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After the GRE
Applying to Universities
Ok - so you have taken your GRE test. What is
the next step?
The first thing to do, if you haven't done so
already, is to write to the universities and ask them to send you their application
packet. By the time you write your GRE, you must have short-listed the 40 or so
universities you are going to apply to. Write to those universities and ask them for the
application form and the graduate catalogue.
If you haven't short-listed your universities,
a good place to start is Peterons (www.petersons.com)
The  site has a powerful search
engine, in which every US and Canadian college is listed and by searching for the field of
your choice, you can see the complete list of the colleges that offer the course you are
looking for.
Another great site is www.gradschools.com - the advantage
of this site is that it has a built in form, a sort of online pre-app form. Using this
form, you can directly request the schools of your choice to send you their application
booklet. This site too has a great search engine, using which you can get the list of the
colleges that offer the course of your choice.
The application packets usually take about 2 -
6 weeks to arrive. It is good if you have your SOP - Statement of Purpose - drafted
already. This is the essay that cites the reason behind you applying to a particular field
in a particular college. Almost every college asks for this and this is a very important
part of your application packet.
You also need the college transcripts - your
score sheets, duly attested by the University and/or your College Principal. If getting
these signatures is difficult, you can approach the USEFI. For a fee, USEFI will attest
your transcripts.
The recommendation letters you send also carry
a lot of weightage. Usually, colleges ask for three recommendation letters - preferably
from your teachers. If you have work experience, then it makes sense to get two letters
from your teachers and one from your boss. Work experience counts a lot - so if you have
been working for a couple of years after college, you stand a very good chance of getting
into a good university.
If you are applying in Arts (Photography,
Designing, etc.) or Communications (Journalism, Mass Comm) fields, you will also be
required to submit a portfolio. This could be anything from a collection of the
photographs you have taken to video tapes of your documentaries. Added to this, students
applying to these branches will also be asked to write specific essays - but this depends
on the individual colleges and departments.
Criteria for short-listing your universities -
Usually, students end up sending the final application packet to 10 - 12 universities.
Many factors are involved in arriving at this final 10. Some of them are:
Course fees - chances are that you might not
get funded in your first semester. So it makes sense not to choose a university whose
tuition costs are on the more expensive side. The application fee usually is an indication
of this.
Area - Indians usually tend to prefer the
West coast - California abounds with Indians. But so many Indians have migrated to the US,
many of them students, that except for a few areas, most of the states in US contain a
sizeble number of Indians. There is usually an Indian Students' Association attached to
the university, in addition to the International Students' Association, which helps the
Indian students in finding apartments, room mates, etc. The area where your college is
located also plays an important role because it decides your cost of living. Whether you
get funding or not, you are not going to gain much if most of your money is spent in
paying for your apartment and food.
University rank - Universities are usually
ranked according to many factors. UCLA, for example, is ranked #5 in most departments. It
is a good practice to apply with this ranking in mind - find out the University ranks for
your department - then choose a few top-ranked, a few middle-ranked and a couple of
lower-ranked universities, to play it safe.
-
Lavanya
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