hey! make sure you register at a centre where they will allow you to use calculator, you will need it, trust me

@sayhi2ay

Thanks for all the info. should start preparing soon, so maybe i'll write it in September.

BTW; do you have an idea of the average price of the exam here in Nigeria?

i paid 25k to register for mine, if you have someone in the US, the person can help you register for 20k or less,

remember, the most important thing is for you to practice, dont read the textbooks and just go for exams, after you are done reading, practice like 1wk non stop,

sayhi2ay, abeg 4give me if am asking too many questions , (am a novice in this American Graduate School thing . . . . . )


1) Just wanna ask if TOEFL is compulsory, cos i feel since i've studied in English all my life, why should i write TOEFL again?

2) Can you advice on schools with M.Sc software engineering/computer science and tuition fees less than 10k dollars?

Thanks

(1)
Though you have spoken English all your life, since English is not considered your first language, ALMOST all the schools in US won't give you an admission without seeing your TOEFL grade.
Also, even if they consider you have spoken English all your life and they see you took English on your transcript and waive this requirement and give you admission, you will have slight challenge convincing the consul officer for your visa, 2 of my friends got admission without TOEFL score (MBA program), they were refused visa by the consul because they didnt write the TOEFL exam even after showing admission letter, payment and all that, this happened March, 2008. So you see why its best for you to write the exam, plus the exam is not difficult at all, i studied for it in 2 days, and passed it well.
Not that the consul doesn't know Nigerians speak English, they want to be convinced that you can interact with your teachers and fellow students when you get to the US. This is true as I had problems asking questions in class when I first got here, most of the professors here are Chinese, they barely understand our Queen's English, so if i ask questions in class, i get to repeat myself about 4 times and sometime get frustrated that i don't ask at all.

(2) I dont know what you mean by 10k dollars, tuition is been paid per quarter here, as an international student, your tuition regardless of ANY school you choose wont be less than $6000 per semester. and you get to spend at least 4 semesters for the whole program.
Let me break it down a little so you can understand better:
For MS in Computer Science or any other degree, you are expected to take 12 courses in all ( for the whole program).

Now you are expected to take 2 or 3 classes per semester,

so which means if you take 2 classes per semester, you spend 6 semesters for your program ( 2 classes X 6 semesters = 12 courses)
if you take 3 classes per semester, you spend 4 semesters for your program (3 classes X 4 semesters = 12 courses).

so as not to confuse you,

if you take 3 classes per semester, you get to pay $6000, so 6000 X 4 semesters = $24000 for the whole program.
if you take 2 classes per semester, you get to pay $4000, so 4000X 6 semesters = $24000 for the whole program,

this is just to explain whether you take 2 classes or 3 classes, the total tuition is still the same thing,


the semester or usually referred to as"quarter" are Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall,


It is most advisable to take 2 classes per quarter/semester cos the work load here is plenty especially if you are taking MSc, and pass mark starts from 80/100, if you get below 80 in 3 classes, you will be kicked out of the program. Not to scare you though, they teach you well for you to score above the pass mark, lol

and also another advice, when you get to your school, ask around for the professors to avoid and the ones to register for their class, if you pick a professor that you wont understand is English, then Lord help you,

let me know if you or anyone else needs more clarification.


Ay.

forgot to mention, just go for MS in Computer Science, you can then take classes in Software engineering, you want to be flexible in the career program you choose,

am taking MS Computer Science myself, i took software engineering classes, networking classes, database classes, wanna take some computer design classes right now,

Thanks for the insightful information.

I just wanted to know if anyone has an idea of how the American GPA (based on 4.0) is calculated against a Nigerian CGPA (based on 5.0)

for masters, the minimum GPA some schools require is 2.7 or 2.8 based on 4.0 scale, not sure,

2.8 on 4.0 scale is about 3.05 on 5.0 scale, dont knowhow to really do the math,

Just thinking aloud . . . . where are they SO MANY "UK Education Fairs" in Naija, all year around but i've never heard of US Education Fair?

Sure would love to attend one of such if they ever organise one

US schools have so many applicants from around the world, they dont really need fairs to market their institutions,

sayhi2ay and blackpro u guyz r rilli doing a great job, and God will bless u. am rilli intrested in doing my masters in the us. am a graduate of economics and i will love to have an msc in any business related course. sum1 advise me here in nigeria that i should just take only toelf exams and i will be able to get admission, is dat okey 4 masters. secondly what r the citeria of gettin scholarship 4 masters in d us.

Hello everyone.
I hope this thread can be kept alive cos so far, it has been interesting.

@sayhi2ay
Your talk on the workloads is scary because the school I have in mind has a dual degree progam i.e MBA/Msc Intl. business which I intend to take AND I plan to work.

What is yur take on this?

tollu:

Hello everyone.
I hope this thread can be kept alive because so far, it has been interesting.

@sayhi2ay
Your talk on the workloads is scary because the school I have in mind has a dual degree progam i.e MBA/Msc Intl. business which I intend to take AND I plan to work.

What is yur take on this?

what was your major for undergrad?

taking a dual degree program is not a bad idea at all, there are few things you need to consider,

- Now that Lagos Business School is one of the top rated 50 business schools, consular officers now tell intending MBA student to say home and take their MBA there rather than go spend a lot of money in a US school

- Because a dual degree takes a longer period, like minimum of 2 years, and stress load is much, the consul might feel that since you are not getting any scholarship, it might be hard for you to meet up with tuition payments after a while,


my take on it is that you should apply for MSc, you stand a better chance of getting a visa, then on getting to the school, you can then tell your department you want the dual degree option instead,

when I got to my school, all the classes I got interested in are engineering classes, so i applied to change my MSc Comp Sci to Comp Eng,
then I decided not to, but it is very possible,

this way, the consul wont say you should go to LBS for your masters, and wont feel having a dual degree would be a challenge for you financial wise,

u feel me ?

702:

sayhi2ay and blackpro u guys r rilli doing a great job, and God will bless u. am rilli intrested in doing my masters in the us. am a graduate of economics and i will love to have an msc in any business related course. someone advise me here in nigeria that i should just take only toelf exams and i will be able to get admission, is that okey 4 masters. secondly what r the citeria of gettin scholarship 4 masters in d us.

almost all serious schools will need you to write both TOEFL and GMAT exams for MBA program, pls read one of my post on this thread to see why not taking the GMAT is not a very good idea,

getting scholarship for a Master's program is very very very difficult for international students, unless of course you scored 100% in your GMAT and TOEFL exam, most graduates in the institution apply for scholarship, am sure they would consider them first based on their performance in school before considering international students who is yet to enroll in the school, and the other scenario is if you finish your undergrad in the US as an international student, you stand a better chance of getting a scholarship for your master's

tollu:

Hello everyone.
I hope this thread can be kept alive because so far, it has been interesting.

@sayhi2ay
Your talk on the workloads is scary because the school I have in mind has a dual degree progam i.e MBA/Msc Intl. business which I intend to take AND I plan to work.

What is yur take on this?

I checked out the web page of the school, the course sounds interesting, it will afford you the opportunity to gain knowledge in information systems and also business management, i think you should go for it, since it will take like 3 years to finish the degree, make sure you have plenty of money in your account to show them at the embassy, and also
request for 2 years visa, you can always renew it when you get here,
but once you get here, visa wont really matter anymore, the immigration office at the port of entry will stamp your I-20 (admission letter) to indicate that you are legal to stay in the US until the end of degree, so even if you spend 5 years, your 2-year visa is still valid, but after 2 years however, you cant use the visa to enter the US again should you travel out of the US, you will have to renew it if you plan to travel out of the US, that is, after the expiration of 2 years,
you can do the renewal effortlessly in Canada anyways,

so if the consul knows you plan to finish the degree in 2 years, which is very possible but not advisable, they wont think the financial burden would affect you,

after your degree, you have the option to remain in the US for another 2 and half years doing OPT (students only) even without a valid visa.

i didnt get the final part of your last sentence, do you plan to work during your degree?

Enough Crude Oil to your elbows, my ppl
this is probably d most insightful thread (nairalandwide) i've seen since i started on d forum.

My question is, one of d schools i'm considering UC Irvine requires intl prospects to take d
TSE (test of Spoken English) if they want to be considered for TA or GA spots

Personally i believe d assistantship concept is a one of d beauties of d US system & i intend 2 take full advantage.

Want 2 find out ur views on this & also what i need to do for d edge

ps.

@Blackpro

Where u @?
please send me the merch (bropzy@gmail.com)

pps.

@ Sayhi2ay
I'm a holla at u soonest

Pls u can also reply thru my mail addy cos i access that more often.

Thanks a bundle AY. We'll talk some more on YIM.
Yes I intend to work while getting my degree. Advisable?
What's OPT?

tollu:

Thanks a bundle AY. We'll talk some more on YIM.
Yes I intend to work while getting my degree. Advisable?
What's OPT?

I really cant measure your intellectual capacity, but you really must be very brilliant if you want to combine work and master's degree, especially MBA. its very tough.

In US, as an international student, you cant be allowed to work off-campus until you have spent 3 quarters in your school (thats means you cant work outside school until you have spent [b]9-months [/b]in the US),

you can however, be allowed to work for a maximum of 20 hours/week on-campus, which you'll get paid the minimum wage or higher say $8/hour,

getting a job on campus is not so easy, they consider americans first, then they consider undergraduate students(cos they want long-term commitment even if it's on-campus job, they dont wanna do an interview for same position every year), and for IT positions, they also consider the indians,

so it can get pretty difficult to actually even get a job on campus,

you now see why the consul at the embassy are hell bent on seeing enough money on your account statement

sayhi2ay:


I really can't measure your intellectual capacity, but you really must be very brilliant if you want to combine work and master's degree, especially MBA. its very tough.

I'm not VERY brilliant but if other people do it, then I can

sayhi2ay:


In US, as an international student, you can't be allowed to work off-campus until you have spent 3 quarters in your school (thats means you can't work outside school until you have spent [b]9-months [/b]in the US),

Legally, that is. Do they have ways of finding out where you work?

sayhi2ay:

you now see why the consul at the embassy are hell bent on seeing enough money on your account statement

That they will see as long as it doesnt have to be mine.

I still dont know what OPT means.

OPT is Optional Practical Training, as an international student, you have the option on working for 2 and half years in the US after you graduate from school.

About working,
If you don't have SSN, no company will employ you, except of course, you wanna do under-the-table job,

now if you get a job on campus, then you can get SSN, on your SSN card, they will write "Not Valid to work unless you have authorization" which means you still need an authorization from school to work off-campus even after you might have spent 9 months.
now, the schools have a crazy way of tracking if you get an unapproved off-campus job, they first send you a letter of warning, if you dont stop, then they report you to immigration.

Thanks a lot AY. 'will be in touch.

sayhi2ay:
 
you can however, be allowed to work for a maximum of 20 hours/week on-campus, which you'll get paid the minimum wage or higher say $8/hour,

getting a job on campus is not so easy, they consider americans first, then they consider undergraduate students(because they want long-term commitment even if it's on-campus job, they don't want to do an interview for same position every year), and for IT positions, they also consider the indians,

so it can get pretty difficult to actually even get a job on campus

@Sayhi2ay
Seems like blackpro has dumped d thread,


Also do d factors u pointed out above apply when they r considering for TA & GA positons.
Cos they r jobs strictly for grad students and i feel if u've got enough industry experience it should count for som'n

holla

Ps.
Damn d friggin indians, snapping up d IT jobs erywhere

diggler:

@Sayhi2ay
Please if u've got d Gradschool prep materials could u aid a brova by sending same to my box bropzy@gmail.com.

Also do d factors u pointed out above apply when they r considering for TA & GA positons.
Cos they r jobs strictly for grad students and i feel if u've got enough industry experience it should count for som'n

are you talking about prep materials such as GMAT, GRE and TOEFL ? you can get them at www.4shared.com just type TOEFL, GMAT or GRE,
then you can download the one that says Kaplan or Barron,

for a TA position, say you are doing Master's in Computer Science, and you want to apply for a TA position in your department,
now lets say for example, they are looking for a TA to take CS 241 (Java Programming) class,
They expect you to have taking that particular class (CS 241) in the same school, and scored an 'A' grade before you can be considered,

since international student didnt do undergrad in that school, how could we have taken CS241 in that school ? lol,

you feel me?

so they even first consider a grad student that has taken CS 241 in the same school, and if there is none, they then consider an ungrad student from same school who have taken and passed the CS 241 class previously with an 'A' grade,

and if they can't find, they might now consider you, lol, the chances are slim


for GA, those who get this position are mostly Phd students, before you can get that position, you must have had a good rapport with one of your professors, because its that professor that will recommend you for the position,

now since most professors have Phd students under them, they tend to choose them over others, unless you have been known by this particular professors for 2 quarters after you might have taken his classes and passed well,

and after the selection for GA position, you have take Test of Spoken English (TSE) exam,


so these particular positions are [b]NOT STRICTLY [/b]for graduate students alone

@sayhi2ay

Tanx 4 d info bro, will check em out

i was under d mpression dat these positions, do not neccesarily require academic input.
Cos some dude that first mentioned it says 'some' TA's do mostly secretarial stuff (carry d professors bag, etc, lol)
And i still feel my industry experience shuld at least measure me up d Punjabs

Anyways sha, we'll keep xploring all options

Once again tanx

lol, on the contrary, in fact, you can call a professor to come from the 4th floor to the 1st floor so he can take a look at your project or assignment, depends on the professor though, the Chinese are typically boring,

For additional Grad School materials (GRE), you can also try:
www.number2.com (recommended to me by someone who had 1470 in the GRE exam)
and
www.grebible.com (recommended to me by someone who had PERFECT scores (1600) in the GRE exam)

some schools minimum GPA requirement for admission is 2.5 on a 4.0 scale, thats about 2.7 on a 5.0 scale

hi everyone
i am so sorry for staying away so long
i have been very busy with school and i am thinking of working on something on a larger scale to assist people preparing for GMAT and GRE
and other stuffs regarding admission to the US.

Special thanks to sayhi2ay for representing and sharing while i was away

stay tuned

Good Thread keep up the good work guys ,

I completed an MBA program w? Howard about two years ago and USIS . Uniteds States Information Service helped a lot with VISA counselling . Not sure how useful they are now. But I thot I should mention this

Now my question is I have a spouse in Naija , who wants to come over in a few years for his MBA , whats the best way of skirting this LBS issue for the consular office. Or should I simply have him wait till our green card comes through and not have him waste money and time now.

any advise here?

@Pittbaby

its dicey, one of the criteria which they consider for F1 visa is convincing them that you intend to come back to your country of origin after you graduate,

now since they already have his data and know he is processing a K-3 visa, they sure know he doesnt have the intention of coming back since his wife is in US, so i think you guys should just wait till the K-3 visa comes through,

or you can try your luck, who knows!

all the best,

Is there any Nigerian Universities that accepts SAT examination scores for admission?

diggler:

@Sayhi2ay
Seems like blackpro has dumped d thread,

i have not dumped the forum.i have been very busy in school. Now i am free to expect more
i am working on something bigger to help people ace the gmat.

Greater things lie ahead

@sayhiay
please send me an email : blackpro2000 at gmail dot com
lets talk