University Guidance Counseling Handbook 2023

University Guidance Counseling Handbook 2023

Dear Students and Parents,

We decided to write this guide to help you plan your applications and have all of the information you need to understand the requirements and deadlines for applications to the USA and UK for university entry in 2023. For applications to other countries, such as Canada, please see your UGC.

If you are applying to Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan or Korea, please see Mr Sung Hyun Baek.

This information will make it easier for you to understand the rigours you will have to go through and how incredibly important it is to pay attention to deadlines and the smallest details of each application.

Read this guide carefully and make a note of deadlines which are relevant to you in your personal calendar.

If you have any questions, please feel free to come and talk to your UGC whenever you need any further clarification or advice.

Izabella Sloczynska - Director of University Guidance Counseling

Sung Hyun Baek - University Guidance Counsellor

Victor Cho - University Guidance Counsellor

Bo Young Kim - University Guidance Counsellor

Tannis Waugh - University Guidance Counsellor

Seoha Kang - University Guidance Counsellor Registrar

2 APPLYING TO UNIVERSITIES IN THE UK

Applications are sent through UCAS which stands for the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.

All universities in the UK are listed in the UCAS website: www.ucas.com

This is the best, most accurate and up to date information for your course and university search.

Applications are sent through the UCAS HUB which is completed by the student. Student applications are linked to the school through a special buzzword which is provided by UGC when UCAS is activated for the application season. There are several sections to be completed by you in order to apply.

These are -

1. Personal details

You will need the following information for this section -

• Passport details - make sure your passport is valid for at least a year. Note: the name on your passport must exactly match the name on your IGCSE certificate, IB exam certificate and school transcript.

• Permanent family address in English

• IGCSE Certificate

• TOEFL/IELTS certificate (For certificate number and scores)

2. Finance Arrangements

(Usually students select ‘Private Finance’). No financial details are required at this stage when applying to the UK.

3. Course Choices

(Up to five universities). UK universities do NOT look favourably on applications to the same university for two or more different courses.

4. Education

This section includes all IGCSE grades and pending IB courses. You can also add ABRSM, Duke of Edinburgh International Awards, IELTS and TOEFL here.

5. Employment

This section is not relevant to students who are still at school, as it is full time paid employment details that are required from mature student applicants.

6. Personal statement

4000 characters maximum including spaces. The Personal statement is written with guidance from your UGC. The first draft policy applies. This means we will not send applications with Personal Statements which have not been written in stages by the student in collaboration with advice from their UGC.

7. Reference

Your UCAS reference is created by your HL teachers and your tutor at the end of Year 12. Unlike US Letters of Recommendation, you do not need to request it. Once teachers and your tutor have completed their sections, the UCAS reference is edited into the correct format by your UGC. The school reference remains confidential.

8. Payment and Sending

Once the student has paid the fee (GBP 26.50 in 2021) the application is ready to send. The UGC sends the application. At NLCS Jeju, the final checking, payment and sending are completed together with your UGC.

Predicted grades - You will be informed of your PGs in September and they must be entered on to the UCAS application by UGC when you apply. It is important to be aware that once final PGs are released in September 2022 they CANNOT BE CHANGED at a later date.

You may apply to a maximum of 5 universities.

*For Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science a maximum of 4 applications is permitted by the UK. See your UGC for more information.

INTERVIEWS

• In addition to Oxford and Cambridge, the following UK universities may invite you for an interview as part of the admissions process: Imperial College London, Warwick University and Manchester University.

• Inform your subject teacher if you are applying to a university which interviews applicants. Your teacher will arrange a series of practice interviews for you.

• Students applying for art-based subjects (including Architecture) or for Music may be invited for an interview as well as being required to submit a portfolio.

IMPORTANT: There is a separate timeline for Oxford University, Cambridge University, Dentistry, Veterinary Medicine and Medicine. Please see below

TIMELINE FOR REGULAR APPLICATIONS TO THE UK FOR THE CLASS OF 2023 (ENTRY TO UNIVERSITY IN 2024)

May 2023 - Register with UCAS during a UGC session. Your application is linked to NLCS Jeju with a buzzword.

September 2023 - Final predicted grades released.

24 November 2023 - Final sending day for UCAS Regular applications from NLCS Jeju.

May 2024 - Deadline for students to make Firm and Insurance choices.

July 2024 - IB results released. If conditions are met, your university place is confirmed by the university and documents are provided by the university for your visa application.

WHAT IS AN OFFER FROM A UK UNIVERSITY?

UK universities will make an offer of a place to those students they are willing to accept.

The offer will be communicated through the individual student UCAS account. Offers are usually conditional. This means that if a student meets the conditions of the offer, the university place is secured if it is a Firm choice.

An offer may be set out like this -

38 IB points with no lower than 7,6,5 at HL.

Offers are usually very specific to the course and may include TOEFL/IELTS requirements or additional tests such as the STEP examination.

• Once all 5 universities have responded to the application, the student can only choose 2 offers.

• One is accepted as FIRM - this is the one you want to attend.

• One is accepted as INSURANCE and is typically one with a lower offer which you are happy to attend if you don’t meet the Firm offer conditions.

• The other 3 are declined.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN IB RESULTS ARE RELEASED?

When IB results are released around 5 July 2024, they will be sent directly to UCAS if you have completed the request for release of results form provided by the DP coordinator.

The Firm choice university will change its offer to UNCONDITIONAL and you can then begin the enrollment process (visa, accommodation, finances etc) with guidance from your new university.

If you do not have the IB points for your firm offer, contact your UGC immediately for further advice.

APPLICATIONS TO OXFORD UNIVERSITY, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY, DENTISTRY, VETERINARY MEDICINE AND MEDICINE

1. You can apply to either Oxford or Cambridge.

2. You may apply for only one course at either Oxford or Cambridge.

3. For medicine, veterinary science and dentistry, you may apply to only 4 universities plus one other application in a related subject, for a total of 5 applications. BMAT or UCAT exams are required for Medical school applications in the UK. Check the websites of the universities for entry requirements.

TIMELINE FOR OXFORD, CAMBRIDGE, DENTISTRY, VETERINARY SCIENCE AND MEDICINE

August September 2023

Choose your course

Choose a college or open application

Check admission assessment arrangements

Early September 2023

Register for the relevant test. Further details will be provided by UGC in early September 2023

Complete UCAS application

9 October 2023 Final sending day for NLCS Jeju applicants

mid October 2023 - Cambridge University pre assessment tests - at school

20 October (Approximately)

For Cambridge only: complete the Supplementary Additional Questionnaire (SAQ) by the deadline provided by Cambridge. You will need a good quality passport size photo

First week in November

Submit written work requested and/or take admissions assessment test

Mid November to mid December

Oxbridge interviews take place. These have been online for the last two years (Medical school interviews usually take place from November to March)

Mid to Late January 2024

Oxbridge decisions released

OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE - WHAT MAKES THEM SO SPECIAL AND COMPETITIVE?

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

The University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford are two of the world’s greatest universities, consistently rated at the top of national and international league tables. They provide a challenging, flexible and individual learning experience. Their teaching staff include many national and world subject leaders, so students have the exciting opportunity to be taught by experts in their field.

THE COLLEGIATE SYSTEM

Both Oxford and Cambridge universities are made up of individual colleges, as well as different subject departments. A college will be a student’s home and their central focus of teaching for much of their time at university. Each college will have a range of students — usually including both undergraduate and graduate students — studying across a spectrum of subject areas.

The college system offers the benefits of belonging to a large internationally renowned institution, and also to a smaller, interdisciplinary academic college community. You will have access to their college’s facilities, such as an extensive library and iT provision, as well as the resources of the wider university. College choice does not matter. Each college offers the same standard of teaching and has the same very high academic standards. Both universities work hard to ensure that the best students are successful in gaining a place, whichever college they’ve applied to. This means that you may be interviewed by more than one college and you may receive an offer from any of them. You can also make an open application which will be sent to any college.

TEACHING

The teaching methods are very similar at both universities as students will attend lectures, classes and laboratory work as appropriate for their course. Unlike at many other universities, students at Oxford and Cambridge also benefit from highly personalised teaching time with experts in their field. The only difference is in the name: Oxford refers to these sessions as “tutorials” while Cambridge calls them “supervisions”. Students are required to prepare an essay or other piece of work in advance for these sessions and then meet with their tutor to discuss the work, perhaps with one or two other students. Tutors are often world experts in their field, so this time is extremely valuable to students in developing their understanding of the subject.

RESOURCES AVAILABLE FOR CAMBRIDGE APPLICANTS 2023-2024

These are worth checking for those interested in applying for 2024. There are resources available for each subject and each college. Here are a few places to begin your research:

General information Cambridge

www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk

General information Oxford

https://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/applying-to-oxford/guide

Unibuddy -

https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/international-students/chat-our-students

Current students and staff are available on unibuddy sites for many universities.

Webinar Series -

https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/international-students/chat-our-students

Subject Masterclasses - Cambridge

https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/events/masterclasses - These are events that have run previously in person and they have been opened up to international students. There is a cost to attend these events (£12.50 in 2021) and the time zones may mean that students can’t attend live but everything will be recorded and there is the option to pre-submit questions.

Beyond the curriculum resources from Cambridge/Oxford University: www.myheplus.com

APPLYING TO A CONSERVATOIRE IN THE UK FOR MUSIC RELATED COURSES

Inform your UGC by April 2023 if you intend to apply for a course at one of the specialised Music Conservatoires in the UK. You will need a lot of additional material and your application is sent much earlier than other university applications in UK.

APPLYING TO UNIVERSITIES IN THE U S

APPLICATIONS REQUIREMENTS

Transcript (GPA)

This is the most important part of the application package. End of year transcript grades from Year 10 through Year 12 are reported as well as Predicted IB scores (released in September of Year 13) and IGCSE grades. Mid-Year transcript grades are also sent to universities in early February of Year 13 and a final transcript at the end of Year 13.

*NLCS Jeju Transcript

The individual R grade report is not sent to Universities. In the final week of summer term, students will receive their Transcript Grade for the year. The Transcript Grade represents performance across the whole of the school year and incorporates all academic attainment, including homework, tests and classwork. It is these transcript grades which are sent to those universities that require them.

Standardised Test - SATI, ACT, TOEFL

We advise that students taking any standardised testing finish before Year 12 so that they can successfully complete the IB Diploma Programme. It is recommended that the student take the SAT/ACT no more than three (3) times.

Teacher Recommendations

Students are responsible for requesting two Teacher Letters of Recommendation directly from their Year 12 subject teachers. UGC will provide guidelines on when and how to request Letters of Recommendation from teachers. Students/ parents will not have access to the Teacher Recommendations.

Activity List

Activities inside and outside school are very important. They provide the colleges/universities context on the type of applicant.

Rather than a high number of activities, colleges/universities prefer seeing consistency and quality of activities. The colleges/universities want to see ‘demonstrated interest.’

Students keep a record of activities on the Cialfo platform. The school CCA and Bryant programmes, societies and enterprises support the student in choosing a suitable range of activities.

College essays

US college essays are an important part of the application and need to be coherent with other parts. Essays are prepared in several stages at our school:

• Counsellor discusses strengths of individual student’s application deciding on what to emphasise.

• Decide on how to lay out the ‘story’ - how you write is more important than what you write.

• First draft is written and forms the basis for subsequent drafts.

UGC work with the student through all stages of college essay preparation and always review with the student before essays are sent.

Counsellor letter

Counsellor letters of recommendation for US universities are different from UK references in tone and objectives. Counsellor letters show detailed knowledge of the student’s profile. It is therefore very important for students to get to know their UGC from Year 10 onwards. It is the student’s responsibility to arrange appointments with their UGC.

Standardised tests

While more and more colleges and universities have elected to extend ‘test optional’ policies (www.testfree.org), we currently advise students that students who wish to apply to top colleges/universities SHOULD take either the SAT or the ACT. Competitive applicants are more likely to have a set of standardised test scores. In an ever-increasing competitive environment, it is important for students to present evidence of academic achievement.

One of two standardised tests that most colleges/ universities in the US require for admissions. It has mathematics and critical reading and takes three hours to finish. You can register for the test at Collegeboard.org

One of two standardised tests that most colleges/universities in the US require for admissions. It is highly recommended for students to take the ACT with Writing. You can register for the test at act.org

Both tests are widely used for college admissions in the United States. Some colleges/universities will require or advise international students to take an English proficiency test. Regardless of your standardised test scores, we strongly advise that all students take one of these tests in the summer before Year 13. https://www.ets.org/toefl/ for TOEFL, https:// www.ielts.org/ for IELTS

6 COLLEGE APPLICATION ROUNDS

Restricted Early Action: Non-binding. But applicants may not apply ED or EA to any other college.

Early Decision: Binding. Accepted applicants must attend the college.

Early Decision 2: Binding. Applicants submit grades and information from the first quarter of Year 13.

Early Action: Non-binding. Applicants do not have to commit to the college and may apply to other colleges under regular admission plans. Similar deadline and notification date to Early decision.

Rolling admissions: Universities continue to accept applications only until the class is filled, so it is best to apply early.

DEADLINES FOR US APPLICATIONS FROM NLCS JEJU 2023-2024

25 October 2023 - Early application deadline for ED/EA

30 November 2023 - UC applications deadline

15 December 2023 - Early admission results released

22 December 2023 - Regular / ED2 admission deadline

Mid - February 2024 - ED2 results released

1 March 2024 - UC results released

Mid - March to 1 April - Regular decisions released

1 May - Pay enrollment deposit to your final destination

OUR WORK WITH YEARS 10-13

YEAR 10

STUDENT

• Activities

Try diverse activities in order to find their strengths and interests. Pay attention to what you enjoy – and do more of it

• Read as much as possible

• Find a balance between rigour of your curriculum and achievement and between school work and extracurriculars

• Interview many people about colleges and careers

• Visit colleges in-person or virtually

UGC TEAM

• Create and manage a draft of each student’s high school academic plan

• Discuss students’ plans for standardised tests; which tests to take and when to take them

• University Information

Myth Busting session to introduce university application ethics and how to prepare college applicants

• Summer plans

Discuss summer plans with students

YEAR 11

STUDENT

• Academic interests

Narrow down and develop their academic interests

• Activities

Develop your interests and explore leadership opportunities

Balance community Service/Creativity and Action

• Study hard for IGCSE exams

• Start exploring university search platforms and resources

Examples:

U.S. News Best Colleges

QS World University Rankings

The Fiske Guide to Colleges - Edward B. Fiske

The Insider’s Guide to Colleges - The Yale Daily News

The Best 378 Colleges - Princeton Review

https://www.campusreel.org/ https://www.unigo.com/ www.ucas.com

• Take the PSAT exam

• Visit colleges in-person or virtually

• Take standardised tests before Year 12

UGC TEAM

• Discuss each student’s initial application plans and goals

• PSAT

Review PSAT results with students to identify areas of strength and areas for development, and as a way to gain a shared understanding of the student’s profile

• IB Choices

UGC one-to-one meetings with students to talk about IB choices

Q&A session during tutor time

• Application Ethics

• Setting some ground rules and expectations

• Summer Plans

Discuss summer plans with students

YEAR 12

STUDENT

• Schedule a regular visit to UGC to discuss application preparation

• Make college visits if time/resources allows

• Attend college representative visits at NLCS Jeju

• Closely review materials sent to you from colleges

• Research colleges and write a draft of ‘Why this university’ and ‘Why this major’ essay

• Initial college list

Begin researching specific colleges by visiting college websites and create a draft application list

• Begin to write your resume

Start creating a resume and discuss it with UGC

• Portfolio

Prepare for a(n) art/music/drama portfolio if applicable

• Recommendations

Ask two subject teachers to write a recommendation in May (UGC will inform you when to do this).

• If interested in sports in college begin to reach out to coaches via email

UGC TEAM

• UGC sessions

A scheduled lesson time with Year 12 students once a week to help students through every step of the college application process

• Start U.S. application preparation: Rough draft of 10 colleges list, resume and essay topics through regular meetings with each student

• Host Family Meetings in June to discuss college list, early application schools and application process

YEAR 13

STUDENT

• Schedule a regular visit to UGC to discuss application preparation

• Finalise 10 applications list

• Complete college essays

• Create Common App account and submit applications by the internal deadlines. Application for many US universities is done through Common Application. The main exceptions to this are University of California, state universities and art schools

• Study for Mock exams

• Maintain academic standing until graduation

Most offers from US universities are unconditional, but admissions can be rescinded if there is a significant discrepancy between IB predicted grades and actual score.

• Students must remain in good standing with the school

UGC TEAM

• Help making final university choices

• Support applications

• Write counsellor recommendations for US applicants

• Edit and send all relevant documents to universities

Cialfo is a university application tracking platform that is central to our work in the university guidance team. We use Cialfo to record information and track many aspects of university applications at NLCS Jeju.

STUDENT LOGIN PAGE

https://nlcsjeju.cialfo.co

WHAT STUDENTS DO WITH CIALFO

Each student has a login and can use Cialfo to do the following:

• Record extracurricular activities and build a resume Students should record activities, positions of responsibility, achievements, competitions, etc., from Year 10 onwards.

• Search for universities

Cialfo has options to research and compare universities.

• Build application list

Students add prospective and active university choices in all countries to Cialfo.

• Find college application results and statistics of NLCS Jeju students

• Register for virtual college visits

• Request a meeting with a UGC

WHAT UGC DO WITH CIALFO

• Maintain notes of all meetings with students

• Accept meeting requests from students

• Review and discuss university choices

This allows us to ensure that students are making well-informed choices

• Submit documents to universities

Students applying to the US through Common App will link their Common App account to Cialfo, allowing us to submit documents (transcripts, references, etc.) electronically to their universities

• Track the status of applications and results

All outcomes (successful and unsuccessful applications, withdrawn applications, etc.) are recorded.

• Create admissions statistics

We are building a database of admissions statistics for NLCS Jeju graduates. This allows us to better match student profiles with universities around the world. Individual student information remains confidential.

NLCS JEJU APPLICATION POLICY

1. Maximum 10

It is an NLCS policy worldwide that a maximum of 10 applications can be sent per student to the USA. This includes the Universities of California as one application.

2. ED Agreement

• ED is binding. If you get admitted, you have to go there.

• You are contractually obliged to withdraw ALL other applications worldwide.

• You must contact all universities and withdraw your applications. Use any student reference numbers you have received.

• Eg USA/Canada:

• “I am withdrawing my application to Xyzxyz as I have been offered a place through Early Decision at another university. Thank you for considering my application so far.”

• cc your UGC into each letter

• UCAS : go into your UCAS Hub. Find the part where it instructs you to ‘withdraw the entire application.” Follow instructions.

• If evidence of withdrawal is not provided, UGC will contact universities and inform them.

3. Internal Deadlines

Students at NLCS Jeju must send all applications on or before the published internal deadline. NLCS Jeju cannot guarantee that applications will be considered by a university if not sent on or before this date. Applications submitted to the US after 22 December will be sent after the winter holiday once our Spring Term begins.

4. First Draft Policy

You must share initial drafts of college essays and personal statements with the university counselling team. If we have doubts about whether you wrote your essays, we may inform your universities. If we do so, that will be confidential between the UGC team and the universities

ACADEMIC HONESTY

Application essays must be the original work of the student. Universities will not offer a place to a student who is suspected of malpractice. The School’s responsibilities

Your responsibilities

• Provide advice

• Inform students of university fairs and events

• Meet each student individually

• Prepare transcripts

• Prepare references and recommendations

• Review applications, essays and personal statements

• Send transcripts and relevant documents

• Find a suitable course

• Choose your universities/colleges

• Complete the application forms

• Register and take any additional required exams

• Request transcripts and references at least one month before they are required

• Send the applications on time according to INTERNAL NLCS Jeju deadlines

Important information if you wish to apply to Korean universities or reapply to the UK and USA once you have graduated from NLCS Jeju.

Students accepting a place at a university in another country will not subsequently be supported with applications to Korean Universities.

Students wishing to re apply to university again, once they have graduated from NLCS Jeju, must contact their UGC by September after graduation from NLCS Jeju.

For the UK, students reapply as an independent applicant. The application is not linked to the school. UGC provides references upon request from UCAS.

For the USA, UGC provides the final transcript and copies of Teacher and Counsellor Letters of Recommendation if these were previously requested and are stored on file. It is important to contact UGC early in the application cycle (September) so that new Cialfo accounts can be created in good time.