How to decide which college to Attend

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Selecting a school you want to attend can be a very daunting task, especially if several schools have offered you admission offers. Below are a few factors you could consider as you settle on a school that is best for you.

1. Financial aid offer

As an African Student, studying in the US may be expensive. The financial aid award a school extends to you is therefore very paramount. It is advisable to settle for the school that offers full aid. Selecting a school that will prove to be a financial burden to your family is not a great choice to make. Moreover, try as much as possible to avoid a school that gives you loans to cover your tuition fees. If at all it is important that you take up the financial aid offer that has a loan included, then pay keen attention to things like the interest rates when you are in college and after college. Because your education is an investment, you could also evaluate the Return On Investment and decide whether accepting the loan is the best option for you.

2. Major Specific Ranking

If you have already decided on the major you want to pursue, it is important to consider a school’s major specific ranking before selecting it. Major specific ranking is always based on the professors, research opportunities, academic resources  and even the amount of funding allocated to a specific major. Selecting a school that is known for the major you want to attend presents you with more opportunities after college because you will get the best knowledge and skills in that particular major

3. Extra-curricular activities

Extra-curricular activities greatly influence one’s social life in college. If you are the type of student that is heavy on the activities you take part in,then it is important to heavily consider this before making a choice. Choose a school that will give you a platform to exploit your full potential in whatever you are interested in or gifted in.For instance, if you have a penchant for playing instruments, then choose a school that has a well-known orchestra. An orchestra that will give you a chance to grow your talent and make it meaningful.

4. Semester Organization and curriculum

A school’s semester organization is an important factor to consider when selecting a school. Some schools operate on the fall and spring semester system while others operate on a quartet system. Somehow, the system you select has a direct effect on your study habits, and sometimes even your social life. Therefore, you should know the kind of person you are, what works best for you and the type of system you would thrive in best.

 

Depending on your goal, a school’s curriculum may be good or bad for you. While some schools have an open curriculum that gives students an opportunity to select the courses they want to take, others have restrictions. Look at this factor well and know what you actually want.

5. Community

This is another important factor a student should consider before selecting a school. As an African student, you will realize that more often than not, you will predominantly be a minority. It is important to select a school that has a community which embraces diversity and does not make you feel odd. Beware of the place where you are going, and choose a place with your people. A place where you will encounter minimal to zero discrimination. Your mental and emotional well being greatly contribute to your academic success.

6. Location and prices of things outside campus

A school’s location will determine the weather you will experience, your social life and the living standards. For instance, schools in the North Eastern side have harsh winters, and you will have to brace yourself for that in the event that you settle for that which is located there. Most schools with international students are in the North Eastern. Schools on the West Coast have fewer international students, and you may feel a little bit lonely if you are the type of person that enjoys being around people of your kind.

It is a popular opinion that cities have more expensive lives compared to rural areas. That also applies to universities. Schools in the rural and suburbs have slightly lower living expenses compared to schools in the hearts of cities. Therefore, depending on your financial capabilities, you can choose one that is located in a place you can live without having to worry about finances.

How to prep for college applications as a high schooler

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As a high school student who is interested in studying from the US, it is very difficult to know where you should start from. It is also not easy for one to know what they are expected to do in high school in preparation for college applications. Below are a few tips that will help you get ready for college applications right from high school!

  1. Maintaining good grades throughout high school- grades are an important aspect of your application. It is therefore paramount that you strive to maintain good grades all the way- right from your first year in high school. If your grades took a nosedive at some point, it is important that you start working on them so that they can go up, and maintain them at the top.
  2. Extra-curricular activities- participate in activities you are passionate about. This way, you will be able to build a stellar activities profile that will make your application outstanding. If you are interested in a particular area of study, have activities that show involvement and passion in a field. That way, you will not just tell, you will also show.
  3. Leadership positions- while in high school, be sure to take up some leadership opportunities in clubs and initiatives. This will demonstrate leadership qualities- a needed aspect in applications. Moreover, it will show investment and involvement in particular activities.
  4. Passion projects- these are basically activities you can take part in outside school, during holidays especially. For instance, you can volunteer as a tutor or an assistant in a hospital. Even as you choose a passion project, ensure that it is impactful.
  5. Community service- giving back to your community and society should be clearly seen in your applications. You could volunteer as a paramedic, a caregiver at a children’s home and so on. The schools want to see the profound positive impact you have had in your community.
  6. Have good relationships with your teachers- this may not make a lot of sense when you are in high school, but once you start your applications, this will resonate with you so much. A good relationship with your teachers will come in handy when you need letters of recommendation. A good relationship with a teacher means they know you well, and they will therefore write you elaborate and detailed letters of recommendation.
  7. Research on the internet- if you are a beginner who does not have a clue on what the whole US application process entails, then your first step should be researching on the internet. Look up college youtubers and learn more about the college application process. That way, you will be well informed of what is expected of you before you delve into the process. Look at university websites and learn more about schools. Google has a million and one answers to all your college application questions. You could even go ahead and email college youtubers asking them questions and seeking clarity where there is ambiguity. Doing this while in high school will make the whole process a smooth sail for you.
  8. Open a gmail and LinkedIn account- when I talk about a gmail account, I am talking about a gmail account that is official and respectable. It could have your names and a number if one with your names is taken. You don’t want to email schools asking questions with very unofficial emails. A linkedIn account is important because you will be able to connect with people in a more professional way over this platform. You can connect with current students in the universities and even Admissions Officers. Connecting with them means you can even have conversations with them asking questions about specific aspects of the college application process.

Introduction to SAT

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What is the SAT exam?

SAT is an acronym that stands for Scholastic Assessment Test. This is an exam administered by College Board in the multiple-choice format that is aimed at testing a student’s readiness for college.  There is no eligibility criteria for the SAT exam. As long as you are able to open a College Board account, then you are eligible for the test.

How many times can I take the SAT exam?

  1. A student is allowed to take the test multiple times. This means that if you take the test and you are not happy with what you have scored, then you can keep studying for the SAT and take it at a later date. The SAT is administered around seven times in a year, so you can always retake the test. It is important to get adequate time to prepare for the SAT exam so that you can do well in it.

Which countries accept the SAT test?

Universities and colleges in the US accept the SAT exam. Some schools in Canada, UK and a few in Australia also accept this type of standardized test. During Covid-19 most schools implemented the test optional policy where students were not required to submit the SAT scores as part of their applications. However, those who wanted to submit the scores were still allowed. Students could therefore apply to universities abroad and get accepted without having to take the SAT exam! However, some schools are reverting back to the SAT as one of the requirements for application, and this means that if you were planning not to prep for SAT, then you better start doing that, because you don’t many schools will get rid of the test-optional policy.

What should I expect in the SAT exam?

The SAT exam has always been a paper-pencil exam, and it was only very recent when they changed it to the new digital format. The SAT has two major parts: Reading and writing section and the mathematics section. The reading section is marked out of 800 and the mathematics section too. Therefore, this means that a perfect SAT score is a 1600. The lowest that a student can score in each section is a 200.

This Digital SAT has two sections and four modules: two English modules and two math modules. Each module in English has 27 questions and should be finished in 32 minutes. On the other hand, each mathematics module has 22 questions and should be finished in 35 minutes. Essentially, a student has to complete an English section question in 71 seconds and a mathematics section in 95 minutes. That way, you will be able to finish the exam in the stipulated time which is 2 hrs 14 minutes.

This Digital is adaptive in the sense that the questions are appropriate to a student’s performance level. This means that you can get entirely different questions from your friend in each of the two modules. How well you do in the first module will determine the kind of questions you will get in your second module. If you do well in your first module, questions in module two will be harder. However, if you do poorly in module one, questions in module two will be easier. 

Students are penalized more on easier questions. For instance if we have two students with the same number of right answers in both modules of the English section, one student may end up scoring highly that the other. The one who scored highly would be because they had many right answers in module one as compared to module 2.

The major difference between the analog and digital SAT is that the reading and writing section is combined to one section, unlike in the analog SAT where the two sections were separate. Moreover, the long passages in the analog SAT are now shortened to short isolated paragraphs or sentences.  In the mathematics section, a student is allowed to use a calculator all through, unlike the analog SAT where there was a calculator-specific section!

How do I register and what next after registration?

You can register for the SAT exam on the College Board website. There is a fee of $60 that is to be paid on the College Board website. There are guidelines to be followed in case you want to change your testing center or cancel taking the test altogether. After that, you ought to start preparing for the test. Start by taking the official practice on Khan Academy and full length tests on Bluebook.

After taking the SAT exam, results will be available on the College Board 13-14 days after taking the test.

Prepping for US Visa Interview

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Below is a list of documents that you need for the US college application process. Each document is followed with a brief explanation.

Normally, interviews make people very nervous. Sometimes this nervousness makes you fail in the interviews. You have applied to a school and you have been accepted. The last thing you want is a visa rejection, especially not after going through the whole college application hassle. For context, I will explain what a visa is, and particularly an F1 student visa. A visa is an official document that allows the bearer to legally enter foreign country. The visa affords the bearer different rights and it is often embedded on your passport.

The F1 student visa is a non-immigrant type of visa that allows a student to study at an accredited US college or university or learn English at an English Language Institute. This type of visa allows a student to stay in the US during their period of study and come back home when their study period is over.

Below are a few tips that will help you prepare for your F1 student visa.

Collecting all the necessary documents
  1. A valid passport– this passport should be valid 6 months after your arrival in the US. If by the time you are going for the interview your passport will not fall within this range, then you should renew it as soon as you can. 
  2. Passport photographs that meet the dimensions required. These dimensions can be checked on the US Embassy website.
  3. Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status popularly known as the I-20 form. It should be filled and signed.
  4. A SEVIS payment confirmation receipt
  5. Printed copy of DS-160 form confirmation page
  6. Proof of finances– this is a very important document required. If you are self-sponsored, you should carry along bank statements as your proof of funding. If you are sponsored by an organization, then you should also have proof for the same. If you are on financial aid, you should have your financial aid award letter.

NOTE THAT:

All the Mention Documents are important in adding a successful Application 

What to expect during the interview

The questions asked change from one person to the other. There is no fixed set of questions that every person is asked. However, some of the questions you should anticipate include those about your major, school you are attending, source of funding, post graduate plans among others. Give honest answers to these questions and be confident even as you do that. You don’t want to lie to a whole US Embassy!

There are a lot of websites that have samples of questions you may be asked. You could look them up on the internet and thoroughly practice them. Again, they may not be the same questions, so be prepared

What you should wear

An interview is formal and you are not expected to show up in informal clothes such as those ones that expose your body. A good choice for such an occasion would be business casual. As much as it is formal, you also don’t want to overdo it by arriving at the interview in a tuxedo. Try as much as you can to wear something decent, presentable and comfortable.

Keeping time

There are thousands and thousands of people going for the interviews. It is therefore very important that you get there on time, at least thirty minutes before the interview. If you miss your appointment by a large gap of time, it will be canceled and you will have to reapply for another interview, and this will mean that you will have to make the payments afresh. Arriving on time will save you a lot of stress and expenses.

Lastly, you do not need moral support from your family or friends so show up for the interview alone. Moreover, you should not carry a lot of gadgets because they will not be needed.

Remember, be polite, calm, honest and prepared. All will be well!

All the documents you need for US college application

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Below is a list of documents that you need for the US college application process. Each document is followed with a brief explanation.
  1. An official high school transcript– this is a document that shows one’s grades throughout high school. Because it is an official document, it should be stamped, signed by a school official, for instance the dean of studies or principal, and it should have the school’s letterhead. It is important to remember that this document is submitted by your school guidance counselor on the recommender section of the common app.
  2. Senior high school leaving examination result slip– if you have completed high school, it is important to submit an official copy of your senior high school leaving examination.
  3. A high school leaving certificate– this is an official document that highlights the extra curricular activities a student took part in together with his or her conduct. This document is not required for submission by most schools and it is optional to submit it.
  4. National Identity Card– this is important when you are going to take any standardized test because it is used as a form of identification. If you do not have one, you can use a passport, and if you lack both, there is a form provided by the college board that you can fill.
  5. Letters of recommendation– the number required mostly ranges from two to four. It is important to have at least three letters of recommendation with one being from a school counselor. If you do not have a school counselor, you can use a class teacher or any other teacher. It is advisable to have at least one recommendation from a sciences teacher and another from a humanities teacher.
  6. Financial documents: tax returns– if you and/or your parents file taxes, it is important to have these documents ready, as they may be required to determine your financial aid award if you are accepted into a school. Tax returns are often provided by the official revenue authority in a country. In cases where the tax returns are nil, then you will be asked by your school to submit a non-tax filer statement. This will be used to determine your financial aid award in place of tax returns.
  7. Financial documents: bank statements– these are important financial documents required to determine a student’s financial aid award. You should ask your parents in advance to collect these bank statements for you. If they do not transact over banks, then they can request for statements from the mobile electronic money transfer services they use.
  8. Financial documents: statement from employer– in cases where your parents do not have bank statements or tax returns, then your school may or may not request you to submit a statement from your parents employer. In an event where you are asked to submit such a document, ask your parents to request his or her employer to write and sign the statement for submission.
  9. Financial documents: support letter– this document is often required on very rare occasions. In cases where a student is required to have their non-custodial parent submit a CSS profile and they are not in touch with their non-custodial parent, a student can request to fill a non-custodial parent CSS profile waiver form. When submitting, this form should be accompanied with a support letter from a teacher, family doctor or clergy member who can verify that everything said in the form is true. You should preferably find someone who is very familiar with your family situation to write you a support letter.
  10. Passport– this is an important travel document required to study from the US. it will not only serve as a form of identification, but it will also be required when applying for your student visa. It is therefore important to apply for your passport as early as possible and have it ready when it is needed. If you have a passport that is about to expire, then you should renew it so that it is valid during your entire period of studies.

NOTE THAT:

All the Mention Documents are important in adding a successful Application 

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