<p>Since I've been rejected and most likely will be rejected again, since I don't want to go to my boring safety, I'm thinking of taking a year off to study in Paris or London, or perhaps go to college there for a year. I can't go to a community college. I'm too good for that. I worked too hard for that. My profile is a mismatch with any community college or safety school. </p>
<p>Could anyone help me with selecting study programs in Paris or London?? </p>
<p>Life isn't even funny.</p>
<p>Firstly, the UK universities work on the basis of A levels. This is what I hear from another forum I frequent (a UK students' forum, which deals largely with universities and a lot of miscellaneous stuff), but apparently UK universities would prefer you to have taken at least a few APs to be somewhat on par with A levels, or to take a foundation year or do A levels there. This is not so bad when you realise that a Bachelor's course in the UK is normally 3 years, versus the 4 years in the US.</p>
<p>If you're looking for a London university, it would be best to find out a bit more about the different colleges, since while they may offer the same course the course may vary quite differently. For example, Imperial, UCL, and Queen Mary, and a couple other colleges of the University of London offer Medicine, but the courses are individually all different, and the difficulty of getting into the course varies from college to college. Also different schools offer different courses; Imperial is science focused, for example, while LSE is focused on the arts.</p>
<p>You may find this site helpful... <a href="http://www.ucas.ac.uk%5B/url%5D">http://www.ucas.ac.uk</a>
They are the official admissions website to universities in the UK.</p>
<p>(You may be glad to know that the applications process in the UK for most courses to most schools, excepting Oxbridge, is infinitely easier and cheaper than the applications process in the US - you need a total of one personal statement for 6 schools, for 15 pounds. =))</p>
<p>All the best, wherever you choose to go to.</p>
<p>Their educational system is more similar to that in the United States. And then perhaps any course work done in your gap year would more easily transfer to an institution in the US.</p>
<p>Thought I'd mention that the application process to Scottish universities is the same process as that used to apply to any UK university - through UCAS.</p>
<p>One advantage of Scotland over London that you may want to keep in mind is that the cost of living in Scotland, and of attending university in Scotland, is far cheaper than in London. As a reference, Imperial College London's tuition fees per year for internationals is currently in the area of 15,000 pounds a year (not sure about Scottish universities, sorry =|... but Cambridge's is around 12,000 pounds a year for lab-based subjects), and you'll need around 9,000 pounds for living expenses I think (6,000 pounds for Cambridge, and I think Scottish universities should be around 6,000 pounds too).</p>
<p>Another point of note is that with UK universities:
1. You get a very structured education. Most of what you study in your undergraduate years will be concentrated on your degree, and you normally do very few courses outside of your field of study.
2. It is virtually impossible to double-major, or to take a minor.</p>
<p>(Sorry thought I'd just point that out... I applied to both English and Scottish universities through UCAS last year for admission 2006.)</p>
<p>This is incredibly hard. I don't know where I should apply...Is it too late to apply?? I can't even navigate through UCAS website...Help help help psyche13 and other folks. THANKS</p>
<p>Sorry about forgetting all these tiny details, I kinda applied through UCAS in October last year so that was quite a long time ago!</p>
<p>I think first off, the applications cycle for entry this year is more or less closed - the cut off was 15 Jan I think. I'm not sure if you can still apply - try emailing UCAS to check. However keep in mind that most UK universities carry out their decisions on something like "rolling admissions" (with the exception of Oxbridge and maybe some other schools), so by now most places may have been filled.</p>
<p>The second thing with UCAS, is that UCAS has a direct arrangement with most schools. When I applied, I was asked to enter a "buzzcode" (?) for my school, which linked up my application with my teacher's login so that she could submit her recommendation for me directly to UCAS. UCAS basically works such that you complete your application, and then "send to referee", i.e. submit your application. Your referee (teacher) looks over your application to make sure that you filled it out more or less correctly, adds his/her reference, and then submits it for you.</p>
<p>I think in this case, it would be more worth it checking directly with your school if they have any such arrangement with UCAS... if not, I believe it is simply a matter of getting your guidance counselor to set up an account of sorts with UCAS.</p>
<p>Without A levels, I think you should check directly with the UK (London?) universities that you're interested in, to find out if they're willing to accept your qualifications for the courses you're interested in.</p>
<p>Oh and lastly... One major difference in admissions is that whereas for US universities you're generally admitted to a particular school/college within the university, and allowed you choose your major later, for UK you'll need to choose your degree right from the start and apply for it directly in UCAS.</p>
<p>I think you should check with your guidance counselor and ask for any particular things you should look out for if you're applying to a university in the UK - he/she would know better than me specifically what you would need to do!</p>
<p>I can't go to a community college. I'm too good for that. I worked too hard for that. My profile is a mismatch with any community college or safety school. </p>
<p>Wow. A bit cocky, aren't we?</p>
<p>Four years of hark work flamed the cockiness in me.</p>
<p>Okay, well I work for a study abroad organization (AFS) and am applying to La Sorbonne in Paris.</p>
<p>You kind of missed the boat for most reputable schools in Europe in terms of applying, but you can always go on sabbatical or simply take a year off and reapply the next year.</p>
<p>Some options for you:</p>
<p>Paris- American University of Paris, the Sorbonne system (IV, I, III, etc)</p>
<p>London- King's, UCL, LSE, etc. etc.</p>
<p>Drew00, I completely understand the OP's frustration. This year has been EXCEEDINGLY tough for high school seniors all across the country (myself included).</p>
<p>If you want to talk about going abroad (I lived abroad) or studying abroad, PM me or talk to me on AIM.</p>