Applying to Canada, the UK and The Netherlands
- Posted on
- byCorbin Platti
More and more, students are considering the option to pursue undergraduate study outside of the United States. Completing an undergraduate degree is a unique, life-shaping learning experience for those looking to leave their comfort zone and immerse in a new country and academic culture.
As a senior in high school, I applied to math and computer science programs at universities in Canada, the United Kingdom, and The Netherlands. Here are the key differences I discovered between applying to schools in the United States and abroad.
Exams Count. SAT/ACT and AP exam scores are required at all United Kingdom and European colleges I applied to (except Amsterdam University College). The specific AP exam requirements vary according to major and college. Students are offered conditional admission based on senior year AP exam scores. For Imperial, for example, the condition of acceptance was to score 5s on my 7 senior year AP exams.
- For Cambridge, Imperial, and Oxford you will be asked to take a math exam before October of the year you are applying. This requirement may change from year to year and from university to university.
Fewer Essays. The biggest difference between the two systems is the amount of writing you have to do.
- In the U.S., you can generally expect to write between one and five essays for each college. These essays include a long personal statement and shorter college-specific essays.
- Colleges in the Netherlands do not require essays with the exception of Amsterdam University College.
- The UK colleges allow you to apply to five colleges on the UCAS application. You write one personal statement which is more like a statement of purpose. You are asked to state your major aspirations and achievements to date, and your reasons for wanting to study in the UK.
- Most Canadian universities use their own separate application and do not require essays. The exception is, the University of British Columbia Vancouver/Okanagan, which requires 3-4 short essays.
Fewer Essays. The biggest difference between the two systems is the amount of writing you have to do.
- In the U.S., you can generally expect to write between one and five essays for each college. These essays include a long personal statement and shorter college-specific essays.
- Colleges in the Netherlands do not require essays with the exception of Amsterdam University College.
- The UK colleges allow you to apply to five colleges on the UCAS application. You write one personal statement which is more like a statement of purpose. You are asked to state your major aspirations and achievements to date, and your reasons for wanting to study in the UK.
- Most Canadian universities use their own separate application and do not require essays. The exception is, the University of British Columbia Vancouver/Okanagan, which requires 3-4 short essays.
Here are some tips to help you navigate applications outside of the U.S.
Start to research schools in your sophomore year: The earlier you know what schools you want to apply to, the sooner you can prepare to take any required AP or ACT/SAT exam.
- Here is a short list of universities worth considering.
- UK: Cambridge, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Imperial, Oxford, University College of London
- The Netherlands: DELFT, Erasmus, Vrije, Univ of Amsterdam, Amsterdam University College
- Canada: University of British Columbia, McGill
- Here is a short list of universities worth considering.
Plan your courseload strategically: With AP exams required for your international application, it’s best not to take many of them at the end of your senior year when you are tired and burnt out. Spread your AP course load out more evenly throughout your 4 years and both you and your results will benefit.
While applying to Canadian universities and colleges in The Netherlands is mostly straightforward, applying to the UCAS system is complicated and deserves its own summary. Stay tuned for my next blog!
