I have some exams to retake in September, but I want to submit my documents to universities right now. I'll only get my diploma after the retakes. Will I be able to participate in the competition at all, or will I have to wait until next year?
Unfortunately, without a complete diploma you won't be able to submit documents to most universities. The admissions office requires the original secondary education diploma as a mandatory document - without it you simply won't be registered in the application system. They won't accept an incomplete diploma because it's not an official confirmation that you've completed secondary education.
That said, there is a small workaround - some universities let you submit documents if you provide a letter stating that you're still studying at school and plan to retake your exams in September. But this doesn't work everywhere and doesn't guarantee you'll be entered into the general competition. Usually in such cases you're offered to wait until you get your completed diploma, and then you can submit the final package of documents.
Your best bet right now is to call the admissions offices of the universities you're interested in and clarify their policy. Maybe they'll agree to accept your documents on a conditional basis or give you a slightly later deadline for submission - it all depends on the rules of the specific institution. But you definitely won't have to wait a whole year: additional enrollment periods usually happen in the fall and winter.
Universities do require the original diploma when you submit your documents, but here's one thing people often miss: some institutions allow you to submit a copy of a school completion certificate or a temporary document confirming that you've finished grade 11. It's not a full diploma, but it might work for registering your application - the key is to check with the admissions office of each specific university to see if they accept these documents.
Once you get your final diploma in September, you'll need to provide the original before enrollment. So you can start competing now if the university agrees to a temporary confirmation, but you'll only make it onto the acceptance list after submitting the complete document. Some universities require the original right at the application stage - there's nothing you can do about that, you'll just have to wait until September.
My advice: call the admissions offices of the universities you're interested in and ask directly what documents they currently accept. Rules can vary, and sometimes there are loopholes that aren't immediately obvious.
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