Good morning everyone, this my first time on this platform.
I want to ask after my I-20 form get to me. I hope after the collection the next step for me is to is to pay for visa fee?

Someone please help counsel me here. I'm in a dilemma. I am considering applying to one out of two schools in the US. One in Baltimore- Marlyand and the other in Fort Lauderdale- Florida.

Firstly, they are about the same tuition fee, with Nova in fort Lauderdale about 1500 dollars cheaper than UMBC, despite Nova having about 14 credit hours more ( 5 more courses) than UMBC. None offers financial aid to international students.

Secondly, i have done researches about both place and i found out Fort Lauderdale is hurricane prone because it's a coastal city in Florida, i even read somewhere that hurricane hits the city almost every year, hence Nova's academic activities are always disrupted when the hurricane hits FL.

Thirdly, UMBC is about one hour 30 mins away from a distant relation while Florida is 15 hours away.

Fourthly UMBC is a public school while Nova is a private school.

However and most importantly, i was astounded when i compared both school's curriculum. Nova's curriculum is way better and is rated among the top 10 best institution offering the program in the US. Looking at Nova's curriculum, you'd immediately see you have lot of options and opportunities.

Ideally, i want to attend a school that offers the best but the hurricane issue and the fact that it is 15 hours away is discouraging me.

Please anyone with a word of advise?

Thanks all for your candid advice, I am very grateful and do as y'all said.

100kobo:


Let's assume you didn't know that the post you copied originated from Femi 321, why didn't you at least, give credit to the fellow whom you quoted. My brother, there is no denying the fact that copy copy is who you are. Let's end it here mbok.

Hanhan... Its okay now. Why will you call him "Copy Copy" I don't like that... That is too degrading

Time2Smile:

@ Hushee, Please take this advice. Don't give up on your dreams.

Not giving up bro, I'm working on it already. Thanks

Glocal1:
That would be a good decision. However, do not give up on your prospect of graduate studies in the US.
If possible, enrol in Nigeria for a MSc, and graduate with a PhD grade. You can then apply for fully - funded PhD in the US.
Work and improve your savings account. Improve on other areas of life while still in Nigeria.
On the other hand, you can improve on your profile by re-writing the GRE and TOEFL to improve your scores and increase your chances of admission to top tier schools.
Search for funded programs.

You are at your prime, don't just give up.

I sincerely wish you the best.

Yes bro, that's exactly what I'm planning to do. That was why I said I'm not going back until a lot has changed in my application. Thanks so much, I appreciate.

NameUserNo:
Someone please help counsel me here. I'm in a dilemma. I am considering applying to one out of two schools in the US. One in Baltimore- Marlyand and the other in Fort Lauderdale- Florida.

Ideally, i want to attend a school that offers the best but the hurricane issue and the fact that it is 15 hours away is discouraging me.

Please anyone with a word of advise?

I cannot make a choice for you, but I can help you look further into both choices. First off, the distant relative you alluded to, how close are you to him/her? and of how much help will such person be to you? Unless, you intend to stay in his/her place or go there frequently, then distance isn't a barrier. Second, cost of living in Fort Lauderdale is higher than Baltimore and accommodation may be costlier in Fort Lauderdale (https://www.bestplaces.net/cost-of-living/baltimore-md/fort-lauderdale-fl/90000). Third, NOVA by your evaluation seems to be better in terms of academics. I may be prone to tilting towards a school where I'll get good value for my money. However, although I do not know the course that you're applying for, sometimes proximity to companies that are in your field gives you access to people in that field and you're able to network and get a job faster after graduation. The DMV (D.C., Maryland, Virginia) area has an abundance of such companies and UMBC may have an edge here. As per the hurricane, did you check if the school or housing around the school has ever been directly affected? Sometimes, schools close even when they are not directly affected. Lastly, did you (is it possible to) check the job profiles of graduates of both schools to see where they are working and in what capacity? That will give you an insight into how marketable graduates from both schools are. I will want to go to a school whose graduates have good positions in good companies. Hope this helps you make a choice.

mike1994reds:

You can ask it here, might be useful to someone else

Could it be easy to study in another states/city near where i stays in U.S
For example ,If i plan to stay at Baltimore MD with a family member can i study in neighboring cities or states ?

homirefacuny:


I pray o Bros. I will be so grateful to God. Those guys can be very unpredictable sometimes. Lol

The two are usually not connected in terms of decision making on issuance or otherwise. All you have to do is prepare and if asked about it, just tell the VO you wanted to attend your brother's graduation and also visit a few schools of interest before applying.

Godchangemylife:

Could it be easy to study in another states/city near where i stays in U.S
For example ,If i plan to stay at Baltimore MD with a family member can i study in neighboring cities or states ?

Yes, you can get a car, and you'd be good to go

zarconflux:


Thank you,but pls I am applying online and I was advised to apply to 4 or 5 schools and each of these schools has provisions for docs attachment (transcript,sop,cv,letters of recommendation etc) while am trying to apply...so how will the school send transcript when I haven't been admitted and each transcript sent is 30k..any more advise pls?

Upload your student copy and you would be fine.

mike1994reds:

Yes, you can get a car, and you'd be good to go

This answer is way too simplistic and doesn't tell the whole story. First off, it depends on how far your place is from your school. Using your example of Baltimore, if your school is in Washington DC for example, then that will be a drive in excess of an hour one way. Doing that continuously will burn you out before you get midway through the semester. Second, do you have the financial resources to get a car (a cheap car will do) and maintain it? If not, you'll have to rely on public transportation which will make your commute even longer and more expensive in the long run. I will be honest with you, commuting from one city to another for school is tedious and very tiring, unless your commute is 30 (max 45) minutes or less.

mike1994reds:

Yes, you can get a car, and you'd be good to go

Alright Thanks

Timotee:


This answer is way too simplistic and doesn't tell the whole story. First off, it depends on how far your place is from your school. Using your example of Baltimore, if your school is in Washington DC for example, then that will be a drive in excess of an hour one way. Doing that continuously will burn you out before you get midway through the semester. Second, do you have the financial resources to get a car (a cheap car will do) and maintain it? If not, you'll have to rely on public transportation which will make your commute even longer and more expensive in the long run. I will be honest with you, commuting from one city to another for school is tedious and very tiring, unless your commute is 30 (max 45) minutes or less.

Alright Thanks bro

Timotee:


I cannot make a choice for you, but I can help you look further into both choices. First off, the distant relative you alluded to, how close are you to him/her? and of how much help will such person be to you? Unless, you intend to stay in his/her place or go there frequently, then distance isn't a barrier. Second, cost of living in Fort Lauderdale is higher than Baltimore and accommodation may be costlier in Fort Lauderdale (https://www.bestplaces.net/cost-of-living/baltimore-md/fort-lauderdale-fl/90000). Third, NOVA by your evaluation seems to be better in terms of academics. I may be prone to tilting towards a school where I'll get good value for my money. However, although I do not know the course that you're applying for, sometimes proximity to companies that are in your field gives you access to people in that field and you're able to network and get a job faster after graduation. The DMV (D.C., Maryland, Virginia) area has an abundance of such companies and UMBC may have an edge here. As per the hurricane, did you check if the school or housing around the school has ever been directly affected? Sometimes, schools close even when they are not directly affected. Lastly, did you (is it possible to) check the job profiles of graduates of both schools to see where they are working and in what capacity? That will give you an insight into how marketable graduates from both schools are. I will want to go to a school whose graduates have good positions in good companies. Hope this helps you make a choice.

I am so grateful for your reply. It will go a long way in helping me make a decision. The truth is I wouldn't have been this confused if Nova isn't in the top 10 programs on all the websites I checked via google.

Well, i am not so sure if i am going to be staying with the relative because i think 1 hour or 1 hour 30 mins is a lot of time to commute to school on a daily basis.

Second, i never imagined Fort Lauderdale would be more expensive compared to Baltimore. This should compensate for UMBC's higher tuition fee.

Third, I am looking at graduate level bioinformatics at Nova and Information technology at UMBC. Nova has the better curriculum but i read somewhere that Maryland has a lot of technology companies.

Lastly, i am unable to check both schools graduates job profile

NameUserNo:

I am so grateful for your reply. It will go a long way in helping me make a decision. The truth is I wouldn't have been this confused if Nova isn't in the top 10 programs on all the websites I checked via google.

Well, i am not so sure if i am going to be staying with the relative because i think 1 hour or 1 hour 30 mins is a lot of time to commute to school on a daily basis.

Second, i never imagined Fort Lauderdale would be more expensive compared to Baltimore. This should compensate for UMBC's higher tuition fee.

Third, I am looking at graduate level bioinformatics at Nova and Information technology at UMBC. Nova has the better curriculum but i read somewhere that Maryland has a lot of technology companies.

Lastly, i am unable to check both schools graduates job profile

For bioinformatics/information technology, the DMV area is an excellent place with regards to job prospects. There are lots of tech companies in that area. After California, the DMV area probably has the most tech companies. Also, you will have the opportunity to do an internship in one of the tech companies and the possibility of being retained or landing a job there is high. For your specialty (IT), I will lean towards UMBC and maximize my networking opportunities.

lincolnsnowhite:
Good morning everyone, this my first time on this platform.
I want to ask after my I-20 form get to me. I hope after the collection the next step for me is to is to pay for visa fee?

Pay your sevis fee, pay visa fee, go for interview, get your visa, welcome to America

Please if im sponsoring myself without assistanship am I going to pay the tuition right from Nigeria or when I get there and start working

Taofeeq2510:
Please if im sponsoring myself without assistanship am I going to pay the tuition right from Nigeria or when I get there and start working

When you get to the school and have done the necessary orientation, you then register for your courses. Your tuition is based on how many credit hours you register for (typically 9 credit hours for international graduate students). It's at this point that you pay your fees. Note that tuition and fees are expected to be paid irrespective of whether you get a job or not. You do not pay your fees while still in Nigeria.

Morning guys.. Have been asking a lot of questions recently.. Pls help with this one too.. Am confused about the next step of sending another bank statement to my school so that they can forward a new i20. Is it possible to change sponsor? Since it was what got me denied in my first interview, I couldn't provide a letter of support from dad's company. I want to use Nigeria orientation here, I want to go ahead to present Uncle's SOA (cos he's in d UK, he has a legal job and I have a letter of support from him) even though it's still dad that will go ahead to pay higher percentage of the tuition. How can someone defend this pls. Changing sponsor from dad to uncle.

FriendlyTop:
Morning guys.. Have been asking a lot of questions recently.. Pls help with this one too.. Am confused about the next step of sending another bank statement to my school so that they can forward a new i20. Is it possible to change sponsor? Since it was what got me denied in my first interview, I couldn't provide a letter of support from dad's company. I want to use Nigeria orientation here, I want to go ahead to present Uncle's SOA (cos he's in d UK, he has a legal job and I have a letter of support from him) even though it's still dad that will go ahead to pay higher percentage of the tuition. How can someone defend this pls. Changing sponsor from dad to uncle.

Some DS-160 information already submitted are almost untouchable over a short period of time. Changing your sponsor rather too quickly would draw attention, and it is almost certain you'd be queried about this change. If the answer you'll take to the interview doesn't sound convincing to you, then it won't convince the Consul Officer.

100kobo:


Let's assume you didn't know that the post you copied originated from Femi 321, why didn't you at least, give credit to the fellow whom you quoted. My brother, there is no denying the fact that copy copy is who you are. Let's end it here mbok.

you are probably very slow to read and realise that i already apologised to the poster....who is long gone and here you are still having an erectiion over this situation..... Get a life!

I studied applied geophysics in Futa and I graduated with 2.5gpa, please what could be the wes conversion and can I be admitted for Master's degree. Am 23 years old is it advisable for me to apply for undergraduate degree in applied geophysics. Thanks

I am applying for masters degree in USA and I want to use my uncle in USA as my sponsor, ( different surnames) is it advisable?

100kobo:



Some DS-160 information already submitted are almost untouchable over a short period of time. Changing your sponsor rather too quickly would draw attention, and it is almost certain you'd be queried about this change. If the answer you'll take to the interview doesn't sound convincing to you, then it won't convince the Consul Officer.

I do not think changing sponsors should be a problem. When I did my first interview and was denied, I had my uncle listed as my sponsor on my DS-160 form and I went to my interview with his statement of account. However, on my second interview 3 months later, I had my dad listed on my DS-160 as he had sufficient funds in his account. I had no problem with my interview when I stated that my dad was sponsoring me and I got the visa. I believe it all depends on how sufficiently well you are able to explain any change on your DS-160 when asked.

Please can anyone help with list of some schools that offer financial aids and assistantship to international students? I seem to find it difficult to find any. All schools i have contacted say they have no financial aid for international students.

Timotee:


I do not think changing sponsors should be a problem. When I did my first interview and was denied, I had my uncle listed as my sponsor on my DS-160 form and I went to my interview with his statement of account. However, on my second interview 3 months later, I had my dad listed on my DS-160 as he had sufficient funds in his account. I had no problem with my interview when I stated that my dad was sponsoring me and I got the visa. I believe it all depends on how sufficiently well you are able to explain any change on your DS-160 when asked.

what if going to the interview with uncle's business account or with his personal account which is safer, but his business account has more funds about x2 of the tuition fee, but personal account just exactly the tuition fees

Hello Gurus,
For someone with a polytechnic diploma, what is the chance of applying for undergraduate degree without seating for SAT?

Can one still access scholarship or grant aswell?

NameUserNo:
Someone please help counsel me here. I'm in a dilemma. I am considering applying to one out of two schools in the US. One in Baltimore- Marlyand and the other in Fort Lauderdale- Florida.

Firstly, they are about the same tuition fee, with Nova in fort Lauderdale about 1500 dollars cheaper than UMBC, despite Nova having about 14 credit hours more ( 5 more courses) than UMBC. None offers financial aid to international students.

Secondly, i have done researches about both place and i found out Fort Lauderdale is hurricane prone because it's a coastal city in Florida, i even read somewhere that hurricane hits the city almost every year, hence Nova's academic activities are always disrupted when the hurricane hits FL.

Thirdly, UMBC is about one hour 30 mins away from a distant relation while Florida is 15 hours away.

Fourthly UMBC is a public school while Nova is a private school.

However and most importantly, i was astounded when i compared both school's curriculum. Nova's curriculum is way better and is rated among the top 10 best institution offering the program in the US. Looking at Nova's curriculum, you'd immediately see you have lot of options and opportunities.

Ideally, i want to attend a school that offers the best but the hurricane issue and the fact that it is 15 hours away is discouraging me.

Please anyone with a word of advise?

I think you should forget about curriculum. Just look at the cheapest and the one with more networking opportunities.

npmi:
I am applying for masters degree in USA and I want to use my uncle in USA as my sponsor, ( different surnames) is it advisable?

plz someone should reply me

Hello everybody, please help me access my mock transcript, my interview is next week, this is my second attempt, I will appreciate if I can get corrections and contributions from the house. Thank you all. Please remember me in your prayers as I go next week for my interview.


VO: Good morning.

Me: Good morning.

VO: passport and I20

(I passed it)

VO: So I see you’re going to Westcliff University in Irvine

Me: that’s correct. Irvine, California

VO: what program are you going there for?

Me: Master of Business Administration with a concentration in International Business

VO: So where did you first learn about this school.

Me: I first saw it on a former schoolmate’s profile on LinkedIn, he then told me many good things about the school, He did his MBA there. I went further to do a personal online research on the school, I checked college review and the school’s website and I liked what I saw with regard to their College of Business.

VO: So did you choose any other school apart from this?

Me: yes! Park University, Parkville Missouri, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, California and Westcliff.

VO: so were you accepted into all 3?

Me: I was accepted by Westcliff and Claremont.

VO: so why choose this school?

Me: Westcliff has the right combination of disciplines and courses. Here’s what I mean: Unlike Park University that has international business as a separate department from MBA, giving me a bit of dilemma, westcliff combines the two. So I get to have a background training in specialized functions as finance, marketing and Human Resources and still get a full doze of my concentration in International business.

Also westcliff business management philosophy looks beyond the tradition perceptions of economics, and instead espouses management as a human enterprise and liberal arts, focusing on social theory, history and sustainability. This is a much easier way of learning a course, as it adds some creativity and less technical jargons

VO: so what kind of school is this?

Me: It is a private university, regionally accredited, and offers programs towards business or education, their student demography tends to be professionals

VO: what’s your schedule for this program?

Me: so it’s a 36 credit program spanning two years. 27 credits in courses such as organizational behavior, organizational leadership, managerial accounting, financial management, marketing management, strategic management in globalized economy, managerial economics, applied methods capstone and managing information systems technology. 9 credits for my area of concentration in int’l business

VO: when did you finish your first degree?

Me: 2011, although the session was officially 2009/2010, the semester dragged into the first quarter of 2011.

VO: So what have you been doing since you graduated?

Me: Since after my NYSC in 2012, I have worked as a banker and Since 2015 till date I have been with xyz bank as head abc unit in one of the branches where I’m responsible for the cashflow of the branch, supervise a team of tellers who are in charge of “this this this and that”, I also supervise the tellers in charge of foreign exchange for customers who do int’l trade, PTA, BTA and international money remittances. On the side, personally I also partly function as a consultant for my uncle’s Bureau de Change company.

VO: So what will this degree do for you?

Me: Apart from the strategic business knowledge I will be gaining, this degree places me on the right pedestal to take up an upper managerial role in the bank’s International Business department, a dept and role I’ve in principle been earmarked for, but the bank feels this degree is so appropriate. I will also be better equipped with the needed knowledge to start up my own business in financial services consulting and foreign exchange in due time.

VO: who will be paying for this program?

Me: My uncle for whom I partly work will, I also have savings of my own and a certain percentage of scholarship granted me by the school

VO: can I have documents for that. ( hand her my statement, uncle’s and scholarship letter)

Me: (while she is going through the SOAs) my statement is a money market account statement, I decided using that because of the high interest rate as a against the regular savings account, but I have a letter of introduction here from the bank stating that it could be liquidated at anytime.

VO: why would your uncle wanna pay for you?

Me: Apart from being like a foster father and very much involved in my education, he’s very impressed with my work and loyalty and is interested in how this degree would impart to both me and his business

VO: what does he do?

Me: Primarily he owns a bureau de change company like I said and also imports and sells building materials such as tiles and marbles

VO: So what was your first degree

Me: English and Literature.

VO: And why are you going for a totally different one from your first degree?

Me: (smiling] even though my first degree was in the arts I have worked all my post first degree life as a banker and all I’ve been doing is finance, marketing, managerial accounting organization leadership. Going to do a course now in English or literature doesn’t actually help my career. This MBA does and enhances it


VO: so how often will you attend classes in a week at Westcliff.

Me: while classes are weekly the MBA program is a very rigorous one as assignments are due multiple times a week. I would also have many projects and presentations due every other week.
I also get to occupy my time with participating in the on-campus organizations (hiking club, peer mentors, and more). The school also now has 5 athletic programs and encourage students to attend games to be involved with the Westcliff community.

npmi:
plz someone should reply me

Yes you can use it, if u go through this thread, you will see transcript from successful Applicants, most of them used a sponsor with a different surname. So its no big deal as am also doing same.