₦airaland Forum

ploff:
Does COA include living expenses?

Yes.

Electroweb:
My people no vex o! Na question I ask.
Good day everyone,
I need guidance.
I am considering doing a masters degree in the US in one of the STEM disciplines. I noticed there are so many schools claiming to be recognized in the US. My question is, how do I know which school is recognized and will add value to me as per recognized degree for green card/ permanent residency pursuit.

All that matters is for the school to be SEVP accredited. If it isn't, you won't even get a visa to start with.

ifeanyimoses:
Please guys, can anyone help me out ���

I am not sure I understand your query. Might want to restructure it.

mikael11:
Good day guys, my I-20 just arrived two days ago and with the news that there isn't interview date this year anymore... what can I do?

Choose the earliest date, then request an emergency appointment.

BARISTAMandela:
Guys, I need an answer to my dilemma, Please?

Tell your school to indicate "family fund" instead of your Uncle's name. That will allow you to use any SOA from relatives.

Fxsacramento:
Hello nairalanders,

Please I need your help. I got my i20, and my uncle happens to be my sponsor; but it wasn't indicated on the i20. I want to know what that means, hope it won't be an issue for the VO? Thanks.

What's indicated on your I-20? Not all schools specifically indicate your sponsor name. Some just indicate "family fund", if that's the case you have no issues. But be sure to go to your interview with your Uncle's SOA.

Marks112:
Hello I am a graduate of pharmacology here ,just graduated no certificate yet but I have statement of result
I want to apply for usa student visa but it’s IT I want to do ,should I apply like I haven’t been to uni before (Since the courses are not related) and to get transcript is always a problem?or I should apply like I have ?

You mean you want to change career and pursue a Bachelor degree in IT? Be ready to explain why such transitioning to the VO. Be prepared to also answer questions relating to what you have been doing since graduating from High school.

Tbh, I don't know why you want to elude pharmacology. I believe it's a good course (STEM), which could earn you a good place in the States if you acquire higher qualifications.

Basalt:
Good morning, good afternoon, good evening to all my fellow Nigerians.
It's me Basalt, the guy that doesn't mince words, and today I will be talking about the ways foreign students who study in Europe (especially in Germany) can still save millions of naira even before finishing their studies. Believe me it is not really easy but most of our lifestyles are making it even more difficult.

1. Stay in the student hostel. The number one thing eating deep in our pocket is accommodation. I know of a friend that pays over €500 every month in accommodation alone.
Student hostels are usually subsidized for students, and you save more money when you pay less for rent.

2. Stay away from public health insurance if you are above 30yrs and you are not working a full-time job unless you have medical issues. If you are working full-time in Germany, public health insurance is compulsory. Your firm pays half and you will pay half, that is understandable but in a situation where you are not working full-time, you will pay almost €200 alone as insurance for someone who is above 30yrs old.
If you minus such a big amount, minus your rent. Wetin Remain?

3. Avoid girls that are too demanding, if you were single before coming to Germany, then date only girls that are here with you in Germany, most girls in Germany work and make their own money. So they will never be a pest to you and you will have a physical companion, not a phone companion that always calls to demand money.
What most girls will do is this.
First of all, they try to establish a relationship with you for months by chatting and asking you how you are and showing concern, then they move into the phase of milking you dry with numerous financial problems. Avoid such girls like plagues. Once they start demanding, start ignoring.

4. Stop sending money home unless for an important project or for an emergency. You can always use the excuse of being a student or Corona virus to prevent some unnecessary begging. Don't give shishi unless saving of life is involved or you are sending money to buy land , build a house etc.
If you keep sending money to everyone that demands, you will always go broke.

5. Never stay too long without working. Europe is not a place to live without working. If the semester is on, you will probably be too busy with studies to work full time, get a part-time job or a mini job to support yourself, and pay bills otherwise you will have no option than to spend the ones you saved before.

6. Stop buying expensive gadgets on loan. Buying properties on loan gives you a false illusion that you have arrived when you don't have anything.
You buy the latest iPhone on credit, you buy E-bicycle on credit, you buy big plasma TV on credit, you buy Macbook on credit, you buy a screen touch laptop on credit, some even buy a car on credit as a foreign student (though mostly not Nigerian students) .
When you buy all these things on credit, you will live a life of debt, and hardly will you make savings because you are practically working for your debts.

7. Avoid unnecessary parties and celebrations. When you organize parties for almost everything, you spend money you should have saved. Remember you are just a student, you don't have a professional job yet, you can still be kicked back to Nigeria when you fail to get a job within 18 months of graduation (God forbid).

8. Stop posting exortic pictures on facebook. People in Nigeria have that mindset that whoever goes on vacation is rich, they have the mindset that whoever enter aeroplane or even eat chicken is rich. So when you post such mouth watery pictures on facebook with nice environment coupled with your abroad induced freshness, you will create an illusion that you have arrived and you will only attract known and strange people begging in your dm. So you can avoid such disturbance by staying on a low key online.

Well put. Thank you.

psychologyshuby:
Hello everyone please can anyone please recommend schools with full funding for PHD students. Please it’s for my brother.
Undergraduate uni LAUTECH - 3.27 /5
Masters uni. Turkey 3.2/4

Thanks in anticipation. God bless and grant everyone’s heart desire.

Which course? Your brother has got more research to do for himself. Intending to pursue a PhD is no joke, he better knows that now and start exploring the internet for opportunities.

Good luck to him.

fairheart:
GRE materials sent to all email address in my mention!

I must warn some of you here: stop bombing universities that you see on approved transcript.
The U.S has over 5000 colleges and universities. Why must 2500 Nigerians apply to a single school, when there are several other schools with even better admission chance and financial opportunities?

I hate to say this, but you need to do your own home work. There's nothing wrong in searching for your own schools, contacting your program department on possibility for admission and financial support before you apply. All you need is time and focus. If you can't do it, seek help. Do not avoid the work as it may land you in disappointment. Be intentional about your dream of studying abroad and be willing to pay the price.

By avoiding the work and only applying to schools you see on Nairaland, you deny yourself the possibility of applying to better school with better opportunities that would help secure your visa and make your stay in the U.S smooth.

I wish prospective applicants having interview for fall 2021 the best.

Please assist with the GRE materials. abdullahijamiu45@gmail.com Thanks

Dotman23:
Good morning,
1.Please kindly enlighten me on how one can pay for the school application fee , I have my union bank MasterCard with me, can I follow the procedure and pay online.

2. Is it risky to message the graduate coordinator about the option of an application fee waiver...NB ,( Toefl &GRE had been waived automatically).
Kindly advise please

It isn't risky. A request doesn't hurt.

obajoey:
Is it still possible to defer an admission after you have gotten I-20 from the school?

Sure talk to your program about it.

Good day, Nairalanders

Is there any South African here or anyone here applying for F1 visa for this Fall through the US Consulate General in South Africa?

EffectEn:
i was applying to the school till I discovered they required WES or other evaluation. I dont have money for that

Oh. Which program? The requirement was actually waived until after admission because of Covid.

gbadeolu1:
Good question. Here's the transcript of my first interview at Lagos consulate sometime in Nov., 2020.
I can only guess because I couldn't prove my current employment. And yes, I had this assistantship then.

VO: Good morning, I'll like you to place your right hand four fingers on the scanner.
Me: Good morning (placed my fingers)
VO: pass me your passport and i20 (I passed her everything)
VO: Where are you going?
Me: Missouri uni of sci and tech.
VO: for what purpose?
Me: for a doctorate program in Mechanical engr.
VO: Ok. How did you hear about this school?
Me: I read a publication by Prof XY and was fascinated by it, and I contacted him indicating my interest to join his research. After series of zoom meetings, he asked me to apply to the school for admission.
VO: Did you apply only to this school?
Me: No
VO: Which other schools did you apply to? (I called all the schools)
VO: Ok. But to what purpose do you need a PhD degree?
Me: I currently hold a faculty position in a Polytechnic and my goal is to become a Professor in my career. And for that, a PhD degree will be necessary.
VO: Ok. Are you married?
Me: Yes
VO: how many children?
Me: I have a child; a daughter.
VO: And your wife and child stay here in Nigeria?
Me: Yes
VO: (After a long typing moment) You have some funding, who is sponsoring the rest?
Me: My have full funding, my assistantship is xxxUSD and that's in excess of about 4,000usd to my overall expenses.
Vo: Ok.
VO: Where did you say you work?
Me: (Named my place of work)
VO: And you just have a master's
Me: Yes
VO: Can you show me a proof of your current employment?
Me: ermm... I don't have that here with me.
VO: You seem to have some more documents there, is there anything to prove your employment?
Me: No
VO: What are the other documents?
Me: My marriage cert., My daughter's birth cert and letter of offer of assistantship. (Let me have that, referring to the offer letter. She glanced through the two pages and returned it, looked again at my i20 and typed at length)
VO: Thank you for your interest in blah blah blah, I'm sorry you do not currently meet the requirements for an F1 visa. This paper will explain why, and she handed back my documents.

I hope this helps.

Congratulations Boss. And thanks for sharing. In your experience would you say the interview process is less intense at Abuja compared to Lagos?

Annie26:
Please house, does anyone know a thing or two about Bowling Green University. The school is too easy and cheap to be true.

Too easy?

Are you talking about the admission process and acceptance or the vigorousness of your program?

Hi,

Is there anyone here presently studying at or heading to UTSA (or San Antonio environ) this Fall?

Let's communicate.

fairheart:
Your email address bounced back.
___

Student materials sent to all the email address in my mention.
All the best guys!

abdullahijamiu45@gmail.com

Thank you.

fdecisive:
Hello friends, I'm new here.
Got Fall admission and graduate assistantship, with a full tuition waiver, living expenses, housing and flight.
My Nigerian Uni seems to be delaying the sending of my transcript to the US, and of course without it, they will not release the I-20. US school intends to email the I-20 so I'm sure to get it with 48 hours of transcript getting there. I need that I-20 like yesterday...
I can already see interview dates in Lagos showing January 2022 (too late), and Abuja showing July, still too late. I don't want emergency.
Please anyone with useful info here should help a brother- connect, advice, etc. Still pressing exams and records to do the needful though. I feel like I should travel down there and gatecrash them till they send it. I want it to leave this week.

Congratulations on this feat.

May I ask is the housing and flight fees included in your stipend or separate funds are allocated for them?

Heyjessay:
Can we create a community/group just for our fellow people struggling with this same issue....at least, so we can notify ourselves on time.

Because, as soon as they open more slots...the next 30 minutes will be a matter of life and death.

What do you think?

Agreed.

iire:
The group for the mock interview please add me oh �

I am also interested, biko.

NigPatriot:
Your answer is tenable. Sounds convincing.

Congratulations on your funding, you can also contribute your quota by sharing with the house, how you got your funding - this might help someone.

If you have a fully funded position. It's not compulsory to go ahead with any statement of account, as long as the scholarship covers the entirety of tuition and expenses without deficit. Then you're good to go.

If you're to go with a statement of account - in a case where you have deficits. The amount there should be sufficient enough to meet any deficits. It's could be from your Uncle, parents or yourself. Always preferable to get statement of account from someone directly related to you, as this is more convincing on why they will be willing to pay so much for you. Take for instance you go with soa from your boss or a complete stranger, the logical question going on in the mind of the VO will be, why would a stranger want to invest so much on you. That already strikes an immigrant intent.

I wish you well

Again, thank you so much for your brilliant inputs.

I applied to the (doctoral) positions with the regular academic credentials (without GRE and TOEFL). But this time, I really worked painstakingly (and outsourced assistance, when necessary) on my CV and SOP. Instead of sending a generic CV and SOP as I did in the past, I decided to tailor them to each program specifications.

Yeah. The program is fully-funded. I was just concerned the vo might want me to demonstrate proof of funds for travel expenses and settling cost (prior to receiving my first stipend).

Additionally, if there is anyone interested in a PhD in Infectious Disease. Feel free to check out Infectious Disease Interdisplicinary Graduate Education Program at Virginia Tech (you might need to email the program before applying for Fall 2021). Also, the application window for PhD in Biomedical and Veterinary Sciences is still open at the same school (Deadline is 1st of April for Fall) while spring entry is also available.

Thanks again, Boss!

NigPatriot:
First of all, congratulations on your soon to be awarded master's degree. Proceeding, have you been granted admission/funding for your PhD program? Securing visa is a combination of a whole lot. The aim is trying to convince the VO you're a legitimate potential student for a PhD study. Completing your master's degree is already a good sign. Hence applying from SA or Nigeria might be a miniature consideration in your case. In most cases people would always advice that one applies from his/her home country. But this doesn't mean you can't be given a visa applying from another country - you are most likely going to be asked this question by the VO; "why arent you applying from your home country". There are a thousand and one tenable reasons you can give to justify this.

In answering your second question, it's always advisable to be sincere with your answers. Most certainly it will always make more sense to return to your home country to resume work. Thats more logical and plausible.

Anything else you need to know? Prepare, prepare, prepare. The odds favor those who are prepared.

I wish you well.

Thank you so much for your response. I really appreciate it.

Yes. I have secured a funded position.

If asked; why are you not applying from your home country. I intend to relay; I got admitted for the doctoral position and needed to apply for the F-1 visa whilst still busy with my MSc program (here in South Africa).

I would also like to know if I have a fully-funded position, will I still be required to provide the vo with a statement of account (to prove additional sources of funding for travels and miscellaneous). If the answer is in the affirmative, how much on average is expected in the bank account and am I allowed to use my personal statement or it must be that of a parent (or guardian)?

Thanks again.

ManLikeMosh:
Hello
I am in a very similar situation. I currently study in France and will be completing my Msc in July. I had to choose coming back to Nigeria for my interview due to the US presidential proclamation (You can check that out here; https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/visas-news/presidential-proclamation-coronavirus.html ) preventing people from certain countries to enter US. This has halted Visa processes too. It is recommended you spend 14 days in non-restricted countries before your appointment at the embassy. I am very sure SA is one and the only African country in the restricted list.

Thanks for the heads-up, mate.

Concerning this "It is recommended you spend 14 days in non-restricted countries before your appointment at the embassy", I will contact the U.S. embassy to confirm if they are receiving F-1 visa applications. If not, I have no choice but to travel to Nigeria to get it done.

Thanks once again, man.

Gokoyer1401:
Is the school that give you PhD admission aware of the msc that you are running in S/A? Talking about a break, do you have to finish the msc before you move to US?

Yes. They are aware.

Yes. I will have to finish my MSc before resuming for the doctoral position...

Gokoyer1401:
From my experience, I will tell you to return to Nigeria to apply for your visa. Atleast you will show to some extent that you have some home ties.

Think about it, you finish your MSc in a foreign country, why cant you return to your home country when you are done with the purpose of staying in foreign country? This must be one of the questions your VO will have at the back of his/her mind. I am not an expert but I will advise you to return to Nigeria to apply for the US visa.

@Gokoyer1401. Thank you so much for your response.

I am technically not done with my MSc degree. And If I am to go to Nigeria to apply, it means I will have to take a break from my study.

What do you think?

meritdee:
Hi Abdullahi,

Applying and interviewing for F-1 VISA from South Africa will not reduce your chances of securing a VISA. Resuming your Ph.D. immediately after your master's degree shows you're ambitious, but you would have to convince the VO why a US School is the next move in your ambitious journey.

If you maintained a good travel history between Nigeria and South Africa, you need not worry about home ties.

That you would be back in Nigeria or South Africa for work should not be the first thing you'd say when asked what you'll do after your Doctoral program. What if there are specific areas in the US where your research breakthrough would significantly boost their economy? I would start by highlighting the importance of evaluating sectors (around the world) where your research would be useful. Obtain buy-in, and contribute to the improvement of the sector. Tailor your responses around being an ambitious researcher and be consistent.

Goodluck.

@meritdee Thank you so much for your well-detailed response and kindness.

I really appreciate it.

Good day, Fellow Nairalanders,

I have been passively following this trend.

I would be glad to receive your responses to the below questions regarding F-1 visa application.

I am nearing the completion of a master's degree at a University in South Africa and I intend to resume a doctoral position at an American University in the Fall. My question is, will applying and interviewing for my F-1 visa in South Africa (as opposed to Nigeria) reduce my chances of securing the visa?

Since all my family members are in Nigeria, how can I convince the VO of my home ties (if I am applying from South Africa)?

Also, is it okay to tell the VO that I will resume work in Nigeria or South Africa after my doctoral study?

Is there anything else I need to know?

Thank you for your time and invaluable responses.

@justwise @NigPatriot @Predstan @Malone122 @meritdee @fairheart @bukkymbo

KGD10:
Learn to differentiate between a school and a religion house. Dumb hateful terrorists.

Lol. Isn't it funny that I am the hater, but you are the one who is using uncourteous register.

You don't even know who I am, yet you find it so appealing to paint me with the "terrorist" brush just because we disagree on a concept.

Grow up man. Never let hatred becloud your shrewdness.

I won't be responding to subsequent mention. Enjoy your day further.

KGD10:
If you uphold the right of learning, you wouldn't reduce it to hijabs and be a nuisance in a learning environment. You're the one who's terrible and hateful.

So, your insinuation is that the right to knowledge and the right to religion are mutually exclusive? How pathetic!

Lol. The scornful hater here is known and that needs no debate.

todaynewsreview:
https://www.premiumtimesng.com/regional/ssouth-west/450130-unilag-vc-wins-e38000-global-biodiversity-information-facility-grant.html

The kind of news I wanna read...

Congratulations to the grantees.

KGD10:
Funny you said the right of learning but you didn't think about putting learning in the first place when the lunatic extremists were becoming nuisances in the school because of hijabs. You Rather put hijabs first than learning. Don't you see how contradictory your statement is?

Go to Muslims schools if you want Muslim settings. Ass simple as ABC.

Hey man, are you sure you are reading to understand or to respond?

Just keep calm man. Your hatred for this community shouldn't make you this terrible.