Questions for Hamilton? Please email questions about the admissions process or university applications to webeditor@beijing-kids.com
By Monday University bound students need to make their final choice if they have not done so yet. This is a big decision though perhaps not your most important. That will be reserved for your spouse. However, making a good decision is certainly very important. There are few things that are important to do before you select where you will live, study and perhaps work the next four plus years.
1. Review your schools – make sure they have everything you want – size location and especially possible majors you are interested in taking
2. Hopefully, all the schools which accepted you are good schools and sometimes the final factor comes down to location and weather
3. Don’t second-guess your choice. While the “grass may seem greener” at that other school, the reality is that if you have made a good choice on “fit” you will be happy. If you are happy you will be successful, and fully engaged in the education at the school you have chosen
4. Once you have made your decision, put 100% into making that school choice work. Your education is dependent on you seeking out opportunities and experiences that will stretch you. So go get them
5. Please, please don’t fall for ranking, There is more to a school than a number and if you have read previous posts, many of the factors used in ranking have very little to do with your education. Truly
6. Notify all the other schools that you are not coming. VERY IMPORTANT!!! Other students may be waiting to come off the Wait List and schools are trying to get a sense of their incoming class
7. Thank your teachers and let them know where you are going to university. They were instrumental in getting you in and they want to know!
8. Make sure that you complete the final choice process including “housing”
9. Plan to attend the “International Student Orientation” even if you are an American. Because of your international experience you may most likely find that you will associate more closely with other international students
10. If you are an international student, you will need to get an F-1 student visa. The directions for how to get a US Student Visa (F-1) can be found here. Please follow the directions completely. There is no need to use an agent to obtain a visa if all of your documents are in order when you go
11. Adjusting to a new environment, a new school, having a roommate or two or three may be a completely new experience. A fun read that will help you think about all of the new adjustments you will need to make is Harlan Cohen’s The Naked Roommate and 107 Other Issues You May Run Into In College. Funny but to the point this is a great read for first timers to university.
Just to recap. Make a good choice, give it your all and enjoy. You have no idea what’s coming!
Photo: tindleyschool.com
