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| UNITED
STATES : ADMISSION PROCESS |
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ADMISSION PROCESS
The main requirements for admission to educational institutions
in the United States are:
A strong academic background
Demonstrated command of the English language
For many programs, scores on one or more standardized
admissions tests
Adequate financial resources
Each school sets its own admission requirements. Because
of the large number of international students seeking
a US education, the schools do not make exceptions to
their requirements. Most schools require a minimum of
a high school diploma with solid coursework in science,
mathematics, English, and humanities. They will also require
academic entrance examinations such as the TOEFL, SAT,
ACT, GRE, and GMAT. The higher your scores on these exams
and the better your grades, the better your chances of
being admitted. Generally you must have a 3.0 grade point
average on a 4.0 scale to be admitted, especially for
graduate school. Some schools set very high standards
for admission.
All of these tests are standardized, multiple choice tests,
written in English. If you do not have a high degree of
English proficiency, you will not do well on these tests,
no matter how strong your academic background. About once
month after the examination, your scores will be sent
to the institutions you specified on the application form.
It will take an additional two to four weeks for you to
receive your copy of the score report, so it is best to
not wait to see the scores before sending them to the
schools to which you have applied.
Planning ahead will give you sufficient time to make successful
applications to the colleges of your choice.
12 MONTHS PRIOR to enrollment complete
the following (months indicated are estimates, based on
fall
enrollment) :
AUGUST
Contact universities for application and financial aid
forms and catalogs.
Obtain test registration forms or register on the web
to take the TOEFL, the ACT, and SAT I and SAT II, if
necessary.
SEPTEMBER - DECEMBER
Continue narrowing down your choice of schools. While
some students apply to more, 5 to 10 well
researched choices are sufficient.
Request an official transcript from your school.
Request letters of recommendation from your teachers.
Submit completed application forms (for admission as well
as financial aid).
Double check that transcripts and references have been
sent.
Take the necessary admissions tests.
JANUARY - APRIL
University application deadlines must be met; note that
these are for regular admission — early admission
deadlines will be sooner.
APRIL - JUNE
Letters of acceptance or rejection arrive. Decide which
university to attend, notify the admissions office of
your decision, complete and return any
forms they require.
Send letters of regret to those universities you turn
down.
Organize finances: arrange to transfer funds to a U.S.
bank; make sure you have funds for travel and
expenses on arrival.
Finalize arrangements for housing and medical insurance
with your university.
JUNE - AUGUST
Use information from your Form I-20 or DS-2019 to fill
out the SEVIS Form I-901 and pay the $100
required SEVIS fee.
Upon receipt of your I-20 and SEVIS I-901 payment receipt,
apply to your nearest U.S. embassy or
consulate for a visa. This should be
as far in advance of your departure date as Make travel
arrangements.
Contact the International Student Office at your university
with details of your arrival plans, and confirm
details of any orientation for new students
held by the university.
To be considered for full acceptance to a degree program,
a graduate applicant must:
Submit proof of a bachelor's degree from an institution
which is regionally accredited or internationally
recognized.
Submit a completed application form with a nonrefundable
application fee in the range of $30 to $90. The
application form may be downloaded from
the Graduate School sites, printed out, and submitted
to the
Graduate School. Some graduate schools
also have an on-line application that can be submitted
electronically. The application fee
for the graduate electronic applications can be submitted
under separate
cover. A paper application can be obtained
by contacting the Office of Admissions.
Submit a statement of purpose (goals) or career narrative
statement as required by the specific school.
Provide complete official transcripts from each college
or university attended. Transcripts in the applicant's
possession will not be accepted unless
in an official envelope sealed by the institution issuing
the transcript.
An applicant whose degree has not yet
been posted may submit a letter, on official letterhead,
from the
dean of the institution, verifying completion
of degree requirements, until the official transcript
reflecting
degree is submitted.
Provide the required recommendations in support of graduate
study (see specific application form).
Supply
current admission entrance examination scores, as required
by the individual school.
Submit
any additional information required by the Office of Admissions
or the individual school.
Permanent Resident Status-When a student
has permanent resident status, the Alien Registration
Receipt
Card ("green card") must be
presented to the Office of Admissions with the application.'
Applicants whose university/college degree is from an
institution in which English is not the language of
instruction must submit a score of 500
or better on the TOEFL examination (or at least 173 on
the computer
- based TOEFL) as required. The minimum acceptable
score is higher for the Physician Assistant Program.
For more information, see the Application
Procedures for International Students section of this
catalog.
The responsibility for obtaining all admission credentials
rests with the applicant.
Key Components of a Complete Application
Although, institutional requirements vary, the standard
components of a complete application form include namely,
Graduate School Application Form. Required Application
Fees, which may be in the range of $30 to $75. Official
transcripts (1 set for U.S. citizens and permanent residents,
and 2 sets for international students) which are statement
of marks. These have to be typed on the letterhead of
your college/university with the seal of the college or
university.
Application for Financial Aid in a format specified by
the university. Usually separate forms for application
for financial aid are available with every university.
Three Letters of Recommendation should be obtained from
a recommender who knows you very well such as your HOD
(Head of the Department), Project guide or your Employer.
Personal Statement or the STATEMENT OF PURPOSE i.e. SOP
which is a MISSION Statement justifying your selection
be made by that university. It also includes a brief description
of a student’s academic/professional background,
area of interest and long term academic and professional
goals and reasons for selecting the university and the
specialization. Having a good SOP can compensate for average
academic records and modest GRE/GMAT scores to get admission
and financial aid from a reputed university.
A solvency /capability certificate from your banker stating
that you are capable of raising funds equivalent to your
tuition fees and costs of living in the U.S.
Graduate Record Exam Scores: An official score report
for the Graduate Record Exam General Aptitude Test, taken
within the last 5 years, is required. A GRE Subject Test
is recommended but not required (may be taken in computer
science, mathematics, engineering, physics, etc.) The
GRE paper-based exam should be taken no later than the
November test-date to assure that the scores arrive by
the deadline. The computer-based exam may be taken later,
since results are available immediately. Check with your
local institution to confirm the latest information on
test offerings.
TOEFL AND TSE: An official score report for the TOEFL
exam (taken within the last 2 years) is required for international
students who do not have a degree from a U.S. institution.
An official score report for the TSE (taken within the
last 2 years) is required for all international applicants.
ACT
ACT produces and administers the ACT Assessment test.
For more information, call 1-319-337-1448 or write to
American College Test, PO Box 414, Iowa City, IA 52243
USA.
Educational Testing Service (ETS)
ETS produces and administers several standardized assessments
of educational preparation, including the SAT, Achievement
Tests, GMAT, GRE, and TOEFL exams. These sites include
tutorials and practice questions. For more information
about the TOEFL, visit www.toefl.org, call 1-609-771-7100,
fax 1-609-771-7500, write to ETS, PO Box 6155, Princeton,
NJ 08541-6155, or send email to toefl@ets.org. For more
information about ETS, call 1-609-921-9000, fax 1-609-734-5410,
write to ETS, Rosedale Road, Princeton, NJ 08541, or send
email to etsinfo@ets.org
Requesting Application Materials
Schools usually have different application materials for
international students, so it is important that you identify
yourself as an international student when you contact
the admissions office.
Some possible differences include:
The need to include certified translations of your education
credentials.
No eligibility for early action and early decision programs.
Expect it to take four to six weeks for you to get a response
to inquiries.
You should begin the process at least a year and a half
in advance of the application deadline, and no later than
August of the year before the academic year in which you
plan to enroll.
Send all inquiries by airmail and request an airmail reply.
Even if you are able to correspond by facsimile and email,
the actual application and accompanying documents will
need to be sent by airmail.
Your initial inquiry should be addressed to the Director
of Undergraduate Admissions for undergraduate applications,
or to the Department Chair or Dean of the Graduate School
or Director of Graduate Admissions for graduate applications.
Your initial inquiry should either include a preliminary
application form obtained from the nearest educational
advising center, or at least the following information:
Your name which should be spelt the way it appears on
your passport.
If you change the spelling of your name, some of your
records might get lost. If some of your documents
will contain a different spelling of
your name, attach a note giving your name as it will be
used on your
application form.
Your date of birth, written with the month first, followed
by the day then the year, using the Gregorian
calendar system. Spell out the name
of the month instead of using numbers, because date conventions
differ from country to country. For
example, 4/3/67 is April 3, 1967 in the United States,
not March 4.
Your mailing address.
Your citizenship and the name of the country issuing your
passport.
Your marital status and the number of dependents.
Your past and present education, listed in chronological
order, including all secondary schools, colleges,
and universities you have attended.
Include examination results, grades, and class rank if
available.
Your intended program of study and the month and year
in which you hope to begin studying in the United
States.
A summary of the total funds you have available to meet
your educational and living expenses during each
year of study in the United States.
To give as much detail as possible, such as the sources
of these funds.
Otherwise the admissions officers will
refuse to issue the certificates you need to request a
visa to study in
the United States. You may be asked
to provide a copy of the College Board Scholarship Service's
Foreign
Student's Certification of Finances
and photocopies of your family's most recent tax return
(if applicable)
and bank statements as part of your
application.
A list of your scores on TOEFL and other admission tests.
If you have not yet taken the tests, list the dates
on which you are registered to take
the tests. Also mention where you studied English and
the total number
of years of English language study.
There are several organizations that allow you to apply
for admission using the World Wide Web. You will still
need to submit your credentials via airmail, but using
the web-based application services can save you some time.
No one service handles applications for all the schools,
so you may need to visit several sites. The services include
APPLY, College Edge, College Link, Colleges cape, and
Peterson's College Quest (Grad Advantage for MBA programs).
Preparing the Application
In addition to completing the application and essays,
you will need to provide certified copies of your original
educational credentials (diplomas, grade reports, test
scores, comprehensive exam scores), certified English
translations of these documents, TOEFL exam scores, scores
for any required academic entrance examinations, financial
information, letters of recommendation from teachers,
and the application fee. Include all the items requested,
or your application will be considered incomplete.
The transcripts of your educational records should be
sent directly from your former schools. This is to prevent
forgeries and modifications to your transcripts. The admissions
office will also want explanations of the grading and
class ranking system and descriptions of the courses.
Do not send your original documents, since they cannot
be returned. Copies should be certified with the school's
official seal or by a notary public (a public official
responsible for certifying documents). English translations,
if necessary, should be done by a professional translator
and also certified. The translator should be unrelated
to you. Information about professional translators can
be found in the ‘Credential Evaluation’ section.
US embassies and consulates do not certify documents.
The application will ask questions about your academic
background, your hobbies and extracurricular activities,
and your educational and career plans. It will also require
one or more essays. The purpose of the essays is partly
to see an example of your English writing ability, and
partly to provide an opportunity for you to express yourself
in a more open format.
Your essay should be cohesive and well-organized. Give
specific examples to support any general statements. Review
your essay for spelling and grammatical errors before
writing it on the application form.
Pay careful attention to the deadlines, and allow enough
time for the mail. Submit your completed applications
two or three months before the deadline.
Keep a copy of everything you send to the admissions office.
If your application is lost in the mail, this will help
you resubmit it.
Create a chart showing all the deadlines and important
dates, and keep a record of the date you mailed each application.
This will help you track your progress.
When asking teachers to write you a letter of recommendation,
choose teachers who know you well. If a teacher taught
you for two years, that is better than a teacher who taught
you for only one year.
Provide your references with a copy of your completed
application or a summary of your qualifications. This
will remind them of your better qualities.
The best letters will present an honest appraisal of your
abilities, highlighting both weak and strong points. A
letter from a teacher who taught you in a challenging
course is more valuable than a letter from a teacher who
taught you in an easy class. The purpose of the letter
is to evaluate your background, motivation and promise,
and not to offer meaningless praise. When admissions officers
receives letters from a teacher for several students,
praising each of them as the best he's seen in his career
as a teacher, they ignore them. The result is a negative
mark against the students, not a positive one. It is better
to be balanced in presentation, so that the admissions
officer can learn to trust a teacher's opinion over the
years.
Your teachers will want to mail their recommendations
directly to the university. Provide them with a stamped
airmail envelope with the proper address, and write your
name in the lower left hand corner of the envelope.
Once you have submitted your applications, you will have
to wait for several months before hearing anything. If
you do hear anything in that time period, it will usually
be a request for additional or missing items.
If you are lucky, you will be accepted by one or more
institutions. They will send you a letter of admission.
Accept one (and only one) of the offers of admission,
and confirm your acceptance according to their instructions.
You will probably have to write a letter to the admissions
office confirming that you will enroll and including a
non-refundable deposit of several hundred dollars. They
will then send you the form you need to apply for a student
visa (Form I-20). If there are any additional forms, submit
them in a timely fashion.
Once you have accepted one of the offers, send a letter
to the other schools declining their offers. Not only
is it polite to do so, but it allows them to reallocate
any financial aid they offered you to other students.
Credential Evaluation Services
The American Association of Collegiate Registrars
and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) is the national
professional organization for admissions and credential
evaluation. AACRAO also offers their own credential evaluation
service.
Cost of Education
US education is very expensive. Tuition, room and board
at an undergraduate institution will cost from $15,000
to $40,000 a year, depending on the school. A graduate
education can be even more expensive. It is important
to understand the costs involved in studying in the U.S.
because of the regulations on the working of the international
students, both on and off the campus as well as because
of limited competitive scholarship options for international
graduate students. When calculating the annual expenses,
it is important to keep in mind the total annual costs
of studying and living in the U.S. which include tuition,
university fees, books, health expenses, plus travel to
and from your home country and within the U.S.
There is a wide variation in the tuition fees, ranging
from $7,000 to $35,000 for a full academic year covering
9 months.
The annual tuition fee is lower in state-government funded
universities than in the privately funded institutions.
Foreign students have to pay the highest tuition fees.
The schools and universities in the South and the Mid-west
are often cheaper than those located in California or
in the Northeast regions like New-York etc.
The average tuition fee of a good university ranges between
$7,000 to $16,000.
Average fee structure for a Bachelors degree is around
US$12000 to US$20000 a year.
For Masters or a Management course average fee structure
is US$16000 to US$25000 depending on the university.
Total living expense ranges from US$5000 to US$8000 a
year.
Application Fee
Most Universities also require an application fee, which
must be paid to initiate consideration of the application.
These fees may range from $25 to $100.
Living Expenses
Food costs around $125 to $150 per month. Another $75
per month is spent on books, travel, telephone bills,
postage etc. Accommodation costs each student in the range
of $150 to $200 per month. On an average, the cost of
living is around $400 to $450 per month
Scholarships/ Financial Assistance
Getting a scholarship or financial aid from U.S. universities
require that the complete application package i.e., GRE
/ GMAT / SAT scores, TOEFL scores, recommendations, SOP,
work experience if any, affidavits has to be very impressive
and thorough. Extensive resources are available to help
finance the education costs of the students. Majority
of the students get financial aid as they start their
academic session in US, their performance from Semester
I will determine their financial aid for the coming semesters.
A major chunk of your educational expenses can be taken
care of if professors at your prospective universities
offer you research or teaching assistantships (RATA) with
them. Excellent letters of application to professors in
your area of specialization to match your background work
experience and interests with theirs can be written. Most
of the students get positive responses to these letters.
If you are interested in financial assistance from a U.S.
Institution and have determined that you and the department
are a good potential academic match, then find out what
kinds and levels of financial assistance are available,
what responsibilities does each entail (scholarships,
fellowships, teaching or research assistantships and others),
and what are the prerequisites for eligibility.
Limited financial assistance may also be available from
sources or organizations within your home country, or
other independent U.S. based associations or foundations.
Check with the U.S. embassy or consulate to find the nearest
U.S. government supported overseas advising/resource center
to obtain further information on possible additional scholarships
or fellowships.
You must develop a clear understanding of the various
institutional and departmental admission and degree requirements
to help you to decide the appropriate schools for you.
Financial support and sponsor’s letter
A sponsor is any person/s or company or trust fund willing
to contribute in any way to the total education expenses.
Parents, grandparents, family members or company may be
a sponsor. A sponsor’s letter is a signed, written
statement on a printed letter-head or on an Rs 50 stamp
paper. You may have multiple sponsors, as long as each
one gives a signed support statement stating his willingness
to provide funds. The amount of support in terms of actual
numbers must also be indicated. Financial evidences required
include:
Original statement of account or bank pass book, or original
fixed deposit receipts to support the first
year’s total estimated expenses.
This may be from multiple banks in the individual names
of each sponsor.
Source of liquid funds to meet total expenses for the
duration of the remaining months, [12 months or 36
months] must be clearly shown. The plan
to meet the expenses through funds in India must be supported
with factual, original documents. Examples
of acceptable assets are: personal income, business income,
rental income, mutual funds, fixed deposits,
provident funds, bank loans with EMI plans, liquid investments
at face value, etc
Each sponsor must provide original bank statements, or
original fixed deposit receipts, income statements
etc to support the commitment he/she
has made. The total amount of liquid funds, given by all
sponsors
must be sufficient to completely take
care of all academic and living expenses during the entire
period of
education. The amount required must
tally with the figures stated on the offer of admission
or the I20 form
received from the university.
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