Before the F1 race begins

With the basic desire to plunge into the land of Uncle Sam, approximately one half million students come here annually. It sure is a wise decision to gain some focus and preparedness for a better standing in the days you spend in the US of A.

To begin with, make sure you have drawn lines on the following considerations:
1) What specific aims do you have beyond the master's degree?
2) What field do you want to major in?
3) What funding limits do you have?

As for the Indian Engineer's, the major job option (or rather the only one) is the Software field. On an average the mass-recruiters back home (per se Infosys / HCL / TCS) hire approx. 7000-10000 engineers each year, individually. Such is not the situation in the US. Here ample decent jobs are available in areas like Electrical, Mechanical, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Core Sciences, Medical Sciences, Fine Arts, Dramatics etc. Moreover, hybrid areas like Mechatronics, Nanotechnology and Computational Biology are also some great options you get to work on. The diversity of options, sometimes, is all the more confusing. So, to begin with, be clear with what kind of a profile would you like to fit yourself in - or - in an interrogative manner - "With the MS degree in your hand, what do you want to do?"

The available options may include:

• PhD leading to some post-doctoral research.

• University Teaching.

• Corporate Job in the US.

• Corporate Job in India.

• Entrepreneurship.

To help yourself formulate the answers for Q(1), read! Read about the various social, economic, ethnic and medical aspects of the lifestyle, for the ultimate aim of majority of the individuals is a comfortable lifestlyle.

After making your pick with Q(1), the job is little simpler. The major can be well decided looking upon your inherent interest in the field of study. It might be some subject you liked a lot (don't mess this with scoring high in a subject). It can also be some talk / conference / seminar / presentation that lured you to work upon it. All in all, it is an intelligent choice to pick a field yourself after giving in due thought process (it is a flexible choice - anyways you can change it later, the cost might be pretty dear though!).

The annual tuition for grad school may range from $8000 - $40,000, depending on the choice of university/program/credits. The details can be easily figured out under the "Tuition and Fee" sections of a grad school website. Therefore, the answer to Q(3) is entirely a subject to personal conditions. It is better to consult your parents/guardians/family members/sponsors regarding the available funds. Also, it is advisable to explore the various loan schemes available - both in India as well as US. Making a wise choice in this regard is vital.

After finalizing the above the answers (or just a range), do the following:

0) look at the list of schools in the US which offer the program of your interest.
1) shortlist the schools you want to go to (based on your aims and needs)
2) lookup their deadlines for accepting applications for your desired term of entry.
3) work upon the basic required examinations for admission to a grad school: GRE & TOEFL.
4) request some of your college professors to write a letter of recommendation for you.
5) complete the appropriate admissions application forms (I prefer to do that online).
6) write a statement of purpose to express why you should be admitted to a master's program.
7) once the department offers you an admit, use the i-20 to book an interview slot for F1 visa at the appropriate US consulate.


Feel free to write to me if you need some help following the text above. I'll be happy to help.

-A