Transcripts

If you are like most students, you probably wish you that you could tear up your transcript and start again. A permanent academic record, the transcript is probably the most important paper in your application because it provides a common standard for evaluating students. 

Since the overseas admissions committee may not be familiar with the academic system in your country, there are a few ways you can help them understand it:

1) Tell them how competitive your previous program was. Send an official letter indicating your previous school's program ranking. Otherwise, you may have graduated from the most competitive program at your university but the admissions committee will not know this! 

2) Give them your percentile rank. Most academic departments offer this information as a standard means of assessment because it takes into consideration the competitiveness of your program. Your mark may not be extraordinary, but if you placed 30th in a class of 300, the admissions committee should know that you were in the top 10% of your class!

3) Note trends in your marks. Is there an upward trend in your marks? Was your academic performance exceptionally good in your final year? Although the admissions committee usually looks for this, they sometimes overlook it. But before you draw their attention to your grades, consider the difficulty level of the courses you took. Were they courses below your level, taken to boost your G.P.A.?

4) Inform them of special circumstances. Explain any unusual circumstances surrounding low grades. Maybe you had a personal emergency and do not feel a grade reflected your ability and knowledge.

5) Relevance to your desired program. If you can group the courses that you perform better in under one category, such as analytic, do so on a separate sheet of paper and attach it to your application. But remember that we encourage you to emphasize the positive aspects of your application. Do not focus your time trying to explain your poor performance in particular courses.

5) Note any significant extracurricular involvement. Your participation in extracurricular activities should never compromise your academic performance. Admissions officers would not consider your involvement in the debating team a valid reason for lower grades. However, if your involvement was on the scale of student council president or captain of the varsity baseball team, you can mention why it was a valuable use of your time, and what you learned from the experience.