While planning your higher education abroad, the first region that pops into your mind will be the USA. With numerous ivy league schools adorning the country’s education system, it draws the attention of every higher education aspirant from outside.
So, to make their application process seamless and provide equal opportunity for the applicants, the US schools have a batch-wise intake process that happens thrice a year. They welcome applications only for a particular set of courses and colleges during each intake session.
Now without any delay, let us dive in to know everything about the intakes in the USA, the application process, requirements and the colleges and courses that will be open for you to apply.
Intakes in the USA
Generally, Universities and colleges in the US follow three sessions of intakes in a monthly frame.
| Intake | Application timeline |
|---|---|
| Spring intake | January to May |
| Summer intake | Starts around May |
| Fall intake | September to December |
While applying to these universities, you may not be able to assume and jump to a general conclusion on which university will be the best fit for you. This dilemma occurs because each university opens applications for specific courses based on their requirement and availability during each intake. So, here is an idea! Wait for the application to open for the course you are passionate about in your dream university, particularly in one of the intakes in the USA.
Meanwhile, work on all the other mandatory requirements to set your foot there, like taking up exams, acing the visa process, so on and so forth!
Now let us see in detail about each intake session and how the universities customise their application procedure!
1. Spring intake in the USA
Duration to apply: January to May
Benefits of applying in this intake:
The spring or the January intake is the second preferred intake in the USA for students to apply and travel abroad. But, there are some generous perks when it comes to completing the needed requirements. For instance, you will have ample time to prepare well and ace the IELTS, GRE, GMAT or TOEFL. Also, you can explore to know more about various universities and the courses they offer. In short, you can structure your higher education plans six months ahead of your trip to study abroad. If you apply for a course in spring intake, you’ll have the opportunity to complete your degree in a short time compared to other intakes and can start working towards your goal and career at an earlier stage.
2. Summer intake in the USA
Duration: Starts around May or June
This is the last application intake universities come up with after the fall and the spring intake. But only a few universities open selected courses for applying. Primarily, language programs for non-English speakers and some cultural programs are offered by the universities this season.
3. Fall intake in the USA
Duration: September to December
The fall or the autumn semester admissions is the most popular among the higher education applicants. Almost all the USA universities take in the first batch of undergrad freshers for this season and offer a wide range of courses and slots to apply, get selected and pursue the degree of your choice!
Just like for the spring intake, start grooming yourself to get set and go to the US university of your choice six months before the first day of your class. Generally, the academic sessions start in August or September, and thus, you can begin applying to the universities and learn about them from the early stages. And here’s a secret for you! The less you rush and more relaxed while applying to the universities, the higher your chances of catching a flight to land in your dream institute!
The optimum timeline to start working on your applications for the intakes in the USA:
- Generally, the applications open by the mid of December or the advent of Jan in the new year. Thus, start working on your English assessment tests and visas interview preps by the month of June or July.
- By the advent of September and by the end of October, you can organize your education plans and apply for scholarships after exploring the universities in the US and the courses they provide for the spring intake.
- When the applications are open by November or December, apply seamlessly with the required documents handy!
- Finally, apply for the visa and ace the interview.
- All that is left for you is to pack your bags and fly towards your destination within Jan to May!
Related Intakes: Intakes in UK | Intakes in Canada
Document checklist to have while applying for the US universities:
- Your 10th and 12th mark sheets.
- Transcripts and provisional certificates of the degree if you have completed one.
- 2-3 SOPs
- LORs
- Your IELTS, GRE, TOEFL or GMAT scorecards.
- Resume stating your curricular and co-curricular activities.
- Your national ID proof.
- Visa
- Passport
- Other authentic documents and certifications related to your internships and projects that you have done.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs):
1. What are the intakes in the USA in 2023?
A: There are three intakes opened by the US universities. They are Fall (autumn) intake, spring intake, and summer intake.
2. What is Jan Intake called in the USA?
A: Spring intake is otherwise known as the January intake in the USA since the applications open and the process of admitting in the dream institutes happens from January to May.
3. Is IELTS accepted in the USA?
A: Yes. Many universities have the IELTS score as one of their criteria to process admissions. Apart from that, one can provide their GRE, TOEFL exam score too and GMAT scores for the business schools.
4. Can I apply now for September intake in the USA?
A: You can download the brochure of the universities where you want to apply, for the September intake in the USA. And, look out for the updates and notifications on their official sites. You can also get in touch with Edvoy, for a comfortable and relaxed process of applying to the university of your dreams.
5. Which intake is better: spring or fall?
A: Each intake has its own pros and cons. For instance, you will have abundant internship and career opportunities to explore and choose in relevance to what you pursued in the fall intake. Also, the timeline will be perfect if you start your education in this intake. When it comes to springtime, the class sizes will be small. This will assist in providing you with the best student-teacher interaction and an excellent campus experience.
All you have to do is, plan accordingly and apply based on your course choice to pursue at a specific university!
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