Book or website on US applications?

[JumperandJacket]

DS (currently Y11) is considering applying to a IS university.

I don’t really understand the system. His school has a teacher who advises on US applications and of course we will speak to her. Before we do so, however, I’m really keen to get my head round the basics.

Can anyone recommend a book or website that sets it all out for the complete beginner?

That should be US university. An IS university is something else completely!

I'm a US expat. I'd advise posting on one of the US expat mums groups on facebook (easy to find), as there are quite a few US university consultants who actively post in those groups, based in the UK that could help walk you through it.

As for a website, have you and your DS checked out: www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities (which will rank universities and give an idea of their feel), then www.collegeboard.org/ regarding the SAT test he will need to take (and prep to help him). www.commonapp.org/. is also useful if he decides to use a university that uses it.

I am happy to help too if you want absolute pure basics - drop me a PM. However, US Universities are very very competitive these days and have a tutor/paid consultant may be the best route (both to help find the best university, and one most likely to be accepted at dependent on grades and test scores and personal statement).

College confidential is a bit like the US equivalent of the student room, but bigger and with a lot more parents on it.

www.collegeconfidential.com/regular-decision-2022/

It has loads of articles about admissions.

There is no one system of application, while there is a 'common app' not all colleges use it.

It is a very very different system to the UK and translating can be tricky. Why does he want to go to the US rather than UK? What benefits are there for him in doing that? If you have some specific questions I can maybe help. I am in the US with one at American University and one at British University

Do an advanced search on this board as well. Its the sort of topic that comes up every 3-4 months, with plenty of good advice.

The normal starting point is the Fulbright website. You might try The Student Room which, amongst the tumbleweed, may give you useful guidance from a UK perspective.

Does the school have much of a track record on US applications? Given they have a teacher who advises, I assume they do. If not, though a bit late, it is worth considering a switch to a school that does. If so I probably would not bother with a consultant. Some will be good but the word on the London US mom grapevine (DD did lots of extra-curricular so we came across plenty of kids boosting their extra-curricular) was that some were very poor and super expensive.

Choice of A levels is important as tests for liberal arts colleges will cover maths as well as essays. (Some we know kept up maths on the side, tailored for college entrance, rather than risk a dodgy grade at A level.) I would request an early appointment with the specialist teacher.

Fulbright is a good starting point. However you need a “needs blind” uni if you are not able to pay the very high fees. These are often multiples of what they are here. You probably won’t qualify for financial help if you are not a USA citizen. You need very very deep pockets. However if DC gets a scholarship that needs blind, it’s very different. They also need to be very bright to get one.,

The majority of people that we know who have gone are either very rich or get a sports scholarship. DDs fees where she got a place were $20,000 per semester for 4 years. Plus living costs. DC also needs to work out if it’s worth it. Obviously MIT or Harvard are different to some unheard of uni in Wisconsin. Our universities are still great value for money! And some have links with USA universities fid a year abroad. Don’t rule that out. Or for post grad study where it’s easier to go.

Thank you very much, everyone- I will have a look at the resources and probably return with questions once I've got my head around things a bit more.

DS wants to study maths and we won't be eligible for any sort of financial aid.

Thrre is a MN assumption that people whose kids go to the US without financial aid are very rich indeed. Our observation is that people are well off, but many start saving into the college fund very early, in the same way that parents actually living in the US will do. The same also to apply to Asians who aim to send DC abroad to the UK or US. Its not that people are stinking rich, but that they prioritise education and expect to pay for it.

For example one American mum, married to a Brit, really wanted her DS to have an American college experience and, effectively, to experience a key part of an American cultural experience. The college fund was budgeted for years in advance. Americans expect to pay for education (and health care) in a way that Europeans don't.

Maths can be the exception to the extracurricular rule. Or at least for those right at the top end and in IMO territory. But from observation very gifted mathematicians are starting to get invites to maths camps etc which give them a chance to know what is on offer both in the UK and US. Top US Universities offer maths and other summer camps which may be worth a look. Several we knew who were aiming for the US, did them. A chance for a taster of what college might be like.

People save if they think they might go. However many have no idea until DC mention it in y12! Of course people from the USA budget but there are few of them in most schools. We don’t know anyone who remotely needed to save for years. As DC us y11 it now seems impossible to save.

So DC needs to ask: what advantage is this going to give me? Could I study in the USA post degree or could it be part of a year abroad? Is it really better then Cambridge or Imperial which are so much cheaper?

If he is likely to apply to a needs blind uni (mostly Ivy League) then it’s worth considering. If he might get a scholarship else where it might be worth considering. If you have to pay full fees, I cannot see the advantage. Can you pay?

There might not be many Americans in a school, but they will make up a large proportion of those applying to US Universities. Third country nationals will make up a good proportion of the rest. It is only recently that Brits have really started to consider the US as an alternative to thd UK, and even so, outside London private schools and a few boarding schools, numbers are limited.

For OP, there is a bit of a divide, even amongst those inclined to look at the US, between those thinking of STEM and those thinking of Liberal Arts. Because of the specialised nature of British education, quite a lot of the STEM ones stay on in the UK and do a three year degree at Cambridge or Imperial or similar and then head for the US for PG a year younger than their contemporaries, and having saved a lot of money, but with just as good techhnical skills. Liberal Arts, and indeed broader education, are different, and where the US has an edge.