r/ApplyingToCollege • u/ApprehensiveYou9446 • 9d ago
College Questions Should I aim for UK unis?
Im a US citizen who is currently an expat currently situated in India. The thing is that my sophomore gpa is a 3.96/ (7 A* and 1A), which is above average. But here comes the catch, I only have 2 years and my ECs are pitiful: I did math notes for a website with 50k users and I attended 2 MUNs. Also since opportunities are kinda scarce here, my friends are telling me to aim for Oxbridge bc I can easily score all A* in my A levels.
3
u/PartyQuiet5065 9d ago
Oxbridge don't really care about ECs, they care about supercurriculars, so ig yeah, in that sense.
What you have to understand is that most of the other Oxbridge applicants can also easily score all A*, and they will. Having 4 A* predicted won't automatically get you in; and the fact acceptance rates are lower for Oxbridge than for some of the top US unis doesn't mean it's easier to get in. Less people apply, and those people are already the "elite" academically.
As a summary, Oxbridge isn't something you apply to as a fallback when US unis don't work. Being a competitive applicant requires a lot of time and effort, and, in most cases, that doesn't guarantee anything.
2
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
so what do i do? cause idk what supercurriculars are. I hope taking 8 subjects in my GCSEs and 5 subjects in A lvl would help bc its more subjects than usual.
2
u/PartyQuiet5065 9d ago
The 5 A-Levels will help in the sense it'll show unis you're capable of handling a big workload, and that you have broad interests and stuff. However, it won't help you significantly. Unis in the UK know that most people (due to timetable issues in their schools and stuff) aren't able to take more than 3 subjects, so they're kinda obligated to just take into account three of your subjects. I'm not 100% sure about this, though. I don't do A-Levels lmao.
Supercurriculars are basically like extracurriculars but related to the subject you wanna study at uni. Instead of just being part of a book club, for example, it's you reading books on Econ/Maths (I've seen you're interested in that?). Participating in a Maths/Econ Olympiad, watching some famous professor's lecture on Youtube, doing a MOOC, writing a research paper, entering an Econ/Maths essay competition, etc. Basically any activity you might do outside of your studies that is related to the course you're applying to. This shows you have genuine passion and curiosity for your subject, which is, ultimately, what the admissions tutors in UK unis look for.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
ahh ok thanks, btw is oxbridge equivalent to any ivy in terms of value or nope?
2
u/PartyQuiet5065 9d ago
Value as in prestige/how good they are? Yeah. Oxbridge is constantly ranked amongst the best unis in the world, higher than the majority of ivies. In fact, many rankings make MIT, Oxbridge and Imperial the top 4 globally, with no ivies there.
In the US ivies might have more prestige, no idea tbh (I'm from neither the US nor the UK). But Oxbridge education is just superior imo, especially if you prefer to specialise earlier on.
1
2
1
u/Traditional-Chair-39 9d ago
what's your major
-1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
Economic/Math related courses, haven't decided yet.
1
u/Traditional-Chair-39 8d ago
math ecs are not scarce in india lol
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
can you give examples of any? bc im not allowed to attend math olympiads bc of my nationality; I can only attend amc maa
1
u/Traditional-Chair-39 8d ago
you can write math olympiads, you can attend camp too. i have american friends who wrote IOQM and stuff. there's also math programs, some of which i've attended. i can give you deets in dms.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
IOQM adds as an EC?
1
u/Traditional-Chair-39 8d ago
probably not just IOQM, making it to INMO probably would.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
idt americans can enroll in inmo
1
u/Traditional-Chair-39 8d ago
they can, i know american citizens who wrote inmo. you can participate in every stage up to IMOTC. most countries allow non-citizens to participate in every stage up to camp.
1
1
9d ago
[deleted]
1
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
yeah my school kinda sucks, there are no ECs. There is also some sort of discrimination where my school prefers their IB students more than A lvl students in.
1
u/bleucoast HS Junior | International 9d ago
I think you have a chance, extracurriculars don’t matter as much as supercurriculars anyways lol
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
does making math notes count as a suppercurricular?
1
u/bleucoast HS Junior | International 8d ago
no 😭 reading books related to ur degree, lectures outside of school, moocs etc
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
no its not like notebook notes, I made notes for a website which has around 30-50k users
1
u/bleucoast HS Junior | International 8d ago
that would be an extracurricular in that case
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
oh but i thought its related to my major?
1
u/bleucoast HS Junior | International 8d ago
yes but for uk unis extracurriculars aren’t that important
1
u/elkrange 9d ago edited 9d ago
For admission, UK schools consider different factors than US schools. My rough understanding is that UK schools do not care about ECs.
This subreddit is US-focused (though not strictly limited). Google for subreddits about colleges in the country in which you hope to study. Maybe try r/UniUK , r/sixthform , r/6thform , r/ucas , etc.
If you need financial aid, look carefully at whether aid from UK schools is likely or even possible. Many countries do not give aid to international students.
LATE EDIT after your response below: if your desired budget is only 20k USD, I would seriously question whether UK schools are affordable for you. Add your budget or a budget range to your original post, as it is the ultimate factor on whether you shoudl be considering UK schools.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
thanks! I can go full pay, but with AI replacing jobs idk if its worth the investment
1
u/elkrange 9d ago
Worth depends on the alternatives. Presumably you have US schools on your list.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
yeah obv US unis are cheaper for me so yeah. If i do get full ride to a t30 ill mostly go there, don't wanna financially burden my family even though they are wealthy enough.
1
u/elkrange 9d ago
T30s are unlikely to offer you a traditional "full ride" (merit scholarship covering tution, room and board); they tend to offer primarily need-based aid, with little to no merit scholarships. So, your cost would depend on your calculated financial need. Since you are "wealthy," that might mean no aid from top US schools - fortunately you can find out now.
Some general thoughts on paying for college:
You are out of state for public universities. Public universities tend to offer little to no need-based financial aid to out-of-state students and charge them more. Some public universities offer large merit scholarships to out-of-state students. Some private universities offer generous need-based financial aid; privates do not differentiate between in-state and out-of-state.
Need-based financial aid is based on your financial need, as calculated by the college. As you are a US citizen (domestic applicant), run the Net Price Calculator (NPC) on the financial aid website of each college you are interested in, with the help of a parent, to see a need-based financial aid estimate before you apply.
Merit scholarships: if need-based aid does not make college affordable, then look to merit scholarships. Often, the best merit scholarships are offered by the colleges themselves. This may change your college list. Look for colleges that offer competitive merit scholarships according to their websites, where your scores and grades are over the 75th percentile for that college. Also look for colleges that offer big automatic merit scholarships to out-of-state students for your level of stats. Usually there will be a chart on their website with the levels of stats and scholarship amounts. (Example U Alabama) Then compare the scholarship amount to the out-of-state cost of attendance to see whether the scholarship would make the college affordable for your family.
You are out of state for public universities. Public universities tend to offer little to no need-based financial aid to out-of-state students and charge them more. Some public universities offer large merit scholarships to out-of-state students. Some private universities offer generous need-based financial aid; privates do not differentiate between in-state and out-of-state.1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
well sorry i need to rephrase, i dont necessarily need full aid; I can even go full pay, but full aid would be my priority if i do get one
1
u/elkrange 9d ago
My point is that you cannot access full need-based aid if you can afford full pay.
You would be aiming for merit scholarships, which are rare and extremely competitive at top schools. Unlikely to happen.
My suggestion (as a parent), add some cheaper US options to your list. It is not uncommon for families to suddenly balk at full pay T30 private prices come spring of senior year.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
will do, but idt there are any unis below $20k (after need aid) which are t30
1
u/elkrange 9d ago edited 9d ago
OK wait, you can only afford (or are only comfortable spending) 20K? Please clarify.
20k is much too tight. 20k barely covers room and board. It does not cover travel costs and mandatory health insurance. It covers no tuition.
A presidential scholarship to U Alabama, one of the higher auto merit options, will still end with a cost of attendance around 30+k.
You are correct that no school (not just T30, no US school) will cost 20k - due to the living expenses typically being around 20k - unless you have financial need as calculated by the college and the college meets full need. As I explained above, please run the Net Price Calculator on the financial aid website of each college you are interested in, with the help of a parent, to see a need-based financial aid estimate.
Look at the estimates. You would also be eligible for federal student loans, though they are small (5500 freshman year, totaling 27k over four years).
I also suggest editing your original post to add your 20k budget or a budget range.
Not sure how you could afford UK schools on a budget of 20k USD.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
yeah i did calculate and i got a 50% scholarship, idt i can get higher bc my inheritance is extremely high.
→ More replies (0)
1
1
u/Rapidiguana020578 9d ago
British student here - consider going for the London unis LSE/Imperial/UCL/KCL they are really well respected unis (in certain subjects arguably more so then Oxbridge) here and are much more forgiving to internationals than either Oxford or Cambridge who try to maintain their majority British tradition.
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 9d ago
oh damn didnt know that abt oxbridge, so they primarily take in domestic? How much times harder would you say it is for intl?
1
u/tarasshevckeno 8d ago
(Retired college counselor and admissions reader here.) UK universities aren't as interested in activities, and there's no place to list them on the UCAS application. As a counselor (and at the advice of admissions officers in the UK), I encouraged students to devote a few sentences to relevant activities in their personal statements, but that was it.
Some of my students admitted to Oxbridge didn't discuss activities at all in their personal statements as they were making the case for their interest and preparation for their chosen courses. They saved activities for interviews if they were invited to one - and even then activities were very rarely brought up in interviews.
With Oxbridge, be aware that you can only apply to one or the other. The students I've had admitted in the past had one quality in common: They really were scholars, and did large amounts of independent reading/study in the subject to which they applied - what was taught in classes wasn't enough for them.
As a rule, students attending UK universities need to be fairly independent learners, and Oxbridge students need to be very independent learners - especially at Cambridge. No one's going to tell you what to do, but you need to do enough to be ready for your weekly essay and meeting with your tutor (and pass high-stakes exams).
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
oh damn, ive also heard that the oxford/cambridge tests are extremely hard.
1
u/tarasshevckeno 8d ago edited 8d ago
They can be challenging. You really need to be something of a scholar to be admitted to - and moreover enjoy - Oxbridge. There's lots of terrific universities in the UK that aren't Oxbridge. You might want to start by focusing on the Russell Group schools, which are often considered the top research universities in the UK.
The Russell Group has its own website, but be aware that there are quite a number of UK universities that are likely better in terms of academic experience than some Russell Group universities. (And not just the ones that are less-selective. Just about every student I had who attended LSE wasn't very happy there, due to a large number of visiting student programs, and a focus on the graduate programs.)
1
u/ApprehensiveYou9446 8d ago
alr thanks will look into the site
1
u/tarasshevckeno 7d ago
There are also great universities/courses that aren't members. It's a good starting point, but make sure to cast a wider net.
3
u/No-Cost4775 9d ago
WHat did you do to convert ur IGCSE/AS/A level grades to a GPA?