now, applying for university can be a very tough decision-making task
but choosing the right university for YOU can make A LOT of difference in your university days.
1.first of all, you need to make a pick; public or private
there are a lot of differences in public and private as i have explained earlier on
if ur the more competitive type, and u like large classes, then go ahead with public
if ur the more attentive type, and u like small classes, then most probly private unis would suit u.
it all depends on the class size. that's when research is necessary.
2. take a little tour into the curriculum
some unis require certain tests to be done beforehand, or perhaps compulsory internships after graduation.
other unis might require u to take more ridiculous subjects than some of the others
and some unis might give u a bachelor in science for ur course and maybe a bachelor in business in other unis
a little research into the universities' websites might help you a lot.
3. take a look into the social life.
take into consideration the crime rates, the living costs, even transportation
for instance, drake students enjoy a free shuttle service around des moines. some unis just have more privileges than others
if ur the more fun and adventurous type, u might wanna go for public unis because these unis are more focused towards athletics and huge events. there are numerous groups that u can look up such as IVY League, and BIG TEN which are leagues in the sports department
private and small universities like RPI dont focus much on athletics (although we are number 1 for ice hockey) but on the other hand, we have a huge performing arts theater on campus which hosted the ICCA 2011(glee club stuff)
4, take a look into the job prospects
although this is NOT so important, but u have to take this into consideration as it may affect ur degree quality
statistics can easily be googled for stuff such as median salary, or types of companies the graduates use to work with
u may also look at the list of companies that come to ur university for annual career fairs
career fairs are the perfect place to find jobs!
some unis even offer collaboration with companies in certain courses
5. acceptance rate.
this might make a difference on whether you fly overseas or stay local.
overall, DO NOT apply a university SOLELY based on rankings. coz rankings just tell ya how much research they did and how many smart people go there. it doesnt decide whether ur gonna have a hard time or a superb time for the next 4 years of ur degree.
some sites u might want to take a look at :
www.collegeprowler.com < rankings and reviews of universities
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/ < discussions about universities
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
PUBLIC vs PRIVATE
here's an important part of university application
before applying to your choice of university,
one of the things that you need to take into consideration would be whether ur uni choice is private or public
the rule of thumb in differentiating between public and private:
1. MOST public unis have state names. ie : IOWA state, university of MINNESOTA.
2. MOST public unis are cheapER than private unis. (obviously)
3. MOST public unis have more students than private. for instance, purdue has 15000 students while RPI only has 5000. quite a huge difference, huh ?
4. MOST public unis are really competitive. it's like malaysia. it's easier to get into taylor's then UM right ?
5. MOST public unis are HUGE, in terms of campus size that is
so why is it important to take privateness or publicness into consideration ?
first of all, public unis are highly competitive, you need to compete with the middle class citizens in the US. and the uni DOESNT CARE about how much money you have (in our terms, scholarship !)
BUT, private unis on the other hand REALLY take into consideration on money. for instance, 100%(out of 5) of RPI's applicants frm malaysia were accepted and our lowest score was 1000 and highest wud be 1200+. considering that this is one of the top 40 unis in the US, it's kinda ridiculous that they would want people with our SAT scores. THEY JUST WANT YOUR MONEY(if ur an international student, that is)
so at the end of the day, if ur a scholarship applicant, ur chances of getting into private unis are likely to be SUPER HIGH. coz only the rich can get in, and not many US citizens can afford to pay nearly 300,000 USD for their children's education.
WHAT I APPLIED
1. RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE
2. ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECH
3. PURDUE UNIVERSITY
basically i put RPI first because of it's ranking, it's facilities, it's low class size, and best of all, it's private.
i was a bit hesitant to apply to RPI coz of it's ranking and average SAT score. but then again, since we're international students, they just said YES.
i put RIT second because it's an ok university, it's class size is SLIGHTLY bigger than RPI, and again, it's private.
RIT is a safe bet for me coz it's acceptance rate is high, and it's ranking is OK.
and i put PURDUE as last, because it's public, it's class size is big, and the average SAT score is lower than mine. i can actually tell that it's easy to get in (with my SAT score) based on the average score.
ok, now u know the differnces between public and private, i hope you make the best choice between the two
at the end, private unis care about money and reputation, while public unis mostly care about the research and ranking.
before applying to your choice of university,
one of the things that you need to take into consideration would be whether ur uni choice is private or public
the rule of thumb in differentiating between public and private:
1. MOST public unis have state names. ie : IOWA state, university of MINNESOTA.
2. MOST public unis are cheapER than private unis. (obviously)
3. MOST public unis have more students than private. for instance, purdue has 15000 students while RPI only has 5000. quite a huge difference, huh ?
4. MOST public unis are really competitive. it's like malaysia. it's easier to get into taylor's then UM right ?
5. MOST public unis are HUGE, in terms of campus size that is
so why is it important to take privateness or publicness into consideration ?
first of all, public unis are highly competitive, you need to compete with the middle class citizens in the US. and the uni DOESNT CARE about how much money you have (in our terms, scholarship !)
BUT, private unis on the other hand REALLY take into consideration on money. for instance, 100%(out of 5) of RPI's applicants frm malaysia were accepted and our lowest score was 1000 and highest wud be 1200+. considering that this is one of the top 40 unis in the US, it's kinda ridiculous that they would want people with our SAT scores. THEY JUST WANT YOUR MONEY(if ur an international student, that is)
so at the end of the day, if ur a scholarship applicant, ur chances of getting into private unis are likely to be SUPER HIGH. coz only the rich can get in, and not many US citizens can afford to pay nearly 300,000 USD for their children's education.
WHAT I APPLIED
1. RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE
2. ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECH
3. PURDUE UNIVERSITY
basically i put RPI first because of it's ranking, it's facilities, it's low class size, and best of all, it's private.
i was a bit hesitant to apply to RPI coz of it's ranking and average SAT score. but then again, since we're international students, they just said YES.
i put RIT second because it's an ok university, it's class size is SLIGHTLY bigger than RPI, and again, it's private.
RIT is a safe bet for me coz it's acceptance rate is high, and it's ranking is OK.
and i put PURDUE as last, because it's public, it's class size is big, and the average SAT score is lower than mine. i can actually tell that it's easy to get in (with my SAT score) based on the average score.
ok, now u know the differnces between public and private, i hope you make the best choice between the two
at the end, private unis care about money and reputation, while public unis mostly care about the research and ranking.
Monday, July 4, 2011
TOEFL
salam
TOEFL basically stands for Test Of English as a Foreign Language
as oppose to SAT, TOEFL is internet-based (they have paper based, bt ppl rarely use that)
TOEFL comprises 4 sections :
1) reading
2) listening
3) speaking
4) writing
*for more technical mumbo-jumbo, wait for ur lecturer's instructions*
what ur lecturer might not tell you
1) it's super important. compared to SAT, TOEFL is REAL. you will come across a list containing all the universities with their SAT and TOEFL requirements. if you refer to my earlier post, i have told you about how the SAT requirements are not so real after all. for TOEFL, it's a whole different story. u HAVE to meet the TOEFL requirement for ur university before applying to it.
2) it's hard. seriously. getting a high score in TOEFL takes a lot of focus and knowledge (i didnt use practice). basically the hardest part of it is that it is timed and you have to follow strict timing. sometimes you will be given EXTRA passages and you'll be bored to death during the test. for me, the hardest part of the whole test is trying to stay awake while reading the passages.
3) your english matters. the thing about TOEFL speaking section is, it is graded by Americans. if they couldnt understand you, well you're out. as an Asian raised in a british system, i know how hard it is to get Americans to understand you. not to boast, but i have been a national ranked debater, and even been the president of toastmasters and I STILL get the "sorry i couldnt understand a word you're saying" on the phone. sometimes, you need that American accent to get them to actually understand you. my advice, talk slowly, and make sure class is pronounced as (kles) and not (klas).
4) the fact that there are a number people who actually took this test for multiple times and still couldnt pass the 79 mark should worry you. it's not THAT easy. and please try not to waste money on taking TOEFL so many times.
peace out
=D
TOEFL basically stands for Test Of English as a Foreign Language
as oppose to SAT, TOEFL is internet-based (they have paper based, bt ppl rarely use that)
TOEFL comprises 4 sections :
1) reading
2) listening
3) speaking
4) writing
*for more technical mumbo-jumbo, wait for ur lecturer's instructions*
what ur lecturer might not tell you
1) it's super important. compared to SAT, TOEFL is REAL. you will come across a list containing all the universities with their SAT and TOEFL requirements. if you refer to my earlier post, i have told you about how the SAT requirements are not so real after all. for TOEFL, it's a whole different story. u HAVE to meet the TOEFL requirement for ur university before applying to it.
2) it's hard. seriously. getting a high score in TOEFL takes a lot of focus and knowledge (i didnt use practice). basically the hardest part of it is that it is timed and you have to follow strict timing. sometimes you will be given EXTRA passages and you'll be bored to death during the test. for me, the hardest part of the whole test is trying to stay awake while reading the passages.
3) your english matters. the thing about TOEFL speaking section is, it is graded by Americans. if they couldnt understand you, well you're out. as an Asian raised in a british system, i know how hard it is to get Americans to understand you. not to boast, but i have been a national ranked debater, and even been the president of toastmasters and I STILL get the "sorry i couldnt understand a word you're saying" on the phone. sometimes, you need that American accent to get them to actually understand you. my advice, talk slowly, and make sure class is pronounced as (kles) and not (klas).
4) the fact that there are a number people who actually took this test for multiple times and still couldnt pass the 79 mark should worry you. it's not THAT easy. and please try not to waste money on taking TOEFL so many times.
peace out
=D
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