You should know that the political climate and acceptance level varies widely at different schools. Some parts of the country are more conservative than others. Some schools within the same part of the country are more progressive than others. And within a school, one can never promise there will be universal tolerance and acceptance. I will do my absolute best try to help you find a range of choices where you can feel comfortable, accepted, and appreciated for who you are.

Higher education in the US was originally segregated by gender, with separate colleges for men and for women. The cultural shift in the 1960’s made single-sex colleges less popular. Most US educational institutions are now co-educational.
Today there are only three men’s colleges left in the US that are not religiously affiliated. Most all-women’s colleges also made the change to co-education, but there are still several prominent women’s schools, notably Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Smith, and Wellsley, that have survived the change. The continuation of all-women’s colleges is, at least in part, attributable to Matina Horner’s groundbreaking research that pioneered the concept of women’s “fear of success.” She became the youngest president in Radcliffe College history, in 1972. Radcliffe, however, did not survive the change and later merged into Harvard College, the undergraduate school of Harvard University.
There is a body of research, including Horner’s, to suggest that women who attend single-sex colleges have a higher rate of success in life, because they learn to assert their knowledge and opinions without worrying whether they are going to please, displease, or or in general worry about the opinions of men.
Some women’s schools, such as Mount Holyoke and Smith, belong to a consortium of schools of which others are co-educational. A student at one of these colleges might take classes, or attend events, at another school in the group, so going to an all-women’s college does not mean that one will not encounter men.
Going to an all-women’s school has benefits and drawbacks. If a young woman is concerned about the male dating pool, a single-sex college may not be for her. If a woman prefers the company of other women, or wants to focus single-mindedly on her studies, a women’s college might be the ideal option.

Most US college students go to a school within their geographical region.

It’s a comfort issue. They might want to feel they can go home for the weekend, occasionally or often. They or their parents might not want to incur the expense of a flight every time the student travels to and from school. But if you’re applying from another continent, you’re already committing to a big trip. Don’t limit yourself to considering only the narrow selection of colleges or universities of which you have already heard.

After my brother’s first year as an undergraduate at Harvard University, he and two cousins traveled by car in a large loop around the US. When they stopped one night at a campground in the Midwest, they met some young men who, while sitting around the fire, asked them, “Where do you go to school?” My brother said, “Harvard,” and our cousins, “Dartmouth.” While my brother was amused, our cousins were astonished and a little upset that their new acquaintances, students at their own state’s university, had never heard of Dartmouth. Dartmouth, like Harvard, is a member of the Ivy League, seven of the oldest, most prestigious universities in the US.

My point is that if you limit yourself only to schools of which you’ve heard, you’re going to miss out on many excellent options.

Even if you can name all the schools in the Ivy League, there are going to be excellent schools of which you’ve never heard. Are you interested in a technical school? There are lots of technical schools with outstanding reputations besides MIT. Are you a musician? Is the only US conservatory you know by name, Juilliard?

The big name schools have what we might colloquially call a gazillion applicants. If you’re flexible about considering other schools, and other locations, you’ll improve your odds of getting in.

Except for community colleges, few, if any, colleges or universities want students from only their area. Even state universities want students from out-of-state. Partly it’s because out-of-state students pay state universities higher tuition than in-state students. Partly it’s because schools seek diversity within the student body.

Diversity can come from many qualities: students’ interests and skills, ethnicity, socio-economic background, and from the area in which they grew up. If you’re applying from outside the US, whether you’re an American student who has spent years abroad, or the citizen of another country, you have at least one big strength in applying to US schools. You appeal to their admissions committees’ desire for diversity in the student body.

What’s the difference?

In England, for instance, a college is one of two things. It can be the school a student moves on to after finishing secondary school, to prepare for university. Or a college is a residential hall within a university. A student applies to a specific college within a university, like King’s College, Cambridge. The college has a dining hall and a resident tutor or tutors, who are university faculty members. The applicant might choose a particular college because it has a reputation for a strength in a specific subject. But when a student graduates, he or she receives a diploma from the university, not from the college.

In the US, a college is an undergraduate institution. It grants Bachelor degrees – Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, perhaps Bachelor of Fine Arts – but for the most part, not graduate degrees.

Some might grant Master’s degrees in a narrow range of subjects in which they specialize, but for the most part, students who want a Master’s or PhD move on to another program, elsewhere. Colleges do usually expect faculty members to publish work or research, but they prioritize teaching.

A university is usually bigger than a college. It grants Master’s and PhDs in many subjects.

Some universities prioritize teaching by faculty members, some research. At some universities, especially those that prioritize publishing original writings or research, there can be faculty members who only do research and supervise the research of graduate students, but never teach undergraduate classes. So if there’s a particular famous faculty member whose work a prospective student admires, or knows by reputation, we need to check whether that teacher ever actually teaches an undergraduate course, and how many people can take it at one time.
Both universities and colleges are casually referred to as schools, even though the students have completed elementary and secondary school.

Big classes, small classes

There are some classes, introductory science courses for instance, that will almost always be big, and be taught in the lecture format, with labs in smaller groups. At many universities, these big classes are often taught by teaching assistants who are graduate students. At colleges that don’t have graduate programs, even the introductory courses are usually taught by faculty members. Some universities do pride themselves, though, on having faculty members teach introductory courses. There is no strict rule about this, but classes tend to be smaller, the higher the level.
If you are a student who wants a lot of individual attention, there are schools that pride themselves on small classes. Some even offer independent studies guided by faculty members, usually for students who are nearing the completion of their degree. If you are very self-motivated, you might not care how small the classes are, or how many hours per week the teacher has office hours where one can go and ask questions and discuss difficulties.

Styles of classes

These are the basic styles of classes available:

• Lectures – they can be large or small. Students may have the opportunity to ask questions, but not much back and forth discussion between students and teacher takes place.
• Seminars – these are usually small, or small-ish classes where there is much discussion amongst the faculty member and students.
• Labs and studios – these are hands-on, direct experience in science or art courses.
• Field work – this is direct experience that takes place off campus. It is usually for a physical science class like geology, botany, or oceanography, or a social science course like anthropology.

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.