ROAD TO GRADUATE SCHOOL IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: PART 2

This post is a continuation of the post:  Road to graduate school in US, part1 

FINANCIAL AID AND SCHOLARSHIP

One of the disparities between the US graduate school application and for countries like the UK stems from their financial aid methodology. The financial aid and scholarships in the United States are usually on a rolling basis and you can apply at any time during the application for admission. However, some graduate schools only accept applications at certain time of the year usually fall (August).

Majorly, US graduate school scholarship subsume the following:

1.      A partial tuition fee waiver: The graduate school waive a certain percentage of the school tuition.
2.      Full Tuition scholarship: All tuition are waived
3.      Full Tuition scholarship and Assistantship: This is the acme of most US graduate school scholarships where all tuition are waived. In addition, there will be an employment with the university in the form of a Teaching assistantship or Research assistantship or Graduate assistantship with a certain amount to be paid  that will help cover the cost of living in the United States.

SCHOOLS

Searching for schools is one of the most inundating stage during the US graduate school application. Some people pay some institutions/agencies for this service, however, I would stoutly advise to do it personally. First, you delve for schools that offers your proposed course of study. Make good use of google and other search engines to search for schools.

There are plethora of websites for searching US graduate school on the internet.  Second, make sure you contact each and every one of them primarily through email (Emails are always conspicuous on the school / program website and phone calls could also be made) Enquire about the graduate program, financial aid, exam requirements, academic profiles and a host of others. Below is a template of an enquiry e-mail. 

Subject: Prospective Student

Hello, I am xxxxx from Nigeria I had my Bachelor’s degree in xxxxxx from xxxxxx university. My final C.G.P.A is xx/4.0 or xx/5.0. Am keenly interested in the graduate(M.S/ PhD)  program in xxxxxxx in your university. I will love to enquire the following about the program/graduate school: (i)Can I apply to this program with my Bachelor’s degree? (ii)How can I be eligible for the program's financial aid? ……….

 xxxxx

THANK YOU.

The paramount decision you will make is your choice of graduate school. If, for example, you are applying to 4 schools, I would apply to a top ranked school, 2 middle ranked school, and one lower ranked school in order to maximize opportunities. Let me reiterate the importance of contacting graduate schools before application, this will prevent wasting application fees and most importantly time on schools that would not grant admissions.

In conclusion, from my stated opinions and experiences there is quite a great deal of disparities in the requirements for graduate schools, therefore the examinations you take and the application procedure will be dictated by your choice of school.