Introducing Me

Hi! My name is Sydney and I’m a freshman at Luther College in Iowa, USA. I’m an American citizen but did all my education in Nigeria. The opportunity to study in the United States had always been present, and I decided to spread my wings and take it.

My High School and Beginning My Application Journey

I studied at Aduvie International School in Abuja, Nigeria, where I was a humanities student. The education system in Nigeria allows students to explore disciplines in various fields for three years before narrowing down their focus to either science, humanities, technical, or business in the final three years of high school. My school also did not offer any AP or IB classes.

My college application process started properly in the summer after the 11th grade. I enrolled in summer SAT prep classes. I took the SAT but ultimately decided to take it again because I wanted a higher score to match the calibre of the schools I was applying to. I took it again and had 1110, which might seem poor, but a test score is not a deciding factor in US admissions as it is holistic-based, unlike the testing basis in Nigeria.

Extracurriculars and Other Stats

Grade Point Average is calculated on a 5.0 scale in Aduvie, I had a 4.85/5.0 ultimately. I did not take English proficiency tests as many US schools do not require it from Nigerians. The results of the leaving exams I took such as the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) had yet to be released, so I used my MOCK results when applying.

Finding time for extracurriculars with the speed, rigidity, and complexity of Nigeria’s national curriculum is tasking. However, I made do and participated in those of importance to me.

In my high school, I served as health prefect for a year
I participated in the Interact club in my school, which conducts fundraisers to raise money for a special cause or some community service.
I took part in the Duke of Edinburgh Award Program
The Microsoft Office Specialist program was also a significant part of my application

My College Essays

My Common App Essay was about how I initially failed my prefectship pre-screening and my response to that, before being told it was an error and I was eligible to run for my chosen post. For my “why major” essays, I wrote about how the field of psychology is not well respected in Nigeria and I wanted to use my American education to reform the Nigerian mental healthcare system. Lastly, in my “community/why us” essays, I mentioned how I would add a distinct voice and sense of representation for Nigerian internationals in a not-so-diverse setting.