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Study Abroad Guide Vol-I U.S.A.

By Rajib Kumar Saha

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Why study at US?• Quality of education is very high with ample

research opportunities. • Faculties are one of the best in the world in their

respective field. • Financial aids in the form TA, RA and internships

providing more exposure. • Flexible system with freedom of selecting courses

as per interest. • Education method focused on practical aspects of

teaching helps enhancing problem solving and thing abilities.

• Best place for an overall development of a student. • Being the largest economy, holds the biggest job

market in the world.

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Graduate Programs

Engineering MS / PhD

Management MBA

Most Popular Programs for International Students With Best Opportunities

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The primary considerations you should have are:

• What are your career plans?

A degree from a well-recognized university in US would give you a greater mobility in the US job market but might not make that big a difference in the Indian job market compared to a degree from a well-recognized university in India and vice-versa.

• What are you good at? And What do you enjoy?

MBA offers a huge diversification in the nature of opportunities that you get. You can enter fields as diverse as finance and supply chain management. However, in many of these fields, your people skills will be crucial for success (in addition to the domain knowledge).

How to decide between engineering and management?

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– Both scores are accepted by US universities. However, few universities prefer TOEFL. – The score is just for the universities to ascertain that you have the minimum English knowledge to

pursue the course. – IELTS is governed by British Council, so is a bit tougher as compared to TOEFL. – Most of the universities prefer a score of 85+ in TOEFL and 6.5+ in IELTS for graduate level

programs. – These scores are valid for two years. – You can take TOEFL once in a month where as, IELTS can be taken once in 90 days. – Having a higher score doesn't necessarily benefit you in the application process. – Might affect your visa and applications for TA / RA.

Exams to be written

TESTS GRE / GMAT

TOEFL / IELTS

TOEFL / IELTS

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– It is now only available as a computer-adaptive test. – It consist of two sections: Verbal and Quant each of 170 marks (totalling 340). – Score of 310+ should be pretty decent to for top 100 universities. – The score is valid for five years. – After completing your exam, you can send your scores (free!) to four Universities. – You can take the GRE revised General Test (computer-based and paper-based) only once

every 60 days, and no more than five times within any continuous rolling 12-month period.

– Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is comprised of three main sections – analytical writing, quantitative reasoning, and verbal reasoning. – The score is valid for five years. – You have to wait 31 days for a retake. – You may only take the GMAT five times per calendar year. – Score of 650+ should be competitive for top 100 universities.

GRE (Graduate Record Examinations)

GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test)

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Top Colleges for MS

Note: At US, rankings of universities may vary for e a c h p r o g r a m . A university ranked 3rd for computer science might not be even in top 20 for civil engineering.

Average requirements for universities may vary as:

University Ranked GPAGRE TOEFL / IELTS

Top 001 – 020 3.7/4.0325-340 90-100

Top 021 – 050 3.5/4.0315-330 90-100

Top 051 – 100 3.25/4.0305-320 85-90

Ranking University

1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology

2 Stanford University

3 University of California—Berkeley

4 California Institute of Technology

5 Carnegie Mellon University

6 Georgia Institute of Technology

7 University of Illinois—Urbana-Champaign

8 Purdue University—West Lafayette

9 University of Michigan—Ann Arbor 10 University of Texas—Austin (Cockrell)

11 Texas A&M University—College Station (Look)

12 University of Southern California (Viterbi)

13 Cornell University

14 Columbia University (Fu Foundation)

15 University of California—San Diego (Jacobs)

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Top Colleges for MBA

Average requirements for universities may vary as:

Ranking University

1 Harvard University 2 Stanford University 3 University of Pennsylvania (Wharton) 4 University of Chicago (Booth) 5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan) 6 Northwestern University (Kellogg) 7 University of California—Berkeley (Haas) 8 Columbia University 9 Dartmouth College (Tuck)

10 New York University (Stern) 11 University of Michigan—Ann Arbor (Ross) 12 University of Virginia (Darden) 13 Yale University 14 Duke University (Fuqua) 15 University of Texas—Austin (McCombs)

University Ranked GPAGMAT TOEFL / IELTS

Top 001 – 020 3.7/4.0750-800 90-100

Top 021 – 050 3.5/4.0700-750 90-100

Top 051 – 100 3.25/4.0600-700 85-90

Note: Note: At US, rankings of universities may vary fo r each program. A university ranked 3rd for MIS might not be even in top 20 for accounting.

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Costs involved• Annual tuition fees: The swing in tuition fees could go from as low as around $15,000 Michigan tech

university) a year to about $45,000 (Stanford etc.). • Living and boarding costs: Cost of living varies from city to city. On an average from $10,000 to

$20,000 should suffice

Financial aids• Part time jobs

– can work for less than about 20 hours on campus. Any place on your university campus, like a cafe or any other place that is part of the university campus

– Most of the on-campus jobs posts are posted on the university portal for graduate/undergraduate students. The links for applying are given there itself.

– Check the skills required, your available working time and few other things and then apply for the best suitable job

– Keep good contacts with your seniors in the university , as they might help in finding you a job

• Scholarships – There are some Universities that offer maximum scholarships to International students whereas

some other which offer very limited scholarships to International students – Browse scholarships.com and CollegeBoard.com. The search results will then be made

available to you based on your unique profile

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• RA (Research Assistant) – In every university, many professors need assistants to help them in their researches – You can apply for research assistant-ship during your application itself – Some RA positions are available after your 1st semester of education and you can then apply for

an RA position at your respected field of education – Do some research on the faculty with your subject of interest. – Request an appointment from him/her and explain him/her about your relevant work experience

• TA (Teaching Assistant) – In every university, many professors need assistants to help them in teaching course works as

they are busy with their researches – You can apply for teaching assistant-ship during your application itself – Some TA positions are available after your 1st semester of educationDo some research on the

faculty with your subject of interest – Request an appointment from him/her and explain him/her about your relevant work experience

• GA (Graduate Assistant) – The duties of a GA are similar to that of an RA

• Internships – You may apply for an internship after in or after 1st semester. – You may get paid $20k from a 3 months internship. – You may build networks within and out side the company that will be great for your future.

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How to Choose Your University?

• Find universities from top 200 offering your programs of interest.

• Shortlist universities as per your credentials (GPA, GRE/GMAT, TOEFL/IELTS).

• Filter the list keeping in mind about the costs (tuition fee and living costs).

• Dig deep to find about the researches, internships, part time jobs, TA, RA, GA and outcomes.

• Collect information on the alumni.

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• Fill the applications online: You need to create an account with the university through their application link. Thereafter, you need to fill the application with all the information asked.

• Upload Statement of Purpose or Personal statement. • Upload the Recommendation letters. • Upload the Resume, if asked. • Pay the application and evaluation fee. • Send the test scores such as TOEFL/IELTS and GRE/GMAT. • Once you get letter of admit, apply for I-20 by filling the financial statement.

• I-20 form is issued by the U.S University as a confirmation of an International student's admittance • This document is issued by SVEP (Student Visitor and Exchange Program) certified schools • It includes the unique SEVIS (Student Exchange and Visitor Information System) ID. • The visa interview can be booked only with the SEVIS ID and the I-20 form.

Application Process

I-20 Application

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• Once you get an I-20, the type of visa granted to you is F-class U.S.A. student visa. • This visa covers students planning to pursue full-time degree programs at either the undergraduate or graduate level.

Step 1 Complete Form DS-160 before the interview Make sure that you complete Form DS-160 before the interview for your U.S. student visa.

Step 2 Get a print out of the Confirmation page After completing Form DS-160, get a print out of the confirmation page with the barcode on a laser printer.

Step 3 Pay I-901 form Fee • Make sure to pay the I-901 fee online through the U.S. Immigration and Customs enforcement website. • Save the receipt.

VISA

No Medical

Examination is Required for Student Visa

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Step 4 Carry I-20 form • You should also make sure that you have the I-20 form, which is a form issued by colleges in the U.S.A. for affirming enrolment. Step 5 Pay your visa Application Fee • Then, go to an approved HDFC bank in order to pay the visa application fee. • Save the receipt from the payment. Step 6 Appointment for U.S.A. visa Interview Finally, make an appointment for a U.S.A. student visa interview through the VFS website. You would require- • DS-160 barcode number • HDFC fee receipt. You can find in detail about the student visa in USA immigration website.

VISA

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• First of all open a bank account (find good bank near your university). • Open Savings and Checking account (both accounts are recommended).

• Get your state ID from Secretary of State Office. • Always keep this with you. • Don't forget to take all your documents like passport and sevis I-20 You will get it within an hour (off course if its not crowded).

Getting Settled

Open a Bank Account

Get Health InsuranceHealth insurance is compulsory for all international students. You can have it from university or private (depending on university). • Check if your health insurance covers eyes, dental... etc. • Talk to International Student's office in your University.

Get State ID

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Apply for Credit cards after coming to USA. Its very important. Don't misuse them. Try to make good credit history. Apply to Credit cards Like • American Express (blue for students) • Bank of America • Chase

• In case if you don't have any scholarship then start looking for P/T job. • Maximum number of jobs are available when Fall session starts (actually few weeks before Fall session). • There are less jobs in summer session (but many 20 hrs jobs become 40hr job). • You can work 40hrs/week during vacation(Summer).

Get Driving License

Apply for Credit Cards

Learn driving properly before you arrive to USA. Get driving license as soon as possible. • Step 1 - Qualify written test If you qualify it you get TIP (Temporary license) with this you can drive with anybody having permanent license. It's valid for about 6 months (I think I am right). • Step 2 – Give your Driving test After one month of getting TIP you can appear for driving test.

Get a Part Time Job

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• Explore the new places • Hang-out more it makes you comfortable with the new and strange peoples • Get out and enjoy your whole new world

Dealing with homesickness

Get your name on Housing Lease

Guys this is very important to have your housing history. • Always get your name on lease. There are cases where students share apartments and they don't have their name on lease. If you don't have name on lease and in case if you have to move out or like if you get internship in different city you might get hard time to find an apartment.

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