So youve finally made your decision to take that giant leap and study here in the U.S. You have your list of college prospects on one hand, your TOEFL scores and transcripts on the otheror none of those at hand and instead, a giant question mark hanging over your head. Where do you go next? Here are some behind-the-scenes tips and advice from a self-proclaimed international admissions specialist (editors note: this is not an official title, the author simply assumed that international student + admissions office receptionist = international admissions specialist)
Dont Be Fooled!
Being an international student, one thing needs to be understood straight off the bat: your resources are limited. Taking campus tours, doing admissions interviews, or even talking to current students are more difficult for a student abroad, as they have limited face-to-face downtime. Usually, college websites are designed to promote their university, especially to attract international students like you and me. Make sure the website is not your only basis for applying to that college. Talk to students you know who are currently enrolled in your university of choice, make that long-distance phone call to the admissions office (because usually, like in my case, the one answering the phones will be a student), try talking to the universitys international admissions counselor, or make use of resources like goSwoop to access more information. Some questions youll want to keep in mind: How much does this university embrace diversity? Is there an extensive enough English program for ESL students? What kind of financial aid packages are offered to international students? How many international students are currently enrolled and from how many countries? As cheesy as these questions may seem, they will definitely give you a more comprehensive view of the campus life you will soon be adjusting to.
Apply Early Decision (or early enough!)
Try applying online or early decision in order to ensure that your application does not get lost or delayed in the mail and will get to your universitys admissions office in time. However, keep in mind that most documents (such as teacher evaluations and transcripts) will have to be sent via airmail, so utilize enough time for postmarking. Also, applying earlier will give you leeway to retake TOEFL or SAT exams and more time to send your new and improved scores. Late applications, transcripts, or scores will not be appreciated by the counselor reviewing your applicationso keep checking in with the admissions office until your file is complete. So if the deadline is on December 15th, try to shoot for as early as September!
Repeat after me: The TOEFLs are not your life
One common misconception of the admissions process is that the standardized test scores are the main defining factor of your application. Contrary to popular belief, the SATs and TOEFL scores are more of a make-or-break factor in determining the difference between similar applications. Focus more on your course load for senior year of high school (rack up on those AP and IB courses), your extracurricular activities, your recommendation letters, and your college essay, as those will explain more to the admissions counselor what kind of student you are as opposed to the extent that any array of scores will. Also, for international students, these scores are usually more of a placement factor on your English proficiency, so dont stress too much on them! Think of it this way: an admissions counselor would rather appreciate a well-rounded application rather than a lackluster one (because you spent too much of your senior year taking a million SAT preps instead of doing the things you actually like to do!).
On that note Make sure they know who you are.
The college essay and short answer portions are your prime opportunity to let these admissions counselors know who you are, what makes you unique, and why you deserve to be part of X Universitys class of 2012. It is also an opportunity for them to pick and tear your application apart like the vultures they are! So give them something that they wouldnt call generic or cliché, as one main point of recruiting international students from the side of a university professional is to increase diversity and the multicultural aspect of the school. In my opinion, being an international applicant gives you an advantage of having a distinct edge over all the other applicants, but also gives you the drawback of being faced with higher expectations. Make use of that opportunity to show how unique you are, but dont make being an international student the defining factor about yourself (as that is another cliché move). For instance, I know one application essay a friend of mine wrote that started off stating in how her senior class photo in her international school looked like a Bennetton ad; yet despite the immense cultural diversity, many of her classmates were completely unaware of the horrible socioeconomic disparities that were evident right outside their windows. She wrote about how coming to the United States will not only give her the opportunity to hopefully help reduce those inequalities in her countrys future, but also help rid the stereotypes of international students coming to the United States to escape from the chaos and poverty at home. And of course, those admissions vultures loved it!
