With the thousands of universities to choose from, one might find it challenging to come to a decision. What if I am rushing this decision? What if there is a university with better opportunities? These are just some thoughts running through the mind of an average student.

And they’re not at fault because there is always going to be a better college in many aspects. However, not all of them will prove to be the right ones for you, and the reasons might alternate between the distance, fees, and other related reasons. 

When making the list of the colleges you would like to apply to, you should consider your GPA and SAT/ACT scores. While these aren’t the most important pieces of the puzzle, as there are many other factors that admission officials consider, they still have a high impact on your admission chances.

As much as you would want to get into a particular university, if you’re not eligible to apply because you don’t fulfill their requirements, you wouldn’t need to add that university to your list.  

With that being said, take a look at their acceptance rate, grade and standardized test scores requirements, and tuition fees. 

Your college list should be a mix of reach, target, and safety schools, respectively, the colleges you have a low chance of getting in, the colleges you have a pretty good shot, and colleges that you are almost sure you can get in.

So, your college list should contain 8 to 10 schools. However, if you believe that you’re applying to highly competitive colleges, it would be better to increase the number of colleges to 12. 

This step mostly depends on where the students are coming from. Usually, evaluating transcripts is required of international students. Admission counselors require this official report so that they can determine whether a degree or other credentials earned in a foreign country meet their enrollment standards. 

However, if you want to make sure of this, you can always contact the admission office of a particular university and get an official answer from them.  

Letters of recommendation are the additional documents that help round out a student’s profile. These letters provide insights for the admission counselors as to who you are through the lens of someone other than you.

Usually, those who are expected to write recommendation letters for you have worked closely with you during your educational journey and can recommend an individual’s academic performance, i.e., your teachers, your principal, or your counselors. 

Every university lists the requirements the students must meet in order to get enrolled in their programs. The list might start with the high school diploma, a particular GPS, extracurriculars, and others.

One of the requirements is also the language requirement. This requirement applies to international students whose first language is other than the English language. Usually, this is handled through a standardized test like IELTS or TOEFL. Either way, you have to make sure that you are/aren’t required to prove your English language proficiency.

Now that you got your list of colleges ready, you can start applying to them. However, we mentioned how universities make their admission decisions by considering your academic record as well as the scores you got on different standardized tests like TOEFL, ACT, SAT, GRE, or GMAT. 

This application form is sent to you by the admissions office, or you can find it online on their website. Its fee is non-refundable and ranges from $35 to $100. Once you’ve attached your supporting documents like, transcript, standardized tests scores, and any other documents that the university might require of you, you’re ready to hit submit.  

When thinking of applying for college, many students consider their financial situation as most likely they’ll have to pay for college from their own family pockets. However, for those who can’t afford to pay for college, there is still hope as there are other ways they can pay for it, through financial aid and scholarships offered by the universities.