syazanazura

Thanks! And yes, the Trump vs Brexit is one of the things going on in my head at the moment. I've received words from the other two programs that I was waiting on (rejected from both Michigan State and Madison's Human Ecology), so it goes down to Rochester, NY vs Madison, WI vs Anglia Ruskin. After contemplating and thinking about it over the winter break, talking to my parents, etc, I decided to go ahead and accept the offer from Rochester, though I decided to defer my enrolment to Spring 2018 instead of Fall 2017. One reason for this is because if I were to start in the Fall, I would probably have a month of rest back home before I have to hop on a plane and start my Master's. So starting in Spring would give me time to rest for a while, spend time with my family for a few months before going away for yet another two years in the US. Another reason for that is because of what has been going on with the Trump administration. Granted, my home country is not (yet) on the list of countries banned from entering the US for a while, but understandably, my parents are worried about what may happen, and having me start in January would also give us time to figure out if things would be OK or not before I come here again. If things get worse in the next couple of months, my parents may just ask me to go home and find a job back home for a few years before I think about coming to the US again for grad school (which, tbh, I've already started looking for options in case things do take a turn to the worse). :/

In late October, I interviewed with Warner School of Education at University of Rochester. They gave me an option for a Skype interview (considering how I'm in Wisconsin), but I ended up going to Rochester, NY for my in-person interview instead (I think I got points for the effort of coming to campus). I applied for their Higher Education Master's program w/ specialization in Student Affairs & Academic/Career Advising. Before I went there, my supervisor and I (he was overly enthusiastic in helping me research) looked up my interviewer to see some of his past works, papers, etc. I knew I wanted to ask about assistantship possibilities, so I did ask my interviewer about it. I also mentioned about another professor at Warner who wrote a paper about students' motivation for attending college and effects on college grades, which, coincidentally, I was reading for one of my classes. We talked more about why I got interested in education (as I am a business student), what I plan to do after my master's (I want to be an education consultant in Malaysia), what specific issues in education is interesting to me, why I applied to Warner (they had that program with specialization in both student affairs and career/academic advising, which is what I like). My interviewer also took me on a tour around the Education school, showed me different places and classrooms and all (which was super cool because right now I'm soooo in love with the campus). I also set up an informational interview with the professor I mentioned above (with the paper on students' motivation), and talked more about his research, etc. He was also kind enough to let me join in his discussion group with his doctoral students, which was a really fun experience for me. I was not into research at all, and was looking for a more hands-on, students-affairs oriented program, but it was definitely a good experience for me to see how research in Education is done. I guess one thing I could say is to read up on the school and the program, and really know why you applied to a specific school. Be honest in your answer, don't be afraid to ask about funding options, see if you can also talk to other professors / current students who are around. It'll give you a wide variety of opinions to consider.

For the HE at Warner (https://www.warner.rochester.edu/programs/highereducation) - this one right? Can't answer how it goes for PhD applicants, but when I applied in October for the Master's program (I applied by the October 15th deadline), I got an invite to the interview less than a week after (10/19), interviewed in person on campus the week after (10/28) and got my acceptance two weeks after (11/11). Might take a little longer to process PhD applicants though, so I wish your friends all the best!

Try looking into Colorado State University! The admissions is fairly competitive (250+ applicants this year with spots for 20-30 people), but if you can get in, I think it's an awesome program!

In my home country, you don't necessarily need to have an SA degree if you want to work in SA. I once emailed one of the deans in a university back home because I found out he studied the same Master's program in a US university (WMU), and he said that while it is not a necessary thing to have, having it would be helpful for my future career. That is also something that I was considering. When I first heard about the program at Anglia Ruskin, I was like, "OK, where is this and what university is this?" It's definitely not the first university that came to mind when you think about the UK. It used to be ranked 50th in the UK for education (I believe?) but now it dropped to 70-ish something. I did recently found someone on Reddit that did an internship in the same program at Anglia Ruskin before, so I'm definitely going to be talking to them and getting more information from them about it and all. Thanks for your input!

I'm in my fourth year of undergrad in the US (am international too) and have never had to submit my passport or anything for any rental applications. All I had to do was have someone as a co-signer (I had my mum co-sign my lease) as a guarantee in case I couldn't make payment) but that's pretty much it.

Thank you! I submitted the application sometime mid-November, though the deadline was December 1st. On their website, they said that applications submitted by December 1st will be reviewed in January (they have multiple deadlines), but somehow I got mine sooner so I was stoked! (The school is also where I'm currently doing my undergrad, but a different department since I'm switching to Education for my graduate school as compared to doing a Business major for my undergrad, so wasn't sure if that helped)

Was like that on Monday. The department I applied for sent me an email last week saying "the faculty will be meeting on December 12th to discuss all applications, and we will let you know of your decision by December 19th." Well, naturally, the whole day on Dec 12th I was restless as hell, knowing that they might be talking about me and my SOP and my recommendations at that precise moment and I was just, "F**********". Though, I did get an email later that day (~4pm-ish) saying that they recommended me for admissions to the program, and need my official transcripts to finalize the offer, so yeah, good news Just hang in there people <3 We'll get through this!

Hi, I am an international undergraduate student in the US, and am applying for the Master's program in Student Affairs in Higher Education (or similar programs depending on the schools). Universities I applied for: University of Rochester (admitted, 30% tuition scholarship), University of Wisconsin-Madison (recommended for admission, need official transcript to finalize offer), Colorado State University (not invited to interview), Michigan State University (no results yet), Anglia Ruskin University (in England, UK) (conditional offer, need minimum GPA of 3.0 by graduation next year, highly achievable). I also applied to a Human Ecology program at UW-Madison for Youth Development/Non-profit leadership/Community development and the sort, and should be hearing back by end of January too. What I'm contemplating right now is if I want to stay and pursue my Master's in the UK or in the US (if the US, I still have to decide which school, but that's a different story). Some thoughts that I consider while thinking this all out: 1) Funding, obviously. While Rochester offers a 30% tuition scholarship, that will still cost me about $35,000 or so in tuition fees. For Madison (for both SAHE / Human Ecology), tuition cost should be roughly around the $40,000-mark or so, give an take a few thousand. Anglia Ruskin would cost me around GBP12,000, so that's around $15,000. I have been on a convertible loan from my country's government for my undergraduate (will probably need to pay back around 10-15% of my total costs including living expenses and all after I graduate). But for my masters, I will mostly be on personal funding (my parents agreed to help me pay for grad school) since there are not many options back home for funding for Education-related program. 2) Time commitment Rochester is a two-year program. Madison is roughly 1.5 to 2 years, depending on how many credits I take per semester (30-33 credits for their programs). Anglia Ruskin is a year-long program. While I don't mind studying for another two years, doing it in a year seems interesting but daunting at the same time. 3) Education system My home country follows the British education system (exam-based all throughout high school), and I did A-Levels partly after high school before realizing that I hated how super exam-based it is and switched to a program and applied to the US schools for my undergrad. Super loving the US system and its flexibility, and how it offers me options I didn't know exist for me (seriously, taking a Videogames & Learning course for a Comm B requirement is awesome). But have been told that the UK Master's programs are not the same as the UK Bachelors' programs. Am planning to read up more on how the program is structured and taught, as well as talking to my friends who did Master's in the UK for their experience. 4) Environment I've grown to love the US, and would love to stay and do my Master's here. Been to Rochester, loved the campus and my possible department. People are friendly, diversity is great (as a Muslim, this is highly needed). Even saw a prayer mat in the student lounge while touring and I was so excited. Madison, on the other hand, is my alma mater, and I have friends and people that I know and love. Anglia Ruskin is located in Cambridge, England, and while I've never been to Cambridge specifically, I've lived in London for 1.5 years back when I was younger, and have visited two years ago. Still have friends who are pursuing their undergraduate in England at various places, and some who will still be there if I do my Master's there next September. The thing is, my parents are worried about me wanting to stay in the US, what with the election results and all that (as a female Muslim who wears the hijab). Personally, I've never experienced anything bad, other than that one time where a white guy suddenly yelled "F* you" in my face as I was walking back home (granted, it was 2am in the morning, and he was probably drunk). But my parents, not knowing how things would be next year (or the next two years), are super worried, which was why I actually applied to Anglia Ruskin. 5) Visa requirements for dependents/spouse A little related to the funding issue, since I'm mostly going to be on personal funding. I am now on an F-1 student visa in the US, but would like to be on a J-1 visa for my Master's (mainly because if my spouse were to come and be with me, he can be on a J-2 visa and work part-time instead of staying at home and being idle for two years). But J-1 visa are typically for students sponsored by the university, by government or have substantial funding from anything other than personal (I am asking Rochester about their policy, since I have a 30% tuition scholarship and the form that I was given gave me an option to select J-1 instead of an F-1). The UK, however, should be easier. As I will be on a Tier 4 student visa, my spouse should be able to come and stay with me (as I am doing a year-long Master's program) and he should be able to work (if I'm not mistaken, if you know more, please let me know!) 6) The program itself Rochester is one of my top choices because their program is a combination of Educational Administration w/ specialization in Student Affairs and Academic/Career Advising. As I would possibly like to be an education consultant in the future, this would work best with my interests. Madison's Student Affairs program is in their Ed Leadership & Policy Analysis (ELPA) program, which is more policy-based (though I plan to meet with my assigned advisor next semester to learn more and talk about options). Anglia Ruskin's program has a focus on international/national student affairs, which is interesting for an international student like me. It'd be interesting to see things from different countries' perspectives, and would be beneficial considering it can help me adapt to different situations, especially if I go back home and work with students who are interested to apply to schools outside of my home country. Anglia Ruskin also has a possible internship opportunity to work in the US (summer internship?) if I want to apply for it, which would also be fun. **** So that's just some of the thoughts I have at the moment. I would be meeting my family next week for a winter trip, and should be discussing all of the options with my parents (after all, they are paying for my education). At this point, I'm just going through all the pros and cons in my head (and talking it out with my friends to help me think clearly), but I would appreciate any thoughts, suggestions, ideas from anyone who knows more about any of these or the UK vs US thing. Early thanks.

Oh, good to know that it's a possibility! If you don't mind me asking, where's your funding coming from? Personal / university / scholarship? Because I was under the assumption that J1 is usually for university funded or government funding? Thanks! I've reached out to two of the universities that have accepted me for their programs, still waiting to hear back from them about it. One of them do not have any options on how to apply for a J-1 visa, but the other has a form for the visa documents and it has option for us to choose a F-1 or J-1 visa, so I wasn't sure if that meant they can still provide J-1 visa to MA students or not. Hopefully they do :/

Anyone have any ideas if master's students are allowed to be on a J-1 visa? 'Cause from what I've read, it's usually for doctoral/PhD students.

I'll second this. I was also supposed to meet up with a grad student currently in the program, but she was working at the time I came. I did communicate with her through email though, asking questions related to the program with a student's perspectives and all. This would be valuable to assess the program as well!

I had my first grad school interview at University of Rochester in late October, and it went well (I was then admitted two weeks after). Some tips / suggestions I can give: - Read up on your program, and its strengths. Talk about why you want that particular program vs other schools' programs (for me, I applied for Higher Ed/Student Affairs, and Rochester has a specific program for Student Affairs & Advising, which aligns with my interests). - Find any professors that you would like to work with and why. Maybe they're researching on your interests, etc (I was actually writing a paper about students' motivation written by a UoR professor for my class this semester, so that worked great!) - Also try to contact other professors (or said professor above) to see if you can schedule an informational interview to talk more about your interests / see what their thoughts about the program, learn more about assistantships opportunities and all that. (I met up with the professor who wrote the paper I was writing on, and he even invited me to join him in a research discussion group with his doctoral students, which was an amazing opportunity for me). - If you have time, try to also look at on-campus graduate housing if you're planning to live on campus. This would help in the future if you are admitted, so at least you know your options and have seen the places. - Dress like you would any other interview. I was in dress pants, shirt, blazer and black shoes. Write a copy of your resume / transcripts / etc in case they need it (probably they will have all from your application, but just to be safe!). And while I would say wear safe colors (like beige, white/black, natural ones that do not stand out that much like pink or green), I think this all depends on how you can pull it off and make it look good. I wore a red blazer for my interview, mainly because it's one of my favorites and I matched it with my hijab and pants. - Arrive earlier than your stated interview time. I arrived at Rochester a day earlier so I have time to walk around and find my way to the interview place, and to help with last minute preparation and calming my nerves down. The next day, I had my friend send me about 30-45 minutes earlier, so I was waiting in the lobby while Facetime-ing my Mum back home and all. - Have good questions about the program. Ask about assistantship opportunities, funding, research, class size, etc. Hope this helps, and good luck!

Hi! Applied to five universities for their HESA (or equivalent-ish) programs -> University of Rochester, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Colorado State University and Michigan State University. ( Also Anglia Ruskin University in UK if you're wondering where's the fifth). Already got admitted to Rochester (one of my top programs but still waiting to hear back from others before making a final decision), and partially admitted to UW-Madison (faculty recommended to the school, waiting for final decision by the Graduate School admissions office). While I would love to go to Madison (my alma mater, so staying means less hassle in moving across the country and starting over, plus I already have an idea of where to work while in grad school since I've been working at the Admissions Office for three years and can ask my supervisor if they need an extra grad assistant in the office, or even as an admissions counselor), I feel like going to a different school for my Master's would prove to be beneficial as well (what do you guys think?)

Hi everyone. This is a little late, but oh well, what better way to spend the long weeks waiting to hear back. My stats: Current institution: Big Ten school in the Midwest. Program applying for: Higher Education (specifically for Student Affairs) - Master's programs Universities applied to: University of Rochester (October 15th deadline), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Colorado State University and Michigan State University. Also applied to Anglia Ruskin University in the UK. GPA undergrad: 3.265 (currently in a business major and unable to change due to agreement with scholarship, barely hanging in this major) Profile: International female applicant, will be completing my 4 years undergrad in the U.S. GRE: not taken since was not a requirement. Other than the Higher Ed/Student Affairs Masters programs at those universities, also applying to the new Human Ecology Master's at UW-Madison (was supposed to take the GRE, but they said my application was completed even without the GRE so ended up not taking it). My recommenders: One Ed Psych professor at my university (took her class once sophomore year, loved it, she ended up helping me via email for the past 1.5 year in navigating grad school thoughts and internships and all that), one International Student Services advisor (who is also my supervisor now since I started working there this semester / volunteer coordinator for the past 3.5 years), and my internship director from the summer (interned at an American commission in my hometown with the Fulbright/EducationUSA offices. They were all awesome at getting their recommendation letters in wayyyy before the deadline (I think my internship director submitted his end of September, the others were mid-October ish). Got my application to Rochester in a day before the October 15th deadline, was invited for interview on 10/19, had my interview in person 10/28 (took a long train crossing the Midwest to get to Rochester), was admitted with a 30% tuition scholarship 11/11 with an early response deadline of 12/2. Emailed the office, they gave me an extension to accept/deny the offer by January/February (no exact date though). And while Rochester's program is one of my top choices, wanted to actually wait and hear back from others before making a final decision. Also heard back from UW-Madison yesterday from their Ed Leadership and Policy Analysis (ELPA) faculty (I applied to the Student Affairs Administration track) - they recommended me for admission to the graduate school. So now have to actually wait for an official decision from the admissions office of the graduate school (they may need more info like financial statements and stuff since I'm an international student).