Kyiv EducationUSA Advising Center
vul. Esplanadna 20 (6th floor), Kyiv – 01001
Tel.: (+380-44) 289-3952 / 289-3953

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COMPLETING

APPLICATION TO US INSTITUTIONS

FILLING OUT THE APPLICATION

Neatness is important. Before filling out the original application, answer the questions on a separate sheet of paper. You risk delay or even denial of admission if you send an incomplete application. University admissions committees will not review your application without recommendations and transcripts which must be officially authorized in Ukrainian and in English. If possible, make a copy of the completed application for your records.

A. PERSONAL DATA

  1. Address -- Make clear to the university your most reliable address. PERMANENT ADDRESS is your home address, where your parents live. MAILING ADDRESS is your current address, for example if you are living away from home in a dormitory. This is the address the university will use when sending you information. If your mailing and permanent addresses are the same, write the word "same". You should not translate names of streets, etc.; rather, transliterate the Ukrainian names into English letters. Example: vul. Volodymyrska, d.3, kv.26.
  2. Telephone Number -- international code for Ukraine is 380. Your number is 380+city code ”-” first “0”+ phone number. For example: +38-044-XXX XX XX
  3. Social Security Number -- You can leave this blank; you do not have one. The university will assign you an identification number.

B. VISA TYPE

In almost all cases, foreign students studying in the United States are issued visa type F-1 (F-2 for spouses). Visa type J-1 may be issued if you are receiving support from the US government, your home government, or private foundations. You may prefer one type of visa over another, but the university will make the decision.

C. TEST SCORES

Universities often ask you to write the results of TOEFL, SAT, GRE, etc. tests on the application. This does NOT substitute for official scores sent by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) from Princeton. If you have not taken the tests or do not know your scores, simply put the date on which you took or plan to take the examinations. You can still mail your application to the university even if you haven't yet taken the exams. (And ETS can send your official scores to the university even if you have not yet sent in your application. They will create a file for you and hold the scores.)

D. EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

  1. Transliterate directly from Ukrainian to English items about your educational background and degrees. Do NOT use American equivalents. That is, do not write Bachelor's Degree or Master's Degree. Ukrainian degrees should be translated as "Attestat", "Diplom", and "Candidate of Sciences".
  2. Since class rank does not exist in Ukrainian schools, leave this section blank.
  3. When answering how many years of English language study you have had, only count formal training in an educational institution. If you have informal training at home or with a personal teacher, write this separately.
  4. When describing your knowledge of English and other foreign languages, evaluate your ability HONESTLY -- don't be afraid to speak highly of yourself but don't overestimate your ability either. Rate yourself in the areas of reading, speaking, and writing. The words most used to describe language ability are "excellent", "good", "fair", and "poor". Include knowledge of any other foreign languages and Ukrainian. Your first language should be described as "native".

E. ACADEMIC HONORS

Some examples are: Chervonyj Diplom -- translated as "Diploma with Honors", awards received in an Olympiad, recommendation to participate in Student Scientific Society, if you receive a higher stipend because of excellent grades, and any published work. If you have many publications, include them on a separate sheet.

F. EXTRA-CURRICULAR AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

  1. Students should be sure to indicate all extra-curricular activities such as participation in special clubs, athletics, theater, writing, etc. This is especially important for undergraduates. Colleges and universities are interested in "well-rounded" undergraduate students who have other interests besides academic pursuits. If you received awards or prizes for participating, note them.
  2. Often high school and college students in the US are involved in unpaid, volunteer work. They may spend a few hours a week assisting with patients in a hospital or serving food to homeless people in a soup kitchen, for example. Even if you have not been part of an official program, write anything that can be considered service to the community.

G. FINANCIAL AID

  1. Application for admission is considered separate from application for financial aid, therefore admission is not jeopardized by requests for financial aid.
  2. Fill out the financial section as best you can. Be accurate when completing tables about sources of financial support.
  3. Somewhere in the application, preferably in this section, write "Since the currency in Ukraine is not convertible, I am unable to contribute financial resources for my education. Please consider me for all types of financial aid for which I am eligible." Be sure to check all boxes indicating teaching and research assistantships and fellowships.
  4. If you do have a significant amount of dollars, you should indicate this. For example, if one year at the university costs $10,000, and you can pay $5000, the university is more likely to supplement you with $5000 than the full amount.

H. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

The statement of purpose is an extremely important part of the application because it gives the faculty assessing your application their most significant impression of you as an individual. What are your motivations? Do you write clearly? Do your interests really fit those of the department or school? Can you communicate your ideas effectively? Are there special things about you that set you apart from other applicants and make you particularly desirable as a student?

You should probably write a general statement of purpose as the first step in even considering graduate school. Setting your ideas and goals down on paper should help you clarify your thinking. If you can get things down in no more than 3 double-spaced typed pages, you probably have a good idea of what you really want to do. The statement should reflect your own intellectual development. One way to show that is to discuss the points in your life when you made decisions and what influenced them -- the decision on a college major, the decision on a career goal, the family members and role models who inspired you.

Once you have a general statement, you can tailor it to specific programs to which you are applying by talking about the reasons you chose the program -- how it fits your background and interests. The application materials may give you a specific format for the statement of purpose or ask you to respond to specific questions, but in all cases, faculty members are interested in your motivation, your intellectual skills, and your suitability for their particular program.

The general statement of purpose is also a good vehicle to use to approach faculty members for recommendations. Make an appointment with a faculty member to discuss your statement and ask for comments before you put it into final form. Also ask for a letter of recommendation after you have had the discussion. You will have valuable feedback on your statement, and you will be demonstrating your seriousness and interest in graduate school.

DOCUMENTS TO BE SENT WITH THE APPLICATION

A. DIPLOM

  1. Make a copy of the original Diplom and have it stamped and signed by the “prorektor” or “rektor” of the university. In addition, you may want the head of your department to sign it. You must also include an English translation verified by “notarius”, an official translating agency, or the department of foreign languages at your university. Keep everything neat. *If applying to an undergraduate program, include a copy of your Attestat instead.*
  2. If you have not yet received your diplom, you cannot send a copy of it. Universities understand this situation. If you are accepted, the university may ask you to forward a copy of the diplom once you receive it.

B. TRANSCRIPT

  1. Since Ukrainian universities do not issue official transcripts, you will need to prepare a substitute. It is better to translate the "vypyska from the zachetna knyha" since it is more complete than the "addendum to the diploma". You do not need to translate both of them. Make a copy of the Ukrainian "vypyska" and follow the same procedure as for the diplom. When translating it, you may want to change the format so that it resembles an American university transcript. If you think changing the format will cause problems with the translator, you may want to prepare a Ukrainian version of the transcript in its new format. This Ukrainian version will still need to be stamped and signed by the appropriate officials at the university. The English version must be stamped and signed by someone who is officially allowed to verify translations.
  2. If you are applying to an undergraduate program as a first year student, you should prepare, in Ukrainian and English, a transcript of all of your classes in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh forms. It is better to prepare your own transcript, since the "attestat" does not contain all classes. You want to have the school director sign and stamp the Ukrainian version, and have a “notarius”, an official translating agency, or the foreign language department of a university verify the English translation. If you have not yet graduated, the transcript should include all classes and grades so far.
  3. If you are applying to an undergraduate program as a transfer student, you should include a copy and translation of the "attestat", following the steps outlined above. Your coursework in the university will be more important to them than what you studied in high school. You will also need to prepare a university transcript of courses taken and grades received so far, based on the "vypyska from zachetna knyha. Any document you send should have a Russian stamped and signed version and a verified English translation.
  4. When translating your transcript translate your grades as follows:

Відмінно= Excellent (5)

Добре = Good (4)

Задовільно = Satisfactory (3)

Погано = Bad (2)

(Нe) зараховано = (not) passed

6.GPA means "Grade Point Average". The US uses a 4-point system. You should NOT try to calculate your average based on the American system. To calculate your grade average, you sum the marks received, and then divide that sum by the total number of courses. For example, a person with the courses and marks in the table below would write:

"Ukraine uses a 5-point system. My average mark is 4.5 on a scale of 5."

CourseMark

Physics 5

Chemistry 5

Mathematics 4

Philosophy 4

Total 18(Total # of courses= 4)

divided by 4= 4.5

C. LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION (Source: CGS)

  1. Letters from faculty members (professors and/or teachers) are very important because your teachers are in the best position to assess your ability to do advanced academic work. Obviously you will want to approach faculty members in whose classes you have done well. You want people who know you personally, hence the importance of talking with your teachers, both as you take their classes and when you seek advice on possible graduate programs. Other possibilities are supervisors and directors with whom you have worked.
  2. When deciding who will write your letters, pick teachers or supervisors who know you well. Try to pick people in different areas, maybe a professor in your field, your English teacher, and the supervisor in your research laboratory, for example. Try to balance the letters; if you include a letter from a professor who is very famous in the west but does not know you well, make sure the other 2 letters are very specific. Since these letters should evaluate your potential for study in a particular department, it is better to have at least one letter from someone in your field who is qualified to evaluate you.
  3. If the person writing the recommendation does not know English, have him/her write it in Ukrainian and make an official translation into English. Send both the original in Ukrainian and the English translation with your application.
  4. Usually 3 letters are requested. You should send exactly as many as are required. While too few may cause them to consider the application incomplete, too many means they have more to read, and they probably will not be pleased.
  5. Each recommendation should be signed by the recommended and put in a sealed envelope. The university generally expects that you will not see the letters. However, Ukrainians have little experience writing such letters; you may want to look at it and make sure that it is done correctly. You are highly advised NOT to write your own recommendations. It is obvious to a native speaker when the same person has written all of the letters. It is to your advantage to obtain well-written, detailed recommendations from teachers and supervisors who know you well.

CHECKLIST FOR SENDING IN THE APPLICATION

Parts of application

__ application for admission

__ application for financial aid

__ application for fellowships or indication of interest

Included with application

__ verified copy of diplom and translation

__ verified copy of transcript and translation

__ statement of purpose and other essays required

__ letters of recommendation

___resume or CV (if required)

Sending in the Application

A. To avoid losing parts of the application, send it along with copies of documents and letters of application in one large envelope. The recommendations should be sealed in smaller envelopes and enclosed in the big one.

B. If you are able to pay the application fee, it is better to do so. Some schools will waive the fee, but others will not. If you ask them to waive the fee, send the application in early, before the deadline. If they refuse to waive the fee, they will hold your application and contact you. In that case you should send the money immediately so that you do not miss a chance to be considered for financial aid.

1. If you are applying to graduate school and are unable to pay the application fee, send the application to the academic department to which you are applying. Only the department may apply for a fee waiver. If you are able to pay, follow the instructions on the form.

2.If you are applying as an undergraduate, send your application to the undergraduate admissions office, whether or not you are able to pay the application fee.

D. Deadlines for decisions on financial aid are often in January and February. Do NOT wait until the deadline. Send as soon as possible.

E. After you mail the application, it is your responsibility to stay in touch with the university departments to monitor the progress of your application. If you do not receive a response by April, you should contact the university.

KEEP IN MIND...

“Admissions officials know that your educational system may be different from the US system. They do not want to accept you if you do not have the educational background to do well at their university. They want to accept you if you do. In general, on the application form it is best to write the name of your school, examination results or grades, and school leaving certificate or degree awarded using the terms used in your country... A student from the former Soviet Union might have the attestat, diplom or candidat nauk. Admissions officers are usually quite familiar with the names of exams and degrees from various countries.”

“If you think admissions officers will be confused by your educational background, you can explain the situation in a separate letter. Any information (names,. certificates awarded) that you provide in you letter should be consistent with the information that you list on the application form.”

From: “How to Apply to American Colleges and Universities”