Studying for a year abroad in America (requirements, student, campus)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
What if I brought my parents over and paid $1,500 a month?
How much is a 2/3 bedroom condo? Would $4,500 be enough?
This is nuts.
Discussing prices now - post-Brexit AND knowing you are not coming for two year - is ridiculous.
Things will changes drastically in the meantime.
Your 7000 pounds is now less than $9700... and that will be gone withing three months with the parameters you are stipulating.
Unless your parents carry US passports or appropriate visas their only option is ESTA (if qualified) or B2 (up to 180 days and to answer your question - a trip to Cuba, Mexico, Canada, ... will not reset the clock.). What are they supposed to do in the equation?
I contacted 70 Pines for giggles.
I think you have not thought this through from visa to rent to medical to transportation. Considering Brex your 7k budget just changed.
OP, listen to Threestep's ^^^ advice. You are living in a dream world about immigration laws (your parents can't live here) US expenses (your estimates are way too low) and your lifestyle desires (townhouse).
Unless your parents carry US passports or appropriate visas their only option is ESTA (if qualified) or B2 (up to 180 days and to answer your question - a trip to Cuba, Mexico, Canada, ... will not reset the clock.). What are they supposed to do in the equation?
I contacted 70 Pines for giggles.
I think you have not thought this through from visa to rent to medical to transportation. Considering Brex your 7k budget just changed.
Well why go then? You won't get the entire experience.
You posted in another thread about British students being clique'ish, why not give it a try at a USA college with shared accommodation?
--
Living in single room again next school yr? You posted last fall regretting not getting shared accommodation/being too lonely.
College life is short, make the most of it while you can. Don't make the mistake and look back 10 years down the road thinking "what if". I regret not taking full advantage of it my first few years and many others I know have too.
I could post on and on, and it didn't sink in last year when I did so, so why will it now?
7k may seem like a lot to you. Lodging, food, insurance, transportation not to mention some fun (Do you know what cover charge for a club or just a drink will run you; not a date just hanging out?). Then add tuition, books, labs, field trips. US dollar, Euro, UK pound, Brexit, .... no matter which way you twist it it is not enough to live in a US metro as single for a year. Especially for someone who shows up with a suitcase or two. Your laptop or your IPhone bite the dust. What is your plan? You get robbed. What is the plan? You are laid up with a medical problem. What is the plan?
A US metro is not small town UK. You may have been in the US as HS student but you did not face day to day challenges and decisions. Food was in the fridge. Laundry was done. Transportation was available.
Personally I find your snootiness about urban areas, education and way of life outside of your experience range somewhat entertaining. If the purpose of this year is top education in your field you may have to bite the bullet and hang out with the folks who according to you have what comes out of the south end of a north bound kangaroo between their toes. If you want to have the classic Hollywood student experience in Big Town USA you will be a very small fish as you will not be able to build the ties you will need if you plan to get into the employment market. Do you golf, fish, waterski, climb, shoot, dance, ride bikes, ... anything useful?
Some obscure school says "not to worry". Great! Let them figure things out for you. Your potential budget just took a major cut and the rules for student visas are not likely to change in the near future. Grants/scholar ships for international students are few and far between.
If your folks get B2 approved the officer at point of entry may grant them up to 180 days in the US as tourists. Working from home is considered employment so let's not think about it. Yes, extension of 180 days is possible. What pressing reason does not allow them to return to the UK? Do you plan to stretch your 7k to cover three people?
Good luck! You really need to get out of your bubble and plan this with real numbers and facts.
7k may seem like a lot to you. Lodging, food, insurance, transportation not to mention some fun (Do you know what cover charge for a club or just a drink will run you; not a date just hanging out?). Then add tuition, books, labs, field trips. US dollar, Euro, UK pound, Brexit, .... no matter which way you twist it it is not enough to live in a US metro as single for a year. Especially for someone who shows up with a suitcase or two. Your laptop or your IPhone bite the dust. What is your plan? You get robbed. What is the plan? You are laid up with a medical problem. What is the plan?
A US metro is not small town UK. You may have been in the US as HS student but you did not face day to day challenges and decisions. Food was in the fridge. Laundry was done. Transportation was available.
Personally I find your snootiness about urban areas, education and way of life outside of your experience range somewhat entertaining. If the purpose of this year is top education in your field you may have to bite the bullet and hang out with the folks who according to you have what comes out of the south end of a north bound kangaroo between their toes. If you want to have the classic Hollywood student experience in Big Town USA you will be a very small fish as you will not be able to build the ties you will need if you plan to get into the employment market. Do you golf, fish, waterski, climb, shoot, dance, ride bikes, ... anything useful?
Some obscure school says "not to worry". Great! Let them figure things out for you. Your potential budget just took a major cut and the rules for student visas are not likely to change in the near future. Grants/scholar ships for international students are few and far between.
If your folks get B2 approved the officer at point of entry may grant them up to 180 days in the US as tourists. Working from home is considered employment so let's not think about it. Yes, extension of 180 days is possible. What pressing reason does not allow them to return to the UK? Do you plan to stretch your 7k to cover three people?
Good luck! You really need to get out of your bubble and plan this with real numbers and facts.
My parents can afford to look after themselves.
I have already stated that I have only £1,500 to pay at the end of my degree towards the year abroad so there is little to NO tuition for me to pay.
I did not include a grant or scholarship in my plans, this is the UK we don't generally do scholarships and you have to have a very low household income to get a grant. I don't expect any form of support.
Personally, I find your attitude to be obnoxious and patronizing. Looking down on me because i'm 20 years of age and apparently have no experience of living in other countries. Of course, I didn't think Miami was cheap, I was just checking out to see how far my minimum budget could go in terms of accommodation.
There are at least 10 other universities for me to consider and this is still 2 years away, my mind will probably change and I may not go to Miami.
Last edited by Giveandtake; 06-26-2016 at 12:22 PM..
To be Blunt, IMO, you are going about this all wrong.
You want to study meteorology. Unless you are going to an Ivy League, then you don't want to be near a city. Forget the clubs and "the action." If you are truly serious about your subject, then you want to take advantage of being in North America and study the terrain, the environment, the atmosphere, the climate. Action for you, should be camping trips. Absolutely consider the midwest, preferably a school in one of the tornado alley states where you would get first hand experience with tornado chasing. You want opportunities to do research and field work with a great professor and a great lab. You want, no, MUST, get your name on a published paper. It's a competitive field. You want to have an opportunity, if not some sort of internship with NOAA or NASA. If not tornado alley, then look at schools in Colorado. Check out the summer program for college students at RIMBL. The other choice would be a school in the west, New Mexico, Arizona, California. Not so much the east coast unless you have some sort of affiliation program with NASA. Yes, you want to travel, to experience the outdoors, the various landscapes across the US, go hiking, so different from Europe.
If you are serious about this field, then you absolutely need to continue to graduate school, preferably an American one for an American PhD.
This is an opportunity for networking, meeting professors who can help you with your career. Pick the best possible school for your field that will accept you.
Take advantage of having the American college experience. That means living in a dorm. It's not about sharing with roommates, it's about those special days when the dorm celebrates Halloween or Mardi Gras or Thanksgiving, or whatever. You can eat campus food without the meal plan, but why not get a small meal plan. You don't have to get a full meal plan for 3 meals a day. Campus dining can be fun with special events for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, open Buffet dinner, etc. It's not just showing up and putting your food on a tray. Do you want to experience authentic Americana culture. Go to a campus football game. You don't have to know or even like football to enjoy the experience. Go to a college basketball game. These things are BIG deals. Go to a frat house as a guest. Join clubs. All of this stuff happens on campus and some schools, especially in the midwest are like major cities themselves, Ohio State University, Michigan State. These campuses are bigger than a European city. You will meet people from all over on campus. Befriend people and they will invite you to stay with them for spring break, winter break, etc. Pick a school that attracts students from all over the country.
Forget Miami. You won't learn anything about the USA from Miami. You'll learn about Cuba. Go west or go to the midwest. Again, pick a school with the best meteorology program. Make connections. Come back here for grad school or enroll in a European school for grad work and come to the US for some field work for your research project. Well-regarded graduate work is selective, competitive, and fully funded in the US. But you need to get good research experience during your last 2-3 years of undergrad school, if you want to be taken seriously in your selected field.
I also wanted to add that if you live on campus, you will not have to pay for internet service. While a little less convenient, some students do manage to make do with the computer available in school libraries,the student center/union, other campus sites. My kids never bought a printer. They took a flash drive and printed everything out at the library for free. The libraries are open early in the morning and stay open late during the week. Where to live really depends on the school. In general, upperclassmen live off campus and in some places, there is a shortage of dormitories so that may not even be an option for you, coming in after freshman year. Then there are other schools which either forbid or discourage all students from living off campus. It all depends.
Edited to add: American students who wish to study abroad face the same problem. Their own university tuition can be applied towards the foreign university, but it does not cover room and board. They have to pay for that on their own. The American univerisities will usually assist students with finding housing. Often it means renting a room in a home with an American family or it can mean a large group of students renting an entire house off-campus. Stay away from LA, NY, Washington DC, etc. and there are places where you can rent a room or a house share for $200-$300 a month. Please don't miss the natural beauty of our country when you are here. Go see one of our huge National Parks and camp out under the stars, winter, summer, spring, and fall. See where our Buffalo roamed, and our lakes and streams-this coming from an urban New Yorker.
I'm a student at a British university, I have the choice of doing a year abroad there in about 2 years. I love the country but I am unsure of the logistics of moving there. I don't know if it's a wise idea? I'm probably only going to be able to bring £7,000, I don't know if that's anywhere near enough funds (probably isn't). It says online that the UK government will fund 4 return flights so I guess thats the flights covered.
I've been looking at Miami and it's absolutely crazy how expensive it is there, with my entire budget I would not get a one bedroom studio apartment. I am unsure of what is available for students, I don't know what kind of prices the rooms are or whether or not I would be able to even get one.
My university has told us literally nothing about this so I don't have a clue how much money I would need. I have asked professors how much would be needed but they wouldn't discuss it and said 'don't worry'. But for me I have to start saving now in order to have the funds so I need to know how much finance is needed. It's no use telling me three weeks before we're going.
All I know is that my university will fund the year abroad course and I am only required to pay 15% of my annual fees.
As Americans would you advise a foreigner to come to your country and live for a year? Baring in mind that I will not be allowed to work and will have limited finances by the end of my time.
Why won't you be allowed to work? Can't you get a temporary worker's permit? I've known foreigners (both full time and exchange students) who had campus jobs.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
