Applying for universities in USA, Australia

Mohammad Fahim Tajwar

The most reliable ranking of universities in the United States is the US News and World Report Ranking. US universities accept undergraduate applications from international students for two sessions each year: Fall and Spring. However, the financial aid grants for international students are generally very low for the spring session and so, it is advisable to apply for the fall session. Universities in the US can be divided into two categories: public and private. Public universities in the US do not provide any need-based financial aid or funding for international students and provide only very limited merit-based scholarship opportunities. However, they have a higher acceptance rate and the overall cost of attendance is generally much lower compared to top-ranked private universities.
The top private universities do1 provide substantial need-based financial aid opportunities for international students but are extremely hard to get into. The highest ranked universities in the US are Caltech, MIT and Stanford and the Ivy League universities, including Harvard, Princeton, Yale and Columbia, and they are all private. These and other private universities generally accept international students only in the fall session and the application can be made through two major cycles each year called the Early Action/Early Decision Cycle (deadline: 1st November of the year before the year of admission) and the Regular Decision Cycle (deadline: 1st January of the year of admission in fall).
Most of the private universities (except MIT) in the US accept applications made through the CommonApp, which is an online application portal consisting of a general section of required information as well as university-specific sections. All parts of the application must be completed prior to the appropriate deadline and the application must be submitted by paying the required application fees.
A very important part of the US application is the SAT test, which needs to be registered through an online account in CollegeBoard. CollegeBoard accounts provide a very important tool for applications known as the “Compare Colleges” app which can be used to find out important details for any college/university in the US. In addition to that, they also provide opportunities for SAT score-choosing, SAT Subject Test registration as well as financial aid applications for international students.
The US government provides various funding opportunities for international students including the Fulbright Scholars Program. The American Center in Gulshan and the EMK Center in Dhanmondi provide lots of details for international US applicants and the website of EducationUSA is a great resource for anyone considering tertiary education in the United States.
In addition, massive online discussion forums like CollegeConfidential and IvyCoach accommodate articles and discussion threads which are a great resource for application-related questions. Also, websites like In Like Me, College Essay Advisors, Essay Hell and App Study Notes provide great recommendations and samples to help the applicant write a compelling admission essay required by CommonApp.
An indispensable part of US and Australian applications is proof English Language Proficiency which can be demonstrated through the IELTS or TOEFL. Test-specific skills are taught in Mentors, Saifur’s and the British Council which also provide test-registration facilities. Australia accepts only the IELTS as proof of English proficiency whereas US universities accept both the IELTS and TOEFL. IELTS can be registered through the British Council or IDP and TOEFL needs to be registered through an account in ETS.
Applications can be made to Australian universities through external representative agents like IDP Bangladesh and Global Reach. In particular, IDP Bangladesh provides lots of resources for successful application to top Australian private and public universities including the University of Melbourne, Australian National University, University of Sydney, UNSW and Monash.
Australian universities accept international students in two sessions each year and IDP Bangladesh holds massive Australian education fairs corresponding to those application sessions twice each year, featuring representatives from all of the highest-ranked Australian universities which accept spot applications during the fairs without application fees. Prospective applicants should keep updated with IDP to know the specific date of the fairs and should attend with original and photocopied copies of their official certificates from O-Level/IGCSE/SSC/CIE/IBMYP and ALevel/IAL/HSC/CIE/IBDP as well as IELTS certificates to complete the application during the fairs. IDP Bangladesh also provides academic counseling and consultancy services for applicants completely free of charge at the Gulshan office.

The writer is a scholar and 2nd year student of Computer Science at Columbia University, New York.

Applying for universities in USA, Australia

Mohammad Fahim Tajwar The most reliable ranking of universities in the United States is the US News and World Report Ranking. US universities accept undergraduate applications from international students for two sessions each year: Fall and Spring. However, the financial aid grants for international students are generally very low for the spring session and so, it is advisable to apply for the fall session. Universities in the US can be divided into two categories: public and private. Public universities in the US do not provide any need-based financial aid or funding for international students and provide only very limited merit-based scholarship opportunities. However, they have a higher acceptance rate and the overall cost of attendance is generally much lower compared to top-ranked private universities. The top private universities do1 provide substantial need-based financial aid opportunities for international students but are extremely hard to get into. The highest ranked universities in the US are Caltech, MIT and Stanford and the Ivy League universities, including Harvard, Princeton, Yale and Columbia, and they are all private. These and other private universities generally accept international students only in the fall session and the application can be made through two major cycles each year called the Early Action/Early Decision Cycle (deadline: 1st November of the year before the year of admission) and the Regular Decision Cycle (deadline: 1st January of the year of admission in fall). Most of the private universities (except MIT) in the US accept applications made through the CommonApp, which is an online application portal consisting of a general section of required information as well as university-specific sections. All parts of the application must be completed prior to the appropriate deadline and the application must be submitted by paying the required application fees. A very important part of the US application is the SAT test, which needs to be registered through an online account in CollegeBoard. CollegeBoard accounts provide a very important tool for applications known as the Compare Colleges app which can be used to find out important details for any college/university in the US. In addition to that, they also provide opportunities for SAT score-choosing, SAT Subject Test registration as well as financial aid applications for international students. The US government provides various funding opportunities for international students including the Fulbright Scholars Program. The American Center in Gulshan and the EMK Center in Dhanmondi provide lots of details for international US applicants and the website of EducationUSA is a great resource for anyone considering tertiary education in the United States. In addition, massive online discussion forums like CollegeConfidential and IvyCoach accommodate articles and discussion threads which are a great resource for application-related questions. Also, websites like In Like Me, College Essay Advisors, Essay Hell and App Study Notes provide great recommendations and samples to help the applicant write a compelling admission essay required by CommonApp. An indispensable part of US and Australian applications is proof English Language Proficiency which can be demonstrated through the IELTS or TOEFL. Test-specific skills are taught in Mentors, Saifurs and the British Council which also provide test-registration facilities. Australia accepts only the IELTS as proof of English proficiency whereas US universities accept both the IELTS and TOEFL. IELTS can be registered through the British Council or IDP and TOEFL needs to be registered through an account in ETS. Applications can be made to Australian universities through external representative agents like IDP Bangladesh and Global Reach. In particular, IDP Bangladesh provides lots of resources for successful application to top Australian private and public universities including the University of Melbourne, Australian National University, University of Sydney, UNSW and Monash. Australian universities accept international students in two sessions each year and IDP Bangladesh holds massive Australian education fairs corresponding to those application sessions twice each year, featuring representatives from all of the highest-ranked Australian universities which accept spot applications during the fairs without application fees. Prospective applicants should keep updated with IDP to know the specific date of the fairs and should attend with original and photocopied copies of their official certificates from O-Level/IGCSE/SSC/CIE/IBMYP and ALevel/IAL/HSC/CIE/IBDP as well as IELTS certificates to complete the application during the fairs. IDP Bangladesh also provides academic counseling and consultancy services for applicants completely free of charge at the Gulshan office. The writer is a scholar and 2nd year student of Computer Science at Columbia University, New York.