Happy Schools Blog

UK Student Loan Interest 0%; Should US Follow UK?

HSB — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:44:04 +0000

UK made all student loan interest to 0% from September 2009. Watch the discussion in the following video about Should U.S. Adopt U.K. Student Loan Program?. Interesting video and lots of ideas can be derived from this video.

So, what do you think after watching the above video? Most likely 0% interest rate will Citizens of UK (don’t have much details on loan eligibility in UK). If International Students are eligible to get Student Loan for 0%, then most of the students thinking about attending Graduate School in US will seriously consider UK for Masters and PhD program.

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UK Student Loan Interest 0%; Should US Follow UK?

H1B 2010 Count : 52800 to 53800 in 5 Days

HSB — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:41:50 +0000

As of October 30, 2009, approximately 53,800 H-1B cap-subject petitions had been filed. USCIS has approved sufficient H1-B petitions for aliens with advanced degrees to meet the exemption of 20,000 from the fiscal year 2010 cap.

H1B Visa 2010 – Cap Count Timeline [ From April to Nov, 2009 ]

Previous H1B Cap Count 2010 updated was on Oct 25, 2009.

Improving Economy?

Increase in H1B Visa 2010 petitions is very good indication of improving economy. At this rate, H1B Cap for FY 2010 will be filled by Jan 2010.

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

H1B 2010 Count : 52800 to 53800 in 5 Days

PhD after M.Tech – Do I need to take GRE Exam?

HSB — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:56:26 +0000

Question from Ramesh

Dear Sir,

I have a query and i would be grateful if you reply me..I am pursuing M.Tech in Computer science in India.I have completed my B.Tech(4 year programe) this year. I want to do my Phd after completing M.Tech from US university. What should i do. Should i appear in GRE or can i apply directly.

Option 1 – PhD After M.Tech

For PhD admission in Us University, you definitely need to take GRE Exam. There are universities that offer admission to Masters degree without GRE, but for PD GRE is mandatory.

You should have another 1.5 years left in M.Tech, which gives enough time to prepare for GRE and apply for PhD.

Option 2 – Apply for PhD, Aug 2010

This option is not recommended, but if you are definitely going to study PhD, then you can take GRE by Jan 2010 and apply for Graduate School for Fall 2010 semester. In this way you will save 1 year of your time. There are many studen who apply for PhD directly after completing Bachelors degree.

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

PhD after M.Tech – Do I need to take GRE Exam?

5 Things About College Admission, Financial Aid and I-20

HSB — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:06:14 +0000

Usha Asks about Financial aid and Admission through email.

I have got an admit from Missouri University of Science & Technology, Rolla and Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. But i have not yet received any news about the financial aid to be offered. When can i expect any information on financial aid which will help me deciding which university i have to choose.

Most International students applying for Graduate School Admission to US Universities don’t have 100% information about Graduate School Admission process, questions from Usha validates that.

Admission, Aid and I-20

You have to understand the following

If your profile don’t meet minimum Requirements, Grad School will reject the application without forwarding the application to the department.
Department decides about Admission.
I-20 is issued if you have enough funds (bank statements)
I-20 will say if you hare given Financial Aid ( Scholarship, RA or TA)
If you received I-20 without Financial Aid, most likely you will not receive new I-20 with Financial Aid.

In your case, you need to decide between Missouri University of Science & Technology, Rolla and Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. You can read the interview with Harish from Missouri S&T, Rolla about Financial Aid and life at Rolla, that can give you some pointers about the college.

Image Credit : Leo Reynolds

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

5 Things About College Admission, Financial Aid and I-20

H1B 2010 Cap Count Update – Oct 25, 2009

HSB — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:26:16 +0000

H1B Cap Count Table [ Updated ]

As of October 25, 2009, approximately 52,800 H-1B cap-subject petitions had been filed. USCIS has approved sufficient H1-B petitions for aliens with advanced degrees to meet the exemption of 20,000 from the fiscal year 2010 cap. Any H1-B petitions filed on behalf of an alien with an advanced degree will now count toward the general H1-B cap of 65,000. USCIS will continue to accept both cap-subject petitions and advanced degree petitions until a sufficient number of H-1B petitions have been received to reach the statutory limits, taking into account the fact that some of these petitions may be denied, revoked, or withdrawn.
Via USCIS.

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

H1B 2010 Cap Count Update – Oct 25, 2009

MS in IS vs MIS

HSB — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:40:03 +0000

Vishwanath Asks about the different between Masters in IS and MIS

Can yo please tell me if MS in IS is the same as MIS.I have tried to get information through google but im not sure if they are exactly the same.MIS course is offered by kelly school of business as well on basis of GMAT score so is it a management course or is it a blend of both management and technical.

M.S. IS vs MIS

MIS (Management Information systems) between two universities will not be the same, since courses offered are different. Likewise MS in IS is different from MIS only with respect to degree offered between Universities. [ Read Difference between MIS and MS in CS ]

So, MS in Is and MIS are the same, but you have to compare the courses that is included. You will be applying for same kind of jobs after you complete MS in IS or MIS.

Admission requirements also vary between colleges. Most of the Universities accept GRE or GMAT for admission to MIS program. If the program is offered in Business School, you will take technical courses in Engineering/Computer Science department.

Some cases, within Business School, Tech courses can be offered. So, there is not hard and fast rules on how MS IS and MIS can be offered. Check with the department and program for more information.

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MS in IS vs MIS

When to Apply for Fall 2010

HSB — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 02:20:33 +0000

Questions about Admission to US University

It’s already end of October, I want to know when to apply for Fall 2010 semester?

When to Apply Admission – Fall 2010

We have discussed the above topic in several previous articles

If you just want to study in some US University and get exposure to US education system, there are Universities that accept International student’s applications till July 2010. Yes, there are Universities in US that have deadlines till July 2010, for semester starting at Aug/Sep 2010.

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

When to Apply for Fall 2010

How to Get Job After Grad School Without Work Experience

HSB — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:14:37 +0000

VK Asks About possibility of getting Job after Masters Degree without Work Experience

I am a 3rd year BE ECE student planning to do MS in US by september 2011.I am without any work experience.Is it possible to get a job after completing MS in 2013 without any job experience only with OPT?Is it possible to do part time job in F1 visa?

Remember few things with respect to job search in America

Companies don’t come to Campus for Interviews ( Majority of them)
There will be career fairs, but not as frequently as Walk-In interviews in India
You have to go looking for jobs.
Resume format used in India will NOT work in US.

Entry Level Job Search

It’s good to see a third year student thinking of OPT and Job Opportunities in US after completing Graduate School.

Is it possible to get a job after completing MS in 2013 without any job experience only with OPT?

Yes, you can find a Job after completing your Masters Degree without work experience, but due to recession many people have lost jobs. Number of jobs that will be available in 2013 cannot be predicted now, but if you plan and prepare yourself from day ONE you land in America, you can get a job in no time.

To get job as an Entry level student, you will need work as an intern while studying Masters degree for 1 or 2 semesters. Process of applying to internship is same as applying for full time jobs.

Students who have experience in applying for Internship, have an edge during job search. If you get an internship position, you have very good advantage over students who are applying without Internship experience. You will get work experience and chances of getting full time job in same company is also highly likely.

It takes time to learn the job search skills. You have to go looking for jobs, not the other way around.

Learn how to use build your professional network using Facebook, Twitter (Follow Happy Schools Blog on Twitter) and LinkedIn ( Top 8 Job Search Methods). Once you have built a good network, you can utilize that to find a job or internship.

Part Time Job in F1 Visa

Is it possible to do part time job in F1 visa?

International students in F1 visa are allowed to work 20 hours per week On Campus jobs. You can get to work within University’s Library, book store, computer labs, cafe, athletic centers, stadiums, conference halls, …Part time jobs will pay around $7 to $0 per hour.

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

How to Get Job After Grad School Without Work Experience

Unannounced H1B Site Visits by USCIS

HSB — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:32:50 +0000

USCIS through its Office of Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) has recently started conducting mostly unannounced H-1B site visits. A corporate client of this firm was recently audited by FDNS. The person who signed the H-1B paperwork was interviewed and the H-1B visa employee was also interviewed. The Employer was asked the following questions: type of business; number of employees; number of employees being sponsored on visas; verify that the signature on the H-1B visa petition is genuine; information about the H-1B visa employee: date of hire, title, job duties, work location, salary, copy of most recent paycheck stub; and number of employees who received their Permanent Resident status.

The H-1B visa employee was asked to provide the following:

Identification
Job title
Role and responsibilities at the company
Salary
Who paid for the Labor Condition and H-1B visa petition filing/if the cost was deducted from employee’s paycheck
How employee gets paid through ADP, etc.
and Requested to see a pay check.
The visit lasted about 30 minutes.

It would be interesting to see what would USCIS visits a consulting company where employees are working at location different than specified in the Labor application?

Via LewsLaw

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

Unannounced H1B Site Visits by USCIS

Average GRE Scores – North Carolina State University

HSB — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:29:06 +0000

Previously we have posted Average GRE Scores for few universities in 2 parts

Average GRE Scores – Part 1
Average GRE Exam Scores – Part 2

In today’s editions you can see the Average GRE Scores for North Carolina State University (NCSU). NC State is one of top ranked Engineering program in America. Its located near in Research Triangle Park. Duke University, UNC, Chapel Hill and NCSU forms a triangle.

Average GRE Scores

Scores below are listed in following order ( GRE Verbal + GRE Quantitative + Analytical ) for North Carolina State University.

Computer Science – 469 + 704 + 4.2
Chemical Engineering – 485 + 727 + 4.3
Electrical Engineering – 461 + 728 + 4.1
Biological Sciences – 491 + 632 + 4.4
Civil Engineering – 457 + 702 + 4.2
Mechanical Engineering – 467 + 723 + 4.2
English Language – 589 + 552 + 4.9

Interesting thing to observer in above Average GRE Scores is how English Language Graduate students scores in GRE Verbal, Quantitative and Analytical writing. It’s very clear that someone with English background can out score Engineering Students in GRE Verbal by over 100 to 120 points, but scores in Maths reflect the lack of their good mathematical skills. More info about other programs from NCSU site.

Post from: Happy Schools Blog

Average GRE Scores – North Carolina State University