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Postgrad study in the USA - both fun and funded?
With over 1700 institutions offering postgraduate degrees in a multitude of subject areas, it is easy to see why hundreds of thousands of international students go to the USA. In addition to being able to work with worldrenowned faculty in state-of-theart facilities, there are funding sources that can make going to the States an affordable option. However, before making plans, it is important that students understand what is involved.
The structure of a US postgraduate degree differs from those of the UK, Australia and several other countries. There are no pure research degrees. Masters and PhD programmes will always involve a combination of research and taught courses and the evaluation of performance continuously assessed through classroom participation, examinations and papers.While this may produce a workload that some students often find heavy and highly structured, the US system is also flexible.
Aisling Conboy, an advisor at the US Education Advisory Service, US-UK Fulbright Commission (EAS), is a graduate of Central Michigan University’s masters programme in history. She states, “By meeting regularly with other students on my course I made good friends and also could discuss the coursework and reading with other students, rather than simply discussing class issues with professors alone. Often times, talking with other students would motivate me and also was a good resource in terms of finding out about relevant books or articles.” Additionally, programmes will often allow students to take courses outside their own departments and interdisciplinary degrees are also offered.
The academic year in the US lasts nine months and is divided into terms. The number of terms per year varies depending on which system the university follows. The most common is the semester system, which breaks the academic year into two terms, usually called “Fall” and “Spring” semesters. Universities express their postgraduate coursework requirements in terms of a specified number of “credits”, “hours” or “units”. Each individual course taken each semester is worth a certain number of credits, hours or units. A realistic full-time course load for a postgraduate student is likely to be 24 semester hours, which translates to between three and four courses per term.
However, before being able to attend a US university, students should be aware that the process of applying to US universities can seem arduous and expensive. EAS recommends that students interested in pursuing postgraduate study in the US, begin researching 18 months before they plan to enrol. In addition to the application forms, students will be expected to complete essays, get recommendations, provide transcripts and take admission tests. Simon Ruben, New York University applicant, says, “However hard and long the application process was, I knew that the quality of the degree would be the best thing for my ambitions. It was worth the hard work!” In the first instance, students should begin by identifying courses in their subject area. EAS has compiled over 100 lists of universities according to field of study and holds a large collection of general and subject-specific directories in its reference library. Another good source of information is the internet. Links to these sites can be found at www.fulbright.co.uk/eas.
It is recommend that a student apply to between three to six universities, as applying to one or two can be risky if an application is rejected or no funding is available, while applying to too many institutions will increase one’s workload and expense.When choosing where to apply, things to consider include; location, university size, tuition fees, and number of international students. The most important factor for postgraduate study, particularly for PhD study, is to make sure the department is a good match for your particular area of interest. Additionally, students should be realistic about their chances of admission and look at any minimum test scores, general criteria and discuss any concerns with the department directly. US universities are keen to get a total picture of each applicant and, while obviously wanting students with the best academic records, will also take into consideration other factors which may affect academic performance. In other words, they will look at potential as much as grades.
