>So do what I did. Go to your local library or bookstore, and get your hands on books that look interesting and read lots of them. </p>
<p>I dunno what your personal preferences are but I find that high-fantasy books tend to be the best for improving English.</p>
<p>My preference is non-fiction. Strangely, I dont really find made up stories that interesting. </p>
<p>Anyway, I know you have to work hard to get in, but how much is the working hard? What I can tell you this moment is that I do my own activities such as playing sports, editing , playing on computer, watching TV...etc, much more than actually sitting on my desk and studying or reading books. I mean, do people who get into Harvard
simply nerds studying all the time?</p>
<p>no. you shouldn't be doing things you don't enjoy to get into harvard</p>
<p>"you shouldn't be doing things you don't enjoy to get into harvard"</p>
<p>There's a very big difference between what you should do in a perfect world, and what will actually help you get into Harvard in the real world.</p>
<p>"There's a very big difference between what you should do in a perfect world, and what will actually help you get into Harvard in the real world."</p>
<p>Not at all. If Harvard is a good fit for a student, the things that the student would be doing in a perfect world would be exactly what the student already is doing, and also will help the student get into Harvard.</p>
<p>If the student is doing something only to impress Harvard, then harvard isn't a good fit for them.</p>
<p>I really don't know what the TOEFL measures. There are students here, as well as grad students (TFs), whose English I cannot understand. Usually these are Asian international students who are studying math or sciences, so I guess they understand enough to get by. One girl I was in an extracurricular with in particular was a good example; it was obvious she didn't understand what we were saying and we didn't understand her. I don't really get why someone would come to a foreign country if they don't understand enough of the language- study abroad is one thing- but 4 yrs is a long time. Anyway, just my thoughts.</p>