I’m a Pakistani student and have done grade 12 but I’m applying for US high schools for grade 11 to repeat my 2 years. They require Graded essay. The problem is that I don’t have any graded essay. Should I write an essay and send to my English teacher for grading?
Do you have any examples of graded work for English or History that would qualify? What kinds of expository work are you doing?
Separately, have you spoken to the schools about whether they would allow you to retake the final two years of high-school? I haven’t heard of this in the past. Which schools are you considering?
I’m applying for Exeter, Andover, Deerfield, Milton, NMH and Rosemary hall. Our education and its curriculum are in English. Also, English is a compulsory subject. I’m repeating the last two years because the US education system couldn’t consider our high school degree as equivalent to their high schools. Unfortunately, we don’t have such things as too much focus on English creative writing they just focus on Grammer.
Yes, I already informed all schools and some schools even mentioned in their FAQ’s that we allow students who want to repeat their years due to low scores.
I want to study in the US top universities that’s why I’m taking this step. I know it’s really panic for me to repeat two years but I think if you want to achieve something big you have to lose something. There is still hope.
I have known some people who were very successful in their lives. I cannot think of anyone who took what seemed to be the shortest or most direct path from wherever they started to being successful. We all have a few fits and starts before we end up where we want to be. This is very normal. A couple of extra years of high school might be a reasonable path. Whether it will get you into a famous and highly ranked university in the USA is hard to predict (but if it doesn’t, then it might instead get you into U. Toronto or McGill or somewhere else).
Depending upon what grades you have in high school, there is another possible route to attending a highly ranked university in the US. That is to start with a bachelor’s degree at a more normal very good university, possibly in your home country, and then get a master’s degree or some other graduate degree in the US. I have know quite a few people who attended a highly ranked university in the US for some form of graduate degree, and most of them started with a bachelor’s at a very good but not quite so famous university. Some got a bachelor’s degree at an in-state public universities in the US. Some got their bachelor’s degree outside the US. If you want to get a master’s degree or some other graduate degree at a famous university (such as Stanford or Harvard) you will need to do very well as an undergraduate student, and good work or research or internship experience can help, but you do not need to attend the top university in your country. I also have known a few coworkers who got a bachelor’s degree in their home country (which was either India or Pakistan in the cases I am thinking of) and then got a masters degree at U.Mass Amherst or another university in the US that happens to be quite good for their specific major, such as computer science.
One last thing to keep in mind: Once you graduate from university in the US, you need to expect and plan to return to your home country. A student visa to study in the US is just that, a student visa. It does not allow you to stay in the US after graduation. Immigration has become a political issue in the US, and you cannot expect politics here or anywhere to be driven by common sense or rational behavior. What will happen politically between now and six years from now is beyond my ability to predict.
Best wishes. I know that this is a big step to take and is not easy.
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Yes, I was already aware of the second option, and if I don’t get admission to one of these schools, it will definitely be my second choice.
But I’m still anxious about graded writing sample. As I completed some parts of application and take ISEE test yesterday. I think I should write any work and send it to my English teacher for grading, this is quite a good way.
Given that you do not currently have this, have you emailed admissions at the US schools that you are applying to, and asked them for advice?
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There is definitely still hope.
Do you know other students that have pursued this route that could offer you advice? They may understand what kinds of essays the schools would like to see and how you should approach your English teacher for this optional essay.
They may also give guidance on which schools would be best suited to this kind of transition. If you haven’t done expository writing before, I would make sure that you’re applying to schools that will be able to build upon your previous education and acclimate you to a U.S. writing standard without “throwing you into the deep end”.
Best of luck with your applications!
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