Leaving on a jet plane!
United States India Education Foundation (EducationUSA) provides student aspirants with detailed information on study in the US
Which are some important websites that students can use to compare different universities? https://educationusa.state.gov
EducationUSA is a US Department of State network of over 400 international student advising centers in more than 170 countries. The network promotes US higher education to students around the world by offering accurate, comprehensive, and current information about opportunities to study at accredited postsecondary institutions in the United States. EducationUSA also provides services to the US higher education community to help institutional leaders meet their recruitment and campus internationalization goals. EducationUSA is the official source on US higher education.
http://chea.org/
The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) is a primary national voice for accreditation and quality assurance to the US Congress and the US Department of Education, and is a representative of the US accreditation community to international audiences.
Accreditation in higher education is a collegial process of self-review and peer review for improvement of academic quality and public accountability of institutions and programmes. This quality review process occurs on a periodic basis, usually every 3 to 10 years.
https://www.petersons.com/
The Peterson’s databases include over 50,000 accredited Schools and Programs, and over 5,000 Scholarships. Use the search tools to find the school, programme, or scholarship.
https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org
The Bigfuture website contains a number of filters that can be used to search for undergraduate programmes in the US that are the best fit for the student, including information about universities that offer scholarships to international students.
Which universities are good for popular courses of study? Are there any new courses that are increasing in popularity lately? What are the new trends in the educational space?
There are no universities that are good or bad. EducationUSA recommends students apply to any accredited US University as long as it is the best-fit for their own academic and professional goals.
As per the Open Doors report, the top five fields of study for students from India in 2015 are: 1. Engineering (37.5%) 2. Math/Computer Science (31.45) 3. Business/Management (10.7%) 4. Physical/Life Sciences (7.9%) 5. Health Professions (3.65)
Data Science and Business Analytics programmes are relatively new courses that are growing in popularity with Indian students especially for graduate studies.
What are the low cost affordable stay options for students, if any? Are there any Indian community organizations that are recognized to help Indian students in the US?
It is recommended that graduate students connect with the International Student Office at the university that they will be attending for housing options. The International Student Office may maintain a list of realtors in the area from which students can rent apartments. For undergraduate students, usually they will have to stay on campus for the first year of their studies unless they are attending a Community College.
Can you elaborate on any tie-up programmes between Indian and US universities?
The US Embassy and Consulate’s education team is working to make it easier for American and Indian universities to find and connect with one another and
create partnerships.
Partnerships and joint projects between Indian and US higher education institutions has been making major advances in science, business, health, agriculture, and other sectors while strengthening civil society in both countries. The US-India Higher Education Dialogue has enhanced opportunities for student and scholar mobility and faculty collaboration between the United States and India, as well as exchanges on technology-enabled learning.
India and the United States also intend to establish a knowledge partnership to exchange expertise and best practices to develop nationwide skills, standards and institutional structures. In addition, the Government of India will explore publicprivate partnerships with US businesses to set up skills development units in industrial hubs, with the aim to train up to 80,000 workers per year. The Community College collaboration between the American Association of Community Colleges and the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) will enhance economic opportunities in India by adopting the community college education model, best practices in skills development and improving workforce training.
A number of US universities have signed MOUs with Indian universities to facilitate the exchange of students and faculty between the universities.
Are students allowed to work in the United States?
The Optional Practical Training (OPT) is a period during which undergraduate and graduate students who have completed or have been pursuing their degrees for more than nine months are permitted by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to work for one year on a student visa towards getting practical training to complement their education. Students who graduate with a degree in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) fields, in addition to their regular one year OPT, can apply for an additional two years extension of their OPT i.e. students in the STEM fields are eligible for three years of work experience in the United States.