₦airaland Forum

Mayflowa:
Yeah. It's a mechanical engineering graduate class. I feel so lost in class. No lecture note to start with! And the textbooks are creeping expensive like 50K naira for one book. UK has standard library for bookstore not here!

Am so angry

Most science classes require textbooks that cost about $200-$300 per textbook including access code.
When I took my first physics class I remember buying my textbook about $300 from amazon.
if your class require an access code inorder to submit your homework and quizzes you can buy an access code online and with your access code you will have access to an e- textbook free of charge which you can print. However if you prefer a hardcopy of your textbook what you can do is to rent used textbooks from sites like amazon.com, chegg.com, barnesandnoble.com, bookrenter.com & campusbookrentals.com. You will need the ISBN number of the textbook you which to rent.

Mayflowa:
Is this me or my school or something? This US profs don't know how to teach. They are just rushing and speeding off with calculations without proper explanation of concepts. UK and Naija profs are way better o.

The Uni is University of Missouri. Not an interesting experience

What you are experiencing is perfectly normal for anyone adjusting to the US educational system.
Just give yourself more time and you will adapt. Same thing happened to me when I first arrived.
During the first week of class I was completely lost. I could barely hear what was taught in class because most instructors speak very fast. In my first test I failed woefully but I was able to bounced back and make a nice GPA at the end of the semester because my lowest test score was replaced by my final exam

Listed below are some of the things I did that helped me.

(A) Read your syllabus and make sure you always prepare for a topic before it's taught in class.
For example Let say your instructor will be teaching integration next week. Before class next week read up on integration. Just google integration and you will see some various links with detailed explanation on the topic. Another thing you can do is to watch youtube videos on whatever topic you are preparing for. Most youtube videos normally show step by step solution of any given problem.

(B) Do all homework, extra credit and quizzes
In my school your homework, extra credit, quizzes and test make up the bulk of your grade. You can actually pass a class without even writing the final exam

The breakdown might look like this

Homework: 10%
Quizzes: 10%
Tests: 60%
Final Exam: 20%
Extracredit: 10%-20% {depends on the instructor}

Unlike Nigeria here in the states you can project your anticipated grade for a given class even before the final exam. Most times depending on your instructor, if you are comfortable with your grade you can choose exempt from final exam and you will not be required to write the final exam.

(C) Attend tutor sessions
In most college campuses tutors are usually available free of charge to all current college student. So if you are confused with a given topic you can schedule an appointment with a tutor and they can assist you. They can also proofread your essays and in some cases they can also assist with your homework.

(D) Know your professor
Normally before taking any classes I go to ratemyprofessors.com to view students comments concerning instructors pattern of teaching. Most times I tend to go with professors with highest ratings because it is so easy to pass their class. Some instructors offer take home tests and others offer open notebook/open textbook test. You need to ask people around you so they can let you know which instructors might be easy. Remember in this country information is key to success.

(E) If possible avoid withdrawing from a class midway through the semester.
Most students tend to withdraw from a class after the First test if they have performed poorly. I always advice people to complete a course regardless of any difficulty faced. In my school depending on the performance of the entire class most instructors usually curve students towards the end of the semester.
For example let say I am taking a differential equation course and there are no A students, normally at the end of the semester inorder to help some student pass the course a B student is assigned an A, a C student is assigned a B, a D student is assigned a C. Remember all of these is dependent on the instructor.

I remember taking an integral calculus class in my third semester. This class was one of the most difficult classes I have ever taken. Average test score in any given test are normally 30/100 and sometimes 40/100
After the second test most students withdrew from the class. Out of over 30 students registered for the course there were only 10 students left in the course. After the third test my cumulative grade was about 60% which is a D. A week before our final exam the instructor announced that our final exam was open notebook/open textbook meaning that everybody was allowed to bring any kind of Mathematics textbook including printed materials from the internet into the exam hall. I couldn’t believe my ears. I brought in about three different Math textbooks and also printed a lot of papers from the internet. When our final grades for the semester were released I skyrocketed from a D grade to a B as a result of the open notebook/open textbook policy.

DanjaNinja:
I dont think that was me. I didnt get any reply from you. I just resent it though.

Ok. Just replied your PM...

DanjaNinja:
Ok boss. Thumbs up on the computer science argument. Am glad there was no name calling or insults regardless of the opposing viewpoints. Just sent you a pm.

I just replied your PM.

DanjaNinja:
Boss, hold up. How do you make all this money? Do you have a GA? or do you just do the usual work study of 20hr/week?

No. I have work authorization (economic hardship) and I work off campus.

DanjaNinja:
I think it depends on the state. Am a student and I just got my state id as well. It expires in 2021. Thats 7 years of validity. Am i lucky? i dont know.

I guess it depends on the state. Most students here including me were issued State ID based on the validity of their I-20. Their State ID only lasts for the duration of their program except Imperiouxx who obtained his State ID in New Mexico. Besides what city & state are you in?

DanjaNinja:
Bros, don't you think its way better to backup your statement with some facts? While comparing Computer Science to other STEM majors may seem like apples to oranges, there is a simple way of measuring difficulty and its called the attrition rate. Attrition rate is simply a measure of the number of those who fail/dropout from that program.

According to the U.S. Education Department’s National Center for Education Statistics, about half of bachelor’s degree candidates in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) leave the field before completing a college degree. You will find the report here:
- https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/11/27/study-tracks-attrition-rates-stem-majors

According to that same report, of those who leave STEM majors, "The attrition rate was highest for bachelor's degree candidates who declared a major in computer/information sciences and for associate degree candidates who declared a major in mathematics.

Bros, you see am? In terms of those who dropped out, Computer Science is number one and mathematics, not even engineering, is number two. If you have any data to dispute the U.S department of education, please put it here and i will learn from you.

P.s: I studied Electrical Engineering for my undergrad and I am currently doing an Msc in Computer Science, so trust me, I know what am talking about. I will not go into the complexity involved in computer science,just know its difficult. And please be aware, computer science is not just about programming.

I have taken both courses and I know which is more difficult. I guess you are more of a computer geek and I am more of a math wiz. Regardless I don't want to start going back and forth with you on issue but since you believe that computer science is generally more difficult than Engineering, Physics & Math then good for you...

bigfrancis21:
Yes you're eligible since you worked for some part of the tax year of 2015. The tax refunds being filed from now till April 15 is for the tax year of year 2015, this year that just passed and it applies to all those who worked all throughout or partially. You worked for 4 months in 2015 and are required to file your tax returns for last year. And yes you can file on your own if you know what to do. Last year, I filed mine myself.

How much you get back in refunds could depend on how much your total income (or AGI) was for last year and how much you paid in taxes. As a single person with no dependents and not much expenses made, realistically you may not receive in tax refunds more than you paid in taxes in total. Some students claim educational credits to get back more tax refunds. I can estimate not more than $500 to $1000 in tax refunds for you.

I think he can use his last paystub given to him toward the end of last year to calculate his projected tax refunds

All he has to do is to calculate the sum total of the Federal and State Taxes withheld from all his paycheck

The sum total of the Federal and State Taxes withheld from all your paycheck can be found on the bottom of your paystub.

I calculated mine last night. From my calculations I made about $9000+ in Federal taxable Gross Income.

Without Educational credit I expect to receive about $1400+ in tax refunds.

But if you add Educational credit then I expect to receive about $2400+ in tax refunds.

Woke up this morning to see that my post was deleted last night.

Justwise please can you explain to me why my post was deleted.

To the best of my knowledge Jchi9876 was trying to create some drama in the thread and I cautioned him against insulting anyone.

I only ask him to model himself after bigfrancis21 and biikeys who give advice to students without throwing shades at anyone.

biikeys:
Only tax residents should use turbo tax (https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/2140363-international-student-nonresident). Not sure about Jackson Hewitt but know H&R block can do it for you.

I fill the 1040 forms myself- don't use any software. If you get the 'instructions' which is another set of documents for each of the forms, you can easily fill it without any software especially if you have few sources of income and you don't have your own business/company, mortgage, dependents, multiple investments etc.

Takes time to go through the instructions and fill up the forms but definitely worth it, plus it's free

Ok. Thanks for your explanation.

biikeys:
Cool..taxes can be complicated. Interestingly, even if a tax preparer helps you file-no matter how big or popular they are, and they file wrongly, you're still responsible for whatever information they put in your form. Reason I file myself.

Which software do you use to file? TurboTax right?

I normally file with Jackson Hewitt.

biikeys:
Did you read the part that talks about exempt individuals?
..and you've been in the US for at least 5 years on F1

Yes I read the part that talks about exempt individuals. See my post above

I have been in the US for at least 4 years on F1

bigfrancis21:
Some F1 students may be claiming residency status and filing taxes but I don't think F1 and J1 students qualify to file taxes as US residents based on the substantial presence test (SBT) by virtue of their F1 status. By virtue of their status, they are called 'exempt individuals' for as long as they were in F1 status. However, whenever one's status changes from F1 or J1 to another status, they may qualify. Take for example, Nnamdi, an F1 student, finishes his masters for 2 years from January 2010 to December 2012. For those 2 years he was on F1 status and maintained it, he would not qualify because of his status even though he may have spent 365 days (greater than the minimum required 183 days of presence in the US) from the previous year (2011) in the US which would have otherwise qualified him automatically based on the SBT had he not been on F1 status. In January 2013 he gets employed and changes visa to H1b visa and is in the US on H1b status throughout the year of 2013, when filing his tax return in 2014 for tax year 2013 he would qualify for the SBT given that in the current year (2013), he spent over 183 days (i.e. 365 days) in the US from that year alone. His prior 2 years of 2010 and 2011 on F1 visa would not be counted in the calculation because he was on a visa during those years that is regarded as exempt individual classification.

Here's an excerpt below from one of the links you quoted. It was stated clearly that F1 students are exempt based on their status and the days or years which they were on F1 status should not be counted.

Ok. It seems a lot more confusing when you dig deeper. So it should be 5 years or more not 3 years or more

Please check the link below

It explains that an F-1 student who have resided in the United States for 5years or more will generally qualify to file their taxes as United States residents by virtue of the substantial presence test

When a Student is Not Exempt

https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Exempt-Individual-Who-is-a-Student

imperiouxx:
If $2000 + your annual tax, then you filed as an undergraduate who is between 1 to 3 years of studies in US. Right?

No, I filed my tax as a United States resident and received about $2000+ in tax refund from the IRS.

Most F-1 students who have resided in the United States for 3 years or more will generally qualify to file their taxes as United States residents by virtue of the substantial presence test

Please refer to the links below for more details
https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Determining-Alien-Tax-Status
https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Substantial-Presence-Test

bigfrancis21:
Does the $2,000+ tax refund include the one gotten for educational credit?

Also, isn't your tax refund (excluding the instances of claiming a dependent) also determined by how much taxes was withheld from your total income? That is, can you get a tax refund of amount equal to or greater than what he/she paid as taxes on total income earned? For example, using your example can someone who earned $10,000 in a year and paid $2,300 in taxes (or had $2,300 withheld in taxes by his employer) with no dependents to claim receive a refund equal to or greater than $2,300?

Yes the $2,000+ tax refund include the one gotten for educational credit. I got $1000 as a result of the educational credit. Then I got an additional $1000+ from Federal and State Taxes withheld.

You can only receive a refund equal to the sum of the Federal and State Taxes withheld from all your paycheck.

As you know you cannot receive refunds for Social Security Taxes and Medicare taxes withheld. I had about $600 withheld for Social Security Taxes and an additional $200+ for Medicare taxes but you cannot be able to get those social security benefits until you are retired and/or you are at least 65 years old.

bigfrancis21:
For all the tax filing talk, last year I did not file as a resident for tax purposes and my tax return was not in the neighbourhood of the 'sums' being mentioned here.

$2000+ tax refund is pretty much standard for anyone who worked last year and made at least $10000+ or more.

Last year my other sister received about $4000+ in tax refund because her gross income was about $30,000+. So if she had someone to claim as a dependent she would have gotten probably around $9000+ in tax refund.

bigfrancis21:
You get more taxed on any overtime income than at the tax rate for your regular income. For most places, overtime is any hours exceeding 40 per week or 80 per 2 weeks. If an hourly employee and you work more than 40 hours a week, the excess is overtime and you're paid at 1.5 times your wage for those excess hours. For others who may not understand, here's an example: last week you worked 60 hours a week and you're an hourly employee making $10 per hour. Thus you worked 40 regular hours + 20 hours in excess and your overtime hours are 20 hours. Your wages for that week will be calculated as 40 hours * $10 = $400 (being the normal regular hours) + 20 hours * $15 ($10 * 1.5) = $300 for a total of $700 for that week. Each of the $400 and $300 will be taxed separately and for a paycheck of $700, you can expect to have a final pay after tax deductions of around $550, give or take. Income wages gotten from overtime is often taxed at a higher tax rate.

If you worked 'overtime' as you said based on more than 20 hours per week but still under 40 hours per week, it would still not actually be considered overtime in terms of taxes. More taxes are taken from you on the higher income you earn and if you're single (ie '1' on your tax forms). That should partly explain the reason the tax deducted from your paycheck jumps from $80+ to $100+ as you income moved higher from $400ish to $500ish. There are tax brackets for certain ranges of income one makes.

Thanks for your detailed explanation.

I was talking about "overtime" based on more than 40 hours per week. During summer time I earned about $12/hr for regular pay and about $18/hr for any over time in my old job but in my new job I make just about $9/hr for regular pay and about $13.50/hr for any over time

From my observation it seems the more money you make they more taxes are deducted.

bigfrancis21:
Yea usually the expiry date of your state ID depends on the end date as written on your I-20 since you're considered non-immigrant and 'technically' are in the US as long as your I-20 is valid.

I got my state ID as soon as I got here and I was given 2 years (as long as my I-20 was valid). Funny enough I received a mail from the MVA few weeks ago asking me to renew my state ID expiring in some months time this time for 8 years. Nna, it looked too good to be true o.

Lucky you!

Does your state allow renewal by mail or you have to come in person?

I plan to go back to renew my state ID 15 days before my old state ID and Form I-20 expires and see what happens. I know I will receive a temporary ID that expires in 10 days before my State ID arrives in the mail. Since It will take about 2 weeks for my state ID to arrive in the mail I know there is no way they will issue me a State ID that will expire even before I receive it.

slimmy05:
You know you have Work Authorization, when you get Educational Tax credit which is like $1000, you should be able to get additional $1000 based on your 30-40 hours of work year round.

Students like us who have 20hrs of work weekly with tax deductions not more than $15 monthly We should get like $1400 or $1,300

How come? Whenever I work overtime and make about $500+ biweekly they usually take off almost $100+ in Withholding { Federal Withholding, State Withholding, Social Security, Medicare} But if I don't work overtime and get about $400+ they normally take off just $80+.

When you submitted your form W-4 to your employer what did you fill for personal allowance. I know I filled 0 for personal allowance so I don't end up paying IRS back some money.

My sister filled 1 for personal allowance when she submitted Form W-4 to her employer so when she filed her taxes IRS seized all her tax refund and mailed her a letter saying she owes almost $400+ in federal taxes. She had to sent them a check to offset the bill if not they will start garnishing her paycheck.

biikeys:
US tax residents are eligible for a lot of deductions (in addition to the general personal exemption that everybody gets) that non-residents are not eligible for. Itemized deductions are among things non-residents can claim; givings (e.g. tithes/offerings) etc.
A way you'll know that is, a typical F-1 student in the US who has been here for less than 5 years files using 1040-NR. Tax residents use 1040 or 1040-EZ depending on some other factors.
Note that being resident for tax purposes is different from being a US permanent resident. There are tests that can determine which one you fall into. Those are on IRS website. Most F-1 students will not qualify as resident for tax purposes. And the fact that your school sends 1098-T to you does not mean you can claim that as educational credit.

That being said, if you file your return wrongly, you'll most likely get your return. Just hope you don't get audited in the next 2 to 6 years or they will go back and check your past returns, and you'll have to pay back with interest.

You are a United States resident for tax purposes if you meet either the green card test or the substantial presence test for the calendar year (January 1-December 31)

Most F-1 students who have resided in the United States for 3 years or more will generally qualify to file tax as United States residents by virtue of the substantial presence test

I have resided in the United States for almost four years so I filed my taxes last year as a United States resident because of the substantial presence test

I will also file my taxes this year as a United States resident.

Please refer to the links below for more details
https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Determining-Alien-Tax-Status
https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Substantial-Presence-Test

Dear forumites I received my State ID in the mail last week but I noticed something unusual. I checked the expiration date and noticed that my State ID is valid for only one year { It expires on the same date my Form I-20 expires}. When I checked my siblings ID I noticed that there state ID is valid for seven years. The one thing I can think of is maybe because they are immigrants and I am a non-immigrant.

Is this rule only applicable in Charlotte North Carolina and does anybody have similar experiences.

Ojap, Imperiouxx, Msnas, bigfrancis21, Walspring, Slimmy05, DARKLIGHT, Zeezahbee and other forumites your inputs are highly appreciated.

warriboy21:
pls anybody know about tax refund n how i can file for it ....pls i need my cash backs o....

Did you work last year? If yes your employer will send you your W-2 by January 31 to file your taxes.

Last year I filed my taxes using my Form 1098-T from my school and my Form W-2 from my employer. I got about $2000+ in tax refund.

On behalf of me( LUCAS99 ), Aliko Dangote, Bill Gate, Warren Buffett, Mark Zuckerberg and other Billionaires... We wish you a Prosperous New Year... #Billionaires Club.

DanjaNinja:
Bros you think engineering is difficult? lol. Come to computer science.

You're kidding right... You can't compare computer science with engineering.

Engineering, Physics & Math are the most difficult in any University in the United States.

bigfrancis21:
Thanks bro. I'm officially a Master's graduate of the University of Maryland College Park. It is quite a prestigious thing to be graduating from one of the top 25 engineering schools in the United States. My joy knew no bounds when my name was called on the stage, shook hands with the dean, and handed over my 'certificate'. Well, 'certificate' as in you're given a fake one sort of but the original one gets mailed to your address about 2 months after graduation, the way it is done here.

I guess Fall/December is a good time to graduate as the joy of graduation also coincides with the christmas celebration.

Congratulations on your achievement
Not an easy feat...

I believe Engineering, Physics & Math are the most difficult in any University in the United States. Don't really know why Nursing students believe their courses are the most difficult...

Just by taking the prerequisites such as differential Calculus, Integral Calculus, Multivariable Calculus and Differential Equations then you will understand what Engineering students pass through...

Wishing a Happy Thanksgiving to all Nairalanders. @Slimmy, Warriboy, Walspring as una dey chop turkey no forget me oh.

coogar:
where is the charge back? payment was made, she told me the school wanted cash instead & they had reversed the one i made. till today, the reversed payment never came through & she's demanding $4,000 cash from me. ask r231 to post my evidence.....

Why don't you post you own evidences to support your claims. Why are you calling on r231 to post your evidence. Don't you have same evidence he has? We are still waiting for you to post your real evidence rather than blowing hot air around the thread attacking everybody.

Right on time to witness the drama unfold. All exhibit including screenshots have been saved for future references should the Mods wake up and decide to hide them. So far BABE3 has posted evidences to support her claims. We await Coogar to post his own evidences to counter BABE3 claim if he actually believe she is lying against him. Coogar in the spirit of fairness we are giving you 72 hours to produce your evidences against her if you believe she is lying against you. If at the end of 72 hours you fail to produce screenshots and text messages to counter Babe 3 claim you will be declared a FRAUDSTER and deserved to be banned from the forum.
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slimmy05:
LUCAS99, where have you been? Your graduation is this December right? Let me know. Meanwhile I will be in Charlotte in December.

@Slimmy I just saw your post. I am fine. I am taking 15 credits this semester so I have been busy with assignments, quizzes, presentation and test. I rarely have time these days. Anyway my graduation was supposed to be this December but I have decided to wait until May 2016 since I am not yet ready to use my one year OPT so I will be taking classes next semester. Let me know the exact date in December you will be in Charlotte because I intend travelling back to Nigeria this Christmas for my sisters wedding. I am still waiting for my Advance Parole Document to arrive in the mail so I have not made any final plans yet. My final Exam ends on December 12th 2015. If I have my Advance Parole Document at hand by then I will travel by December 18th 2015 and then return on January 8th 2016 before the Spring Semester begins.

Greetings my fellow traders. I will be back to trading ending of this month after leaving forex about 2 years ago to save up money. I was able to develop an automated system that I would run on a VPS and while I sleep: let the money come to me. I have a couple of questions:

A) I will be trading at $50/per pip and sometimes $100/per pip does anyone have a personal idea trading such high lot sizes.
B) Does anyone have an idea how I can contact WINNINGWAYZ. He used to trade 10, 20 and sometimes 40 Standard lot sizes with Forex Time and InstaForex back in season 10. During same season 10 we had veterans like Naijababe, rozayx5, ayox2003, Silibaba, LaconicINC, Optimisticgondy, ForexMart, Bollinger, unclenna and so on

Here is a link to his profile: https://www.nairaland.com/winningwayz
Here is a link to his post: https://www.nairaland.com/winningwayz/posts/1