Applying to universities and colleges in the United State is an intimidating process, even for applicants and their families within the U.S.

When you are applying from outside the country, the process can be overwhelming. There are terms that are new and confusing. What is the difference between Early Admissions, Early Action, and Rolling Admissions? What does the school’s selectivity rating mean? What is the difference between a college and a university – because in the U.S., the answer to that is not the same as in many other countries. Is financial aid available? These schools receive a lot of applications; how do I make mine stand out? If I’m not a native speaker, is my English good enough?

I am here to help. I am an American parent who has lived outside the U.S. for several years, and, while living abroad, guided her children and other families in finding the right colleges and universities within the US (and occasionally the UK and Canada) to suit them. I have advised on test preparation, college application essays, meeting deadlines. I have a master’s degree in writing, so coaching for the college application essays is one of my particular strengths.

In other countries, the idea of finding a college or university that will suit the individual student is rather alien. Often people in other countries view the academic program as all-important. What schools have the best Physics, Engineering, International Relations, Chemistry, Psychology, English Literature, Geology? This may be the only factor that prospective students or their parents consider. In many countries, a student applies for one program, and is married to that program for the duration of his or her studies. In England, for instance, if you apply to study Maths (just called Math in the US), and then change your mind while you’re at university about what you want to study, you have to apply to programs all over again and start from the beginning.

As I see it, one of the major advantages of the US system is its flexibility of choice. In most fields and at most schools – there are exceptions – it’s fairly simple to change your mind along the way. You don’t even have to have a sense before you start of what you want to study. College or university is, for lots of students in the U.S., about figuring out what you want to do with your life. Medical and legal training differ dramatically in the US from in most other countries, so if you’re interested in either field, that’s one topic we can discuss. But in the US, you can start out intending to major in International Relations, change directions, and end up with a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry.

You’re allowed to find your passions during the process, and clarify your goals.

There are other considerations that, in the US, affect a student’s college decision. Because the US is so big, and has so many institutions of higher learning. applicants to US schools have the luxury of asking what, for many American students, is the most important question, but for people from other countries is perhaps foreign and puzzling: Where will I fit in? Do I want a big school or small? Do I want a quiet, rural location with few distractions off campus, or do I want the excitement of a big city? Are athletics important? Do I want to be able to compete in a sport? Do I want to be able to live on campus for my entire stay, or do I want the option of living off campus? Would I prefer a school with sororities and fraternities, or not? Do I enjoy winter weather, or crave sunshine, and warmth?

These are just some of the questions you might entertain. I can help you answer them, and then assist you to find schools that will fit your criteria.

Recently, I was standing in line at a Chinese food truck at the gates of Columbia University, and met a student from China. I asked him how long he’d been in the US. He said, “Two years here, so far, and four years in Minnesota.” I knew because he said four years that Minnesota was where he’d done his undergraduate work. He said, “You have no idea how cold it is there.”

I said, “Well, actually I do, because I went to school in Wisconsin,” which is right next door, one state to the East. “Did you have any idea beforehand how cold it was going to be?”

He said, “None.”

I know of another student, also from China, who saw New York in the school location, thought she was going to the excitement and bustle of New York City, and wound up at a small-town college near the Canadian border. That meant a lot of cold, snow and few of the cultural attractions and distractions of a big city.

These are examples that, for the most part, do not apply to people who grew up in the US, but can make all the difference for an applicant from elsewhere.

Going to college or university in the US is an expensive proposition. You want to make an informed choice.

You want the best possible program in a location you’ll enjoy, at a school where you’ll feel you belong, because you’re going to spend a big chunk of time there. I can help.