Study in the United States of America

Types of higher education institutions
University, University College
– institution that offers academic courses on all the three levels
Community College, Junior College - institutions offering the two-year programs leading to Associate of Arts/Sciences degrees; some programs (especially at junior colleges) are meant as a preparatory courses for university 4-year studies, the others as a vocational courses.
Note: Community College is a state institution, while Junior College is a private institution
Professional School
- highly specialized institution offering academic courses on the second and third level (courses like pedagogy, medicine, theology, law, etc.)

Structure of university studies
Academic year in the USA starts in September and ends in June. The language of instructions is English.

University
1st level
– undergraduate study
* Bachelor - 3-4 years full-time study
First two years of studies are very general, studies get more specialized in the third year when student chooses his majors

2nd level - graduate study
* Master Degree - 2-4 years of study and research after a Bachelor degree

3rd level – doctoral study
* Doctor - at least 2 years full-time study and research

Application procedures
- students should begin the application process about 18 months before they hope to enroll
- you can ask for the difered admission in order to get some time for arranging for your financial funds
- students should apply directly to the university or college of their choice
- applicants for undergraduate study must take TOEFL and SAT exams
- applicants for graduate study must take TOEFL, GRE, GMAT (for economic courses), USMLE (for medical courses) exams
- student who has spent part of his/her studies at a university outside the USA can ask for transfer of credits

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Financing of university studies

- tuition at the US universities varies from US$ 4,000 to US$ 20,000 for an academic year
- the living expenses in the USA are about US$ 6,000 for a year
- universities can provide financial assistance mainly at the graduate levels

Types of financial assistance from universities:
* tuition waiver
Undergraduate and graduate study:
* merit-based scholarship - grant based on special academic, personal, or extra-curricular talent
* need-based scholarship - grant based on demonstrated need
* athletic scholarship - grants made by the university to enroll students who have distinguished themselves in a particular sport
Graduate/doctoral study:
* fellowship - may be granted after one year of study, covers tuition and fees, sometimes living expenses, too
* assistantships - students assist faculty for up to 20-40 hrs/week and in return receive a stipend and other benefits- a tuition waiver or reduction is often offered
* teaching assistantship - students assist faculty with teaching at the first grade of undergraduate level
* research assistantship - students assist faculty with research projects
* administrative assistantship - students perform tasks in administrative and support services
Contact the faculty for information on teaching/research assistantship opportunities or Graduate Admission Office for information on administrative assistantship opportunities

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Health insurance

There does not exist any state insurance system in the USA. You have to arrange for your insurance at some of the private health insurance agencies. There is a rank classification of these institutions (provided by A. M. Best company) and you should look for some with A or A+ rank. Agencies with lower crank (B - F5) are not stable. You can contact International Group Service for an advice. In case you are involved in an exchange study program, your university will arrange for your insurance.

Visa
The admitting school will send you a Form 1-20 A-B to use in obtaining F-1 student status. The J-1 Exchange Visitor status may be used by students receiving a stipend from the US government and is frequently used by students with financial support from foreign governments, foundations, organizations, and institutions. The Form IAP-66 is the document issued by the Exchange Visitor Program sponsor for the acquisition of the J-1 visa.A tourist visa B-2 cannot be changed to a student visa in the USA! Persons from many European Community countries, Japan, and New Zealand can enter the USA with no visa at all unless their stay will exceed three months. If the student visa was issued for nine months or more, student can ask for permit to stay in the USA for other 12 months and take an internship in his major.

Important addresses
International Group Services/Hinchcliff International
10530 Rosehaven Street - Suite 350
Fairfax, VA 22030
U.S.A.
tel. ++1 (703) 591 9800
fax ++1 (703) 691 7500
e-mail: igsinc@aol.com 

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Useful publications
title: College Handbook 97
published: College Entrance Examination Board, New York
title: College Handbook - Foreign Student Supplement 97
published: College Entrance Examination Board, New York
title: Four-Year Colleges 97
published: Peterson’s
title: Funding for United States Study
published: Institute of International Education 1996
title: Graduate Programs 97
published: Peterson’s
title: If You Want to Study in the United States (Undergraduate Studies/Graduate Studies/ Scholars and Professionals, Predeparture Orientation)
published: USIA 1994

Internet addresses
general information:
http://www.usia.gov/education/advise.html
http://www.bibl.u-szeged.hu/oseas/europe.html - study in the USA, scholarship programs
http://www.yahoo.com/education/universities - universities' programs
http://usmall.com/college/search/index.html - institutions offering the first level programs

financial aid:
http://www.nas.edu/rap/welcome.html - postgraduate research scholarships
http://www.fastweb.com - database of scholarships
http://www.voyager.rtd.utk.edu - information on possibilites of financial aid
http://www.friends-partners.org/friends/funding/index.html
http://www.finaid.org
http://www.nafsa.org/students/funding.html
http://dept.gatech.edu/grad/studies/fellowships/gragta.html

health insurance:
http://www.cna.com/cultural/

new immigration laws for students:
http://www.nafsa.org/nafsa/retrieve/1.45/45.5.html

college/university rankings:
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/home.htm
http://www.review.com/college
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/rankings.htm

colleges/universities profiles:
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/cdemello/univ.htm
http://www.petersons.com
http://www.embark.com
http://collegeispossible.org

information about recommendation letters:
http://www.hanover.edu/soc/letters.html
http://www-ctl.stanford.edu/teach/handbook/writing.html - writing the recommendation letters

guides, advice and examples of application essays:
http://www.myessay.com/advice.html
http://world.std.com/~edit
http://www.northfork.com/essaywiz
http://members.tripod.com/~spravka/WSJcollege.html
http://134.181.128.3/admissions/essay.html
http://www.petersons.com/ugrad/app.html


The following parts concern a study of medicine, veterinary medicine, dentistry, law and business administration as it has its own specifics and differ from the other studies in the USA:

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STUDY OF MEDICINE

Study:
Admission to medical study is very competitive. Foreign students rarely gain admission to a US medical school without pre-medical study in the USA. Medicine in the USA is studied on graduate level after obtaining a bachelor degree in premedical sciences, or social sciences. Medical school usually lasts for 4 years and is followed by 3-7 years of graduate medical education. All applicants are required to take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) which examines understanding of the basic concepts in Biology, Chemistry and Physics.
Tuition vary from $17,000 to 35,000 for an academic year, living expenses are about $8,000 - 13,000.
Graduate medical education program:
Foreign doctors who want to practice medicine in the USA either for getting new experience and schooling or for getting licensure, must enter a residency training program. To be admitted, it is necessary to get ECFMG (Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates) certificate.
Requirements for getting the ECFMG certificate:
- test USMLE Step 1+2 (see 'Tests' chapter)
- ECFMG English test
- graduating from a medical school listed in the World Directory of Medical Schools
- having a license to practise medicine in the state where student got his/her medical education

ECFMG
3624 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104 - 2685

Locating a residency or Clinical Fellowship:
Foreign medical graduates applying for residencies or clinical fellowships must have ECFMG certification before beginning their program, but they may initiate correspondence with a hospital before they receive certification. If they participate in the National Resident Matching Program, they must pass the ECFMG examination sequence by January 1 of the year in which they plan to enter and must submit proof of certification by the start of residency. Physicians may apply directly to accredited residency programs or clinical fellowships in a specialty listed in the Directory of Residency Programs or they may elect to enter the computerized National Resident Matching Program.

American Medical Association
Order Department OF416792
P. O. Box 109050
Chicago, IL 60610

National Resident Matching Program
Executive Secretary
2450 N St., N. W.
Washington, DC 20037-1141

Note: foreign medical graduates may apply directly to graduate academic programs in medically related fields which do not involve patient care. Because there is only incidental patient contact, academic or research programs do not require ECFMG certification.

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Short-term Opportunitiesfor Continuing Education
Medical centers and hospitals offer short-term courses, lasting from several days to several months. They are open to foreign medical graduates without ECFMG certification. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) lists available short-term courses twice a year.

American Medical Association
525 North State St.
Chicago, IL 60610

Foreign medical graduates with ECFMG certification may apply for research grants in the health sciences.

ECFMG Foreign Faculty Fellowship Program in the Basic Medical Scieneces:
This program brings selected faculty members from foreign medical schools to teach and study for periods of nine months to one year in a US medical school. Completed application are submitted by the US host institution on behalf of a candidate, or, if a US institution has not been selected, ECFMG will evaluate the partial application and attempt to arrange a suitable match with a US medical school.
ECFMG International Medical Scholars Program:
The program provides support for training in medicine, public health or health care administration for periods of three months to one year. Applicants must have a graduate or professional degree related to their chosen field and demonstrate professional achievements.

ECFMG Washington Office
2000 Pennsylvania Ave., N. W., Suite 3600
Washington, DC 20006

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STUDY OF VETERINARY MEDICINE


Veterinary medicine in the USA is studied on graduate level only, after obtaining a bachelor degree. There are only 27 schools of veterinary medicine in the USA, all associated with universities. Of these, 25 are largely state-financed. Hence, applicants from the home state are given first preference. Veterinarians begin practice in the USA after four years of study in veterinary schools and attainment of the first professional degree, doctor of veterinary medicine, DVM or VMD.
For foreign-trained veterinarians with the equivalent of the DVM, there are two alternatives for postgraduate training in the USA: postgraduate academic programs leading to the master's degree in veterinary medicine or to the PhD. These programs do not lead toward clinical practice, but rather toward teaching in veterinary schools, employment by pharmaceutical companies or research.
Another postgraduate option is residency training leading toward board certification in a specialty, such as veterinary ophthalmology or pathology. Residency training, also associated with veterinary schools, takes three years, and involves a combination of academic and clinical experience. Apply to the individual veterinary school which offers the specialty of interest.

American Veterinary Medical Association
1931 North Meacham Rd., Suite 100
schaumburg, IL 60173

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STUDY OF DENTISTRY

Dentistry in the USA is studied on graduate level after obtaining a bachelor degree. Dental school curricula leading to the first professional degree, doctor of dental surgery, DDS, or doctor of dental medicine, DMD, require four years of study - two years with an emphasis on basic medical sciences as it applies to dentistry, and two years emphasizing a clinical orientation. Foreign students rarely gain admission to a school of dentistry in the USA without having completed at least two years of pre-dental study in a US university.
The Dental Admissions Test (DAT) is required.

Postgraduate Dental Training
After receiving the equivalent of the DDS, dentists may apply for postgraduate training at hospitals or dental schools. Some programs lead to a master's degree in advanced dentistry. Others offer specialty training.

There is no certifying examination administred worldwide for postgraduate dental students comparable to the ECFMG. Some specialty programs, such as oral surgery and periodontics, require that foreign dentists complete at least the last two years of prudent studies in a US university, as well as complete the DDS at a dental school in the USA that is accredited by the American Dental Association.

American Dental Association
Council on Dental Education
211 East Chicago Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611

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STUDY OF LAW

US universities do not offer undergraduate law degrees. Basic admissions requirements to the US law schools are a Bachelor's degree in any field and the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). In general, postgraduate law students are qualified lawyers with several years of experience. The US law degree is called the Juris Doctor (JD - considered equivalent to a doctoral degree) and requires three years of graduate study. Overseas students who are considering the US Juris Doctor should note that only American law is taught. The most appropriate US degree programs for foreign national lawyers are the master of comparative law (MCL) and the master of comparative jurisprudence (MCJ). Another possibility is the master of laws (LLM). These programs, one year in duration, are flexible and can be planned according to the interests of the student. Doctorate is intended for those planning to teach at university level. The US law schools do not usually give financial aid to foreign students.

Law School Admissions Service
Box 2000
Newton, PA 18940
Tel.: +1 (215) 968 1100

American Bar Association
Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admission to the Bar
550 West North St.
Indianapolis, IN 46202
Tel.: +1 (317) 264 8340

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STUDY OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Business administration in the USA is studied on all three levels.
The Master's degree in Business Administrtion (MBA) is a two year professional master's degree providing general training in business administration/management for students holding a degree, not necessarily in business. Other in graduate degrees in the field are the MS (a one or two year degree in a specialized field for a student who already holds MBA degree), and the doctorate (PhD or DBA) which is intended for those planning to teach at university level, or to undertake advanced research.

Shortening the MBA
Some business schools provide summer sessions which make it possible to reduce the lenght of the degree. This does not reduce the cost but it does reduce the time taken and living costs. Some universities will grant advanced standing to students who have met some of their core course requirements by previous study. Though, a number of leading schools will note allow their two-year program to be shortened by either method.

Admission Requirements:
-
standardized tests - TOEFL and GMAT
- work experience - this is not mandatory, however, most schools prefer candidates with one or two years of full-time experience
- three letters of recommendation

Financing
Business schools themselves are sometimes able to offer partiel scholarships, assistantships, or loans, but financial aid is limited.
For more information on financial aid, ask for a brochure How to Finance Your MBA at csr@northstar.org

Students are offered the GMASS service while applying for GMAT test. This service is to help the indecisived students to find the proper school.

Annualy there are MBA Forums held in Paris and Frankfurt.
MBA Forums
P. O. Box 6106
Princeton, NJ 08541-6106
http://www.gmat.org

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