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Topic: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College  (Read 2536 times)

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I made a thread earlier about maybe moving to Florida, but now I'm thinking of going to http://www.unlv.edu/, not sure what course I'm going to be doing yet and I'll have the money to do so as I have a spare property here and I'd just sell up when I go, leaving me about $160,000 for tuition fees and living costs, now anyway whats the application process for a student visa like? do you have to be accepted into the college first? do you have to fly out to the college first and have an interview? I chose that location as I want to be somewhere hot and with plenty of things to do and lots of space, oh and another thing would it be better to get my drivers license here first in the UK or wait til I move there. Do most colleges have on campus accommodation where you can stay?
« Last Edit: March 17, 2012, 05:44:23 PM by UnimpressedAstronaut »
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #1 on: March 17, 2012, 04:47:55 PM »
I've applied for 2 US student visas in the past, although one was for a study abroad year, so the process was slightly different than a proper application to the university.

do you have to be accepted into the college first?

Yes - you can't apply for the visa until you have specific visa paperwork from the university.

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do you have to fly out to the college first and have an interview?

That's up to you. They may interview you over the phone or they may even pay for you to visit them.

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oh and another thing would it be better to get my drivers license here first in the UK or wait til I move there.

If you get your licence before you go, you may be able to get a US licence automatically... or you may have to take US tests as well. From what I've heard the US test can be really easy though.

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Do most colleges have on campus accommodation where you can stay?

Usually - like in the UK, they have halls of residence (dorms). They can be more expensive than living off-campus and are more restrictive... you may be required to pay for a specific meal plan and they may well be single-sex... girls only or boys only living on a floor, or single-sex apartments. It depends on the university though.

Be aware that US universities will have a much stricter view on alcohol than UK universities as the drinking age is 21. The university I attended was 'dry', meaning that alcohol was strictly illegal on campus. If you were caught with alcohol in your room, you were sent to Substance Abuse Counselling and AA meetings. This happened to a friend of mine... he was 24 and legally allowed to drink, but they found 1 bottle of beer in his room and he got disciplined for it!

I'll detail my application experience here:

October 2006: While doing my UK masters, I applied for a PhD at a US university. I had already attended a US university for a year in 2003/04 and one of my professors had said if I ever wanted to come back for 'grad school', to get in contact, so I did. I emailed her and asked about the possibility of me working with her for a PhD. We exchanged a couple of emails and then we had an informal phone interview. She said that normally the department would fly prospective students out to see the school and the department, but it wasn't necessary for me because I'd already spent a year studying there.

November and December 2006: I studied for the General GRE exam involving English and Maths tests and an essay paper... US graduate students have to take the GRE in order to apply.The undergraduate equivalent would be the SATs (which you've probably heard about on TV/in movies), which you may be required to take before you can apply.

January 2007:
I travelled to London to take the GRE exam (it cost about £100 in total I think)

January 2007: I filled out the university application form, paid the fee to apply, gathered any other documents they needed and mailed it to the US university.

February 2007: I got an email saying I had been accepted to the university to start in Fall 2007 (August 2007) and was being awarded full funding and a $5,000 fellowship grant! I asked to defer my entry to Spring 2008 (January 2008) as I was going to be working on my masters thesis until September 2007.

September 2007: I received my I-20 form... which is a very important document for the visa (you can't travel in or out of the US without it while you have a student visa - if you leave the US for a trip, you must get it signed by the international office of the university)... it details your acceptance to the university, when you will start and finish, and any funding you have been awarded.

September 2007: I called the US Embassy in London to book a visa interview. You have to pay for the visa during this phone call (and it costs £1.23 per minute, for an 8-minute call).

November 2007: I attended my visa interview (involving up to 4 hours of sitting in the embassy being bored before having a 2-minute interview)... my visa was issued 2 weeks later

(I had a bit of a complicated situation as I was stopped by the police in August 2007 and was just over the alcohol limit...so I now have a drink-drive conviction. This meant having to wait 2 months for a special visa appointment for applicants with a criminal conviction and I had to pay £250 for a blood test before they would issue my visa. It also means I cannot travel to the US again without a visa, even as a tourist).

December 2007: I booked my flights to the US.  Somewhere between September and December, I applied for a room in university accommodation (can't remember when though).

January 2008: I moved to the US on my student visa.


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #2 on: March 17, 2012, 05:50:23 PM »
Thanks for all that information, I don't really drink alcohol anyway so I don't think thats going to be an issue, I'll probably get my drivers license here, but you can apply for the course you want to do entirely online right. One more thing how would the college collect payment? do you pay upfront in cash? or debit the money? bank transfer? do you pay at the end of a semester, and I'm guessing you have to make an upfront payment just to apply to the college, I'm actually saving up to go the USA so I might go to the university to check it out in person, would I be able to do that? or would I have to apply for a course first?
« Last Edit: March 17, 2012, 05:52:35 PM by UnimpressedAstronaut »
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #3 on: March 17, 2012, 06:30:41 PM »
but you can apply for the course you want to do entirely online right.

It will probably depend on the university - I think I had to apply by post, but others will probably have online applications.

Bear in mind though that US universities work differently to UK ones...you don't apply for a specific course like you do in the UK, you just apply to the 'Undergraduate Program' (although obviously you can contact the departments to find out about specific courses) and then you chose what subject you will study for your degree later on - some people don't decide until their third year!

You register on a semester-by-semester basis and you have to sign up for each lecture course separately - if all the places on a course fill up, you might have to wait until the next semester or next year to take it. As a first-year undergrad you would be required to take specific classes in various subjects, which are approximately A level standard... depending on your UK qualifications, you may be able to take higher level courses and skip the first-year ones.

They do work you hard in the US though (although the first year classes are a bit easier because they are basically A level standard) - I worked harder during my 3rd year abroad than in the entire other 3 years of my degree in the UK. Class participation and attendance is a must... it makes up 10% of your grade and they expect you to speak up in classes and visit the professors regularly in their weekly office hours. Homework can be pretty full-on as well and you have to do it... it also makes up a percentage of your grade.

Then you have mid-terms, papers and final exams... be aware that exams (and classes) can be scheduled for odd times - I once invigilated a first-year exam at 7 a.m. and I took a 2-hour quantum physics exam at 7 p.m.! My university worked on a MWF and TuTh class schedule, so a class would either be three 50 min lectures held on Mon, Wed and Fri, or two 1 hr 15 min lectures on Tues and Thurs.

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One more thing how would the college collect payment? do you pay upfront in cash? or debit the money? bank transfer? do you pay at the end of a semester, and I'm guessing you have to make an upfront payment just to apply to the college.

I can't remember exactly how it all worked, but I seem to remember being given a bill each month (or maybe each quarter or semester?) with any money I owed the university (course fees, accommodation etc.).

You will be charged per lecture course you sign up for (full-time international undergrads must sign up for a minimum of 12 credit hours (about 4 courses) per semester to keep their visa valid).

The first time I lived there I think I paid my bills with my UK credit card while I was there. The second time (2008), I opened a US bank account and either used my US debit card or wrote a US cheque.

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I'm actually saving up to go the USA so I might go to the university to check it out in person, would I be able to do that? or would I have to apply for a course first?

Probably the best way to do it would be to contact the university's international office to find out more about their program, how to apply, what you need to do to apply, when to apply etc. Also, if you know what subject you want to study, it's worth contacting the department too... get yourself known as a prospective student and go from there.

You can also discuss with them the possibility of a visit - they may offer to pay for it, or you might have to do it yourself, but then you can arrange an official visit.

When I was there, my department was great with prospective graduate students - they would offer to let them crash in their homes for a few days and showed them around. A couple of days after I arrived, several of the students in my department invited me out for drinks in a local bar :).

Do you know when you might want to start studying in the US?


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #4 on: March 17, 2012, 07:15:54 PM »


Do you know when you might want to start studying in the US?

If I get onto an apprenticeship this year in the UK maybe not for another 3 years, if I don't however I may wanna start as early as next year, oh and another thing what about health insurance, did you go one in the USA?
« Last Edit: March 17, 2012, 08:14:57 PM by UnimpressedAstronaut »
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #5 on: March 18, 2012, 11:04:25 AM »
Should I apply for the undergraduate program straight away? how much time do they allow for you to get your student visa and sort out things financially before you start the degree?

Actually its ok I took another look at your timeline, I think I'll apply straight away
« Last Edit: March 18, 2012, 11:21:42 AM by UnimpressedAstronaut »
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #6 on: March 18, 2012, 02:07:21 PM »
I've applied, but they didn't really ask about grades, unless you were a domestic student, I just put down I have a high school diploma equivalent, but they didn't ask about equivalent of international grades, for example I have 5 GCSE's and a level 2 in maths, and another thing the SAT  score was mentioned but you weren't required to put down a score to submit the application, where in England would I do an SAT test?
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #7 on: March 18, 2012, 11:05:39 PM »
If I get onto an apprenticeship this year in the UK maybe not for another 3 years, if I don't however I may wanna start as early as next year

When you say 'next year', do you mean Fall 2012 (i.e. 5 months time) or Fall 2013 (next year)? If you mean 2013, then you've got almost a year before you need to think about applying... if you mean 2012, then you've got about 3.5 months left to apply.

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oh and another thing what about health insurance, did you go one in the USA?

When I moved in 2008, my health insurance was provided by the university - it was part of my employment/funding package. But when I lived there in 2003/04, I just took out a year-long study abroad insurance policy with Endsleigh UK (it was about £350 in 2003). I never actually went to a doctor while I was there though, so I didn't use my health insurance at all.

how much time do they allow for you to get your student visa and sort out things financially before you start the degree?

Well, you have to sort out your finances before you can apply for the visa, because at the visa interview, you have to provide evidence that you have the funding to cover the whole degree.

If you are accepted to the university, they will send the visa paperwork to you a few weeks/couple of months before the course starts (the earliest you can apply for the visa is 120 days before). Once you have the I-20 form, you can book a visa interview appointment... and looks like the waiting time for appointments is only a few days at the moment (which is good - I had to wait 2 months for each of my interview appointments!).

Actually its ok I took another look at your timeline, I think I'll apply straight away

Oh, well, I was going to say that before you apply, you should contact the university, inquire about how to apply and maybe visit the university (if you're going to) first... but I guess that's a bit late now.

For my first student visa to the US, I had had 3 years to think about and prepare for it - I applied for the UK course with study abroad in 2000... and finally went to the US to study in 2003. For the second visa, I spent nearly 4 months finding out information and preparing for it before I applied: emails to the university, phone calls with my future research supervisor, studying for and taking the GRE (I only had 6 weeks to study for it - most US students spend several months studying and preparing for it!), making sure I had all the documents/transcripts required, before I filled out the application form.

To be honest, I still think I rushed into the whole thing - I applied to that specific university because I knew the professor already and because I thought I could get in easily. Unfortunately, I didn't consider whether the research group was right for me or if there was a better university/department out there that was more suited to my research interests. My UK masters supervisor suggested I apply to Harvard, Berkeley or MIT... but stupid me decided to go with a university that was easier to get into and that I already knew. Eight months after moving, I abandoned my research and moved back home... I was miserable there - 5,000 miles from home and from all my friends and family...plus I hated the type of research I was doing.

I've applied, but they didn't really ask about grades, unless you were a domestic student, I just put down I have a high school diploma equivalent, but they didn't ask about equivalent of international grades, for example I have 5 GCSE's and a level 2 in maths,

I think the general consensus of UK universities is that a US high school diploma is approximately equivalent to 5 GCSEs grade A*-C. I believe you will need to provide all your official UK exam result documents/transcripts and get them translated (details are on the UNLV website).

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and another thing the SAT score was mentioned but you weren't required to put down a score to submit the application, where in England would I do an SAT test?

Looking at the UNLV website, it doesn't look like you need to take it, but if you do I'm not sure where you can do it (you would need to look into it further) - the GRE could only be taken in Central London, but I don't know about the SATs.


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #8 on: March 19, 2012, 02:08:05 PM »
Hi unimpressed astronaut,

From all the posts in this thread you put up the very first thing that strikes me is;

What exactly field of study do you want to go in?

The choice you are making, by going in for educational/study you absolutely 100% need to be focused on your longer term career ambitions. Applying to an international university and saying you don't know what course you'll do isn't very constructive. Imagine you get a phone call tomorrow from the university and the admissions boss asks 'What course are you wishing to study here?' what exactly will you say? if you say something along the lines of what you've typed here which is you haven't the foggiest, I know if I was the admissions boss I'd probably stamp rejected on your application form.

A bit harsh, but essentially that's what it comes down to. Some of the questions you've also put up which Ksand24 has yet again marvellously answered in great detail for you are very basic questions you could find out from the universities themselves - eg. how will they want paying?, how about looking on their website and/or calling them up to ask? - do campuses have accomodation to stay, again easily researchable.

Moving on, and I think I wrote it to you in one of your other threads, I'd suggest you think very long and hard on the route you wish to take. You are very lucky in that you say you've got a property to sell in order to provide funding which is a major plus point and something I'd estimate 95% of students don't have. Given that you don't really know what you wish to study, the GCSE's I think won't convert to the equivalent US standards to be high enough for university entrance - I may be wrong on that though. I'm going by the logic that GCSE level study in the UK doesn't allow you access to university degrees/diplomas. You've also mentioned if you get an apprenticeship here in the UK, you wouldn't move for at least 3 years. What kind of apprenticeship would you get? what industry sector?

It 'sounds' as though you just 'want to go live in the USA, someplace hot and with space' and are thinking going via an educational route might work. Nothing wrong with that as such, but my points above are things perhaps to evaluate. Are you sure you can handle the pressure of a university level degree and it's associated levels of study? the risk is you pay up for a course, decide someway through it you don't like it leaving you in a rut.

As you have $160,000 or so, I'd say another route for you to potentially take is to purchase an existing US business and run that with a view to expanding it to keep the US immigration authorities happy you are looking at a long term commitment rather than just using it as a stepping stone to enter the USA permanently.

Another aspect which is something I'm very keenly looking into is within the sector of property. For me, I'm leaning towards commercial ones over residential at the moment (could change!)

Have you visited yet? had a look around? the place is VAST and there's a fantastic variation of people and potential experiences out there. I'm back out in a few weeks time in Atlanta, LA and Vegas as a working holiday for my business plans and looking forward to any differences I find in Georgia as I've not been there previously.

Overall, my advice to you currently would be to choose a field of study/work here which you think may well be in demand in the USA for when you can potentially move over. Get some experience/study under your belt, visit the US a couple times a year to different areas and evaluate more then.

Good luck !

Cheers, DtM !West London & Slough UK!


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #9 on: March 19, 2012, 02:30:50 PM »
Great post, Dennis!  [smiley=2thumbsup.gif]


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #10 on: March 19, 2012, 03:12:33 PM »
While I think Dennis has some really important points, I'm not sure that sort of thinking is even followed by the large majority of soon to be undergraduates in the US. I hardly knew anyone in highschool who had much idea of which future careers they might want when they started university. I, myself, didn't choose a major until my second year. Universities were also frequently chosen for frivolous reasons: "My best friend is going there" "I want to get as far away from this town as possible" "I want to be near the beach". I think University is as much about the life experience as it is about the education it provides. In these difficult times, degrees are hardly gateways to one's dream profession, and dreams frequently change anyways.
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #11 on: March 19, 2012, 03:30:59 PM »
While I think Dennis has some really important points, I'm not sure that sort of thinking is even followed by the large majority of soon to be undergraduates in the US.

I'd agree with that. As ksand24 said:

Bear in mind though that US universities work differently to UK ones...you don't apply for a specific course like you do in the UK, you just apply to the 'Undergraduate Program' (although obviously you can contact the departments to find out about specific courses) and then you chose what subject you will study for your degree later on - some people don't decide until their third year!

And at a very few universities (mine, for instance), there isn't even a set undergrad program. You just take whichever courses you fancy.
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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #12 on: March 19, 2012, 07:44:55 PM »
Hi,

I do understand the above points, I guess I just 'knew' I'd be an engineer from when I was like 14 !

On top of that, being of Indian origin, I had the whole 'Be a Doctor' thing and when I knew I couldn't stand the sight of a band aid, I told everyone in the family there's no way I'd be running around in a white coat! - many of my lot did and are indeed practicing in US and Canadian hospitals - i don't envy their jobs at all except for the pay! ;)

When I was at uni, I also met many students who 'changed' course within a few days/weeks of starting and from what I can remember, most 'seemed' to have come from 'easier' A levels & equivalents. The ones who'd done the sciences based study previously seemed not to chop n change. One guy was in my class and came from a background of Art and Languages etc, he disappeared after 5 weeks or so I seem to recall, obviously preferring the 8-10 hours a week courses rather than the 9-5 everyday of an engineering based one!

When I speak to many of my US relatives and their friends, also ex work colleagues and perhaps them talking of their kids choices, I heard more of what's the norm here in the UK. I fully understand there's differences in the 'setups' of the courses and statistically it may well be more of a 50/50 split with those with a clear picture of their chosen route prior to university/at around age 16-18 etc and those who perhaps don't quite know what they'd end up going for.

Perhaps things have changed, I don't know, but nowadays I think it's very important to know at least of which 'direction' of study you 'might' want to go in ! Competition is tougher now for jobs, and the world has opened up in that people from other countries are allowed to migrate and pick up jobs - many for instance are on this very forum!

In the case of unimpressed astronaut, when I was hiring people for our business (at the time) anyone who sat in front of me who didn't really have much of an indication of a direction left me very unimpressed and they wouldn't get the job and that's why  my first reaction was 'what does this guy actually want to go for?'

Guess the next response from unimpressed astronaut may be more indicative!

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK!
« Last Edit: March 19, 2012, 07:48:23 PM by Dennis the Menace!! »


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #13 on: March 19, 2012, 10:49:20 PM »
I do understand the above points, I guess I just 'knew' I'd be an engineer from when I was like 14 !

Yeah, I decided at 15 that I was going to be a geophysicist :P.

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The ones who'd done the sciences based study previously seemed not to chop n change.

I've found that too - I think it's mainly because the A level subjects required for science degrees are much more set in stone than for arts degrees. For example, physics degrees require maths and physics A levels, and preferably at least one other science subject - if you don't take those A levels, you can't study that degree... so I think you need to be pretty sure that's what you want to study when you choose your A levels and your degree programme. However, with arts subjects there's more flexibility because the A level subject requirements are less restrictive, so it's easier to switch between degree subjects.

I studied physics and only 1 person of the 65 people on my course changed their degree subject... it was actually my first year lab partner - after just 2 weeks, he left physics to study theology instead (I think he dropped out eventually though)!


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Re: Hoping you guys could give me some advice on going to College
« Reply #14 on: March 19, 2012, 11:05:13 PM »
I've found that too - I think it's mainly because the A level subjects required for science degrees are much more set in stone than for arts degrees.

Yes. Not because science based courses are more difficult.
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