How to apply to US universities from Ghana
You apply online, mostly through the Common App, which sends one application to many universities. You write a personal statement and each university's own essays, list your activities, and your school sends your SHS record and teacher recommendations. If you need aid, you file the aid forms by the same deadline. A few universities, such as MIT, use their own portal instead of the Common App.
How do I apply to a US university from Ghana?
Online, through a portal, usually the Common App. You complete one application, add each university's own questions, and send it to every university on your list. Your school sends your record and recommendations through the same portal. If you need financial aid, you file the aid forms by the same deadline.
There is no entrance exam to sit and no university-by-university form to collect from an office in Accra. The whole process is online. It is long, but you can do every part of it from Ghana.
What are the parts of a US application?
Six parts. Three come from you, two from your school, and the sixth, the aid forms, comes from your family:
| Part | Who provides it | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Personal details and activities | You | Your background, family, and up to ten activities with a short description each |
| Personal statement | You | One essay, up to 650 words, sent to every university |
| Supplements | You | Each university's own essays and questions |
| School record | Your school | Your SHS grades, a school profile and a counsellor recommendation |
| Teacher recommendations | Two teachers | Letters about you as a student |
| Aid forms | Your family | The CSS Profile or the university's own form, with documents |
Some universities add tests, an interview or a portfolio. Each one's apply page lists exactly what it wants.
Which portal does each university use?
Most selective private universities use the Common App, which opens each year on 1 August. A few use their own portal. MIT, for example, does not accept the Common App, so you apply through its own system.
Before you start, list your universities and write the portal beside each one. Most students end up with the Common App for nearly everything, plus one or two separate portals. Each separate portal means a separate set of details and essays, so start those early too.
What does my school need to send?
Three things, through the portal: your record, a school profile and recommendations. Your school record is your SHS grades so far, with mock results when they come. The school profile explains your school and its grading. The counsellor recommendation describes you within your school.
Many Ghanaian schools have no college counsellor. Ask your headteacher or assistant headteacher to act as one, and agree in September who will upload what, and by when. Then choose two teachers from your final years, ideally in subjects related to what you want to study. Ask them by the start of the school year, and give them a short note on what you did in their class.
How to show WASSCE grades, mocks and predicted results is covered in our guide to WASSCE grades on the Common App.
Do I need to take tests?
It depends on the university. Two kinds matter:
- The SAT or ACT. Some universities require it again, some make it optional, and some do not look at it. Check each university's policy for your year of entry before you book a date, because test dates fill up and results take weeks.
- An English test, such as the TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo English Test. Many universities waive it for students taught in English, and some name Ghana as an English-speaking country. Others still ask for one. Read each university's own rule rather than assuming.
If you need a test, sit it by the end of September in your final year, so there is time to sit it again.
How do I apply for financial aid at the same time?
Tick "yes" to financial aid on the application, then file each university's aid forms by its aid deadline. That is usually the CSS Profile or the university's own form, with your family's documents. The aid deadline is often the same day as the application deadline, or close to it.
Some universities will not consider an international student for aid later if they did not ask for it when they applied. Our guide to how US financial aid works explains the forms.
How much does it cost to apply?
Each university sets its own application fee, and selective private universities often charge $75 to $90. Add test fees, the CSS Profile fee and the cost of sending scores, and a list of ten universities can cost more than $1,000 before you have a single offer.
Three ways to bring that down:
- Application fee waivers. Many universities waive the fee for students who cannot pay it. You can request a waiver through the Common App, and some universities have their own process.
- CSS Profile fee waivers. Some universities waive the Profile fee for students with need, or accept a free aid form instead. Our page on the CSS Profile fee and waivers explains how.
- A shorter, better list. Ten well-chosen universities that fund international students beat twenty chosen by name.
Ask for waivers before you pay. A university rarely refunds a fee already paid.
What order should I do it in?
Roughly this one, starting in the year before your final SHS year:
- Build your list, with each university's portal, deadlines and aid policy for international students.
- Book any tests each university needs.
- Write your personal statement in the long vacation before your final year.
- Agree the school's part in September: who sends what, by when.
- Write each university's supplements, in deadline order.
- Submit, early or regular, with the aid forms on the same days.
- Send mock and WASSCE results when the universities ask for them.
Our month-by-month plan puts dates against each step, and our page on US application deadlines lists the key days for this cycle.
What should I do first?
Write your list of universities, and next to each one write its portal, its deadline and whether it gives aid to international students. Then talk to your headteacher about who will act as your counsellor.
Our free ebook walks through the whole application, from the list to the offers, if you would like it in one place.
Questions people ask
How do I apply to a US university from Ghana?
Through an online portal, usually the Common App. You fill in your details, activities and essays once, add each university's own questions, and your school uploads your record and recommendations. You file the aid forms separately if you need financial aid.
Do all US universities use the Common App?
No. Most selective private universities do, but some use their own portal. MIT, for example, does not accept the Common App and uses its own application. Check each university's apply page.
Do I need the SAT to apply from Ghana?
It depends on the university. Some require it again, some make it optional and some do not consider it. Read each university's testing policy for your year of entry before you register for a test date.
Do Ghanaian students need the TOEFL or IELTS?
Often not. Many universities waive the English test for students taught in English, and some name Ghana as an English-speaking country. Others still ask for a test, so check each university's own rule.
How much does it cost to apply?
Each university sets its own fee, often $75 to $90 at selective private universities. Many offer fee waivers, which you can request through the Common App. Aid forms such as the CSS Profile have their own fee.