International students often underestimate the amount of time required to apply for admission to a college or university in the United States. Avoid this mistake by setting for yourself a schedule that starts well in advance of the time you hope to begin your studies. When setting this timetable, always remember that early is best. To find the institution or program that will best serve your academic goals, allow yourself sufficient time to thoroughly research your options. Then meet the application deadlines of the universities to which you apply. These may be as much as 10 months before the beginning of the school term.

The need for an early start holds true even if you are able to access electronic applications on the Internet. University web sites and other academic Internet sites may provide quick and convenient access to the required application forms, but you still need time to research your options, contact teachers and institutions to provide recommendations and transcripts, and sign up for required entrance exams (standardized tests) in time to meet application deadlines.

18 months before U.S. study

• Begin your search of possible U.S. colleges or universities using college-search software or reference books.
• Applicants to should use Web resources such as www.PrincetonReview.com and reference books, such as those published by The Princeton Review, that may be available at your school or at U.S. educational advising centers.
• Prepare a folder for each of the schools you select in which to keep copies of correspondence and other information.
• Read anything you can find about colleges in which you are interested. Identify and talk to alumni of these institutions, to parents of students studying there, to professionals in the field of your choice, and to the faculty and counseling staff of your school or university. A good selection of programs or institutions can be made only if you are well informed.
• Register and prepare for the TOEFL and other enterance exams you need to take, such as SAT or ACT exams.
• Keep working at your subjects at school. Good grades in the courses you are taking will count heavily in the admissions decisions.
• Graduate students should study college catalogs to find suitable programs and identify faculty who share their interests.

12-14 months before U.S. study

• Send letters to colleges you have selected requesting applications and information, or obtain this information and the necessary forms over the Internet.
• Narrow your choices to one or two institutions that you would like to attend but that may not accept you, two that appeal to you and which you feel would accept you, and one or two where you are quite certain to gain admission. Now is also the time to inform the institutions if you need financial aid.
• Graduate students should send one letter to the director of graduate admissions with a copy to the chairman of the department in which you seek admission.
• International mail is slow and sometimes unreliable, so mail your letters now and keep copies in case something gets lost and you need to write a second time. Identify two or three teachers or other people who know you well and ask them to write references for you. Give them sufficient time to prepare a good recommendation. Remind them in conversations, or by giving them a written summary, of your academic and other accomplishments over the past few years.
• For undergraduate applicants the best references are teachers and your school counselor or principal. Family friends, religious counselors, and others should be used only if they know you very well and can provide unique or significant information that is relevant to your academic goals and promise.
• Graduate students, obtain letters from teachers or professionals in your field whom you have worked with and who can attest to your academic promise as well as your academic and other accomplishments.
• Ask the schools and universities you have attended to prepare your transcripts. If the school or university will issue only one copy of your transcript, do not send the original, as it probably will not be returned to you. Any copies of the transcript you submit to a university must be certified with the official seal of the school or college that issued it, or certified by another authorized official. If your transcripts need to be translated into English, the translated documents must also be certified.
• Ask the person completing your reference to place the official seal from the school or college, or his or her signature, over the sealed flap of the envelope. This assures the U.S. institution that no one has tampered with the documents. It is usually best if recommendations and transcripts are sent directly to the U.S. institution and not with your application form.
• If your previous TOEFL or other exam scores were not satisfactory, take the test again. Remember, these tests must be taken no later than January (or December if applying to very competitive institutions) if you seek admission in August/September; and no later than June if you seek admission the following January.

11 months before U.S. study

• If you have not yet received the application forms you requested from the institutions you wrote to, send another letter repeating your request.
• Many colleges and universities in the United States have applications available on their web sites. PrincetonReview.com has application on its site for many undergraduate and graduate schools. Be aware that some web sites carry only applications for institutions that subscribe to that site. If you cannot find what you need on one site, look for it on others. Study the applications you have received. Note carefully the deadlines for each.
• Write your application essay if the institutions have indicated they require one. This essay is an important part of the application. It should reflect who you are and what you feel is important. Try not to repeat information you have provided in other parts of the application, but instead work to make the essay unique and personal. Ask a teacher to check it for mistakes.
• Write your statement of purpose if the institutions have indicated they require one. This is an important part of the application. A good statement of purpose will show that you are a focused student; you should demonstrate how your studies to date will provide a foundation for what you plan to do and how your proposed studies in the United States will serve as a logical stepping stone to your career plans. You should be as specific as possible about your research interests and experiences.
• Make photocopies of the applications and begin to fill in the required information on the copy. If questions confuse you, seek guidance from your school or from advisers at U.S. educational advising centers.

10 months before U.S. study

• Type or fill in the original applications by hand very carefully. The finished application will be your initial introduction to the universities of your choice. You want to make a good impression, so make these look good!
• Keep copies of the completed applications and essays in your folder, and mail the originals to the institutions in the United States. Observe the deadlines! Applications must reach institutions before the deadlines.
• Make sure your recommendations and school transcripts have been sent. Remind your teachers and other school officials of the deadlines, if necessary.
• Make a checklist of the items required for submission with each application. These may very slightly from one college to the next, but they usually include
  • A cover letter identifying the contents of the application packet.
  • The nonrefundable application fee; usually a dollar check that can be cashed at a bank in the United States.
  • Required financial statements, such as notarized financial forms from the institution, bank letters, etc.
  • The completed application form.
  • Your essay or statement of purpose.

Send your competed application packet to the director of undergraduate admissions. Usually the designated individual at the university will be indicated on the application form.

Check to see if the application needs to be sent to a designated individual at the university to which you are applying. If not, send your completed application packet to the director of graduate admissions. Send a copy to the chairman of the department to which you hope to gain admission.

Check to make certain that you have requested that your test results for the TOEFL, SAT, GRE, or GMAT exams should be sent to each of the universities you have chosen.

Now comes the hard part. You have to wait!

Most colleges begin to send letters of notification to undergraduates by April. Others, which observe a rolling admission policy, may inform you sooner than April if you have been accepted.

Upon receipt of your completed application, the university will probably begin a correspondence with you. It is not unusual for institutions to request more information or resubmission of something you have already sent. Unless there is some delay with your application, you should expect a decision by April or May, perhaps earlier.

If you have intelligently chosen the schools and programs to which you apply, meet the admissions requirements, meet the deadlines, weigh advice and make choices that are right for you, an institution of your choice will send to you a letter of acceptance along with the document you will use to apply for your student visa.

3 months before U.S. study

Get a visa application form from the U.S. embassy or consulate nearest you. When you apply for a visa, the consular officer may want to see the following:

• An I-20 or IAP-66 from an accredited college or university.
• Original documents evidencing your educational credentials for the previous four years.
• The scores of tests you have taken, such as the TOEFL, SAT, and GRE exams.
• Financial documents. These documents must show you have sufficient funds in a bank to pay for the first year of your studies in the United States. In addition, you should be able to prove the source of your academic funding for subsequent years of study. It is not sufficient to show assets. You must be able to prove income generated by assets, family businesses, or property.

Prepare carefully for your interview with the U.S. consular officer.

Application Tips

• Make a copy of all application forms before completing them.
• Print or type clearly.
• Supply all materials requested.
• Keep copies of all materials sent.
• Note when and to whom application materials were mailed.
• If mailing materials use airmail.
• Include your name and return address in the body of all correspondence (mail and e-mail).
• Spell your name consistently in all correspondence.