Anonymous
12/09/2025 02:04
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
- deep focus on subject of interest
- community fit / more mature student body
- differentiation for US graduate school
- global brand prestige
- hedge vs US T20 target school ‘holistic admissions’
- community fit / more mature student body
- differentiation for US graduate school
- global brand prestige
- hedge vs US T20 target school ‘holistic admissions’
Anonymous
12/09/2025 00:23
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I'm curious what motivates most applicants. Are there advantages? Or do you typically have a family reason?
DD is a couple years out, but we are considering a within-US move for in-state residency purposes and wondering what else to consider.
1. [url]Less expensive (even with the flights back and forth)[b]
2. We have family in the other country our kids applied to
Not anymore it’s $100k a year read posts above.
Anonymous
12/07/2025 19:24
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
My child has applied to MacGill and Bishops University in Canada. Even full pay and including travel, it’s cheaper per year than a private college here or SUNY Stonybrook where he also applied.
All-in, it will be 52k USD for the Canadian schools. It includes visa assistance and research opportunities that are dwindling in the US right now.
He’s deciding where to go next year, but he applied abroad because a lot of brain drain is happening with US colleges. The other reason is that there isn’t the application craziness that the US college applications include. If you have the grades and the scores, you are in. M
All-in, it will be 52k USD for the Canadian schools. It includes visa assistance and research opportunities that are dwindling in the US right now.
He’s deciding where to go next year, but he applied abroad because a lot of brain drain is happening with US colleges. The other reason is that there isn’t the application craziness that the US college applications include. If you have the grades and the scores, you are in. M
Anonymous
12/07/2025 19:02
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
The ones going to Oxford or Cambridge are going because they are two of the best schools in the world and it's a real privilege and opportunity to get in.
The ones going elsewhere (here's looking at you, St Andrews) are going because they can't into the good schools in the USA and want to save face.
The ones going elsewhere (here's looking at you, St Andrews) are going because they can't into the good schools in the USA and want to save face.
Anonymous
12/07/2025 18:52
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Tuition is less expensive.
Not anymore. I have a kid at Oxford. Tuition (only) is now $37,389 to $62,820 (STEM) pounds sterling = $80,000. Add in their estimated living costs of $14k - $20k and you are easily at $100k for 2025-2026. And Oxford doesn’t have great financial aid or merit like the US universities do to bring that number down
Keep in mind also you are paying for one month less of school each academic year than in the U.S. They are not in term very much….
Anonymous
12/07/2025 18:49
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
I know a few kids studying/studied abroad. 2 kids in ireland for financial reasons (1 has dual eu citizenship so cheaper). 1 at St. Andrews bc was best perceived prestige school kid was accepted to (didn't get into any ivy+ or Michigan, etc), and third kid was super smart interested in Oxford (great stats, had a clear academic focus, not much EC). One other kid started abroad but turned out not to be a good academic or social fit so transfered back to US. I think it's better for kids who know what they want to study bc kids apply in for a specific major whereas US schools allow more open exploration.
Anonymous
12/07/2025 18:32
Subject: Re:If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Don't want to hijack the thread - What is the admission's process for Oxbridge?
Is it just scheduling that test and then submit your grades/SAT/AP Scores? They seem to write a lot on their site and feel like I missed some small print some where.
I've been through it and think it's tough. First look at the minimums. Then assess whether you can get 5s in 5 APs. If you get an offer, it most likely will be "conditional" based upon that and upon posting proof of financial responsibility with your particular college. Unlike American colleges you must provide proof of financial means before acceptance -at least our kid did. Then there are the famous 3 on one interviews during which the student must prove sufficient mastery of the subject in which they propose to read. Most Americans can't do this. Remember you are proposing to read and write in one subject. It is not the American "take lots of classes in anything" approach. Entire books have been written on how to ace those interviews. I own several of them. Most Americans hire a tutor months before those interviews.
+1. The interviews are what Americans are not prepared for. We found the process daunting so hired a college counselor with overseas expertise.
My kid didn't find the interviews daunting but had a lot of debate and ethics bowl experience. I think stem kids might find this very new
Anonymous
12/07/2025 15:58
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:I'm curious what motivates most applicants. Are there advantages? Or do you typically have a family reason?
DD is a couple years out, but we are considering a within-US move for in-state residency purposes and wondering what else to consider.
1. Less expensive (even with the flights back and forth)
2. We have family in the other country our kids applied to
Anonymous
12/07/2025 14:36
Subject: Re:If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Don't want to hijack the thread - What is the admission's process for Oxbridge?
Is it just scheduling that test and then submit your grades/SAT/AP Scores? They seem to write a lot on their site and feel like I missed some small print some where.
I've been through it and think it's tough. First look at the minimums. Then assess whether you can get 5s in 5 APs. If you get an offer, it most likely will be "conditional" based upon that and upon posting proof of financial responsibility with your particular college. Unlike American colleges you must provide proof of financial means before acceptance -at least our kid did. Then there are the famous 3 on one interviews during which the student must prove sufficient mastery of the subject in which they propose to read. Most Americans can't do this. Remember you are proposing to read and write in one subject. It is not the American "take lots of classes in anything" approach. Entire books have been written on how to ace those interviews. I own several of them. Most Americans hire a tutor months before those interviews.
+1. The interviews are what Americans are not prepared for. We found the process daunting so hired a college counselor with overseas expertise.
Anonymous
12/07/2025 14:35
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Tuition is less expensive.
Not anymore. I have a kid at Oxford. Tuition (only) is now $37,389 to $62,820 (STEM) pounds sterling = $80,000. Add in their estimated living costs of $14k - $20k and you are easily at $100k for 2025-2026. And Oxford doesn’t have great financial aid or merit like the US universities do to bring that number down
Anonymous
12/07/2025 13:21
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:I'm curious what motivates most applicants. Are there advantages? Or do you typically have a family reason?
DD is a couple years out, but we are considering a within-US move for in-state residency purposes and wondering what else to consider.
Change of scenery?
Anonymous
02/04/2025 21:15
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
For Oxford, the min entry requirement is to get 5 in 3 (not 5) APs related to your field of interest, combined with a certain ACT (or SAT) score. The 5 APs is for Cambridge.
Before the interviews, the biggest hurdle is the Oxford specific test(s), which depend on the subject. To give you a sense of the difficulty, one of the exams has an average score of about 60 (out of 100) - and that’s based on a self-selected group of kids who are applying to Oxford. It’s a different ballgame than the SAT/ACT.
Before the interviews, the biggest hurdle is the Oxford specific test(s), which depend on the subject. To give you a sense of the difficulty, one of the exams has an average score of about 60 (out of 100) - and that’s based on a self-selected group of kids who are applying to Oxford. It’s a different ballgame than the SAT/ACT.
Anonymous
02/04/2025 21:03
Subject: Re:If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Don't want to hijack the thread - What is the admission's process for Oxbridge?
Is it just scheduling that test and then submit your grades/SAT/AP Scores? They seem to write a lot on their site and feel like I missed some small print some where.
I've been through it and think it's tough. First look at the minimums. Then assess whether you can get 5s in 5 APs. If you get an offer, it most likely will be "conditional" based upon that and upon posting proof of financial responsibility with your particular college. Unlike American colleges you must provide proof of financial means before acceptance -at least our kid did. Then there are the famous 3 on one interviews during which the student must prove sufficient mastery of the subject in which they propose to read. Most Americans can't do this. Remember you are proposing to read and write in one subject. It is not the American "take lots of classes in anything" approach. Entire books have been written on how to ace those interviews. I own several of them. Most Americans hire a tutor months before those interviews.
Anonymous
02/04/2025 20:54
Subject: Re:If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Our US tours focused heavily on social factors that DS didn’t care about. His Cambridge tour was perfect and convinced him that it was the academic space he craved. He’s now graduated and it was worth every penny!
Same with our kid at Oxford. They were fed up with the woke, race, DEI, crap of American universities. Three years in and veey happy.
Anonymous
02/04/2025 20:51
Subject: If you applied to colleges outside the US, why?
Anonymous wrote:Nope, I was right:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I thought 4 years just gets you a BSc. Hons.Anonymous wrote:It's wild that you can have an undergrad and a taught masters in the total of four years in the UK compared to six years here. Ton of savings!
In the UK it's 3 yrs for a BA or a BSc. You can get an MSci in 4 yrs with integrated programs as well as separate 1 yr MA/ Msci offerings. My DD is going to do that this coming Fall. She will arrive as a 17 yr old and have her Msci while 21 and go straight into an PhD for 3 further years (fingers crossed).
https://www.bradford.ac.uk/courses/ug/computer-science-bsc/[/quote
Don't listen to this person. Bradford is a poorly ranked public university that started as a vocational school. It's ranked 331 out of 360 in QS world rankings.
Oxford's taught and research masters are both two years. My DD just finished one and is now finishing her DPhil.