Virgin to College Searching, Need Help Getting Started

College Search & Selection
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<p>Hello! (: The title says it all but a bit of background- as my username says I really am a slacker and I'm not even sure how I got to this website but I quite like it, so decided to give it a shot and throw all my questions here. Please help! </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Loads of websites with university discussions, rankings, etc. Where do you start? Do you go through pages and pages of forums to finally find what you want? Is there a guide to this? (Or you HAVE to do it the hard way?)</p></li>
<li><p>Rankings for schools. I mean, of course schools like Harvard and Cambridge are good, they're universally acclaimed, make you pay a hefty sum, long history etc. But what about when you're looking for a specific school? Like I heard UC Berkeley is good for linguistics. Is there other ways (think word of mouth) to obtain rankings? (Apart from the obvious- reading forums)</p></li>
<li><p>How to find out more about universities? I mean, duh, they have websites but the official ones always try to sell themselves because that's what they're supposed to do. Like, what websites are good for university reviews (or is it forums again...) and not "Go to my school because it rocks!" (like where people will be truthful and actually advise you to not go to their school if it doesn't seem like what you're looking for).</p></li>
<li><p>How do you know the university is THE ONE? Just wondering. Was it after endless reading of forums or an actual visit to the place or just hearing about it from an older relative or something?</p></li>
<li><p>(a) I'm a student looking to go overseas- I live in Singapore (no, it's not part of China). Thinking of the UK/US because it's the most common but am I limiting my options too much?
Mostly want to experience what living overseas for 4 years will be like, preferably English speaking places, countries. Any comments, suggestions? </p></li>
</ol>

<p>(b) Any guides, more importantly ADVICE for overseas students? Stuff regarding visas and other troublesome administrative matters or like, JUST STAY PUT WHERE YOU ARE, DON'T WASTE YOUR PARENT'S MONEY AND BE SATISFIED WITH A LOCAL COLLEGE.</p>

<p>Okay, I can't think of any more questions at the moment! </p>

<p>Last points...
-Would appreciate any help at all, thank you! (I shall read every post)
-I would really prefer not to go through forums because they are... tedious and troublesome... but if I have to... <em>groans</em>
-Forgive me for the sexual and romantic references, excessive mentions of forums, excessive questions and what not. Hope I didn't offend anyone- if you were offended, sorry, wasn't my intention to do so! </p>

<p>Lastly, thank you! </p>

<p>And have a great day. (:</p>

2

<p>SAT score(with breakdown), GPA and estimated family contribution ? Preferred region in the US and price tag ?
Can you afford 50k a year ? That’s what Berkeley costs.</p>

3

<p>International students thinking about studying in the US should start by reading through everything (and yes, I do indeed mean everything) at <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Then they make an appointment with the counselors at the closest advising center. In your case that would be <a href=“https://www.educationusa.info/USEIC[/url]”>https://www.educationusa.info/USEIC&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>The counselors at EducationUSA are expert at helping students like you find good places to study in the US.</p>

<p>For institutions in the UK, start at [British</a> Council](<a href=“http://www.britishcouncil.org/]British”>http://www.britishcouncil.org/)</p>