Case studies


Case studies

SCHOLARSHIP TO STUDY IN USA

OVERVIEW

Considering the available job market and remuneration, every student wants to study abroad in developed countries like the USA to have a better pay package and lifestyle. But while planning this particular step, every student and their family realizes that studying abroad is expensive. It includes not just tuition fees but also the living expenses in the currency of the developed country. Hence, every student prefers to get a rebate on the tuition fees in the form of a scholarship to reduce the financial burden. A scholarship is a reward or financial aid given to a student to complete their studies. Students with outstanding academic scores, good scores in competitive exams or excellent extracurricular achievements are eligible for various kinds of scholarships.

A scholarship is a reward or a financial aid given to a student to complete his studies. Students with outstanding academic scores, good score in competitive exams or excellent extra- curricular achievements are eligible for various kinds of scholarships.

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TOP UNIVERSITIES TO STUDY IN THE USA

Most of the top universities in the world are located in the USA. The rankings for the universities are decided on the basis of all factors and given by private organizations. It usually focuses on various parameters like Teaching, Research and related Citations, Industry Income and International Outlook. The research parameter deals with global research reputation, number of publications, number of citations and the number of highly cited papers. So, a student should focus on his topics of interest to determine where to pursue higher education. Since studying abroad is expensive, these universities also have allocated specific scholarships for Indian students. Some of these examples are mentioned in this article.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SCHOLARSHIPS TO STUDY IN THE USA

To get a scholarship, students usually need to have a very good profile in terms of academic aggregate, competitive exam scores as well as relevant internships and work experience. Such parameters help in building a strong profile and have a good chance of securing a scholarship. For the USA, competitive exam scores like GRE and TOEFL make a significant impact. In some cases, participation in extracurricular activities like sports and technical events can also facilitate a student to get a scholarship. The criteria to give a scholarship to an Indian student is decided by the Admissions Committee, sometimes themselves and sometimes along with the Financial Aid Team.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF FINANCIAL AID FOR INDIAN STUDENTS TO STUDY IN THE USA

There are different types of financial aid available to Indian students. The financial aid provided by these universities can be categorized as Need-blind or Need-based. As the name suggests, Need-blind financial aids are provided based on merit and the financial condition of the candidate is not taken into consideration. On the other hand, Need-based financial aids consider the financial condition of the candidate along with the merit eligibility to decide on the amount to be provided as aid. Some of the general types of financial aid are mentioned below.

  • MERIT-BASED SCHOLARSHIP IN THE USA UNIVERSITIES

    A student’s merit is awarded in the form of scholarships from USA universities as well as other institutions. Students are judged based on High Scores in their previous relevant education, relevant work experience, high performance in entrance exams, research experience, etc. either individually or as a combination of many of these. The USA universities provide such scholarships for Indian students at the time of admission in the form of a fixed annual amount or percentage.

    A student’s merit is awarded in the form of scholarships from Universities as well as other Institutions. Students are judged on the basis of High Scores in their previous relevant education, relevant work experience, high performance in entrance exams, research experience, etc. either individually or as a combination of many of these.

    The Universities provide such scholarships at the time of admit in the form of a fixed annual amount or percentage.

  • Assistantship :

    Universities provide assistantships to students with considerable relative experience or potential for it and are awarded mostly during or after the 1st semester.
    Teaching assistantships would include students helping their teachers with building presentations or notes for the class; they also might include grading papers on behalf of the teacher or teach junior students.
    Research Assistantships are provided to students who have shown considerable research potential or research experience.
    Graduate Assistantships would involve students working with the Graduate office.
    These opportunities are known to pay the students a stipend or even tuition waiver

    USA universities provide assistantships to students with considerable relative experience or potential for it and are awarded mostly during or after the first semester.

    • Teaching assistantships would include students helping their faculty members with building presentations or notes for the class. They also might be included in grading papers on behalf of the faculty or teaching junior students.
    • Research Assistantships are provided to students who have shown considerable research potential or research experience.
    • Graduate Assistantships would involve students working with the Graduate office.

    All the above-mentioned opportunities are known to pay the students a stipend or even tuition waiver in some cases.

Other than University based scholarships, there are various other external scholarships that are awarded by the certain external bodies like the Chevening scholarship, British Council Scholarship, ETS scholarship, Tata Endowment Trust scholarship, etc. for which the student must apply if they fit the eligibility. Imperial guides students for such applications and any documents that are needed. Universities also provide a list of scholarships in their website which can be used to check for more opportunities.

Some of the USA university-based scholarships include the Stanford Reliance Dhirubhai Fellowships, American University Emerging Global Leader Scholarship, Yale Young Global Scholars, Tata Scholarships for Cornell University, etc. There are various other external scholarships too which are awarded by certain external bodies like British Council IELTS Scholarship, TOEFL Scholarship Program, JN Tata Endowment Trust scholarship, etc. For this, the student must apply if they fit the eligibility. Imperial Overseas guides students for such applications and any documents that are needed. The USA universities also provide a list of scholarships on their website that can be used to check for more opportunities.

APPLICATION PROCESS FOR INDIANS TO STUDY IN THE USA

For most types of scholarships provided by USA universities, students need to complete their university application for admission to their program before the priority deadline or early deadline. As almost all universities work on a first-come-first-serve basis, applying early increases the chances of getting an admit as well as a scholarship. The financial aid can be internal or external. The word ‘Internal’ means the aids given out by the university itself. The word ‘External’ implies that the aid is provided by institutions not related to the university. The application process for each type is different and might require different criteria to be eligible. Hence, students are requested to check with each institution before applying.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR SCHOLARSHIPS TO STUDY IN THE USA

SOME USEFUL TIPS TO INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF GETTING A SCHOLARSHIP IN THE USA UNIVERSITIES


EARN GOOD GRADES IN SCHOOL/COLLEGE

To get a scholarship in the USA universities, you may not need an 80% or 90% plus for admission, however, good grades help you get a better admit. If a university has to decide between you and another similar candidate, your grades can give you the edge over the other student..

COMPETITIVE EXAM SCORES / ENTRANCE TEST

For STEM programs, one should target a 165+ score in quantitative reasoning to secure a scholarship. Similarly, individual module scores in TOEFL might help a student to be shortlisted for a teaching or research assistantship in USA universities.

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Apart from good grades, if you engage in some sports/social cause or voluntary work, it reflects a good overall performance and awareness for social activities in your resume to impress the university or the scholarship body. This will be an added advantage to getting a scholarship in the USA universities.

RELEVANT INTERNSHIPS AND WORK EXPERIENCE

Master’s programs usually do not require any work experience. Even though work experience is not mandatory, having completed internships or having relevant work experience will always be beneficial to the student to get scholarships from USA universities. This allows the faculty members to appoint such students for research or teaching assistantship positions in USA universities. For MBA programs, work experience in a relevant sector for at least two years is recommended.



TALK TO YOUR COUNSELOR

Be frank with your counsellor and let them guide you through the entire procedure of scholarship to get admission to the USA universities. Please be assured that your counsellor at Imperial will do their best to guide you correctly to get the best possible aid for your higher education. Talk to our counsellor now.



PLAN IN ADVANCE

You must plan well in advance about what you would like to study and accordingly look through the various options of scholarships available to students at the USA universities and apply before the deadlines.



HOW DOES IMPERIAL OVERSEAS SUPPORT INDIAN STUDENTS TO AVAIL SCHOLARSHIPS FOR THE USA UNIVERSITIES?

At Imperial Overseas, we provide a list of scholarships for a student to choose from and apply for. We also guide students with the required documents for them to have a good chance of acquiring the scholarship. We help the student understand the requirement of every university to have a good shot at explaining their accomplishments to the scholarship committee. Thus, students are enabled to get the best financial aid from all available sources. At Imperial Overseas, students have got scholarships for not just PhD programs but also bachelor’s and master’s degrees. The scholarships for bachelor’s and master’s courses range from as minimum as 10% of tuition fees to being fully-funded in some cases.

WHY CHOOSE IMPERIAL OVERSEAS TO STUDY IN THE USA

  • DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED

    Every university application requires basic documents like a Statement of Purpose (SOP), Letters of Recommendation (LORs), Resume, etc. Your counsellor at Imperial will help you prepare these documents to reflect your potential for studying a particular course at your dream university.

  • UNIVERSITY APPLICATIONS FOR INDIAN STUDENTS TO STUDY IN THE USA

    Every university application has to be completed before the deadlines for international students. Each section has to be filled in accurately and counsellors at Imperial will verify all the details mentioned in the application before you proceed with submission.

  • FINANCIAL DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED TO STUDY IN THE USA

    Being an Indian student applying for USA universities, one needs to submit financial documents to start with the VISA process. Your counsellor at Imperial will guide you in preparing those documents and also verify those before submission.

  • VISA PROCESS FOR INDIAN STUDENTS TO STUDY IN THE USA

    The VISA process is one of the most important processes in the entire counselling procedure. So, one needs to be fully prepared with all documents and answers to relevant visa interview questions. At Imperial, the counsellor helps the student in all these aspects.

  • POST VISA ASSISTANCE

    Even after the student gets the VISA, our assistance doesn’t stop. Counsellors at Imperial connect students going to the same university for helping them get suitable room-mates for off-campus accommodation. We also connect students with our tie-up partners for flight ticket booking, foreign exchange, insurance and accommodation requirements. At Imperial, we also guide students on suitable precautions for respective locations by connecting them with our past students at the same university. We also help students with a packing list, dos and don’ts as well as other relevant instructions which will help the student start their higher education most smoothly.

FAQ

FAQ

Can Indian students get full scholarships in the USA?

Indian students can get a full scholarship for academic programs in the USA. But a lot depends on the student’s overall academic profile, entrance exam scores, relevant internship and work experience as well as participation in co-curricular and extracurricular activities. There are several such scenarios where Indian students have received a full scholarship. This has been possible not just for PhD programs but also for masters’ programs. To get more information about this, talk to our counsellor now.

Many USA universities do not require Indian students to apply for the scholarship separately. Instead, the online application for the academic program is considered for awarding scholarships too. To be eligible for such scholarships, Indian students are advised to complete their applications as early as possible. Deadlines for such applications are usually called early deadlines or priority deadlines. Additionally, the USA universities which have a separate process to award scholarships ask the Indian students to submit a separate application with documents like a scholarship essay to decide on awarding scholarships. For more information regarding the same, talk to our counsellor now.

Scholarships are available for both STEM programs as well as non-STEM programs. STEM programs are more popular in the USA for Indian students as they offer an extended two-year stay back after the initial one-year OPT.

Scholarships are available for non-STEM programs too and Indian students can apply for them along with their USA university applications.

The scholarships are awarded by the Admissions Committee of USA universities based on the overall student profile. It includes academic profile, entrance exam scores, relevant internship and work experience, etc. Applying before the priority deadlines will help Indian students to land a better admit as well as scholarships from USA universities.

Internships and work experience is not mandatory for pursuing a master’s program in USA universities. However, having an internship experience or professional exposure certainly improves the chances of getting admitted to USA universities. Work experience will also be beneficial in getting scholarships in terms of teaching or research assistantships based on the experience of the student.

Scholarship opportunities in USA universities vary from university to university. One should keep looking for available options in merit-based scholarships provided by the university, specific to their area of studies as well as the student’s background.

A good score on the GRE improves the chances of getting a scholarship from USA universities. Guaranteeing a scholarship is difficult as it usually depends on the student’s merit in the incoming batch.

English Proficiency exam is a must for studying in USA universities. A good score on this exam reflects well on a student’s communication skills in terms of reading, writing, speaking and listening. These scores are taken into consideration to decide whether a student is shortlisted for teaching and research assistantship positions as these skills are very important in such positions.

For USA universities, students are recommended to complete 16 years (12 + 4) of education. For students with a 3-year bachelor’s background, one can apply for a master’s program in a few universities where 15 years (12 + 3) of education is accepted. Such universities are few which reduces the number of options for such students. Scholarships are dependent on the merit of the student irrespective of whether one has completed 16 years or 15 years of education. One must always verify the admission criteria of the university before applying for a master’s program.