College?

[Tuckles]

UPDATE: It's choosin' time!

I need your help fellow Taleworlders, especially those of you who reside in the UK.
I have to choose my college soon, so I need your help in the decision-making process.

The two options that are currently open to me are:

The University of Edinburgh for Mechanical Engineering (Conditional) with a backup of Molecular Biology
and
Durham University for Chemistry (Unconditional)​

The third option would be Imperial College London for Computing, but they haven't gotten back to me on that yet. (Tell me if this is any good though)

EDIT: Huh, UCAS tells me that I wasn't accepted into that, but I got an e-mail from Imperial stating I didn't get into CHEMISTRY. Weird. (UCAS says nothing about not being accepted into Chemistry in Imperial though)



Outlined are my three concerns:

• I've done my research, and, according to the Times, Durham is the 3rd best university in the UK for Chemistry, while Edinburgh is only the 15th for Mechanical Engineering.
• I like Mechanical Engineering more, but Chemistry is good too, it being my original interest and all.
• Mechanical Engineering has more prospects back home, but Chemistry is broader in scope, so I have more flexibility in choosing a job.

I currently don't know jack **** about any of the three schools, so if any of you study there/have studied there, can you tell me how it is?
Also, again, if you have studied there, study there, know someone studying there, I'd like to ask if it's possible to take up two majors?

Spoiler: Original Post

Well, I just have one more year to go before College, so I've been writing up my applications.

So far, the two schools I'm REALLY interested in are Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA. and Imperial College London.

I've already taken the SATs, but my score wasn't in the 2000's range, so I'mma take it again.

I'm scared about the UCAS. Since there are a lot of UK residents here, how's the UCAS?

Also, anything I should know about the two colleges stated above?

 

[Tibertus]

Wow... when I took the SAT, the max score was 1600. They added on another 800 point section right? Also, if you don't do so well on the SAT, try the ACT. I personally did better with the SAT, but I think more people fare better with the ACT.

 

[Magorian Aximand]

Some Colleges ask for one specifically though. Check Stanford's requirements.

 

[Tibertus]

The Stanford Admissions page says both tests.

 

[Magorian Aximand]

Cool. The ACT is sometimes easier because you don't get points off for get answering a question incorrectly. If you're not sure, make an educated guess, and you have a chance of getting extra points.

 

[Tuckles]

I got a 1900+ in my SAT, so I'm not really troubled by that.


I'm more worried about the UCAS.

 

[Magorian Aximand]

Afraid I can't help you there. Best of luck though.

 

[Pharaoh Llandy]

UCAS is fine. I know loads of foreign students who've successfully applied to Unis here. The University Centre (HE) in the college where I work even has its own international department. Granted, it consists of one woman, but it's a successful one-woman department of ... success.

 

[Tuckles]

Awesome.

Still, this stupid UCAS application is confuzzling.

Confusing UK Education system. 

 

[Pharaoh Llandy]

In what way is it confusing?

 

[Tuckles]

Well, just one part really, and this is probably a more world-wide thing, and thus a fault of our UK-US hybrid of an educational system, but what the fuggin' 'ell is a formal qualification? Like a diploma? 


Excuse the ignorance of this third-world scum.

 

[Pharaoh Llandy]

Dunno... why not email them and ask?

 

[G36E]

/hi5. I'm going to apply for a couple of universities in USA and Australia soon.

Believe me, applying for an overseas university here is tedious. What're you looking to study?

 

[thesneakster]

Apply to UQ!

Also, your us/uk application (for domestic students) system sounds highly confusing compared to what we have (do a test+your marks for your last 2 years of school gives you a mark to get into uni's with, simple as that)

 

[Tuckles]

I'm either going for Molecular Physics, Mechanical Engineering or Computer Science. 

UQ? University of Quebec? University of Queens?

Dunno... why not email them and ask?

And WORK? 

Yeah, I'll probably be doing that if even my sister doesn't get it.

 

[Yoshiboy]

UCAS can be quite confusing and there is often a lot to fill in (had to run around filling in all my GCSE and A level grades etc - LONG ) but other than that it seems all right and saves sending out individual letters. If you want help with it from someone who applied abroad you could probably PM okin and I imagine he wouldn't mind giving you a hand.

 

[Tuckles]

Well, I don't have any GCSEs and A levels to speak of, so the process will hopefully be easier for me.

 

[fisheye]

Also, anything I should know about the two colleges stated above?

Just apply for both colleges but make sure you have backups, those two are the top of the world kind of colleges and it's quite likely you won't get accepted just based on the luck of the draw.

 

[thesneakster]

UQ? University of Quebec? University of Queens?

Look for inpiration under my post...

 

[Tuckles]

@sneakeypete Oh.

Also, anything I should know about the two colleges stated above?

Just apply for both colleges but make sure you have backups, those two are the top of the world kind of colleges and it's quite likely you won't get accepted just based on the luck of the draw.

Yeah, I know. I'm also applying to a local college, as well as Boston University probably (I have a pretty large chance there, since three of my siblings already study there). BU is apparently on par with Stanford, so my hopes are kinda high.

I'm kind of annoyed that my high school isn't given a bit more credit (hell, sometimes it isn't even recognized, as is the case with the UCAS app). I'm a government scholar on merit (specializing in the Sciences) gosh darn it! 

Bumping:

Any other good schools in the UK? For the sciences that is. I don't wanna take the UCAS for only Imperial.