daughter wants to study in america

magoogy

my daughter has it into her head she wants to study in texas - how do i find out what is involved in helping her if this is really what she wants to do?

Darksun

Does she want to do a full course in America?

Many UK universities offer exchange programmes where you can spend a year abroad studying, I know people who have gone to France and Norway, and have friends planning on going to the US and Australia next year. You usually get a grant from the university for this so you don't have to pay the tuition fees to the forign university.

I expect it'd be quite costly to study in a US university otherwise, unless she manages to get sponsorship or a grant or something. Probably the careers/university advice service at the 6th form college would be able to provide the best information.

point3

I'm curious. Is there a particular course only available in Texas that she has decided to do? Or is it the idea of living in the USA that appeals?

I think you should get some estimates of college fees and living costs first to see if this is financially feasible. Then there is the extra work for SATs...

jenniferpa

Texas? Why Texas? Oh well. 1) She'll need a visa. This will probably not allow her to work, just be a full time student. However, before that she'll need an admission acceptance. In the US this is normally done on the basis of SAT's, grades, extra curricular activities, possibly also an essay, depending on the school. The time frame is rather different as well. Final offers for the 2006/2007 school year have already gone out, although some schools may still have places. As a foreign student you will have to pay all fees (well you do anyway as a US national) and there are very few scholarships available for foreign students. Financial Aid is really only forthcoming from the wealthiest of schools for foreign nationals, and even then, diversity is the key. In order to get the visa, she will have to show that she can support herself while she is here. Currently, for example, the cost of attending the University of Texas Austen is around $30,000 per year for an international student (fees + living expenses).

Have I put you off yet?

If you need further info either post here or PM me. I'm a UK national living in the US, with a daughter at university so I've done this to a certain extent.

Jennifer

magoogy

i am really put off the idea anyway but i wont slip on her dreams - ive promised her i will help her all she wants to the extent i can help....

she is 17 in her first year at 6th form doing an i.b diploma - she came home and mentioned they have been told they need to apply to do their sats if they want to go to houston, texas, but where she was told that i dont know......

thanks for help - im going to tell her to get on to her careers advisor...

jenniferpa

Yes, well mine wanted at one point to go to University back in the U.K. For us, it wouldn't have been much more expensive. However, she decided to wait and consider it for graduate school, which is fine.

Jennifer

melancholly

i don't know how many of the links on this page will help - it's from the cambridge university reporter and lists a whole load of possible scholarships. section E is likely to be the most useful (and you don't need to be a cambridge student for a lot of them, it's just the best list of possibilities that i've seen - hope they aren't all postgraduate!)

http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/reporter/2005-06/special/06/

jenniferpa

Something I should also mention, in case you're not aware of it: undergraduate (i.e. BA or BSc) take 4 years to complete in the US. Some schools will give credit for an IB diploma, but it depends on the school. Also, the US college system does not specialise to the same extent as the UK. Most schools now have five or six areas such as maths, science etc that have to be covered quite apart from the area of the desired major. This is often called core or general education requirements.

Jennifer