Newbie looking for some advice :D

Applying to College
1

<p>Hi guys, im looking for some advice</p>

<p>Im a student in the UK at the moment, Im hoping and looking into coming to study in the US as i believe prospects for both career and earning opportunities in the US are significantly better than those in the UK</p>

<p>However I have some questions
1. What are US universities like? (Ivy League uni's) for academics, as well as sociability, campus life, people in general etc etc?</p>

<ol>
<li>Is it worth coming from the UK to the US for an undergrad (although I am planning to fully migrate to the US after I have gone to university whether it be in the UK or the US)</li>
</ol>

<p>and finally perhaps the most important question, i know that I have to take the SAT exams and that I have to apply to each university seperataly unlike what we do here in the UK however:</p>

<ol>
<li>When can I start to apply for enrollment in 2011 as many of the universities suppliment forms are dated '2010 students/enrollment in 2010' etc and when is the best time to take the SAT exams if I am and internatonal student hoping to enrol in 2011?</li>
</ol>

<p>If anyone can answer these questions for me, i would be hugely greatful</p>

<p>Many Thanks
Vik</p>

2

<p>Careful. Our career and earning prospects are actually not too golden right now either, so you might want to rethink your plan. That said, I’ll do what I can to help. I don’t attend an Ivy, though, so I’ll be unable to help too much on that level.</p>

<p>Sociability, campus life, and people vary widely amongst the Ivies. You’re going to have to describe what you prefer in terms of each of them. It’s difficult to paint all Ivies with a single brush. In terms of academics, however, they are all excellent, though, again, there are differences in the system (e.g. Brown offers more freedom with their open-curriculum system, Columbia has a pretty hefty Core program you’ll have to go through, etc.).</p>

<p>One of the major differences between the US and UK undergrad is that students here don’t have to declare a path of study until the second or third years, which, from what I’m aware, is vastly different from the UK system where you declare and then take as many classes as possible all related to your degree. You can also take electives outside of your area of study here even after you declare if you have space in your schedule.</p>

<p>Is it worth it though? If you have the financial resources and you want to attend a US university, go for it. I personally find the US system to be much less restrictive than the UK system. If you’re unsure about what you want to study and like to explore possibilities, and if you have the resources, then I don’t see why not.</p>

<p>If you’re applying to enroll in 2011, you can typically find the necessary forms online on the school websites in the summer of 2010 (and sometimes before, depending on the school). You’ll also have to check the Common App site as well. As for the SATs, take them whenever you feel you’re ready, but preferably before/during this coming summer to give you some breathing space to write your essays.</p>

<p>I also advise looking at schools outside of the Ivy League.</p>

<p>Hope this helps. Sorry if I was vague in my answers.</p>

3

<p>I’m the same as you - UK student coming to the US only I’m applying this year.</p>

<p>Take the SAT asap, especially if you don’t do maths any more, as it will get it out of the way while you still remember stuff. Depending on what subject tests you wanna take, it might be better to leave them a bit longer as (for example) the biology one has all of AS and A2 biology in it as well as some extra stuff, which was tricky!</p>

<p>If you want more help, PM me, I’m a fountain of knowledge - I visited schools, too :)</p>

4

<p>to the both of you great thanks, really boosted my confidence on this whole ‘study in the USA’ plan that i’ve got lol</p>

<ol>
<li><p>As for the description on campus life, im looking for somewhere where there’s a range of different people, races, religions, background, nationalities etc etc as being from an indian background and being born in britain, i dont know how easy it will be to fit in a new university let alone a new country :S lol</p></li>
<li><p>A university with a business/economics/management course with good graduate prospects? (Wharton seems the most promisable, but which other univeristies have good after graduation prospects?)</p></li>
</ol>

<p>3.I also want somewhere where there’s abit of atmosphere either on campus or nearby, you know, like something going on, I dont want to be totally tied down with academic work and then just sat around in my free time, sometimes I’d just like to take a back seat and winde down for a while whether its partying, going to sports games, restaurants, perhaps the coast etc just a campus or city with abit of hustle ‘n’ bustle</p>

<p>So on this basis what uni would you reccommend? (out of Ivy league universities + Stanford, MIT and Uof Chicago)</p>

<p>Another question both of you may be able to help me out on is sports, now I know that US universities base their verdict on extra curricular activities as well as academic background, now here in the UK I play lots of Cricket and Hockey, however I know that Cricket isn’t as common in the US, not sure about hockey, but what other sports are there that are played at US universities, and what level are they played at (amateur, advanced, club, national etc)? </p>

<p>and would I be able to go for trials for various sports once being admitted (if i am lucky to be admitted that is :stuck_out_tongue: lol) because I dont know if i’ll be good at them, or would the university require that I have some experience in the sport?</p>

<p>Many thanks for your help guys
Vik</p>

5

<p>Harvard will be good, as it’s in Boston, and Columbia will be good as it’s in NYC. Yale is pretty close in to New Haven, and Brown is only a few minutes from Providence. I didn’t see any others of the Ivies. UChicago is obviously in Chicago, Stanford is close to SanFran, I think, and MIT is also in Boston…there are also obviously a lot of other schools in cities - have a look round, it shouldn’t be hard to find.</p>

<p>I’m not a sporty person at all, and didn’t pay any attention/ask any questions about sports, but I guess you should be OK for hockey at least - I guess you can just go out for any sports once you’re in :slight_smile: The sports can be played intra-mural, which is just within the school, or inter-school, so like Harvard vs Yale etc. The whole point of the Ivy league is it’s an American football league, so there’s a lot of competition between them. </p>

<p>:)
Kate x</p>

6

<p>thanks dreaming92</p>

<p>Have you already taken the SAT exam?</p>

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<p>Yep, I’ve done it all. I’ve sent everything. Now I’m just waiting for my letters!</p>

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<p>Wow, well done, which universities have you applied to?</p>

9

<p>Harvard, Columbia, UVA and Brandeis.
ARGHHH!!!</p>

<p>I got a 2130 on my SAT I
and SAT IIs
French 670
Biology 710
Literature 740</p>

<p>I’m not worried tbh</p>

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<p>I am a new poster too. Is there a place where people “say hello”?</p>

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<p>well you could “say hello” in high school life, since that’s pretty much the spam/general discussion forum</p>