myUface Blog

This fascinating article shows how a quality education can open doors for you all over the world.  It’s about graduates from U.S. MBA programs seeking work in Asia:

At premiere institutions such as the University of Chicago’s Booth School, the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, and Northwestern’s Kellogg, the percentage of MBAs taking jobs in Asia . . .has more than doubled in the past five years, from roughly 5% of the graduating class to more than 10%.

The article is specifically about business school graduates, but the principle holds for a quality education at any level:  it opens doors for you, not only in your own country, or in the country where you are studying, but all over the world.

Here’s an excerpt from a video on culture shock.  In it, international students share their experiences with studying in the U.S.  It’s an interesting window into culture shock.

Over the past week we’ve had hundreds and hundreds of new users visit the site.  I wanted to take a moment and share with you some resources we have that may be of interest to you:

First, we have two myUface guides:

1. The Advantages and Disadvantages of a University Education in the United States
2. Looking for a University in the United States

You can donwload both of these guides (for free of course) here.

Second, you should check out our Series:

1. Should you study in the U.S.? A comprehensive and honest guide to the benefits and disadvantages of a U.S. education (April 2009).
2. Looking for a U.S. University – All of the information you should consider in selecting a U.S. university – including some things you may not have thought about (May 2009).
3. Finding Financial Aid for your U.S. Education – Need help paying for a U.S. education?  Here’s a guide to how to look for and secure financial support.  It’s not easy, but it’s worth a try (June / July 2009)!
4. Preparing For A Visa Interview – A three part series on the misconceptions many students have about student visa interviews (July 2009).
5. Universities in the Fifty States – we look at what it would be like to live as an international student in each of the fifty states.
6. Writing Essays for University Applications – full of advice on how to write, edit and submit an essay with your university application.

After some time dancing around the internet, I stumbled across this collection of basic information about culture shock and how to deal with it.  The website isn’t the fanciest you’ve seen, but the information is good.

I hope you find it useful.

The goal of the myUface blog is to collect, in one place, useful information for international students interested in studying in the Unisted States.  For new visitors to the blog, I wanted to create a quick list of the highlights from previous blog posts.

• We started out discussing the benefits and disadvatages of studying in the U.S.
  
• We talked about how you might go about looking for a U.S. university.
• We started a podcast.
• We looked at the idea behind financial aid and also provided you with loads of advice on how to find some.
• We explored university rankings and their limitations.
• We provided summer and fall timelines for preparing an application to a U.S. university.
• We shared our perspective about how to prepare for visa interviews.
• We began to look at the fifty states and what it might be like to study in each of them.
• We discussed how you might handle rejection by a U.S. university (and we hoped you wouldn’t have to).

This is just the beginning.  We’re going to keep sharing as much information as possible in the hope of helping you attain your dream of studying in the U.S.

Please remember to share your questions and comments with us as often as possible.  You can leave a comment on any blog post, and you can always e-mail us at blog@myuface.com.

For anyone who wants a quick eight minute guide to why it is so, SO important to internationalize your education, I highly recommend the following video, produced in June 2007.  The message I take away?  Education, education, education.  Your education is the best investment you will ever make.

What do you think?  I’d love to hear your impressions of the film:

Got some great questions for the mailbag today, folks.  Let’s get right to them:

I want to study in the U.S. but I have heard it’s too expensive.

Universities in the U.S. charge very high tuition, but there are programs that offer scholarships or that have very reasonable prices. For example, many students begin their academic life in the states at community colleges, and then transfer to a traditional four year university after two years. This saves money.

Do I have to be rich to go to university in the U.S.?

No. Although it will probably take a significant amount of money to study in the U.S., you can find ways of helping pay for your education, such as scholarships. myUface.com doesn’t offer scholarships, but many of our university partners do.

Is getting into a U.S. university difficult?

No. Absolutely not. Studying at a U.S. university is just as simple as studying at a university in any other country. Anyone who tells you differently has an agenda.

We admit, it can seem that getting into a U.S. university is an impossible task. But that’s why myUface.com exists – to show you that, in reality, your dream of studying in the U.S. is completely realistic.

I’ve heard of Harvard, Yale, and a few other U.S. universities. What are the other ones like?

One of the great strengths of the U.S. university system is the sheer number of U.S. universities that exist. Many people have heard of Harvard, but few know that Harvard isn’t even considered a very good school in a number of important fields. Another thing to remember is that in the U.S. educational system a lot of learning happens outside of the classroom. The community in which your university is located is just as important as the university itself. Every university has strengths and weaknesses and what is a good fit for one person will not be a good fit for another. Therefore, don’t concentrate only on the “famous” universities. Use tools such as myUface.com to understand the full breadth of the U.S. university system.

And don’t worry. There’s an institution out there that is perfect for you!

E-mail your questions to blog@myuface.com.

In this week’s podcast we are coming to you from Tirana, Albania.  We use the opportunity to discuss the views of Albanian students on the issue of whether to study at home or abroad.  Hope you enjoy it!

As always, send us your questions at podcast@myuface.com.

Other Podcasts

1. Podcast: Asking Questions - 18 Jul
2. Podcast: Give Yourself Time To Complete Your Application - 13 Jun
3. Podcast: What to Do if your Application is not Accepted - 06 Jun
4. Podcast - The View from Albania (This post)
5. Podcast: University Rankings - 16 May
6. Podcast: Timeline for Applying to a U.S. University - 09 May
7. The Inaugural myUface Podcast - 02 May

I’m happy to announce the release of our first myUface student guide,“The Advantages and Disadvantages of University Study in the United States.”

It’s a compilation of some of our early blog work about the advantages and disadvantages of study in the U.S.

Enjoy!

the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-university-study-in-the-united-states

Once a week, every Saturday, I will be putting out a podcast. The goal of the podcast will be to cover the  subjects of the week in audio form, with guests occasionally.

On the first podcast the  co-founders of myUface joined me to talk about the reasons why they think international students should study in the U.S. The first podcast is right here.

If you like the podcast and want us to answer one of your questions on it, please send me your questions at podcast@myuface.com.

Other Podcasts

1. Podcast: Asking Questions - 18 Jul
2. Podcast: Give Yourself Time To Complete Your Application - 13 Jun
3. Podcast: What to Do if your Application is not Accepted - 06 Jun
4. Podcast - The View from Albania - 23 May
5. Podcast: University Rankings - 16 May
6. Podcast: Timeline for Applying to a U.S. University - 09 May
7. The Inaugural myUface Podcast (This post)