Hi Tiffany,

Great question - honestly, no country is “easier” per say.

Each has their own advantages and disadvantages. You should not look at which country is easiest, but instead look at increasing your candidacy to the best of your potential, working on all aspects of your life: academics, extracurriculars, and leadership. This will allow you to have a foundation that is beneficial to all potential countries.

However, I’ll still give your question a stab and try provide an answer that you’ll find useful.

For this question I’m only going to focus on three countries outside of New Zealand: Australia, United States, and United Kingdom.

In terms of the actual application process, I’d say:

1. Australia (easiest)
2. United Kingdom
3. United States (hardest)

Australia has an application process that is almost identical to New Zealand. No essays needed. No short answers. You just spend 15 minutes online applying to a specific course at University, and as long as you have the grades (which will be automatically submitted by the academic bodies - CIE, IB or NZQA). In this sense, it’s probably the easiest of the international options.

United Kingdom is a little more advanced. It has the UCAS. Within this you can apply to a max of 5 Universities (4 if you’re applying for Med). You have multiple components, the main being the Personal Statement (1 page long). However, if you are applying to this, there is heavy emphasis on your grades. In addition, they put a lot of weighting on subject-specific knowledge.

United States probably the most complex of the three. There are so many variables that make up your application, US colleges put emphasis on the all-rounded applicant. Someone who has not only demonstrated academic prowess, but also have multiple extracurricular involvements and have demonstrated leadership. To study in the US, you’ll need to take the SAT or ACT, which is an academic prerequisite to all universities over there. You’ll also have to write many Essays - the more universities you apply for - the more essays you have to write.

In terms of easy, there are also multiple variables you need to consider:

• Finance
• Most countries have multiple universities (in the US there are those that accept 100% of applicants and in contrast those like the Ivy Leagues sitting at around 4-10%) so there are always ‘easy’ options.