A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

Society Business and Career
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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

Yeah like driving a cab or working in a desi restaurant or gas station at wages lower than minimum wages.

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

Well, if the shoe fits...
You're not restricted to 20 hours (at minimum wage)

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.. my husband was on full scholarship with his masters but he did odd jobs as in working at the dollar store, gas station, computer labs etc to support himself financially.. and he was all legal in the US.. there isnt much to do for students in this economy!!

I worked at JC penney in the evenings and on weekends to pay for car and insurance etc... I was allowed to work legally off campus but in a small town there werent many jobs so anything was better than nothing!!

not all of us have rich parents giving us money for everything... I had to support my education and my expanses when my dad passed away and I wasnt even 18 yet!!!

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

I was here first on a student visa too, no scholarships, and worked my way through it all. When something needs to get done you don't ask questions.

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

I am not too familiar with that program but some great public universities with solid engineering programs are UT Austin, Virginia Tech, Purdue, Georgia Institute of Technology, UIUC.

Here is a website with some more information about rankings and so on that you might find useful: http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

often the tuition is waived or halved, and then a stipend given. waiving tuition is easier because its just possible income the uni is not getting rather than giving actual cash out. in my experience the stipends are low but costs are covered. and then the additional part time work provides cash as well. compared to teaching assistant position the research assistant roles are better. In some cases its general graduate assistant program where the student helps at admissions office or facilities etc.

attract better candidates, and attract candidates for programs for which there is corp, or give funding but not enough quality candidates to have the program rock n roll and do the type of research that may be expected. additionally, often local students take on loans or have companies paying their way through. If you were a professor who needed research assistants, will you pick someone just because they are american or someone better even if they are international students.

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

To save some cost, I should look for a school in Chicago. Because I have a Mamoon there. Kaafi sariyal hein. Hates me specially coz once I lost his “precious” engineering books :halo: which i am sure he was never going to read anyway coz he was retired by that time :grumpy: But for the sake of my MS, I will bear his karwi kaseelee for 2 yrs :frowning: - I know a secret, the way to his heart is thru his stomach. He enjoys good food. His wife being not desi, makes him tastless and actually “horrible” food. So yes if he agrees to keep me with him for these two yrs, i can cook him delicious desi food every day :smiley: -

I could not see my Boss in dubai yesterday. he is on business trip… :hinna:

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

your poor mamoo … bichre ko pata b nhi ho ga un ki teraf kiya taufan aane wala hai … haha j/k :wink:

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^ poor nahin hein woh :stuck_out_tongue:

Look i have found MIS program offered in Texas A&M:

http://mays.tamu.edu/info/prospective-info-students/ms-mis/

They have sent me the curriculum and fee structure. It is 18 months degree program and their fee structure is out of my samajh. I will get you the link later, plz tell me what does it say. :slight_smile:

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^ The program you’ve cited is known to be one of the most tech-heavy programs in MIS. See for yourself: http://mays.tamu.edu/info/current-info-students/ms-mis-students/ms-mis-curriculum/Based on your requirements, you should look for programs that are more about IS strategy… with courses in IS Project Mgmt, Systems Procurement, Business Process Reengineering, IT Staffing, IT Financing etc.

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^ achaaaa… I told the Uni the same thing that it seems to be very technical, which I am not. here is what they said:

**"Thank you for your interest in the MS-MIS program at Texas A&M University. To find out more about the program’s curriculum, please click on the following link: http://mays.tamu.edu/info/current-info-students/ms-mis-students/ms-mis-curriculum/

We have many students in our program that come from various majors. It is not a requirement to have a technical background in MIS in order for you to join our program.

Here is a link to the 2011-2012 tuition and fees chart: http://finance.tamu.edu/sbs/tuition/GR%20NonResident%20FY11-12.pdf

Please note that the tuition and fees are for the 2011-2012 academic year and are subject to change next year. Please let us know if you have any further questions."**

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

If you are going to apply at TAMU, might as well apply at UT or some other Tier 1 or 2 university in a big city. TAMU may be good, but you are stuck in a small city with limited options for everything. The thought of a small city may conjure up idealistic thoughts of something you may have seen in a movie about places in Massachusetts or Europe, but believe me this place is nothing like that.

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^ what is UT and Tier?

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

UT= university of texas
tiers.. well not all universities are created equal, so basically he is suggesting you look for good universities in larger cities

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^ Shukran :slight_smile:

See I found these two programs at Uni. of Texas at Dallas:

MS in Managment and Administrative Sciences:

http://som.utdallas.edu/graduate/masters/mgmtAdminScience/

MS in IT and Management:
http://som.utdallas.edu/graduate/masters/itm/programOverview.php

Couldnt find their fees on the site.

Admission requirements say, they need GMAT … why o why? :frowning: -Cant this be avoided some how?

As a prerequisite course, they need knowledge of Calculus and for that they have suggested some courses. I have done Mathematics till 10th Grade. Later while doing Masters in Economics, studied Mathmatics, Advance Maths and Statistics for two yrs. Will it be enough? :halo:

TOEFL I will do before this year ends inshAllah.

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

I found some info regaring calculus requisition: It is under the FAQ:

http://som.utdallas.edu/somResources/advising/gradFaq.php

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

ut dallas and ut austin are not the same.
look up UT austin.

GMAT is a requirement for most AACSB accredited MBA programs

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

^ I know they are not same. but I found these programs good at UTD. I think I did check the Austin one too, and I didnt find anything useful for me there. Btw UTD is not good?

I have sent them an e-mail. Asked them about the the GMAT requirement too. I really wish they say okay you are exempted from this test :D

I have asked them regarding TOEFL too. I am working with an American firm from last 9yrs, is not enough to prove my english language skills lol.

Kher lets see what they say. I hope the fees is not too much. btw any rough idea how much should I have in my account? I think I will be able to manage till $25k -$27k on my own. Iss say aagay udhaar maangna parray ga :(

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

Here is their Fee structure:

http://www.utdallas.edu/student/international/current/maintaining_I20.html

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Re: A degree from US. Is it worth the time & money?

UTD comes in tier 1 and is ranked reasonably well among American universities. I don’t think you should worry about the calculus requirement. Economics is pretty much calculus intensive these days so if you have taken advanced level mathematics courses at the Masters level you should do fine. Also universities do not care too much about your score in TOEFL unless it is too low. I am sure TOEFL will be a breeze for you.

About GMAT or GRE, yes most universities do require that you must have taken either one of the two and give weightage to your score in their admission decisions. If you have taken SAT in high school then you will not find these tests much different. Even if you haven’t I don’t think you will find them too hard. I would suggest buying Kaplan+ Baron’s + Princeton Review (and/or any other) latest GRE/GMAT review guides to familiarize yourself with the tests, studying techniques, and strategies about how to ace the test. Also do as many practice exams in timed conditions as possible. That is I how I would normally prepare for a standardized test.

Your 9 years of experience in the relevant field is a very big factor working in your favor. :k: