US schools for Fall 2012: International students from the UK?

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Hey guys - I'm new here and starting to organize myself to apply for mental health counseling and human development MA's in Fall 2012.

Just thought I would open this up to talk about the hurdles faced for us UK students when applying to US and Canadian schools! In particular, issues about funding, GRE scores, the lovely WES evaluation process, admittance rates for international students and the like!

Personally, I come from an average-ranked school in London and graduated with First Class honours in psychology and criminology.

Most probably applying to Columbia TC, NYU Steinhardt, McGill, U of Denver, George Washington U and Johns Hopkins.

Does anyone have any experience when it comes to international applications?!