It was wonderful to see so many people interested in American education at our Moscow event last Saturday! Since we know that not everyone could be there with us, we wanted to share our five biggest takeaways. We hope they will help you in your quest for the best education!
It’s never too early to start preparing. Don’t get us wrong: we don’t mean that you should only select elite preschools for your children. But we do mean that it’s never too early to start academically preparing your child for an American education — lessons in subjects like math and English (remember that ALL schools and universities require TOEFL scores!) can never hurt, especially if your student would like to prove their mastery of the subject.
The biggest brand name might not be the best fit. There are lots of universities out there — and not all of them are the Ivy League! It’s important to consider your student’s strengths, weakness, dreams, and goals when selecting a university. Just because Harvard carries the weight of a brand doesn’t mean that it will suit their personality and academic aspirations.
Summer programs offer a range of benefits. Think of them as “mini college”: they expose your student to college-level academics, campus life, and a shortened version of the application process. They’ll get a feeling for what they like and don’t like, which will streamline the college application process later on.
Start the actual college application process as early as possible. There are lots of materials to consider: TOEFL scores, SAT and SAT II scores, transcripts, essays, extracurricular activities, recommendations, and sometimes even more. Don’t delay — get a head start on obtaining all of these materials as early as possible so that they are good-quality — and so that the admissions campaign is low-stress.
Get a solid “admissions team” on your side. Don’t be afraid to enlist people’s support! This, naturally, should include (at least three) recommenders genuinely interested in your student’s future — but should also include people willing to take you through the process and make it as low-stress as possible — like Hermiona!