SOUTH ASIA · INDIA
Students in India finish school in different ways: with CBSE or ISC board exams in Class 12, the IB Diploma, or Cambridge International A Levels. Yours shapes where you can apply and what each university will ask of you.
For 2027 entry
START WITH YOUR QUALIFICATION
At a CBSE or ISC school, you finish with Class 12 board exams. For India’s IITs, NITs, medical colleges, and central universities, you also sit a national entrance exam. Universities abroad each read your results in their own way.
INDIAN CURRICULUM
You sit the board exams set by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) at the end of Class 12, in the subjects you’ve chosen.
INDIAN CURRICULUM
You sit the Indian School Certificate (ISC) exams, set by CISCE, at the end of Class 12, in the subjects you’ve chosen.
INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE
You take six subjects, three or four at Higher Level, plus the core. Your teachers predict your grades before the final exams in May.
BRITISH CURRICULUM
You usually take IGCSEs first, then three or four A Levels in your last two years, for example at an international school.
Letrado’s adviceAsk your counselor for your school profile early. It explains your curriculum and grading, and U.S. colleges read it alongside your transcript. At a CBSE or ISC school, ask how your school reports predicted marks, because you’ll apply before your board results are out.
Cambridge and CBSE: Some colleges accept CBSE Class 12 for a set list of courses, such as English, History, Law, Linguistics, and Veterinary Medicine. Check whether your course and college are on that list before you rely on CBSE alone.
When Cambridge asks for more: If your board isn’t CBSE, as with ISC, or your college or course doesn’t accept CBSE, Cambridge strongly recommends further study. It suggests A Levels, the IB, or at least five AP exams at grade 5 alongside A1 grades in relevant Class 12 subjects.
JEE Main: NTA has set the first 2027 session for January 22–24 and 28–30, and says the dates may change. In 2026, the second session ran from April 2 to 8, and ranks came out on April 20.
JEE Advanced: It’s the exam for the IITs, open to students who qualify through JEE Main. The 2027 date isn’t out yet. In 2026 it was held on May 17, and results came out on June 1.
JoSAA: The Joint Seat Allocation Authority allots places at the IITs, NITs, IIITs, and other government-funded technical institutes, in rounds. In 2026, registration ran from June 2 to 11, and the final round for the IITs was on July 16.
NEET-UG: It’s the entrance exam for undergraduate medical courses at every medical institution in India. NTA hasn’t announced the 2027 date yet.
CUET-UG: It’s a single entrance exam for India’s central universities. In 2026, registration opened on January 3, and the exams ran from May 11 to early June.
COMPARE THE SYSTEMS
You can apply to all three in the same year, and we help with all three. Each has its own application, deadlines, and idea of a strong applicant, so give each one its own plan.
UNITED STATES
Selective colleges look at your grades in the context of your school, alongside your essays, activities, teacher and counselor letters, and test scores where they ask for them. You apply to each college separately, often through the Common App.
Letrado’s adviceMake sure your school profile and counselor letter explain your curriculum. Then use your essays for what only you can say.
UNITED KINGDOM
You apply through UCAS to up to five courses, with one personal statement for all of them. Universities look closely at your subjects and predicted grades, and some courses add an admissions test or interview.
Letrado’s adviceChoose a subject you’d enjoy studying for three years, then check each course’s subject requirements before anything else.
INDIA
JEE Main leads to the NITs, IIITs, and other centrally funded technical institutes, and to JEE Advanced for the IITs. JoSAA then allots places at these institutes, in rounds. NEET-UG leads to undergraduate medical courses, and CUET-UG to the central universities.
Letrado’s adviceIn 2026, JEE Advanced results came out on June 1, a month after the U.S. reply date. Put both systems on one calendar before you apply.
EducationUSA, the U.S. government’s network of study advisers, has a center at USIEF in New Delhi, which lists group sessions for students among its services.
PLAN YOUR YEAR
U.S., UK, and Indian deadlines, exams, and offers fall at different times. Seeing them together shows where you may need to decide before every result is in.
UK Oct 15
18:00 UK time.
U.S. Nov 1
Other U.S. colleges set their own early dates.
U.S. Jan 1–2
Harvard’s is January 1, and Yale’s is January 2.
India Early January
In 2026, registration opened on January 3.
UK Jan 13
18:00 UK time.
India Jan 22–24 and 28–30
NTA’s dates for 2027, which it says may change.
U.S. Late March
Harvard’s come by the end of March, and Yale’s in late March.
India Early April
In 2026 it ran from April 2 to 8, and ranks came out on April 20.
U.S. May 1
The usual U.S. reply date, before JEE Advanced and JoSAA’s seat allocation.
India May–June
In 2026 the exams ran from May 11 to early June.
India Mid-May
In 2026 it was held on May 17.
Exam results Early June
In 2026 they came out on June 1.
India June–July
In 2026, registration opened on June 2.
Exam results Early July
In 2026 they came out on July 6.
Exam results Mid-August
In 2026 they came out on August 11. UK universities then confirm conditional offers.
U.S. dates vary by college, so check each college’s own page. Apart from JEE Main’s first session, India’s 2027 dates aren’t out yet, so those follow 2026. CBSE and CISCE publish their own exam and results dates.
TRY THIS WITH EACH UNIVERSITY ON YOUR LIST
Open each university’s own pages and note an answer for every row. Bring the gaps and questions to our conversation, or work through them with your counselor.
| What to check | What to note for each university |
|---|---|
| Your qualification | Does it accept CBSE, ISC, or the certificate you’ll finish with, and what marks does it ask for? |
| Subjects and tests | Which subjects, grades, English tests, or admissions tests does the course need? |
| Dates | When is the deadline, when will you hear back, and when must you reply? |
| Full cost in rupees | Tuition, housing, flights, insurance, and visas for the whole degree, and again with a weaker rupee. |
| Would you go? | If this were your only offer, would you be glad to go? |
PLAN THE COST
A U.S. bachelor’s degree usually takes four years, and many UK degrees take three. Exchange rates can change over that time, so plan for the full degree, not just the first year.
YOUR YEARLY BUDGET
Letrado’s adviceRun your budget twice: once at today’s exchange rate and once with the rupee 10% weaker. Keep at least one option that still works.
Your yearly limit: Under the Reserve Bank of India’s Liberalised Remittance Scheme, each resident individual, including a minor, can send up to US$250,000 in a financial year (April to March).
Study costs: Studying abroad is one of the purposes the scheme allows. Ask your bank what documents it needs before your first payment is due.
UK Student visa: You can apply up to six months before your course starts. You pay the health surcharge for every year of your visa when you apply.
UK tuberculosis (TB) test: India is on the UK’s list of countries where visa applicants need a TB test. You need one if you’re coming for six months or more, have lived in India for at least six months, and were living there within the last six months. It’s a chest x-ray at a clinic approved by the Home Office.
U.S. student (F-1) visa: You apply once your college has sent your I-20 form. If you’re a U.S. citizen, you don’t need one.
A STUDENT FROM INDIA · N.S.
N.S. went to a CBSE school in India and was applying abroad for the first time. He loved computer science and language, and his parents hoped he’d choose a clear computer science path.
He had built a simple tool to help younger cousins practice pronunciation in two languages. Early drafts called it an education platform. He rewrote it with its real number of users, fewer than thirty, and without claims he couldn’t show.
Relatives ignored instructions he thought were obvious. Writing about that let him discuss listening, usability, and language without pretending the project was a startup.
His parents were planning a large expense and wanted a recognizable career path. He compared degree structures and career outcomes, and showed how linguistics strengthened his interest in computer science.
A small project, described honestly, can say more about you than a big claim.
HIS OFFERS
HIS CHOICE: PRINCETONPrinceton University · Photo: Ken Lund / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0. Cropped.
Princeton combined independent academic work, computer science, and access to linguistics. MIT and Stanford said no, and he treated those as normal results in an uncertain process.
WHEN YOU’D LIKE A HAND
Bring your questions to a free 45-minute introduction with your proposed mentor. Afterward, we’ll email a personalized plan with recommended next steps.
