<p>The “Top 20 colleges” are ranked thus because everyone is interested in them. They will receive literally thousands of applications from students with SAT scores comparable to yours who also have near-perfect grades. They may review international applications differently, but admissions are even more competitive among international students than they are for domestic candidates.</p>
<p>@woogzmama I understand, but I do have backup schools in other countries, so I would just like to bet on more competitive schools</p>
<p>What are your GCSE grades a d subjects, your GCE subjects and predicted grades including actual AS results?</p>
<p>We need that information to assess your possibilities realistically.</p>
<p>THAT is what American colleges want from you, since most British-patterned schools don’t issue official transcripts for other things, such as intermediate mocks. </p>
<p>Don’t say you have a 2.0. Someone with a 2.0 is barely above expulsion/drop out and certainly not contemplating 4-year colleges (or even college in general, depending on the school). Competitive applicants have GPA’s of 3.7+.
In any case, don’t try to use a GPA that isn’t true; and if a good student is getting C’s, are bad students getting E’s, F’s, G’s? </p>
<p>NYU
<a href=“Standardized Tests”>Standardized Tests;
<p>
</p>
<p>Are you referring to colleges ranked around 100th in the US News rankings?
If so, those would be reaches for you. For example, Auburn University is tied for #103 among National Universities. The average GPA of Auburn’s entering freshmen is 3.74 (according to its 2013 Common Data Set). College of the Atlantic, tied for #99 among National LACs, had an average entering GPA of 3.56 for 2013-14.</p>
<p>The USA has thousands of colleges. </p>
<p>
Well the odds really are against attending a top 20 university in the U.S. Yet, if that is what you really want, and if you have the time and money, you could apply to basically all of the top 20 universities that you like and hope for the best. However, it most likely that all 20 would reject your application.</p>
<p>Are you more interested in backups in other countries than in lower tiered colleges in the U.S. or do you really want a U.S. school. If you really want a U.S. school, then your best bet is to apply to some of the more ordinary colleges here, then transfer to a better school after two years.</p>
<p>For example, you might apply to Ohio Wesleyan University. It has a reputation for being “easy to get in, but hard to stay.” This means that you might very well get in, but then could use OWU as a springboard to transferring to a top 20 university after two years. Its reputation for rigor could set you up well for transferring to a better school. Just a thought.
<a href=“http://choose.owu.edu/applyToday/internationalHowToApply.php”>http://choose.owu.edu/applyToday/internationalHowToApply.php</a></p>
<p>Yes, my music may be a hook, but I’m not certain how much that would cover my weak school grades. For your information, I’m a mediocre student in the school, but I’ve got to say my school is an extremely competitive one. Every single person in there is guaranteed a place in the local universities. If you’re asking for class rank in accordance to school results, I’m probably a little higher than the middle percentile. If you’re asking for ranks in accordance to the public exams, I’ll be in the top 35%. (GCSE 8A*3A, GCE AS level 2A4B) Does these results give you a little insight into my ability in school?</p>
<p>I’ve heard that some schools allow public examinations in lieu of school transcripts, is that true? Would this help me?</p>
<p>I do have backups, so I’m really hoping for better schools. What else do I have to do to make my profile stronger?</p>
<p>Can’t imagine there’s any school in America that will accept tests instead of transcripts. The high school record is the number one thing they look at – course rigor, grades and your performance in the context of your high school. Many schools here are actually moving away from requiring tests for admission. </p>
<p>Would you consider going to school in England, Scotland or Ireland? Test scores are far more important in the application process.</p>
<p>@albclemom I’m applying to UK for backup therefore I want to reach as much as possible in the US</p>
<p>@SDonCC I guess there’ll be a little difference for international applicants because of the differences in systems?</p>
<p>SDonCC doesn’t know what s/he’s talking about and assumes international schools with a national curriculum and board exams are the same as American HS, when in fact it’s not the case.</p>
<p>In US terms, “GCSE 8A*3A, GCE AS level 2A4B” is a perfect 4.0, NOT a 2.0.
Most American schools use GCSE and GCE results as proof of your curriculum and results (since British patterned systems typically don’t have transcripts, only mock exam reports or Section reports like Section 3 for your exam, X Inquiry section 4, etc. which are totally useless, and most schools don’t issue intermediate mock results for external purpose anyway.)
So that’s what your guidance counselor/headteacher/prefect/form Tutor would be expected to upload on CommonApp. An official, certified copy with these results. Your counselor would check “international school” on the Common App and fill out the actual sections pertaining to this to explain your curriculum.</p>
<p>Most schools will require that + SAT scores (and some:+ SAT Subjects).
NYU won’t require the SAT although you’re allowed to send those results if they’re good. The key component for that application is your transcript, ie., GCSE+GCE.</p>
<p>What subjects are you presenting?
Among your 10 GCSE’s, do you have the 5 “core” subjects?
Are you presenting 4 at A2 or “only” 3?</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 That’s more than comprehensive and useful…thank you!</p>
<p>However, despite that my school is doing the British system, they do internal exams, so there is an official ‘transcript’ in local terms (ie really bad grades). The official British exams will only be submitted as an extra component of the whole school package, along with recommendations as such. Therefore, the emphasis will still be on the transcript instead of the external exams. Do you think I should be fighting for GCSE/GCE in lieu of transcripts?</p>
<p>I thought the whole certificate would include all subjects, so why say 5 core subjects for GCSE and 3 for AL? (just to clarify, there’s only one AL, the ones i said were AS. I’m not qualified to do AL yet) FYI, GCSE A*s include (listing some) English as First Language, Maths, RS, Phy, Chem, Bio</p>
<p>That’s because you MUST have English and Math at GCSE level + science, foreign language, social science in order to fulfill American requirements 
It’d probably be best if among the other GCSE choices you didn’t have all 'Business Studies" and such. I can see you have 5 core classes but 3 of them are science - do you have a foreign language, art, history… ?
Most US colleges will take your GCSE transcripts as well as AS Level transcripts
You can email each college and ask “Do you need the intermediate mock results for GCSE and GCE/A-Levels, or are the actual GCSE results, along with official AS results and predicted GCE/ALevel results sufficient for your evaluation?”
Then you can show the answer to your guidance counselor and have your school conform to what the colleges want. Typically they only want the actual results certifying the equivalent of HS achievement (GCSE) + each ALevel tends to be considered like 2 AP classes.</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 That’s a wonderful idea!!! But what if I’m applying for ED, then I don’t actually have a AL predicted results, which means I will only have GCSE and GCE AS level official. (I’m doing 3 ALs and 1 AS now) That wouldn’t be too sufficient, will it? I have French for IGCSE (got A), as well as English as First Language (that’s a rigorous course, will it be counted as art?), Business Studies, Economics in GCSE.</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d attend a highly ranked community college, get straight A’s, and apply to Stanford with those test scores, college grades, and those ECs you have.</p>
<p>But that’s only me.</p>
<p>@alafae I second what a previous poster said about Ohio Wesleyan. You should definitely apply there ED, it’s a decent school and you’d do very well there. I think it could definitely help you soar to better things :)</p>
<p>@solostish @lbad96 I have back up schools in my place, and here, my scores can get me into the top local 2 universities. I just feel like I should try my best to get into better schools so not to waste the money going to foreign countries, but ya I’ll see about Ohio Wesleyan!</p>
<p>Ohio Wesleyan is an excellent, although quite small, and very personally-focused LAC. I have know many alums, and they were all bright, effective and honorable individuals. Further, it’s really a college – not a university – and one that has considerably tougher academic standards to graduate than to be admitted. </p>
<p>Alafae: close this thread please. You don’t have a 2.0. With 8 A*/A at GCSE and ALevels at A/B (which in the US would be A/A-), you’d have a 4.0. You will NOT be getting useful advice with the wrong title. Close this thread and open a new one. :)</p>
<p>Although schools like Wooster or Ohio Wesleyan are known for dedicated, driven students interested in research.</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 OP admitted she is close to the bottom of her class or is at least in the bottom 50%. It’s not a 4.0. </p>