2008

StudentGuideU.S.Universitiesin
3,357Words

www.HappySchoolsBlog.com
9/7/2008


Copyright2008AllrightsReserved

TableofContents
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3
WhyeBook?................................................................................................................................................. 3
WhyattendschoolsinU.S. ........................................................................................................................... 3
CostofEducation .......................................................................................................................................... 4
WhentostartpreparingforGRE .................................................................................................................. 4
HowGREExamScoreiscalculated ............................................................................................................... 5
DaysbeforeActualGRETestDate ................................................................................................................ 5
OnGREExamDayWhattoexpect............................................................................................................. 6
GraduateSchoolsSelection .......................................................................................................................... 6
ChoiceofUniversitytodaychangesLifetomorrow...................................................................................... 6
ApplytoUniversitiesRightway ................................................................................................................. 7
GraduateSchoolsAdmissiondocumentsChecklist ................................................................................... 7
GraduateSchoolAdmissionDecisionMajorFactors ................................................................................. 7
StatementofPurpose(CollegeEssay) .......................................................................................................... 8
Resume ......................................................................................................................................................... 8
Guidetowriteemailtoprofessortosecureadmission................................................................................ 9
Scholarship.................................................................................................................................................... 9
StudentVisaPreparation .............................................................................................................................. 9
StudentVisaInterview.................................................................................................................................. 9
TimelineGREPreparationtoStudentVisa .............................................................................................. 11
OtherTopicsofInterest .............................................................................................................................. 13
SubscribetoEmailUpdatesorRSS ............................................................................................................. 13
Linkstootherinterestingarticles ............................................................................................................... 13
FrequentlyAskedQuestions ....................................................................................................................... 14
DisclaimerandCopyright ............................................................................................................................ 15

Introduction
FollowingthesuccessofHappySchoolsBlog.com,Ihavebeenthinkingofprovidingashortguidethatwill
helpstudentswhoareplanningtostudyinginU.S.DecidingtotaketheGREexamisfirststepforthe
longerjourneyinyourlife,yourcareer.
ApplyingtoGraduateSchoolsisatimeconsumingprocess.IfyouknowwhattoexpectduringGRE
preparation,TOEFL,collegeselectionandcostofeducationitwillmakeyourjobmucheasier.This
Studentsguidewaswrittenwiththatoneaimtomakethingssimpleandeasy.Itriedtokeepitshort
andfilleditwithenoughinformationtogetyougoing.
HappySchoolsBlogcontainsinformationfrommypersonalexperiencefromthelast10years.Ihave
beeninconstanttouchwithstudentsfromdifferentuniversitiesandwhenItalktothem,Icollectas
muchinformationabouttheschooltheyattend.Then,Iwritebasedonthatinformationaboutcurrent
situationinschools.Ihaveputtogethersomeexclusivecontentsinthisguidethatwillsupplement
informationfromtheblog.

WhyeBook?
IhavebeenwritingHappySchoolsBlogsinceJuly2007andsofarthereare290Postsand20Pagesof
contents.But,averagevisitortoHappySchoolsBlogspendslessthan5minutes.Inthattimeframeits
hardtogetaccesstoalltheimportantarticles.
ThiseBookwillprovideinformationinanorganizedway.Inthisfirstedition,Iamcoveringdetailsfrom
GREpreparationtogettingstudentvisa.

WhyattendschoolsinU.S.
YouneedtoaskthisquestiontoyourselfbeforeyoudecidetostudyinU.S.Herespossiblereasonyou
coulddecidetostudyin

U.S.

CostofEducation
IhavewrittencoupleofarticlesthatexplainsabouttuitionfeesforUniversityofHoustonatClearLake
andcostoflivingfordaytodayexpensesthatincludesRent,Phonebill,Food,Groceries,Health
Insuranceandotheritems.

TuitionFeesBreakdown(withsampleI20)
MonthlyExpenseforastudent
StudentLivingExpenseDetailedVersion

Above3articleswillgiveanideaofhowmuchitwouldcosttostudyinU.S.Also,choiceofuniversities
willaffectthecostofeducation.StudyinginUniversityofSouthernCalifornialocatedinLosAngles
wouldcoststudents$700permonthinlivingexpenses,whereasstudyinginUniversityofTexasat
Arlingtonwouldcostlessthan$350permonthforlivingexpenses.Ihaveseenstudentswhospendonly
$175permonthinlivingexpenses.
Myroommate,literallydidnthaveanymoneytoaffordtopaytheexpensesinU.S.buthesoldallthe
properties,hisfamilyhadtocomehere,paidthetuitionfeesusingcreditcardloan,managedtoget
scholarshipandrightnowhepaidoffalltheloanandenjoyinglifehereinU.S.withgoodsalary.Ittook
him2yearstorepaytheentireloan.

WhentostartpreparingforGRE
ThefirststepinapplyingtoGraduateSchoolsstartsstudyingfor
GRE(GraduateRecordExamination).BuyingBarronsGREbookis
goodplacetostart.

TakeGREbyAug2008,if
youareapplyingforAug
20091yearinadvance.

Scoring700750inGREQuantitativesectionismucheasierthan
scoringmorethan400inGREVerbal.Tohelpstudentstogetstartedandtogiveanexposureonwhat
toexpectinGRE,Ihavewrittenatleast30articles.
GREisoneofthemajorrequirementsforgettingadmissionintoGraduateSchool.Therearefew
universitieswhereGREisnotrequired.IfyouarecurioustoknowwhyuniversitiesrequireGREscore,I
wouldsuggestreading3reasonswhyGREScoreisimportant.
Now,youknowwhyGREScoresareveryimportantforanygraduateschool.Nextstepistoknowhow
toprepareforGREExam.10stepsIhavelistedarebasedonmyexperienceandfromthosewhoscored
morethan1300inGREExam.So,thebottomlinestoimproveGREScoresunderstandyourweakness
andspendmoretimepreparingstrategiestoimproveweakarea.

TherearelotsoffreeonlinematerialsavailableforGRE.But,insteadofspendingtimesearchingfor
goodmaterials,youcanbuybothBarronsandKaplansGREBooksforthereasonlistedthearticle.

HowGREExamScoreiscalculated
OneoftheimportantthingsonehastolearnwhilepreparingforGREistoknowhowGREExamis
scored;havingthatknowledgewillgiveyouanultimateedgetostudyforGREinthemosteffectiveway.
ArticleonHowGREExamisscoredwillgiveyouacompleteidea.OnceyouknowhowGREExamscoring
systemyoucanusethatknowledgeineffectiveway

Highervaluequestionshavehigherneedsmoretimeallocatedtosolve
Understandyourweaknessandimproveyourscore
Improvetheproblemsolvingspeed

DaysbeforeActualGRETestDate
HavingspentlongtimepreparingforGRE,itsgoodtoknowhowmuchyoucanexpecttoscoreinactual
GREExam.Inthe10stepstoprepareforGRE,Ihavesaid,takeETSPowerPrepexam1weekbefore
actualGRETestdate.ThatwillhelpstudenttofindhowmuchscoretoexpectinactualGRETest.
AfterobservingsomanystudentstakeGRE,Ihaveputtogetheranarticlethatwillexplainindetail
aboutGREScoreRangeCalculator.

OnGREExamDayWhattoexpect

Relax!

Ifyoustaycalmusuallyuwilldowellintheexam.Youmighthaveprepared
well,butiftensioncreepsinfirstfewquestions,andthenGREscoregoes
down.

So,relax,takedeepbreathandobserveryoursurroundingandget
acquaintedwiththeexamcube.Torelax,Iusuallyobservemybreathepattern.i.e.watchhowyou
inhaleandexhaletheairfor2minutes,itwillcalmdownthethoughts.
Attheendofexam,youwillhavechoicetoforwardGREScoresupto4universitiesatendoftheexam.
Youcanactuallysave$80ifscoresareforwardedtothesame4schoolsifyouplantoapplythere.

GraduateSchoolsSelection
TherearesomanyuniversitiesinU.S.toapplyforGraduateSchooladmission.Thisiswheremostofthe
studenthashardtimeselectingUniversitiestoapply.WithoutmuchexposureaboutUniversities,
admissionrequirements,averageGREScores,studentusuallytendtomakemistakeslike

Applyingtoschoolwellbelowtheiracademicprofile
Selectingthewrongchoiceoflocation

Idocertainlyknowtheprocessisdifficult,unlessstudentsknowwhattoexpectandhowtoselect
universities.IhaveputtogetherlotsofarticleexplainingUniversitySelectionandalsolistedaverageGRE
scoresforfewuniversities.
Alongwiththat,IhaveansweredquestionsaboutUniversitySelectionbasedonstudentsGRE,TOEFL
andotheracademiccredentials.Tomaketheprocesseasier,Ihaveputtogether12stepprocessesto
selectuniversitiesbasedonyouracademicprofile.
Icansay,itsnotamagicbutton,wherestudentcanputintheprofiledetailsandtheygetthelistof
universities.ItshardworkandtimehastobespentinresearchingUniversities.Itsyourlife,whydoyou
wanttoputthedecisionmakingprocessinsomeelsehand?
YoucanleanabouttheGraduateSchoolAdmissionprocess,explainedinflowchart.Asyoucansee,how
streamlinedtheprocessis.

ChoiceofUniversitytodaychangesLifetomorrow
Yes,thatsright,yourlifeandlifestyleis100%dependedonchoiceofUniversityyouplantoapply.How
muchmoneyyoumake,howmuchexposureyougettowardsEducation,alldependsonthechoiceof
theUniversityyouplantoapplyandattend.
HereslistofarticlesthatwillhelpstudenttounderstandmoreaboutU.S.Universities

12StepUniversitySelectionProcessPart1and2
UniversityandDepartmentRankings
HowtosearchforGraduateSchools(differentapproach)

ApplytoUniversitiesRightway
SelectingUniversitiesismajortask,buttogetadmission,therearesomanythingsthatthestudentcan
do,sothattheapplicationstandsoutfromrestofthestudents.ItsamajormisconceptionaboutGRE
Scoresrelatedtoadmission.AlmosteverystudentItalkthinks,havingLowGREscorewilllowerthe
chanceofgettingadmission.

GraduateSchoolsAdmissiondocumentsChecklist
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)

GREScores
TOEFLScores
AcademicTranscripts
RecommendationLetter
StatementofPurpose
Resume
PaperPresentationAbstract
ProjectDescriptions
Copiesofcertificates
Sports
LeadershipSkills
TemWork
Debates
VolunteerActivities
CommunityServices

GraduateSchoolAdmissionDecisionMajorFactors
Eachandeverycredentialplaysamajorroleingettingadmission.IfstudentshavelowGREscore,then
strongrecommendationletterandhigheracademiccredentialswillmakeupforit.So,doesthe
statementofpurpose.
Youcouldhavecompletedaproject,whichaspecificprofessormightbeworkingon.So,lowGPAand
GREscorewillbecompensatedbecauseofonesspecificprojectworkorpaperpresentations.
So,astudenthavetomakesureallthedocumentssenthasrightamountofinformationthatwillmake
thejobeasierfortheadmissioncommittee.

Inordertogiveadifferentperspective,Iputtogetheranarticlewhichcontainsanswersfromdifferent
departmentadmissionrequirements,onhowGREScoresareusedforadmissionandhowmuch
importanceGraduateSchoolAdmissioncommitteegivestoGREScores.

StatementofPurpose(CollegeEssay)
Studentscanexpresstheirpersonalitythroughstatementof
purpose.With2pages,allthecreativity,accomplishments,
ExpressPersonality
researchpotentialcanbeexpressed.Donttrytocopythe
statementofpurpose.Itsveryeasytoidentifyifthestatementofpurposewaspreparedbystudentor
copiedfromsomeonescontent.
Ifyourscoreisverbalis300andTOFELislessthan70andsubmittingawellcraftedstatementof
purpose,definitelyraisesaquestion.Also,writingscoreinGREAnalyticalsectionwillshowthewriting
skills.
Herearesomearticlesthatexplainhowtodraftandcraftastatementofpurpose,includingtipsfrom
graduateschoolprofessor.

StatementofPurposewithlotsofSamplesandtipsfromprofessor
12TipstowritehighimpactSOP
QuestionsaboutdraftingCollegeEssay
HowtobeOriginalDraftyourownStatementofPurpose

Resume
Resumeexplainsstudentsacademicachievementsandskillsets.Goodresumeshouldhavefollowing
characteristics

Easytoread
Visuallyappealing
Contactinformationclearlypresentedattop
Skillsconsistentwithobjectivedescribedusingkeywords
Educationlistedinreversechronologicalorder
JobExperiencelists
ExtraCurricularActivities

Resumewritingtipsand28questionsaboutresumewillgiveagoodideaonhowtopreparearesume
thatwillcreategoodimpressionaboutyou.

Guidetowriteemailtoprofessortosecureadmission
Notallprofessorsrespondtoemailstheyreceivefromstudentsaboutadmission.Remember,theyare
busypeople,whowillnothavetimetoreadboringandlengthyemails.Theywillreceive100sofemails
fromstudents.So,ifyouweretohighlightyourcase,thenyouwillhavetofollowtheemailwriting
guidelineslistedbyaprofessor.
Inthefollowingarticleprofessorhassomeharshwordstostudentwhosendemailaskingforsomeform
ofaidoradmissiontograduateschool.IstronglysuggesteverystudenttoreadthearticleWriting
EmailtoProfessorThinkAgain.

Scholarship
FinancialAidisavailablein3forms
Scholarship
TeachingAssistantShip
ResearchAssistantship
Usuallyifacademicprofileofthestudentisveryimpressive,universitieswillgiveadmissionwith
Scholarship.Withscholarship,studentwillgetInStateTuitionfees(differencebetweenInstateand
OutofStatetuitionfees)
Majorityofthestudentsdontgetadmissionwithscholarship.Studentshavetospendatleast1
semestertogetsomeformoffunding.Inmeantimetheycanworkupto20hoursoncampusjobsto
payforlivingexpenses.

StudentVisaPreparation
AftergettingI20fromUniversities,itstimetoprepareforstudentvisainterviewandstamping.When
attendingstudentvisainterview,yougottohavealltheoriginaldocumentsandknowwhattoexpect
duringtheinterview.
Duringthevisainterviewprocess,VisaofficerinAmericanConsulatelookfor3importantthings

DoesthestudenthaveanacademiccapabilitytocompletethestudiesinU.S.?
DoesthestudenthaveenoughfinancialresourcestoaffordthecostofeducationinU.S.?
DoesthestudenthaveinteresttostudyinU.S.orgotadmissionforthesakeofenteringU.S.?

StudentVisaInterview
Visaofficersaretrainedpersonnelswhocanfindlotsofinformationaboutyouinlessthanfewminutes
time.Ifstudenthassomeformofscholarship,thenitmakesthejobmucheasier.Because,U.S.

Universityhaverecognizedtheacademicachievementandhavegivenscholarshipandalsothatreduces
theamountofmoneystudenthastoshowasproofforbankbalance.
Herearesomeofthearticlesthatwillexplainindetailaboutbankbalancerequirements,howtoface
theinterview,samplebankdocumentsandwhathappenswhenstudentssubmitfakebankdocuments.

TipstogetF1Visa,butnotricks
BankStatementforStudentVisa
Howmuchbankbalanceisrequiredforstudentvisa
F1VisaCancelledduetoFakeBankdocuments
BankBalanceforstudentwithscholarship
OriginalDocumentsusedforStudentVisaInterview
BankStatementisrequiredfor3years?

TimelineGREPreparationtoStudentVisa

IhavebeenthinkingofcreatingatimelinethatwillincludewhentostartpreparingforGRE,GRETest
date,Applicationprocess,admissiondecisionandstudentvisa.

Followingflowcartwillexplainthetimelinetoapplytograduateschoolanditsthebestcasescenario.
Itsalwaysbettertoapplyasearlyaspossible.
UniversitieshaveseparatedeadlinesforconsideringtheapplicationforScholarshipandregular
applicationdeadline.Usually,Internationalstudentshaveearlydeadlinewhencomparedtostudents
whoarealreadyinU.S.andDomesticstudents.
Intheabovecase,IsaidaboutapplyingforschoolsbyDecend.Ifyouplantoapplyforhighprofile
schools,theywillhavedeadlineinNov2008orsoforFall2009semester.So,itsimportanttobeaware
ofdeadlines.
TherearemanystudentswhoplantotakebyDec2008.ThosstudentscanapplytillFeb2009,but
choiceofuniversitieswillbelimited.But,studentscanstillapply.

OtherTopicsofInterest
ThisebookgaveanintroductiontoU.S.Universitiesadmissionprocessandwhattoexpect.Iplanto
writecoupleofmoreebooksthatwillberelatedtolifeofstudentsinU.S.andhowtoadapttoU.S.
culturewhichwouldincludewhatstudentwillgothroughfromthedaytheyenterintoU.S.tilltheyfind
ajob.
Inotherebook,Iwillgiveintroductiontojobsearchtechniquesthatworkedforme,howtonegotiate
salary,benefitsandimmigrationissuesrelayedH1BvisaandOPT.

SubscribetoEmailUpdatesorRSS
Ifyouhaveenjoyedthisebook,youcansubscribetoFREEarticleupdatesthroughGoogleReaderor
throughEmail.Whennewarticleisposted,emailwillbedeliveredtoyourInbox,soyoucanstay
updatedwithallinterestinginformation.
Ifyouhaveanyquestionsorcomments,pleasefreetosendmeanemail.Ilookforwardtohearfrom
you.

Linkstootherinterestingarticles

StudentsSpendingHabits
36QuestionsRightAfterlandinginU.S.airport
MyfirstweekinU.S.Pleasantoneindeed
StudentsLaptopBuyingGuide
5CommonquestionsaboutUniversitiesbystudents

FrequentlyAskedQuestions
1) IhavetakenGREtwice;willbothscoresgetreportedtoUniversities,ifsowhichscorewill
Universitiesconsiderforadmission?
ItdoesntmatterhowmanytimeyoutakeGRE,allthescoreswillbereportedtotheschooland
itwillappearintheGREScoreSheet.Universitiesmighttakethebestscoresforeachsection
fromdifferenttestscoresorsometimestheymighttakeaverageofallthescoresreported.
2) HowmanytimescanItakeGRE?

IhaveseenstudentstakeGREfor2totimes,buttakingGREtwicein2monthstimeisnotgoing
toimproveyourscorebymuch.Remember,GREiscomputeradaptiveandquestionshavebeen
testedoveryearsbeforeitappearsintheactualtest.
ResearchbyETShasshown,GREscoresdoesntchangemuchbyappearingforGREtwicein2
months.Spendatleast3monthstimebetweenexams.ItmightimproveyourGREscore.

3) CanastudentcompleteM.S.withoutgettinganyformoffinancialaid?

Yes,thatspossibletoo,butitsunlikely.Studentswillusuallyfindsomeformofincome.Itcould
befromparttimejobatleast.

4) Howmuchwillparttimejobpay?

Studentcanworkonlyoncampusforonly20hoursperweek.Oncampusjobspay$7to$10per
hour,whichwillpayformonthlylivingexpenses.

5) Doyouknowanyonewhocamebacktonativecountry,sincenojobwasavailableafterM.S.?

IhaventseenanyonewhowentbacktoIndiaortotheirnativecountryaftergraduating.Its
easytofindjobhere,butyougottoputinefforts.Searchingforjob,itisafulltimejob.

6) Howmuchcansomeonewhojustgraduatedfromschoolsearn?

ThisisthemostcommonquestioneverystudentasksbeforeapplyingtoU.S.Togetanideaon
howmuchSoftwareEngineersmakerefertoAverageSalaryforMastersDegree

DisclaimerandCopyright
Disclaimer:ThepurposeofthismaterialistosharethepersonalexperienceaboutU.S.Admissions
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anyactionsthatresultsbyfollowingthestepsinformationlistedintheguide.
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