Where families aim
Target Universities
The 27 institutions families ask us about most, grouped by region — because the region decides how the application is read. Names are for identification only; each links to the university's own site, which is the authority on its requirements. No affiliation or endorsement is implied.
United States
Holistic admissions: grades, rigour, essays, activities, recommendations and (where required) test scores are read together. Most applications go through the Common Application by early November or early January.
United Kingdom
Course-first admissions through UCAS, with a single personal statement and an academic reference. Oxford, Cambridge and most medicine courses close in mid-October and add admissions tests and interviews.
Continental Europe
Direct applications to each university, often with English-taught programmes and lower tuition than the US or UK. Requirements are set per institution and can hinge on specific curriculum subjects.
Canada
Programme-specific admission through each university's own portal, weighted heavily on final-year grades in required subjects; supplementary essays for competitive programmes.
Asia
Direct applications with strong emphasis on academic results and, for some programmes, interviews or portfolios. Popular with Gulf families who want proximity to home.
In brief
US universities read applications holistically through the Common App; UK universities admit course-first through UCAS with tests and interviews for the most selective courses; European, Canadian and Asian universities take direct applications weighted on grades in required subjects. A balanced shortlist spans tiers within a region, and often more than one region.
Which of these are realistic?
That is the first thing the assessment answers — candidly, from the student's actual record.