Hello my name is Stan let me describe to the forum my current education situation
I’m a US/French binational. I grew up until I was 9 in the us primary school system moved to France and still am there to this day. I’m the equivalent of Junior I think ( end of this year + next year in high school). I have always been in French schools in France. I am perfectly bilingual in French and English I go back to the US every year (2-3 times) I have pretty good grades in every scientific Discipline in France Pyschis/Chem + Bio/Natural sciences + Math. Perfect in English of course and am Taking a class were I do math in English and it will show up on my French High school diploma. I would like to know what should I do if I would like to go to an American collage: Is there some extra diploma I should do Tofel , SAT( might be a little hard I’m not familiar with the US high school program) … Should I take a prepetory class in France for a couple years, I would like to to do Chemisty in specific Organic Chem, and take an engineer diploma route . I would like to be in a School in California because that’s were I grew up and my dad pay’s taxes there ( he still lives there) I herd there was a financial aid if I went to a Cali school. Thank you for reading every thing any help would be awesome.
PS : I will be in South California this summer and will be able to visit schools in Draving distance
You can simply finish your French education and do the bac. Yes, for most American schools you will have to take the SATs, (or the ACTs) and perhaps TOEFL - each school will have its own specific requirements. If you decide to do a community college first, you will only have to do TOEFL, SATs aren’t required for community colleges. Since you’re targeting California, research schools there, and go on each university’s website. All the requirements are clearly spelled out.
I would also recommend you read very carefully the residency requirements for instate tuition in California. You may have to call schools to verify your status, since California has very stringent rules regarding residency.
Ask your mom AND dad (even if - especially if - they are divorced /remarried /pacs’ed) what their budget is and whether they’ll want you to earn a merit scholarship if their efc is too high.
I assume you’re doing S euro - are you attending a lycée international, regular lycée, something else ? What’s your moyenne générale and how does that typically translate for the bac at your school (ie., some schools are so stringent that a 6 average results in a ten for the bac, whereas at others 11-12 may result in a 10…)
I have a 13-14 moyenne General bac s euro and I passed a Cambridge English test last year
Regular Lycée
What activities do you do? Délégué, CVL, CA? Any sport (UNSS or club)? What’s your TPE about and how good is it?
Register for SAT Subjects (LV2, English Literature, and Chemistry or Biology) and the June ACT. Deadlines are May 5 and 6, so hurry. Order prep books to get ready for those and have a baseline score.
Sould I do the SAT ACT my junior year? My TPE subject is about aromatherapie (medicine with essential oils) it’s pretty good I surf in a club I did 2 interships 1 in a Webdesign communication company ( I have a resume about it in French ) and one in a University research center on Particle Physics ( I have a document that I did it but no resume ) I can do one this summer
Yes you should take those in June, then retake in september/october to meet ea /ed deadlines (nov 1st) and, if necessary, in December for rd deadlines (Jan 1-feb15).
Those are OK EC 's foe many universities and depending how good you are they could be excellent.
@Stan13Fr, my kids are pretty much in the same boat, Americans who grew up in France. My daughter is 20 and applied in the US and the UK. To our delight, we found that the French Lycee is highly respected in both countries. It makes you stand out, particularly in the US. She got into Cambridge and virtually all the other places she applied. Get an exercise book and study SAT or ACT, it is easy to study for them, particularly if you are accustomed to the French system. My son is now prepping for his applications.
I’ve found that French students typically do -5/-7 at first from what you would expect because they’re trained in different way than what standardized tests require. It takes a lot if repetition to figure it out, not for content - which is easy- but speed/accuracy with the format.
I guess if I take the Sat a couple Times i should be OK
And the total for international sudents is 80 dollars
Steep!!
Just signed up for the June SAT should I also sign up for the ACT or do this SAT an do SATs + ACT next year
You should sign up for SAT SUBJECT TESTS (French students typically do better on those so it’ll help you stand out a bit. As I said earlier: LV2 + Chemistry or Biology plus, if you feel up to it English Literature - DO NOT take French though and taking “only” two tests is perfectly ok.)
Then, sign up for the ACT. They’re on different dates.
Use Khan Academy to train - think of it like preparing for a marathon. 
If you practice with the Khan Academy programs and you like the SAT better, shift to SAT, but the advantage of the ACT in June is that it’s on a different date so you get to take Subject tests right after you finish your year learning the subject matter, as well as a baseline ACT.
You need to take the ACT in June too, and start preparing right now for it (Erica Melzer ACT English, Red book "Real ACT’s, Up your score/ACT…) Khan Academy is for the SAT but to get used to standardied testing it’s very well-done.
Which Cambridge English test did you take? You may prefer to take the IELTS instead of the TOEFL. The IELTS exam will be more like the other Cambridge exams, and most colleges and universities in the US will accept the IELTS.
You could also contact the EducationUSA office in Paris: https://educationusa.state.gov/centers/fulbright-paris You aren’t the only US citizen in your situation, and the people in that office should have some useful ideas for you.
Wishing you all the best!
Thanks for the help that was extremely useful and that motivated me for all these exam
I already signed up for the regular SAT I will do it and if I’m not comfortable do the subject test and will defentelty sign up for the ACT
Changed to the subject test SAT. I took chemistry and German LV2 and will sign up for the ACT.
Good job.
You should find these rather straightforward. Of course you need to prepare but it won’t be as strange as the act (or, worse, the sat) compared to what you’re used to.
One last thing for the ACT should I take writing