From the UAE · 2026–27
Applying to US universities from the UAE
IB, British, American, Indian or the national curriculum: in the Emirates, your school decides what your file looks like. Here's what a US university needs from each, and the traps to avoid.
Your school system, read from the US
A US university doesn't read your file the way your school or your exam board does. Here's what changes for you.
IB Diploma
Harvard expects IB schools to send predicted grades based on your classwork and internal or mock exams. Georgia Tech strongly recommends predicted IB scores, and Carnegie Mellon accepts predicted or actual IB scores to meet its testing requirement.
Sources: Harvard · Georgia Tech · Carnegie Mellon
British curriculum (IGCSE, A-levels)
Harvard expects A-level schools to send predicted grades. Georgia Tech asks for your IGCSE/O-Level and AS Level results with predicted A-Level results, and Carnegie Mellon accepts predicted or actual Cambridge A-Level results to meet its testing requirement.
Sources: Harvard · Georgia Tech · Carnegie Mellon
American curriculum
Your transcript already speaks the language US readers use every day, with a GPA and courses year by year. Make sure your school sends its school profile so your grades are read in context.
Indian curriculum (CBSE)
Everything on our India page applies to you, from board-exam timing to the essay habits to unlearn.
Applying from IndiaThe forms your school fills in
234 of the 1,078 US universities on the Common App ask for a counselor recommendation, and 188 want a mid-year report. Those come from your school, not from you. If your school has no college counselor, agree now on who will fill them in and send them.
Your essays
Between several countries: make it yours
If you write about growing up between countries, the details carry it: a street, a kitchen, a word in one language that has no equivalent in another. Don't spend a paragraph describing the Emirates like a brochure, and don't assume the reader knows what you mean either.
We point out what isn't working and ask you the right questions. We never write a line for you.
Mistakes to avoid when you apply from the UAE
Assuming you're exempt from the English test
466 US universities list the English tests they accept (465 take the TOEFL, 436 IELTS, 356 Duolingo) and 611 send you to their website. Studying in English doesn't exempt you automatically: read each university's international page before you book a test, or skip one.
Two Early Decision applications
Early Decision is binding: you can only have one active ED application at a time. Your plan flags it the moment you pick a second one.
Counting on a fee waiver that isn't for you
86 US universities reserve the Common App fee waiver for US applicants. Your plan tells you which ones before you count on it.
Forgetting the international fee
151 US universities charge international applicants a higher application fee. Your plan adds up what you'll really pay.
An SAT that comes too late
For a January 1 deadline, the last SAT whose scores arrive in time is the December 5, 2026 sitting: scores on December 18, 2026, registration until November 20, 2026.
Every 2026–27 SAT date
Official pages
Rules change, and the official page is the one that applies. Check it before you decide.
Put your universities in. We'll show you the rest.
Every deadline and every fee in one plan, with the traps above flagged for your list.
Build my plan, free