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In many countries, prospective university students apply for admission during their last year of High School or Community College . In some countries, there are independent organizations or government agencies to centralize the administration of standardized admission exams and the processing of Applications . UNITED STATES See Also: College admissions in the United States Students apply to one or more colleges or universities by submitting an application which each college evaluates by its own criteria. The college then decides whether to extend an offer of admission (and possibly Financial Aid ) to the student. In general, students are admitted to the college as a whole, and not to a particular Academic Major , which is chosen later. The system is decentralized: each college has its own criteria for admission, even when using a common application form. Admissions criteria may be completely mechanical, especially at large public colleges: a threshold for Grade Point Average and/or Standardized Test scores, or even simply a High-school Diploma (' Open Admissions '). They may be completely subjective at some small colleges: a perceived motivational and intellectual 'fit' based on essays, interviews, and personal recommendations. Most colleges combine the two. The application form typically asks applicants to provide details about their academic preparation, their extracurricular activities, and special talents. Additionally, the majority of schools require applicants to write one or more essays related to their personal backgrounds, obtain recommendations from one or more teachers and a representative of their school such as a guidance counselor or principal. The Common Application is a standardized admissions application used by over 200 colleges and universities, including many of the most elite schools in the U.S. It can be submitted online and is a good way for students to minimize the paperwork associated with applying to colleges. The prestige, Ranking , and presumably the quality of a college is roughly in inverse proportion to its acceptance rate; 10-30% of applicants at elite institutions are accepted, so admission is very competitive. Many students base the value of their entire High School education on entry into the college of their choice. Factors in admissions College admissions in the United States are not centralized in any way — each among its thousands of undergraduate colleges develops its own system in-house. Among the most important factors in college admissions are high school grades, difficulty of a student's high school course selection, and scores on the SAT or ACT , the nation's two most prevalent undergraduate admissions exams. (The SAT is by far more commonly used.) The reputation of the high school is also important — admission to an Ivy is taken as an entitlement at the nation's top Prep Schools , even by mediocre students, though uncommon (and unattainable for all but the top 5% or so of students) at even the best Public Schools . Teacher recommendations are often considered, especially if other recommendations from that teacher are on file for comparison. An underrated but crucial factor in attaining admission to elite colleges is the absolute necessity that a student indicate interest in the college or university. Yield — the percentage of accepted students who attend that college — is taken by college deans and admissions officers to be the "bottom line" of an institution's Prestige as well as an indicator of the current direction of the school's reputation, valued even more than U.S. News -style rankings because is objective. (Moreover, from a practical standpoint, a high yield rate reduces the Statistical uncertainty in the composition of the incoming class.) In order to gain admission to an elite institution, an applicant must indicate steadfast intention on attending if accepted; this includes (if not requires) gestures such as attending a tour, requesting materials from the college, and interviewing with an Alumnus/alumna of the college. At the most selective institutions — such as the Ivy League colleges — failure to indicate such a level of interest nearly ensures rejection. Of tertiary importance are extracurricular activities — clubs, service activities, and athletic or musical talents — though it is common for Americans to overestimate their importance in admissions. While it is very damaging to a student's application for him or her to have ''no'' extracurricular involvement, college admissions offices generally consider it impossible to measure or compare the quality of students' extracurricular activities. Many top ranked school routinely deny admissions to many students with exceptionally high SAT scores and top high school grades. They instead first on which students would be capable of academically succeeding at the University and then look for" hooks"; additional, usually non-academic, distinguishing characteristics. For example, under represented minorities and applicants from smaller states are often times admitted at higher rates than then equally qualified white or Asian students from northeastern prep schools. Applicants who have won awards or are tangibly considered the "best at something" often are more competitive. Participating in high school clubs is seen as less intensive than such activities as running a charity or winning a national competition. Many colleges also use Affirmative Action to increase the Racial and geographical diversity of the student body. Whites and Asians, especially from coastal states, are perceived to suffer a disadvantage by this policy, and therefore it is highly controversial. According to the study done at Princeton University in 2005, if racial preferences were eliminated, black and Hispanic acceptance rates would dramatically fall and four out of five admissions spots that would have been offered to those students would instead be turned over to Asian students. The effect on admission rates for white students would not be pronounced. Study PDF of study Children of a college's alumni receive preferential treatment in admissions — this is known as the Legacy Preference . If the family is a major donor to the college (donating $250,000 or more) the likelihood of a student's admission increases dramatically. Legacy admits are often preferred because the college wishes to maintain strong alumni ties--especially with those who contribute towards the college financially. Need-blind, Need-Aware admission and Guaranteeing to Meet Full Need In Need-blind admission, applicants are evaluated without regard to their ability to pay. However, need-blind admission does not necessarily mean that the financial need of an admitted student will be met. Only a handful of schools in the U.S. guarantee to meet 100% of the demonstrated financial need of all admitted students. It is therefore important to always ask colleges and universities, even those that are "need-blind" whether they guarantee to meet full need. If a school does not guarantee to meet full need, other important questions to ask include the percentage of students who apply for aid and have their full need met, the amount of an average financial aid package, and how the typical financial aid package is broken down (e.g., loans, grants, work study) Other schools practice what is called "need aware" admissions. In other words, they do consider the ability of students to pay in deciding who to admit. Less well-endowed universities such as Tufts University and Washington University In St. Louis currently have need-based admissions policies, where some high-achieving applicants may be waitlisted or even rejected because the school cannot provide enough aid for the applicant's education. This is known as "admit-deny." Some of these schools will still meet the full financial needs, however dire, of the not-so-well-off students they accept. At the same time, schools such as Tufts have made need-blind admission their top priority, with the size of their endowment being the largest hurdle to adopting such a policy. Few schools in the U.S. are need-blind for international applicants. For the most part, these are the most selective schools in the U.S. Additionally, very few U.S. schools offer any form of financial aid for international applicants. Some schools do offer merit scholarships, based on academic achievement, to international students even though they may not offer financial aid. "Full rides" to U.S. colleges and universities are extremely rare for international students. The few colleges that do set aside financial aid for international students often offer it only to the best qualified applicants. Therefore, international undergraduate students who need substantial financial aid to study in the United States must have exceptional grades and test scores to maximize their chances of receiving it. All students applying for financial aid must complete the Free Application for Financial Student Aid (FAFSA). Many colleges and universities, particularly those who provide financial assistance beyond federal and state aid from their budgets or endowments, also require additional forms from applicants. International students have additional forms to complete before they can enroll, including a statement of finances required by the U.S. government. Yield protection Yield Protection refers to the methods colleges and universities use to maximize yield (see above). Often, "yield protection" is taken as a charged term (hence, the Euphemism "yield optimization") sometimes referring to the practice of waitlisting (that is, delaying a firm decision on the applicant's admission until further information about the applicant and incoming class emerge) or rejecting "overqualified" students and therefore signifying an institutional inferiority complex. (This is an extreme and rare form of yield optimization.) In truth, virtually all elite undergraduate institutions use methods of yield maximization, and consider a student's likelihood of attending foremost in their admissions decisions. UNITED KINGDOM The United Kingdom has a centralized system of admissions to higher education, UCAS . In general, students are not admitted to colleges as a whole, but to particular Courses Of Study . AUSTRALIA As Australia uses a Federal System of government, responsibility for education, and admission to Technical And Further Education colleges and Undergraduate degrees at universities for domestic students, are in the domain of State And Territory government (see Education In Australia ). All states except Tasmania have centralized processing units for admission to undergraduate degrees for citizens of Australia and New Zealand , and for Australian Permanent Residents ; however applications for International and Postgraduate students are usually accepted by individual universities. The Australian government operates the Higher Education Contribution Scheme for undergraduate students, so admission is rarely limited by prospective students' ability to pay up-front. All states use a system that awards the recipient with an Equivalent National Tertiary Entrance Rank , or ENTER, and the award of an International Baccalaureate meets the minimum requirements for admission in every state. The Special Tertiary Admissions Test is the standard test for non-school-leavers nationwide. In all cases, applicants must be proficient in the English Language to be considered and meet the course requirements listed by the Admitting Institution . New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory The Universities Admission Centre accepts applications for all NSW and ACT tertiary institutions. Applications usually comprise of standardized test results, adherence to the university's selection criteria for the applicable course, and a suitable application. The standard test for school-leavers is the Higher School Certificate in NSW, and the Year 12 Certificate in the ACT, resulting in a University Admission Index score. Northern Territory The South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for Northern Territory tertiary institutions. Year 12 students are awarded the Northern Territory Certificate of Education and must meet course requirements. Queensland The Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for Queensland tertiary institutions. Year 12 students are awarded an Overall Position , based on their performance in class subjects and their result in the Queensland Core Skills Test , as well as meeting course requirements. South Australia The South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for South Australian tertiary institutions. Year 12 students are awarded the South Australian Certificate Of Education , and must meet course requirements. Tasmania Tasmanian school leavers applying for entrance at the University Of Tasmania need to apply directly to the university. Tasmanian school students receive a Tertiary Entrance Rank on successful completion of the '''Tasmanian Certificate of Education'''. Students from interstate wishing to study at UTas may apply through either the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre, or directly through the University. Victoria The Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for Victorian tertiary institutions. Applications comprise of standardized test results and meeting institutional requirements. The standard certification for school-leavers is the Victorian Certificate Of Education . Western Australia The Tertiary Institutions Service Centre accepts applications for Western Australian tertiary institutions. The standardized test for school-leavers is the Tertiary Entrance Examination. CANADA Post-Secondary Application Service of British Columbia ( British Columbia ), Ontario Universities' Application Centre ( Ontario ). HONG KONG Joint University Programmes Admissions System , using HKALE (developed and administrated by Hong Kong Examinations And Assessment Authority ). ISRAEL National Center for Examinations and Evaluation JAPAN National Center for University Entrance Examinations MALTA Entrance is done after performing well in examinations which are a local version equivalent to the General Certificate Of Education TURKEY Student Selection and Placement Center ÖSYM , prepares ÖSS GERMANY Prospective students who have passed the Abitur may decide freely what subjects to enroll in. However, in some popular subject fields such as Medicine or Business Administration , students have to pass a certain Numerus Clausus — that is, they cannot enroll unless they have scored a minimum grade point average on their Abitur. One should distinguish two types of higher education institutions in Germany, the universities (including'' Technische Hochschule n'') and the'' Fachhochschule n'' ( Polytechnic s). A prospective students who has passed the Abitur is qualified for admission to every German university, with the exception of very few new degree programs, where additional entrance examinations were recently introduced. A Fachhochschule, in contrast, requires from the student the completing of an Internship to qualify for admission. There is also a second German school leaving exam, which qualifies the prospective students for admission to higer education in Germany, the ''Fachhochschulreife'', often called ''Fachabitur'' in colloquial usage. An internship is already part of the Fachhochschulreife itself, therefore a Fachhochschule requires no additional internship from the student. However, most universities do not accepting this qualification for admission. An exception are universities in the German state of Hesse , who accepting this qualification since 2004 for admission to Bachelor's Degree courses, but not to the traditional German Diplom degree courses. PAKISTAN For Undergraduate admissions the national universities have common entrance tests which are SAT based and are held according to provincial zones, the private universities hold their own entrance test which are also SAT based. For Postgraduate admissions some of the universities hold tests which are followed by interviews and others take interviews only. INDIA Most Indian universities participate in one or another centralized admission procedure. National tests and interviews are organized by an independent body composed of members of the participating organizations. Little weight is given to applicants’ past academic record and more to their exam results. Applicants are ranked by exam grades, and submit their preference of universities/programs based on their rank and choice. Some such common entrance tests are:
AUSTRIA , SWITZERLAND , BELGIUM These countries probably have the most liberal system of university admission anywhere in the world, since anyone who has passed the Matura may enroll in any subject field (or even several at no additional cost) at a public university. In Belgium as well, the only prerequisite for enrolling in university studies is to have obtained a high-school diploma. In both Switzerland and Belgium, medical studies are an exception, which have a numerus clausus system due to overcrowding. This liberal admission practice led to overcrowding and high Dropout rates in the more popular fields of study like psychology and journalism, as well as high failure rates on exams which are unofficially used to filter out the less-capable students. Following a ruling by the European Court Of Justice issued on July 7 , 2005 , which forces Austria to accept nationals of other EU Member States under the same conditions as students who took their Matura in Austria, a law was passed on June 8 allowing universities to impose measures to select students in those fields which are subject to numerus clausus in Germany. Starting in 2006 , the three medical universities (in Vienna , Innsbruck and Graz ) will introduce entrance exams. There are no intentions to introduce a numerus clausus in any subject field. NETHERLANDS Prospective students have to choose, two years before graduation, for a graduation type (e.g. natural science graduation type). Subjects at Dutch universities freely accept all students who have chosen the correct graduation type (e.g. to enroll in physics, the graduation type 'natural sciences' is required). All other students have to pass an exam to be enroll (this is the exception). Popular subjects, such as Medicine or Dental Medicine have a Numerus Fixus , meaning that a limited number of students may enroll for this subject at a particular university. To decide who is allowed, a lottery is held in which ones grades influence chances of being chosen (an indirect and incomplete Numerus Clausus ). CHINA A single national exam given each summer determines the lifelong destiny of each student. The exam covers common school topics such as math, language, history, science, etc. Better institutions require higher scores for admittance. The required score also varies by province (students in more competitive provinces, like Jiangsu, need higher scores than students from less competitive areas such as Tibet ). SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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