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If you want to study in the United States, be prepared to know its education system, especially on how it works. This will help you make the right decisions in your studies and eventually acquire the benefits of the system, which allows you almost endless possibilities. But before having a clear grasp of the American education system, you must also be personally prepared to meet one of its most important requirements—the completion of a 12-year primary and secondary education. In short, you must be a high school graduate before you can attend a university or college in the U.S. Completion of the secondary education can be accomplished at public or government-run and private schools even outside of the U.S.

Regardless of your nationality, you will be classified as an international student once you are enrolled for any course of study in the U.S. where almost every state has universities and colleges offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs. These institutions include community colleges that offer an alternative for the completion of the first two years of an undergraduate or bachelor’s degree, and technical and vocational degree and certificate programs that can lead directly to employment. The states of California and Washington have the most number of these community colleges with 40 and 19, respectively, of the total 143 throughout the U.S. mainland. Almost every state also has an ESL (English as a Second Language) Language Center that not only helps international students but also absorbs American culture, customs and traditions while you study English as your second language.

There must be reasons for you to select the U.S. as your place of overseas studies. Whatever these reasons the facts remain that the U.S. is host to more international students than any country in the universe; they constitute 4% of the undergraduate university and college population, and 10% in the graduate school programs. Many international students have a common belief that American education could give them the best preparation for their careers or their future. The country’s institutions of higher learning are still on top in world rankings, including Harvard University, Stanford University and West Point, which have produced and continue to produce world leaders. Besides, these institutions offer international students the most rewarding and comprehensive study options, unlimited study choices to help make them highly sought-after by employers anywhere in the world after completion of their studies.

Admissions of international students at U.S. universities and colleges are very competitive and they depend much on the qualifications or the major subject of the students. Most importantly, these requirements include the student’s good grades, completion of a challenging course work, sufficient financing, and good command of the English language which can be acquired through the ESL language center or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), and preparation for the long admission process until the time that they are ready for their study trip to the U.S.