3 Things to Consider When Applying to University Abroad
By: Cat Tatu
24/7Marketing Superstar
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Have you thought about applying to a university outside of the US? Well, there are a few important factors to consider when applying to a university that is outside of the U.S.
The Application
Number one, think about what type of application the college your applying to uses. While there are a number of international schools on the CommonApp, the majority of international universities will have a separate application from the U.S. ones.
Schools in the UK use an application called the UCAS, or the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. It’s a single application that you sign up for just as you would sign up for the CommonApp, where you choose five universities in the UK to apply to. The UCAS will function as the application for all five schools, and there are no supplemental essays or separate questions to fill out per university. That being said, your personal statement for the UCAS cannot be the same as your personal statement for the CommonApp. The UCAS website has a guide for writing your UCAS personal statement once you reach that section of the application, which helps you understand what the UCAS essay is being used to communicate. Certain universities in the UK are on the CommonApp, but if you are looking to apply to any of the big ones like Oxford or Cambridge, you need to use the UCAS. If you are applying to Cambridge or Oxford, you must complete a second application after the UCAS, which is the Cambridge or Oxford-specific application. Also, be prepared for any of the more prestigious colleges in the UK to ask you to participate in an interview before making an admission decision.
Schools in Spain use an application called the SNUDE, or the Spanish National University for Distance Education. To apply in Spain as a non-EU student, you must do a few extra steps to apply. You will need recognition from your high school to show that you have attained the necessary certification to fulfill the education requirements in Spain. This recognition can be obtained at the Spanish Embassy. The Embassy then will provide you with a Volante Accreditation which can be used to apply to your university of choice in Spain. You will also have to register for a Spanish University entrance exam, also known as the selectividad or the Pruebas de Acceso a la Universidad. You may then apply to the university.
Schools in France require a few pre-requesites for international students as well. First, you must pass the compulsory Preliminary Admission or as it’s called in France, the DAP(demande d’admission préable). You can apply for the DAP at the Culture and Cooperation Service of the French embassy in your country. Once you pass the DAP you can apply to whatever French university you want on the Etudes en France platform. Certain degrees, such as French art programs, have additional requirements to look into.
Schools in Germany have some of the harshest restrictions for international students. Like in Spain and France, there is a pre-requisite exam. Germany requires students to have a higher education entrance qualification or the HZB (Hochschulzugangsberechtigung). Foreign students with qualifications outside the EU may have to sit a university entrance examination in Germany to be considered for application. You may also have to attend a preparatory course or a Studienkolleg before sitting the exam. Even if you meet the admission requirements, there are other rules the German university system follows called the Numerus Clasus or the NC. Some degrees are more competitive than others (architecture, medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine) in Germany, so applicants must undergo a selection process based on the restrictions of the NC. You may not be admitted to a university based on these course restrictions, so if you’re determined to attend university in Germany its best to apply to multiple universities at once. You can apply to university through either a tool called Uni-assist, which is an external tool that helps you organize the resources you need to apply in Germany, or directly through to the school itself.
Schools in Australia, Japan, South Korea, and South Africa require you to apply directly to the university. There is no unified application, therefore, you must apply directly through the university.
Make sure you research the application requirements for your country of choice
thoroughly before applying.
Language Requirements
Number two, think about the language of instruction at the university. A simple google search will usually tell you what the language of instruction is at the university.
If the language of instruction isn’t English one of two things might be true, there may be certain degrees that are taught in English (though this is often reserved for masters programs), or one of the international admission requirements may be a language proficiency exam.
If you intend to attend the university in its native language,
then you will be required to take a language proficiency exam. Every university requires a language proficiency exam from its international students, but if you are applying to a university that’s language of instruction is English, you can bypass the exam.
International Students Tuition
Third, think about what the cost of the university is for international students. There will most likely be a different tuition for international students versus students coming from inside the country, therefore make sure when you look at the tuition you are looking for theone for international students. The
tuition for international students is almost always higher than that of national students
Applying to an international university is a completely different process and its important to be well-informed about what you need to do as far ahead of time as you can. For the countries that require external exams and language proficiency exams, you need to sign up for those tests as early as possible in order to make sure you get the results before the application deadlines. It’s important to be as well prepared as possible.
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