Bossman:
I am well, Thanks. Hope you are as well.

lionlee216:
So pls tell us the advantages and disadvantages of getting student loan to sponsor academics in usa(i am not referring to international students studying in the usa).

So if you are to advise someone who is getting a student loan, what courses do you personally think they worth getting a student loan for

Thanks

Goldenboy007:



This is a very good question

Student loan is an investment so I use the principle of - Value Proposition - which means being able to evaluate the Cost and Benefit of your intended project.
Getting good education as immigrants is key to a successful life but American education is one of the most expensive.
If you migrated to the US at a young age, this is an advantage - go to a good highly ranked college - your chances of getting a good job and paying off your loans in good time is a possibility. However if you migrated to the US at age 30 above - be careful how you rack up student loans.

If you owe so much in student loans - the burden falls on you after college, remember you will also plan to get mortgage and car loans. Combining those 3 loans/interest would be a huge burden that may result living from paycheck to paycheck.
As a matured College student - only borrow what you will need - don't add feeding and accommodation to the amount you will borrow as loan. Also if you can combine a job with College - this is awesome - you can borrow a small loan and self sponsor the rest. The less you borrow the better your life after. E.g..a loan of $30,000..you will pay close to a total of $43000 back at the end of 10 years with a monthly repayment of $370. Imagine what your total and monthly repayment would be if you owe $100k in loans.
People make the mistake -lets assume FAFSA offers you $20k per session for a graduate course, your tuition is $12k per session. Some of you will collect $20k buy car, clothes, shoes and gadgets. Next session you do same thing..you have racked up $40k in loan for a tuition that cost only $24k. You have forgotten you will pay this back with interest. Student loans is sometimes a life long burden so only borrow what you will need.

Recommended industry courses - IT, All Health industry, Finance (CFA), Professional Accounting (CPA)

IT - Cloud Computing , Networking, Programming, DB Mgt, Data Analytics are the most lucrative and cheapest - just get your degree and certification(sometimes what you need is just certification and experience) - you make money faster. Amendment of the H1B visa will drain US of the Indian IT workers- they will need to replace these people.

Let me stop here for now . Let me know if you need more information

Goldenboy007:





Let me stop here for now . Let me know if you need more information

Teedawg:

Yes oh i need more information please lol.. just one or two words for we coming on student visas!!

Goldenboy007:


If you have proper documents to relocate then I will tell you to pack your belonging this very moment, however anything short of that would be a struggle. I will try to give you as much facts but I want you to make the decision yourself.

1) The American Nigerians - The first thing you'll realize is everybody that promised to help you will disappear, they had boasted on helping because they hope you would never get a Visa

2) The 2nd reality check is ..The millions Naira savings will only convert to couple of 100 Dollars.The fastest way for your savings to evaporate is when you earned Naira and you start spending dollars.

3) Accommodation - I have seen immigrants stranded in US and they ended up living on streets. If you are lucky enough to get a host, they will manage you for few weeks before they will make your life a living hell. I have heard many horror stories.

3) Job - The laws on illegal workers are now very strict, no papers no work. Almost no company will touch you with a 10 foot pole. (Thanks to the new government). However for the few who eventually got a job it would be very hard labor. Factory work with long hours - Minimum wage is between $7.25 to $9.00, you will have 40 hours a week - That may seems like a lot of money in Naira but you would soon realize that your expenses are in dollars, you will barely survive from one paycheck to another paycheck.

4) Immigration status - Once you overstay in US you become illegal - the implication is if you leave US you may never be able to come back in for a very long time. You may think you do not need Nigeria again until you start missing births, marriages, deaths, burials, graduations of people that are really important to you. Also under the new government If you are caught you may be deported immediately.

5)Hard Years - Lets assume you scaled all the earlier hurdles - you got a job and accommodation - You will discover that after several years of doing manual labor - you would have succeeded in saving nothing because your expenses are equal to your income. Eventually at old age you decide to come back to Nigeria - your mates would have moved and left you behind.

Typical average living Expenses - it could be higher or lower depending on the US State

Income $11/Hr x 40Hrs/week X 4 weeks = $1760 before tax, After tax approx = $1372

Monthly
House Rent (Studio) - $700 (Hopefully in cheap suburbs or Project Apartments)
Groceries - $100 ($25/Week)
Bus - $100 (Transit Card)
Utility (Electricity) - $25 (provided you get free Gas and Heat) -
Internet - $20 (lowest Speed)
phone bill - $20


However if you have opportunity to migrate and work legally in US-I advice you to put your IT Degree to work, get some IT certificates in US and in few years your annual salary in Nigeria would be what you will earn in 1 month in US.

I have often heard that the greatest enemy of invention is common sense, what may actually work for you may be what would not make sense to the rest of us. Some of us that are citizens today are beneficiaries of immigrants that made the sacrifices, the end justifies the means. America is a great place to be, the land where dreams are fulfilled, but it is not heaven.

All the details I have given you here are what I have witnessed from real people with real experience

Donaltus:
Goldenboy007 God will bless you the more,your number one point is really on fire......wen I was processing my USA visa two of my friend promise me heaven and earth claiming they will pay for ticket and also give me the BTA and other goodies,fast forward to when I got the visa they all abandon me they cant even shelter me for a week.I need to contact another person for accommodation and I actually paid for my rent from Nigeria

Goldenboy007:
Ok -

So I went to a car dealer in Chicago to get a new car - the sales guy asked me what I want to pay as minimum payment and for how many years. He didn't even bother to tell me the cost of the car.
This is one of the mistakes immigrants make- even Americans make same mistake. You are a hustling immigrant and the next thing is going to pick a car from dealer. They don't tell you the cost of the car, you pick a car with a minimum payment - you end up paying twice the cost of the car in interest, bogus fees and principal. The first 3 cars I bought were cash down, I saved up for it and bought them cheap, now I can afford to buy a new car and pay up to 80% down payment.
Some ignorant old timer immigrants will tell you to get car loans to boost your credit score - that's BS!!! I have a fantastic credit score and I do not have a car loan.
When I got to the US, different old timers came with their advice - some said...get a lot of credit cards , some said get a lot of loans, you need a good credit score. The very first time I approached Bank of America for a credit card, they told me to deposit $500 for a secured card - I told them they can go to hell...I will use my debit card. After 2 years, they begged me to collect their Credit card free - they saw how much I had in bank balance - in fact they have offered me different loan facilities.
I have never bought anything on minimum payment, I saved up for everything I owned. I bought my furniture one piece at a time - some immigrants will go to Value City or JC penny to pick store cards for furniture - they will now enter into minimum payment bondage. If you live the Nigerian financial life in US, you will grow rich within a short time. Our problem is trying to copy the lifestyle of the average Americans that do not share same values as us.
I have 2 credit cards - Bank of American and Amazon Chase reward - this is the way I use them - I make sure I have the money before buying anything- so I buy on credit but pay everything off before the cards month end cut off. Bank of America increased my credit limit even without asking them to. I keep my card utilization to less than 10% - fantastic for your credit score.
Minimum payments will kill your finances, you will end up living from paycheck to paycheck- what you have done is spending money you haven't earned - Some will think they have permanent jobs - no income is guaranteed in US - companies here won't owe you salary - if there is a sign of financial difficulties- they won't blink an eye before they sack all of you. Go ask people in Sears, GE Capital, PepsiCo, Verizon, Sprint, etc.
For the student hustlers- Networking is your strongest skill for now - the truth is that it's getting more difficult to transfer to the H1B status after your F1 - so do not wait till you finish 2 years of graduate degree or 3+ years of undergrad before you start planning the life after school. The rule that is coming, maybe here - if you ever go out of visa status even for 1 day , your chances of being considered for Green Card through H1B might be practically zero.
DACA - for those of you that are planning to bring your children to US without proper immigration - be warned !! If this program is canceled your kids would remain illegal immigrants even if they spend their entire lifetime in US. - except they go though proper immigration channels.

I am not an immigration specialist but I dedicate my time to study and do research. All these info are on the internet if you will take time to do yoiur research.

Thank you

Goldenboy

Goldenboy007:


So for Apartments -

Accommodation- For new immigrants - I always advise new immigrants not to overstay at their hosts - America is different from Nigeria, people live on strict budget. If you are lucky to have been accommodated by friends or family, start planning how you will move in the first 6 weeks - Even if the host is your sibling, what of their spouse, will they be comfortable with you around ? Again be very helpful when you are living in others houses - do the dishes and buy little groceries. In fact you can offer a little money as part of the rent. Let them feel you are a blessing coming to live with them.
Cost of accommodation depends on location. Families choose areas with good school district and safety or security. Some areas can be very cheap but are they safe ? Does it have good schools for your kids? Is it far from where jobs are ? Access to fast public transits? Train station? Buses? Nearness to shopping malls , nearness to your place of work?
In Chicago for example - You don't want to stay in South Side of Chicago - that's where all the crimes are. The apartments there are very cheap - We have different kind of apartments- Studio, 1 bedroom , 2 bedrooms, etc, town house, Condo, Single family home etc. Studio is what we call Self Contain in Nigeria - A room with bathroom. Kitchen and all are inside the single room. Also note we call restroom - "Bathroom", regardless if it has toilet and bath. ( don't ask anybody for Toilet).
I also heard some side of Newark in New Jersey is a no go area. In Chicago - There are many Nigerians and immigrants in the Chicago North side. You will want to get an apartment where you can be close to people of your kind so that you can get information quickly. Indians do that, don't go and isolate yourself in the middle of nowhere - for security reasons - like it or hate it - there is still traces of racism in US, (it has become more prominent especially with this new govt) you don't want to end up in a strange community.
For cheap accommodation, I try to balance the values you will get from the accommodation and the cost - Remember all I said earlier - For a hustling single immigrant or family go to Craigslit - There are various accommodation options - shared apartments - people looking for roommates, just be careful you do not fall into scams. Also church or mosque communities are important - They help out with information for accommodation. Information is key in the US, do not isolate yourself.
Craigslist has different cheap options - from Studio to a single family home. Some landlords or agents will not rent out to people without jobs or bad credit history or score. Make sure you read the conditions for letting.
Tips
Look for Apartments that has free utilities or the cost added into the rent - Water, Trash, cooking gas and heating , - although you will always pay for electricity. They will probably ask you for 1 month deposit but if you good credit score- You may not be asked for security deposit. Just go to Craigslist, click your state, then go to "housing", then you click either apt/housing or rooms/shared or sublets/temporary.
Please be careful of scams, see house and agent office before giving out money o...and stay off dangerous areas. Ask me questions.

MOM1:


Not all of south side Chicago is bad.. Please speak for where you know. I have always lived on the south side and can never imagine myself living upnorth. Most of the shootings in Chicago are gang related and most times innocent victims are just in arms way.

charzyh2:

Nigerians with arguments. He never said all south side of Chicago. Let me explain what he means with this example: When they say Lagos is too rough, does it mean everywhere in Lagos is included in that statement? shey u get.

Op is just trying to pass a message. Moreover, you too can contribute your quota instead of picking out argumentative points.

MOM1:


Not all of south side Chicago is bad.. Please speak for where you know. I have always lived on the south side and can never imagine myself living upnorth. Most of the shootings in Chicago are gang related and most times innocent victims are just in arms way.

charzyh2:

Nigerians with arguments. He never said all south side of Chicago. Let me explain what he means with this example: When they say Lagos is too rough, does it mean everywhere in Lagos is included in that statement? shey u get.

Op is just trying to pass a message. Moreover, you too can contribute your quota instead of picking out argumentative points.

Goldenboy007:


Tell me your neighborhood in Chicago South Side and I would give you the statistics. It can't be all the South Side but nevertheless it's not a place you want to raise a family.

vickertony:

What do you advise future msc accounting student?

what area of accounting is better for msc in terms of job after school , incase one wants to stay back..

What state in the USA is good for student immigrants, weather wise, culture, people etc

Add Any other advice, Thank you, Danke!

MSc in Accounting? That's a bit uncommon. People would rather do an MBA and get the CPA designation. That combination broadens your employment option.

What state in the USA is good for student immigrants, weather wise, culture, people etc - State is a big concept compared to city. For example Illinois - Chicago is immigrant friendly - Atlanta in Georgia, New Jersey, Dallas in Texas, Houston, cities in Rhode Island, New York, Baltimore. etc. US is typically immigrant friendly compared to some other countries, its a cosmopolitan country. Weather should not be a concern if you do not plan to go to live in Alaska.






cc Goldenboy007

Horticulturist:


Thanks Golden boy as this piece is quite insightful! If I do an msc in a STEM Course , do I have chances of securing an HB1 Visa considering the 3year OPT grace period. Thanks

timesup234:
Most nigerians in america live fake life. That was how my cousins old friend was boasting he lives in a 1600 monthly two bedroom. My cousin got his visa and didnt tell him. He already requested for his address long time ago and saved it. Behold when he went to ATL he was shocked to see the 600usd monthly house he was sharing with a friend. The house was no different from a mushin house. Your expectation was too high, every dollars spent was worked for, nobody is going to give you accommodation or even a mere $50

MOM1:


C'mon I am not here to argue.. I have lived out here close to double digit years now! The statistics are right but you can't generalize.. What will you say about hyde park, south loop, Bronzeville etc.. There are good and bad neighborhood in all part of the city. One just have to be careful

Goldenboy007:
How I bought $24,000.00 Dodge Charger with Cash.

I have read many stories on people living in diaspora, the good, the bad and the ugly. Different strokes for different folks. I write based on my own experience and for those that have spoken to me, they know I am a simple down-to-earth guy.
So I have been on car shopping for 2 months - I love cars and US has given me opportunity to live my dreams. Within 4 years I have used 4 cars, I get tired of a car easily.
When I initially got into US, to save cost I wanted to drive a car low on maintenance so I stuck with the Toyotas and the Hondas - this time around I wanted something different so I did my research and concluded on a 2015 to 2017 Dodge Charger. Good technology, fair cost of ownership.
Now the story goes - I started the car shopping - every weekend was spent driving around from Dealers to dealers. I used 3 websites - Cars, Truecar and Craigslist.
It was a terrible experience - It seems when a black guy with accent enters a premium car outlet, they assume you are either a drug dealer, you are uneducated and you have a terrible credit score. I now see why they call the dealership - "stealership".
Now most mistakes immigrants make is to go into dubious contracts with car dealership. I have written in the past that we forget our heritage when we go into foreign land. We try to copy the American lifestyle while we are Nigerians. The American lifestyle works for the Americans, it does not work for us - we have different customs and values. This has accounted for many immigrant failure in diaspora. African culture is rich in moral values - A river that forgets it's source will quickly dry up. You are a new immigrant - even some experienced immigrant make same mistake - you walk into a Dealership - the dubious sales man crunches some numbers and pronto - he gives you a monthly payment plan - you quickly sign the papers - you have just signed away your financial freedom in the US. There are times slavery is not by Chains and Cuffs, sometimes it's economic slavery and psychological slavery. You come into US gbam !!!! You see all the beautiful shining stuffs you never had back home - those devilish sales men tell you they are virtually free if you sign on a paper - you begin signing - credit cards, Mortgage, student loan, car loans, store cards, needless insurance, needless subscriptions - after some years you discover you are just living paycheck to paycheck. You have booked different loans against all your future income for the next 30 years in US. All you do now is working to pay back debts - a slave to your creditors. No wonder the good book says - "A borrower mortgages his freedom", well I will talk about this another day.
Back to my car story ....ok this post is becoming too long ..i will continue later.