Students considering UK and US early admissions should start preparing their applications soon.

UK: lodge Oxford/Cambridge application by 15 October. Some selected courses (e.g. medicine/vet) of other universities also require you to apply by this deadline. UCAS key dates are found here

Oxford and Cambridge will ask shortlisted students to attend an interview. Make sure that your academic/extracurricular commitments won’t clash with the interview period.

US: prepare all the standardised test scores and application documents, and apply by the November deadline (some unis/courses may have earlier deadlines - check their websites!). Check which months SAT Reasoning Test and SAT Subjects Tests are offered this year and whether universities you are applying to accept test scores from these months. In applying to US universities, essays are very important. Allocate enough time to developing essays that convey your passion and 'who you are'.

Japan: Many Japanese universities, both public and private, now offer courses taught in English. Japan however does not have a centralised application system like UCAS. This means each university has its own application policy, procedures and forms. A couple of other things you need to be aware of in applying to Japanese universities are:
 

1.       If you are applying to more than one faculty within the same university, you may be required to complete a respective set of application forms.

2.       Universities may specify forms in which to complete teacher’s evaluation, predicted grade report, certificate of (expected) graduation etc. High schools usually have their own forms for those documents, so communicate with universities and ask for advice.

3.       Documents in hard copy are to be sent by post – not online submission.  While several universities ask you to create an online account during the process of application, you will nevertheless be asked to post several documents. Allow enough time for mail-delivery.

Applications to Japanese universities may sound time-consuming and a bit complicated, but universities in other countries also do have specific requirements – e.g. some courses of Oxbridge will ask you to sit a written exam, and many top US colleges ask you to write supplementary essays.

Also, top universities in the UK, the US and Japan ask you to attend an interview if you are short-listed. How these interviews are carried out will differ greatly, so we recommend that you have a couple of practice interviews.

University application periods are likely to clash with the busiest time of the academic year, not only to students but also to the teachers. Good planning and time management will be a key to successful university applications.