College Admissions Around the World

What is the admissions process like in other countries?  Would you have a better shot at Oxford or Cambridge than Harvard or Yale?  Well, consider this – Cambridge applicants are interviewed by two professors and face questions like “What do you most like about the brain?” or “Was Romeo impulsive?”  A student applying to Oxford might be asked, “If I could fold this piece of paper an infinite number of times how many times must I fold it to reach the moon?”  

Clearly, the interview is just one way the US system differs from those abroad.  From my experience, US college interviews are nothing more than chat fests with nostalgic alums.  I remember one interviewer told me he had recently interviewed the daughter of a prominent local doctor, and then asked me what my father did for a living.  Another complained how his college had gone downhill since his days on campus.  It was all a waste of time; a bone thrown to alumni to make them feel important.  I prefer the quirky “Oxbridge” questions because at least they show these institutions value student intellectual curiosity and ingenuity, not the ability to make small talk.

The differences between admissions in the US and overseas do not end with the interview questions.  You might be surprised to learn that the US and Sweden are the only countries that require an “aptitude” test (SAT).  Almost all other countries base admissions decisions on subject-oriented “achievement” tests.  In other words, you are judged by what you actually learned in high school, not whether you took a prep course to decipher the secret code of the SAT.

How would you like a computer to make admissions decisions, rather than an admissions officer?  This is the case in Australia.  Students are ranked based on their performance on a national exam, then select their top choices and the computer does the rest.  Just think how much money universities could save if they replaced their admissions offices with a computer.  Maybe then they could afford to accept more applicants. 

Japanese students take a national entrance exam that determines where they can apply.   If adopted in the US, this would save students from applying to schools where they really don’t have strong chances of admission, and reduce the workload for admissions officers.  However, this system doesn’t suit students with their heart set on one school, because poor performance on the national entrance exam can block them from even applying to their dream school.  Japanese students in this situation often wait another year to retake the entrance exam. 

Not surprisingly, in China the state controls the admissions process, right down to setting the number of available spots to meet the projected needs of society.  If the US government could do this, we’d see a lot more engineers and fewer lawyers!

If I had to be an applicant in a non-US system, I would pick Ireland.  Irish applicants rank their choices and are then “matched” based on their rank and their test scores.  What I like is the idea that students pick the college, not the other way around.  The transparency of student preferences also helps admissions officers, who waste too much time guessing whether they are a student’s first choice.

Now back to those “Oxbridge” interview questions.  As one Brit comparing the two systems wrote, American universities place greater value on “personality characteristics” such as extra-curricular activities, athletics and legacy status.  American universities are held in high regard, their admissions process is viewed as a popularity contest.  While American students rush from activity to activity to fill up their applications, what are students abroad doing?  Acquiring skills.  Gaining a deeper level of knowledge, rather than spreading themselves too thin.  Preparing themselves for the global economy.      

So, if you want to ditch the SAT, field some unusual interview questions and create your own rankings, stick an international stamp on your application and get your passport ready!