United States is one of the best destinations for higher education in the world. This article will clarify all the aspects of higher education in the US to the Indian students.

1. Higher Education Options for Indian
Students in the United States

2.  TheUnitedStatesisamongthemostpreferreddestinationforhighereducationin theworld.
 Due to the presence of a plethora of study and work opportunities, the United States is also
knownasthe“LandofOpportunities”.
 During 2013-14, the US welcomed almost 9 lakh international students. Hence the United States
isoneofthebestdestinationsforhighereducationin theworld.
 Thisarticlewill clarifyall theaspectsofhighereducationin theUS totheIndianstudents.
Introduction

3. Types of Higher EducationDegrees in the US
In the United States, there are four types of degrees offered. These degrees can be done successively.
Following arethetypes of degrees offered inthe US:
 Associate Degree: Associate degrees are two year undergraduate programmes that prepare a student for
a particular career or for a bachelor’s degree. Students undertake associate degrees to earn more credits
for abachelor’sdegree althoughcertainjobs requireonly anassociatedegree.
 Bachelor’s Degree: Bachelor’s Degree is a four year undergraduate program that provided more in depth
study of a given major. It is an extension of an associate degree. Completion of a bachelor’s degree will
make you eligible to do master degrees. Bachelor’s degrees include Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bachelor of
Business Administration(BBA) andBachelorof Science (BS).

4. Higher EducationDegrees in the US
 Master’s Degree: Master’s Degree is a two year post graduate program that is pursued after the
completion of the Bachelor Degree. It provides further in depth study of the majors opted by
students in the Bachelor’s degree. It prepares a student for the doctoral programmes. Examples of
Masters Degrees include Master of Science (MS), Master of Business Administration (MBA) and
MasterofArts (MA).
 Doctoral degrees: The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) degree is the highest academic degree offered
to the students. To pursue a doctoral degree in a particular field, a student will need to have a
master’s degree in that same field. It involves writing a dissertation based on research and advanced
study of the subjects. A Ph.D. will take three to six years to complete based on the nature and
complexityoftheresearch thesis.

5. Typesof EducationalInstitutions in theUnitedStates
In theUnitedStatestherearetwomaintypesofeducationalinstitutions.Theyare:
 CommunityCollege: A community college isa college thatprovidesgeneral and technical associate
degrees.Studentsaspiring to doanassociatedegreetoearn additionalcreditsfora Bachelor’sdegree
usually come to community colleges. Community college courses are very affordable and many
studentsuse communitycollege coursestoearncredits forafouryearbachelordegrees.
 University: A university is an educational institution that primarily provides bachelors, masters and
doctoral programmes. Students aspiring to further improve their academic credentials go to
universities. Those who are completing associate degrees in community colleges can go for
universitiestocompletetheirbachelordegrees.

6. Types of Admissions
 Fall Admissions: Fall admissions starts in late August to ends in late December. Most universities
entertain applications only during the fall semester. Student will get more number of course options
during the fall admissions. Also, most of the students will apply fall admissions as their
undergraduateprogramsendsin June.Hence, mostofthestudentsoptforFall Admissions.
 Spring Admissions: Spring admissions starts in early January to ends in early May. The courses
offered for the spring admissions will be lesser in number. Almost 25% of universities in the U.S do
not have any spring admissions for a majority of the courses they offer. Many universities do not
provide for financial aids during the spring semester. The applicants who were not offered
admissions during the fall but the university wants to have the applicant as a student are provided
delayedadmissionduringthespring.

7. Application Guidelines and Requirements
You will need to give your TOEFL and SAT exam for admission into the various courses and GMAT
foradmissionintoMBAprogrammes.
 Application Forms: It is better to send inquiries at least 18 months before the date of admission.
Students can request application forms via e-mail, air mail or students can go to the
universities/college’s websiteanddownloadtheapplicationform.
 Academic Records: Students are required to submit their school certificates for admission into
undergraduate programmes. The acceptable degrees include Indian School Certificate, Intermediate
Certificate, Higher School Certificate, Higher Secondary Certificate, and All India Senior School
Certificate & their degree certificate from any recognized university for admission into post graduate
ordoctoralprogrammes.

8. Application Guidelines and Requirements
 Letter of Recommendation: Not all universities require a recommendation letter but providing one will
increase chances of admission. A recommendation letter is to be provided by a person who has taught the
student or knows the student professionally. It must state the student’s positive and negative qualities and
strengths. The author must also state his/her position and for how long he/she has known the students
andtowhatcapacity.
 Statement of Purpose: A statement of purpose must also be provided. It is an essay written by the
applicant stating why he/she wants to do the course from that particular university. It is given high
amountsof consideration bytheuniversityinselecting its candidates.
 Financial Aid application: If the student wants to apply for financial aid or any scholarships, the student
must submit therelevantapplications.
 Student Visa: Thestudentwishing tostudyin theUS mustapply for F Class USA non-immigrantvisa.

9. In conclusion,the US is a wonderful country to study in thanks to the high quality of universities and
availabilityofa plethoraofjob opportunities.All thebest!!!
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College Admission,studyin US,US scholarship

10. ThankYou