The Elements of your Application

The US application allows you to include a lot of information about yourself. US universities don't just focus on your academic capabilities (although these are still very important), but want to know more about you as a human being. One reason for this is that each university or college sees itself as a small community - a microcosm of the wider world. As such they want to build a diverse group of students with a variety of backgrounds, ethnicity and skills. They want to know if, and where you will fit in, how you will get involved and what you will bring to the table that is new. Below is a snapshot of a slide from last year's HE Evening Presentation that illustrates what can be included, but the list of what may be uploaded is essentially this (note, this list is in approximate order of importance starting with the most important):

• Your High School Transcript
• College Essays
• Supplementary Essays
• Counselor Recommendation
• A list, and descriptions, of up to 10 extra curricular activities/community services etc
• Student Journalism, writing or personal projects 
• A musical supplement in the form of Audio and or Video 
• An Art Portfolio 
• Your SAT/ACT/SATII scores
• The school Profile
• Teacher Recommendations (2 to 3)

You can (and should) also have an interview with an alumni of each of the universities you are applying to. This is more of a chat (usually over Skype, or at a local coffee shop if the university has alumni in Dubai) than an interview and may not carry a great deal of weight, but if the right alum likes you it could make a difference.