Success Stories: Feedback from 2016 Applicants Part 3 (Graduate Students)
Let us hear from two graduate students who have successfully completed the application process to U.S. universities and received full funding to study in the U.S. Today they are ready to talk about the application process and share their experience of choosing schools.
[p]Full Funding to Enroll at M.S. Program
Andrei Orlenko from Krasnodar has been accepted to the political science program at University of Wyoming. These are his words describing the goal he had as well as the role the EducationUSA Center played in reaching it: I have always wanted to study abroad! What might be better than learning Political Science and International Relations in the U.S!. The application and admission process was a long and obstinate. I had a list of seven universities I chose to apply to: all of them had different requirements for the results of the exams and the documents to submit. It took me two months to get all the paperwork done, but it was worth it. I got accepted to the graduate programs in four out of seven universities I applied to. Obviously, I had an opportunity to choose, and I have chosen the University of Wyoming to pursue my Master’s Degree in Political Science program.
The University of Wyoming was my priority because of funding, the Political Science program and the Department staff itself. While looking for the universities, I found out that there is a professor at the UW whose research interests are similar to mine. We both were interested in the topic entitled ”The European Union, Its Security and Migration Policies”. Being an expert in the field, my professor also required from entering students to do a field research for their thesis in the future. I have chosen Brussels as the location to do my research next summer.
[p]Getting Support With the Application Process to US Schools
Galina Bogatova from St. Petersburg will start her studies as a Ph.D. student in international affairs at Florida International University in fall 2016. She tells in her own words how the application process looked for her and what the results were at the end of it. Looking ahead it is hard to imagine how I would go through the process of entering a university of the U.S. without a guidance of the experienced advisers from the EducationUSA Center. Being at the home straight of this path I can sincerely confess that this was financially, mentally and emotionally demanding process which takes approximately a year and a half of your life and a lot of efforts. Thus, the help of the EducationUSA was just invaluable without exaggeration.
The mentors of the Center consulted me on every stage of the application process keeping me organized with the help of certain and justified deadlines. They shared with me the principle methods of the options digesting, provided me with the resources for making the research and helped to ameliorate the stress which comes from the unknown. Also, the mentors of the EducationUSA supplied me with the methodical assistance, samples of a decent professional letter to use in correspondence with the professors and the admission staff. This contributed a lot in building strong relations with the faculties from the start and making a good impression. Here we should note that your letter and the writing style is basically the only way you can impress your future colleagues and professors in the beginning.
In addition to that, I was awarded an Opportunity Grant to help me to cope with the applications to five universities at once (American University, George Mason University, University of California-Riverside, Florida International University, Western Michigan University, Loyola University Chicago) and all of them required a physical mailing of my transcripts as well as paying the application fees. The program also covered all the expenses needed to pass the required exams, like TOEFL, GRE and GMAT. However, as I was lucky to participate in the “Opportunity” program I was capable of successfully completing all the applications I embarked on in 2015. Just several weeks ago I happily received a very desirable offer from Florida International University and preparing to join their program on Ph.D. in International Relations. In conclusion, the help of EducationUSA Center is hard to overestimate when it comes to this extremely challenging step on your way to change your life. Nevertheless, this should go without saying that nobody else but you have the capacity to reach the end and achieve the goal you have set. Thus, I would advise to all the potential applicants to rely on their own discipline, be precise in terms of deadlines, e-mails structure, and try to plan your schedule wisely and… never give up. Next time, you will hear from a Harvard University alumnae who will share her tips on how better to prepare for departure to the U.S.
