Everything relating to applications – the standardized tests required, the selection of universities, application timelines and procedures, financial aid etc.
For all students joining American and Canadian universities in Fall 2019 – Don’t miss Dilip Oak’s yearly Pre-Departure Orientation! Here’s your chance to clear all your doubts, gain insights on student-life in the US and meet other students joining the same university.
23 June 2019
Siddhi Banquet Hall
DP Road, Near Mhatre Bridge, Erandwane, Pune 411004
This session open to all students joining US and Canadian universities for Fall 2019
Parents are strongly advised to attend
In 2015, when some Indian students were offered a shortcut route to a Master’s degree from the US, it seemed too good to be true! University of Farmington, Michigan was allowing them a CPT (student work-permit) right from Day 1. The students could start working immediately and would not have to attend classes, earn credits or make any academic efforts towards their degree. All that was required was a one-time payment to 8 Indian ‘recruiters’, based in Detroit, Florida, and Virginia, who were recruiting students to this university. These agents themselves were in touch with the university authorities to facilitate the admissions.
The application season is on, December is just round the corner …and university deadlines are coming up soon. So, here is our much awaited blog for university application deadlines for fall 2018.
Our list covers 128 universities with deadlines ranging from November 2017 all the way up to July 2018. At the end is a section on universities with rolling deadlines (click here to find out what is meant by rolling deadlines).
Remember that US universities update deadlines on their websites at different times during the academic year so, we will update this blog to keep up with changes on their official websites. We have compiled a list of university deadlines with utmost care, however, we request you to kindly cross check the dates displayed on official websites of the university.
Drafting your Statement of Purpose should be considered to be, essentially, a communication exercise, which you ought to take very seriously. Why do we say this? Well, for two reasons: first, going forward, there will be many such situations in which you may have to interact with others by means of the written word. And second, subject-matter knowledge is not enough. You would need to find an effective way to communicate your message so as to evoke the desired response from its target reader(s).
Below are a few tips to draft a decent SoP:
An overwhelming majority of Indian students who travel to the US for higher education belong to the Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) category. For the annual H1B quota of 20,000 visas reserved for this category, about 30,000 applications are usually received. On the other hand, against 65,000 H1B visas allocated for non-STEM applicants, three to four times that number apply.
Therefore, an applicant for an H1B visa from the STEM category invariably stands a much better chance. That is why several students from the non-STEM category, even if they find a job in the US after graduating, have to leave for their country of origin as they fail to acquire an H1B visa. Another factor that works in favour of STEM students is that their OPT (Optional Practical Training) is valid for 36 months, which entitles them to three attempts at seeking the coveted H1B visa.
In the US education is closely associated with philanthropy. Individuals do not own universities. The famous Carnegie-Mellon University is a case in point. Its governing council may have a couple of members who belong to founders’ families but the university is essentially managed by a Trust. Grateful alumni donate generously to their alma maters.
The US Government offers generous grants to universities. Deserving students get attractive scholarships from universities. Students are provided every possible opportunity to work as teaching and research assistants and take up campus jobs to earn so they can lighten their financial burden. American culture respects the dignity of labour. Working part time at a McDonald’s outlet is not looked down upon or considered below one’s dignity.
The United States of America presents a wide range of exciting opportunities for higher education and employment to ambitious young Indians. However, this indisputable fact was not widely accepted in Pune, when I first pointed it out, way back in 1996. Punekars were mostly skeptical of it.. Actually, this was not entirely surprising. In those days, someone travelling to the USA was such a rare occurrence that it made news. However, now things have changed quite dramatically.
When I founded Dilip Oak’s Academy in 1996, only 24 students had enrolled. Eight of them went to the USA eventually. Gradually, the number grew over the years and, in 2016 alone, we sent as many as 1,500 students to a wide variety of the universities in the US. These students were not from Pune alone. Many of them hailed , but even from small cities and towns in the hinterland of Maharashtra, such as Sangli, Vita, Satara, Belgavi, Kolhapur, Amaravati and Aurangabad. Some belonged to and other states like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat as well. Now, in 2017, we expect the number to climb to an unprecedented 1,800 at least. We have come a long way, indeed.
Are you confused as to what the latest news regarding this “ Bill introduced in the US regarding H1B work visa” is? Keep reading further to understand what all the discussion is really about.
The new bill, titled “Protect and Grow American Jobs Act,” has been re-introduced in Congress by certain republicans (this bill was already introduced in earlier years, but was never passed). It proposes key changes in the H1-B program that allows skilled workers from foreign countries to fill high-tech jobs in the US.
The bill has proposed two changes – the gist of which is as follows:
US has relaxed the tests used to grant a National Interest Waiver (NIW) to EB-2 category of green card applicants
The EB2 Green card category
Green card also refers to an immigration process of becoming a permanent resident in the USA. The EB-2 Green Card is a category offered to talented immigrants with advanced degrees or especially rare skills. Most of the Indian students who have completed their Masters education in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)category fall under EB2 green card category
Donald Trump has been elected as the new US President. This blog intends to cover what it means for Indian students intending to pursue MS in US.
It is important to note that skilled immigrants with advanced degrees have started more than half (44 of 87) of America’s startup companies valued at $1 billion or more and are key members of management or product development teams in over 70 percent (62 of 87) of these companies- according to a 2016 National Foundation for American Policy study. Most of these entrepreneurs and key personnel at some point obtained H-1B status, often after studying at a U.S. university.