Hi everyone!
I’m a UK student so not that sure of how the system works- I have a 1500 in my SAT, 11A* at gcse and predicted AAA*A in a levels. Haven’t yet taken subject tests, but have decent extra curriculars (MUN, debating, athletics, volunteering). Should I retake my SAT? What are my chance at top colleges e.g. Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, UPenn etc?
Also, if I want to major at the Woodrow Wilson school, do I apply to Princeton undecided? Also, if anyone knows, could someone who taught me at GCSE for a subject I no longer take write my recommendation? Thanks everyone :)))
For the WW major at Princeton (as with most majors) you declare in year 2. Just make sure you have done the pre-reqs in year 1.
Congrats on the predicted 3 A*! Imo a 1500 won’t keep you out, but given that it’s something like a 1% admit rate for international students, and you will be compared to a bunch of other really strong UK students, a higher SAT wouldn’t hurt.
Any teacher can write you a rec, but a teacher from 2 years ago whose subject you dropped does lead to an obvious ‘why isn’t it from any of your current teachers?’ question.
Is your thinking to only go to the US if it’s a name brand, or do you really seriously want to go to the US (vs Oxbridge, which is what I’m guessing your school & family are expecting!)? IF you seriously want to go to the US you need to add in places where your odds are better
Yes, what are your motivations and potential goals and what can your family afford?
What are your A-Level subjects?
Yes, how much can you pay? $$ is a very important issue for any US college student, especially more so for international students. No college is worth paying 65K per year - even if it’s Ivy league, surprise! - unless you really can afford it.
Hi! Thank you- I think my school and family are expecting the US, my sister is actually going to Columbia next year so USA has always been the plan- I’ve always wanted to go to the USA especially because of the liberal arts aspect where I can take a variety of classes across different diciplines. When you say places were my odds are better, do you mean with my stats or just generally places with higher acceptance rates?
Higher acceptance rates. The colleges you list accept 5-9% of applicants- the majority of whom are perfectly well qualified. About 10-15% of the accepted cohort will be international students, so the math problem is obvious.
Except for the prestige factor (which is real, but not determinative), there are superb academic experiences available in a range of colleges and universities which might well turn out to be better places for you. If your sister is already admitted to Columbia, you (& your school) have some great experience to hand.
If you are already looking at WW, then a focus on schools that are strong in that area might make more sense than randomly going for name brands. Stanford, Harvard, Princeton are all super strong IR grad schools, and obviously very strong undergrad programs, but really different experiences… Other usual suspects for IR/PP include Tufts, William & Mary, Johns Hopkins and Georgetown School of Foreign Service (imo, SFS is the best undergrad IR program going for combination of academic rigor, diversity of student body, and serious access to the big guns in IR / PP). GW can be a good experience if you are somebody who can & will take advantage of the tremendous term-time internship opportunities.
Of course, sometimes things happen by luck. For example, Kori Schake (the new head of the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London), was an undergrad Classics major at Stanford when she took a class in IR to meet a distribution requirement. It was taught by a young, then-unknown, teacher named Condolezza Rice. Schake ended up changing majors, and when Rice went to DC to be Secretary of State she took Schake with her!
A level subjects are bio chem maths politics and taking an AS in Spanish- when I go to the us will focus more on the politics since this is what I’ve really enjoyed and maybe go to law school- thinking of maybe minoring in genetics or something similar
Hi- my sister got significant financial aid for her admission to the states this year- ended up being cheaper than UK! (Minus costs of flying etc of course)
No need to take the SAT.
Go for it. You’d have some pretty good unis in the UK that would be backup.
Fin aid for Internationals is generally tough to get but some do get them.
Here are IR rankings:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_the_Ivory_Tower