₦airaland Forum

tweetty: hello gurus in d house, no one responded. does dat mean am OMO.

No, you are not on your own. We are always here to help each other. That you were denied six years ago doesn't mean you won't get it this time, a lot of things have changed since the last time you visited the embassy. You have decided to stay in Nigeria for your BSc which shows you are not even desperate to come to America. Coming for a master degree now makes sense and you are fine. Many people have used companies account and got their visas. Each person with his/her own peculiar case. I wouldn't use a company account though but that on its own is not a red flag.

Congratulations on your admission, MPH is so good. Don't you like the Environmental Health and Safety concentration (EH&S)?? It is big money.

@ conyema and obsy.

Whichever school you guys finally go to, please endeavour to attend the next National Association of Black Geoscientists conference coming up by September in Houston, TX. The Association will pay for your flight, food and hotel accomodation for the convention. All you need do is to present a poster or give a talk at the convention. Since you guys will still be fresh and may not have a MS topic or research yet, you can present your BS research in a poster format.

Attending will be fun as you get to meet black geologists and relate to your "brothers" and "sisters". Oil companies also come there to recruit. Aside that, you get to meet beautiful female black geoscientists if you are still single...who knows?

conyema12: Oh my God!!! you just touched my soul... In fact i will refer to you as angel Ojap. first i like to commend you for your brotherly advice on this issue.

Yes Oil companies come there to pick interns and it was even clearly stated on their site. and I also found out that the school is one of the Texas University system.

As per the other tread.... I completely stand with you. Being a US trained Petroleum geologist is all I want to be.

Thank you once again.

Texas is the -ish. Way to go bro.

Drop yours, I will contact you asap. Email preferred.

obsy2020: @ ojap, I need ur email so you will enlighten more abt Ms petroleum geology in usa, will be resuming this fall @ university of arkansas, fayetteville. Do u know anything abt the universty of arkansas? Will be glad if u can share with me. Thank you.

Yes, I know a lot about the school. The lady who send out mails and coordinate on behalf of the National Association of Black Geoscientists work in the school. I met a lot of Black geologists from the school at the last Black Geoscientists Convention in DC last year. And yes, a friend of mine is also in the school and just completed his masters degree. He has been admitted for a PhD for fall too. The school will be starting their first PhD program in Geology by fall.

Overall, it is a good school with a strong geology program.

conyema12: Hi guys, I want to add University of Texas Arlington in my list of schools for Petroleum Geosciences, Although I have others like UH, Univ of Okla, WVU in my list. But I really need a school with a high acceptance rate and at the same time would have a good reputation in case of Visa issuance.I have done my research in Google but i still need to seek the opinion of the house, before I can proceed with paying for my Transcript.
Thank you guys.

All geology schools in the US are good.

For the 1,000th time, please make sure many oil companies come to your shortlisted schools every year to hire for internship positions. You can only get your foot in the door through internships/coop unless you have > 5 years experience working as a Petroleum Geologist. You have close to 2 years experience working as a Geology intern and Field Engr. That will pay off when you get here.

On your other thread, you were contemplating about about retaining your job or MS. Did you notice that most people on there were giving examples of people who went to UK and came back without jobs? How many of them came to the US and returned? Most of them are ignorant of the roles of a field engineer so I won't blame them. First, it is boring. Second, it is so different from Geology, third, no one will make you a reservoir engineer or petroleum geologist all because you have 10yrs experience working as a field engr. Your experience must be directly related to the position applied for. As per money, if you get fundings from your school, you will make more than what they pay you a month as a field engineer in Nigeria. You also have high chances of getting a very good job upon graduation. And please, don't compare yourself with folks who went to the UK for MS. They all come back home after school.

You may think this is a risk, but it is worth it.

If your cousin misses Naija that much, he can always go for a 2 week vacation, afterall he is from a rich background.

Key to wealth in America : Be Legal and have a very good education.

Only the wise will understand.

Congratulations to everyone who got their visa. Welcome to Obodo Oyinbo.....

Charley, there are a lot of Nigerians in Cal. State Long Beach and the city herself. You will enjoy it no doubt.

conyema12: Thnak you Oja for that elucidated response, it feels good to know that I am on the right track and I will not fail to thank you for taking your time to explain. I will be settling for Petrophysics/ Formation evaluation, that will take me to petrographic studies in sedimentology in other to appreciate the formation hosting the HC and critique its petrophysical attributes.....both for Siliciclastics and carbonates alike, as well as HC fluid flow behavior within them.

I have already started contacting the faculty members, even though they not started responding.
Will be cracking my GRE by next month.

Have a wonderful day and God bless.

Nice one, in evaluating a formation, you will be looking at porosity and permeability which are two important parameters that affect a reservoir. This will lead you to diagenesis as well. Good you know what you want and going for it. Most petrophysicist in the oil companies have models they create for each of the different sand units/types of different ages/epochs. Most of their data comes from direct core measurement and water acidity. This will eventually lead to calculating the Oil and water saturation......lol.

Depending on where you will eventually find your self, the Geology of North Dakota, California and Texas is very interesting. The faults and salt domes of the Gulf of Mexico is the -ish. The heavy oil, Monterey oil shale and diatomites of the San Joaquin Basin California is also a biggie. The Bakken shale of North Dakota is undoubtedly fire!! You may want to consider schools in these states.

All the best dude.

imperiouxx: Ok, my bad too just like Bigfrank

Lol....but bros, you go fear fear when you see guys tying several majors to STEM. You know Naija people always have their ways around stuffs like that.

Oyinbo people no wise reach us na....lol

Imperiouxx, I think he is qualified. There is Management Science major as part of the STEM majors. He will likely fall under that category. A full list here;

http://www.ice.gov/doclib/sevis/pdf/stem-list.pdf

smithjanetstore: @Ojap hw far yankee dun baje gbogbo yin gbori pamo longest time

Mr. Smith Janet:

I always remember the female singer St. Janet whenever I read your posts. Abi na St bottles cathedral you dey attend too?? . That said, Yankee dun oooo, the country awaits you sir. Thanks for checking.

conyema12: Thank you very much for that wonderful piece of information, May be I will try that... considering the fact that it will broaden my horizon. I think Msc in Petroleum Engineering is a better option compared to Geophysics because my Internship was done in Petrophysics.

PhD will probably be the best for you. Since you don't want it, you can get a second masters degree instead. People do it here a lot. Some people have more than 3 masters degree sef. However your reasons for applying for a second masters degree should make sense alot.

Like you know, Geology has many branches/concentrations. The classes and research you work on is highly dependent on your concentration. For example, if your research interest is in Hydrogeology, then you will most likely be taking more ground water classes and working on acquifers etc.

If your research interests are in the area of sedimentology/petroleum geology, then you will be doing more petrographic studies and looking at diagenesis of sandstones and carbonates. I just finished work on a similar study and in the process of completing my thesis and including the results - if you choose that, you will be looking at porosity development in sandstones, their diagenetic history and what led to the storage of oil and gas in these sandstone bodies including their accumulation and migration. These comes with studying of logs and using the SEM, Petrological microscope and XRD in analysing thin section samples.

In the same vein, if your research interest is in reservoir characterization, you will be taking more petroleum geology, oil field development, structural geology, Geophysics etc classes. Your research interests will be characterizing an oil field and be able to tell how much oil is in there, areas with more oil, and where to drill. Here, you will be coming up with different isopach maps and geological cross-sections to get your results. This will also be tied with seismic and other geophysical data if available.

Other research areas are Geophysics (seismic), Paleoclimate, Hard rock petrology, Palynology and Paleontology etc.

Reason for explaining: Depending on what research areas you worked on in your first Masters degree, you can always and easily switch to another research area in your second one but do not forget to include this when writing your SOP or contacting professors with similar research interests as yours. That wil probably be your only justification for undergoing a second masters degree.

Be warned that most oil companies talk to guys whose research interests are in the area of Petroleum Geology (Reservoir Characterization), Sedimentary Geology (Diagenesis, Porosity development etc) and Geophysics (more of seismic studies)

Good luck.

teejay_GO01: OjaP I've sent u mail since oh no reply.

Pls reply thanks

Sorry I have been so busy these past days. I will contact you at my earliest convenience, hopefully this night.

Teejay

Sorry to hear about your denial. Clearly, you were denied because of insufficient funds.

I may have to say this but don't take it serious...are you a learner ?. PM me please, I will like us to talk if you don't mind.

Keep calm, you will get it the second time. Don't stress it.

Virgin Atlantic makes sense too, 4 hours stop over in Heathrow isn't bad at all.

bigfrancis21: Hahaha. I love bus rides especially Peace Mass Transit here in Nigeria. Their drivers speed like hell, making you feel you're on a flight. Before you know what's happening you've arrived at your destination.

Hahahaha, and if you love bus rides because of the speed, then US bus trips may be boring to you. There is speed limit on all roads, most bus drivers even go way below posted limit most times.

bigfrancis21: Or can I get a cheaper ticket for Lagos-JFK on another airliner?

Have you checked skyscanner? They sometimes have some good deals too. I am not sure if you would get anything less than 750-800 bucks though. Alternatively, check all the airlines that fly into JFK direct from Naija or connecting from other countries. Iberia? Lufthansa?

bigfrancis21: Hahaha. Which one be greyhound abeg?

Funny enough, I just checked now the cost from Lagos to JFK, New York and it costs $851, roughly the same amount with the Baltimore flight cost ($856). The trip to Baltimore or JFK both involve a stop over at Dubai first. Then from Dubai to JFK. For direct arrival at Baltimore, there will be another connecting flight from JFK to Baltimore/Washington, thus making it two stopovers.

Greyhound is synonymous to Ekene Dili Chukwu or Chisco Transport.

GboyegaD: If it isn't more than a month you plan to spend then I would suggest you check united (continental) airlines and they have direct flights from Houston to Lagos and back.

A month ke?? No ooo....lol. I don't plan to spend more than 2 weeks at most. I haven't been checking United all the while but I will start now and see if I can get something reasonable. Thanks.

It feels so good to go back home after school - Mission accomplished!!!

GboyegaD: OK no problems.

Thanks bro....seems you will be going so soon. What I plan to send won't get here until mid-June. I may just have to go to Naija myself instead. Do you have an idea of where I could get cheap tickets? Emirates and the rest prices are up there right now......lol.

imperiouxx: Why not go for a MS instead of this BS. Your HND should be able to secure you a MS admission.

@ Kunsoft

Exactly!!! University of the District of Columbia MBA program accepts HND from Nigeria. As a matter of fact, a high ranking professor in the department is a Nigerian. Look at the faculty page and shoot him an email asap. All the best.

To all who got their Visas, big congratulations. Welcome to AMERICA!!!

GboyegaD: Yeah, I am.

Will pm you asap.

Anyone going to Naija this holiday?

smithjanetstore: @ prof OjaP longest time, wht u ve just quoted is like a front page of newspaper u be real prof efi- iwe tuale sir.

@bigfrancis21 mr toefl/ sat/gmat/gre materials, u ve helped many on this thread with these materials nd GOD will continue to bless u abundantly.
Mhen am very happy for the good news brov.
No lele we gather ni joor the visa is urs brekete go nd grab it gbam.

Mr Smith,

Yea, it's been a while. I am looking to graduate in few weeks so I am putting finishing touches to my thesis - that has been keeping me busy lately. Hope you are good?

Hey, please make sure you write a standardized test before you go for your interview oo. All the best.

bigfrancis21: Many thanks to you for your amazing words of encouragement. Wow, I didn't know M and DC had a huge concentration of IT companies. Thanks for telling me that.

As for the GRE materials, why are we here on earth if not to help ourselves out.
For those that may have prayed silently for me without my knowing it, thank you so much. May God reward you all richly.

As for the extra certification, I am currently running the MCITP (Microsoft Certified IT Professional) package. It combines network server administration plus hardware networking. How do you see the certification? CISCO is more of hardware networking but MCITP inclines towards the software part of networking.

You're most welcome sir. As per the certifications, no certification is a waste, keep bagging as many as much as you can bag. You never know where and when it will be useful in the nearest future. Just like Webstradamus said, you may want to still look into CCNA, CCNP (including the Cisco Network Security) and if possible CCIE. Most network engineers have those certs. Also, I will also advise you to study the environment well when you get here, talk to professionals in the field to find out which of these certifications can get you a good job and good money. Who knows may be you would end up being a Certified Ethical Hacker......lol.

Yes, there are several IT companies in MD and DC, you will find out yourself when you get here. And if you don't like the EAST COAST, you always have the Silicon Valley in California. Did I even tell you that those guys in the IT sector get most of the H-1B visas and Green cards per year? They are obviously in high demand. And did I also tell you that most make 6 figures per annum with a MS degree? I refuse to say the sky is your limit bro, it is undoubtedly your beginning. You are on the right path....Carry go my brother.

bigfrancis21: I didn't know you were my prospective fellow engineer. I'm also going for my masters in electrical engineering (computer engineering option). I applied to 3 schools, two offered me masters admission and one didn't. My two accepts are University of Maryland College Park (ECE option with Telecommunications major) and University of Alabama Tuscaloosa (ECE option). My reject is University of Tennessee Knoxville. My rejection from UTK stems from my non-submission of a TOEFL score even after I wrote them severally asking for a waiver. In the same vein, UA demanded for TOEFL and I wrote them a TOEFL waiver request letter and they waived the TOEFL for me and even offered me unconditional admission.

The ECE (Telecommunications major) of UM appeals more to me because the program is a dual engineering + business masters program. It is offered jointly by the ECE department and the Robin Smith School of business. Which means I'd be taking both engineering and business classes. I've always had a knack for entrepreneurship. So I guess I'd be benefiting more from the program than from pure ECE. In addition, UM ranks among the top 20 best engineering US schools. I also got full funding from the school (in form of graduate assistantship), which is my main priority anyway.

So like I said, you'll need to weigh your options and then settle down for one school based on your interests.

Are you for fall 2013 too? I guess we'd be going for the interview together.

Congratulations BigFrancis. I have been waiting for a very long time to know the school you will eventually be going to. I am not in anyway surprised about your admission to UofM College Park at all. Just from reading your posts here, I came into the conclusion that you are very smart, especially with the way you write. UofM College park was one of the schools I applied to back then but I was rejected because there was no professor to supervise my research.

I never knew you are an engineer all the while.......lol. That said,you will like Maryland, there are a lot of Nigerians in the DistrictofColumbiaMarylandVirgina axis (DMV). It is going to be home away from home as you will easily make friends and build your network. Some of the old gurus on this thread who are in the IT world reside in Maryland, I can talk to them to see a way of hooking you up if you want. Many recruiting firms also come to College park to recruit every year, it will be easier for you to get a company to file for you upon graduation. Interestingly, many networking and IT companies are concentrated in Maryland and DC, that will be an added advantage as well. I will only advise you to make sure you get the necessary and appropriate certifications if possible - especially CISCO. That will be a bonus for you when job-hunting.

Congrats again bro!!! I wish you all the best as you prepare for your visa interview. Lest I forget, on behalf of many folks here, I would like to say thank you for all the GRE materials you passed across. Many people here prayed openly and in closed doors for you. Who knows maybe their prayers was part of the reasons why you got a fully funded M.S admission in such a great school - we never can tell. Keep up the good work bro and don't relent. Cheers!!!

mckenziiii: I got denied today @ d lagos embassy dis morning.No fears atall
VO-what will dis course do 4u
Me-int eco n finance wuld serve as an advancement in my role as a financial officer in my dad establishment by learning new ethic skillz n ideas by applying economic principle 4 d day to day running of all financial aspects of d company.

In addition to what Bigfrancis et. al said in previous comments, you may want to work on the bolded as well. Try and come up with multinationals and/or government parastals and agencies where your skills and education would better be appreciated in stead of your father's company.

You seem to know what your onions are and ready for the interview, unfortunately you met a 'psycho" V.O. Re-apply and work on those mistakes/loop-holes. I strongly believe you will get it the second time.

Best of luck!!!!

Nairaland FBI: Dear house members,
I just gained admission into Illinois Institute of Technology to study I.T. I have everything intact but my only fear is that i have been refused a US Visa 7years ago when I was to come on vacation with my mum. Can that be a problem? The school is also paying half of my tuition through the department,i ave the tuition for a full year but i no dey too sure of my second year. can i save for the following year tuition from maybe hot jobs or on-campusjobs if i get one? Thank you.

Mr. FBI

Take it easy please. If you are not happy with the way anybody here talks or react to people, then just ignore and ask your questions. You don't have/need to reveal anybody's identity please. Make you nor vex please.

@ Your question,

Congratulations on your admission. IIT is a very good school. Your visa denial 7years ago won't affect the result of your interview now. Just make sure you say the truth when filling the DS-160 that you have been denied a visa in the past. As per finances, just get here first is all I can say. You will sort everything within a year. Congrats again.

Again, do not disclose anybody's identity here please.

flynbird: The do verify but not often.

Okay, you are fine even if they don't verify. In as much your school accepts their evaluation, then you are good to go.

Best of luck.