STUDY IN AMERICA
The colleges and universities in the US are about 9,000.
Among the best find:
• CALIFORNIA at Stanford University (www.stanford.edu) and
the University of California, Berkeley (www.berkeley.edu)
• In CONNECTICUT Yale University (www.yale.edu) which is the
flagship for art classes, architecture, theater, law. The patriotic motto
coined by the students of this prestigious university of Connecticut is
"For God, for country and for Yale" that sums up the spirit of
education.
• In District Of Columbia Georgetown University
(www.georgetown.edu) that focuses its training fiolosofia and theology.
• ILLINOIS in the University of Chicago (www.uchicago.edu)
• INDIANA in the University of Notre Dame (www.nd.edu)
• MARYLAND at the Johns Hopkins University (www.jhu.edu)
• in MASSACHUSETTS Harvard University (www.harvard.edu) that
offers the highest levels of instruction for courses in business, law,
economics, sociology and psychology.
The offer represents prestigious faculty of medicine, biology,
political science; obviously admission costs much (about 40 thousand dollars)
and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) that represents excellence
in scientific research.
• in NEW JERSEY Princeton University (www.princeton.edu)
• In New York New York University (www.nyu.edu) and Columbia
University (www.columbia.edu) located in the heart of the Big Apple, the most
cosmopolitan and dynamic of the United States. Among the best graduate schools
there are those of medicine, political science, history, engineering and
cinematography.
And the concept of best may vary according to what are the
priorities and interests of the student who must then assess their choice on
the basis of:
- Admission criteria / selectivity
- Accreditation
- Teachers
- Cost and availability of financial assistance
- Size of the university, resources and facilities available
(library, computer)
- Geographical location, location, weather conditions and
cost of living, accommodation types available
- Specific services for foreign students
Application form:
Enrolment in college is a complex and requires a lengthy
process of collection of documents, certificates and letters of recommendation.
To access you have to fill the application form to the Office of Admissions and
send it with the required documents by the deadline specified by the university
(usually between December and March).
The documents required are:
- Level of education (transcripts); the high school diploma,
transcripts of previous years and certificates of exams and vote.
- Certificate score (official score report) TOEFL
- Certificate score (official score report) the admission
test required (SAT I, SAT II, or ACT)
- Study program (personal statement) key element in the
evaluation of the Office of Admissions, read up on the catalog of the
university about the characteristics and requirements of the program. The
document must be written in English and is indicative of the language skills of
the candidate.
- Financial information (financial statements) and any request
for financial aid (financial aid form)
- Letters of recommendation (reference letters) an opinion
of the professors on the ability of the student in his studies, his maturity,
the ability to study, motivation, work experience significant,
- Application fee (application fee) on average between 50
and 100 dollars
Visa to enter America:
To enter the United States is required to fill online form
for electronic travel authorization (Electronic System for Travel Authorization
ESTA). After the procedure, the system will tell you if you are allowed to
embark on a flight to the United States but will not give you the absolute
certainty that you will be accepted in the American territory. To complete the
form please visit: esta.gov).
For any more information you can visit the US Embassy
dedicated ESTA: Us Embassy (www.usembassy.it) the authorization will be valid
for a period of two years, so in case of several visits in this time frame it
is not necessary to require more permissions, but simply update their data.
If you are owner of an electronic passport issued after 2006
or one-readable you can enter the United States without a visa, taking
advantage of the "Visa Waiver Program - Visa Waiver". You can use
this program only if you are traveling for business and / or pleasure; to stay
in the United States no more than 90 days and you have a return ticket to their
country of origin.
The answers that will be provided by the system
"ESTA" can be of three types:
1) "Authorization Approved", in the case of
granting authorization. The authorization will be valid for two years or until
the traveler's passport expires and will allow the ability to make multiple
trips to the United States for each of them without the need for a new
registration on - line and consequently a new authorization;
2) "Travel not Authorized", in case of refusal of
authorization. In this case you must contact the American Consulate at which
the request was made for a visa to the United States;
3) "Authorization pending", in case further
information is necessary for the purposes of granting the permit.
Visa to study in America:
To study in America you need a special visa, other than
tourism which moreover does not allow carrying out a professional activity. The
most interesting work opportunities are offered by the two formulas,
internships and summer jobs.
The F-1 visa must be done at the American consulate, after a
short conversation, but only when the student proves to be enrolled in a full
time course and be able (or his family) to meet the costs of studio and room
and board in the United States (which is proved by a certificate transfer).
So, first of all, we must do the registration for the course
and ask the American University to prepare the I-20, the key piece to get a
visa. Obviously, it is also necessary to have a valid passport.
You have to fill in the registration forms to the course,
including the demand for the I-20, "I-20 Application", which requires
a certificate from the sponsor (who agrees to finance the stay- this person may
be the same student) and its bank. This certificate must refer to an approximate
figure (and not a bill) expenditure; each school establishes the parameters for
this amount (usually $ 1,000. multiplied by the number of weeks of stay)
Once delivered to the bank demand for the I-20, or the
Financial Statement in Italian that she will approve and sign, you can send the
registration forms. With the I-20, you can begin to fill out, online, the visa
application (DS-160) (www.italian.italy.usembassy.gov). Filling out the DS-160,
requires the following data: the number SEVIS, passport data; the addresses and
telephone numbers of 'universities and where you intend to stay, from previous
trips in the US, and digital photos. Once completed and printed DS-160 must
make an appointment with the US Consulate and make payments
Accommodation:
Once you have received confirmation of acceptance by the
student, the university sends the "Certificate of Eligibility", for
the release of the student visa. At the same time the student will receive by
the Housing Office information on accommodation within the university campus
(on-campus) and outside it (off-campus), in residence or family.
These resources can vary according to the geographical
location of 'universities. To stay in college dorms, book in with their special
modules (housing application) by the stated deadline. Some universities require
the freshmen i.e. the first-year students to live on campus. For off-campus
housing, the agreements may be taken upon arrival, before the course.
Scholarships in America:
Scholarships for foreign students are assigned by individual
private and public institutions; such as the Department of Education and
Science which provides a number of scholarships awarded by the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs.
The University of Siena, the Faculty of International
Relations announces annual summer scholarships to follow English language
courses for our students at the Institute of Technology in New Jersey.
(Www.njit.edu)
• Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarships program of
The Rotary Foundation is the largest private financing of the world, the
international program of scholarships. (Www.rotary.org/FOUNDATION)
• World Bank Scholarship Program awards to people from
member countries of the World Bank. (Www.worldbank.org)
• Fulbright scholarships: scholarships for attendance of a
program of post-graduate. (Www.fulbright.it)
• Fund for Students Italian (The Italian Student Loan Fund):
Italian finance graduates who want to continue their studies at American
universities. (Www.fondostudentiitaliani.it).
Master in USA:
The master is the completion of a training college and to
access it you must be in possession of a Bachelor's degree. To facilitate the
recognition of studies it can take at their university Italian diploma
supplement.
Applications for registration must be made directly at the
individual universities. The criteria for acceptance of applications depend on
the regulations of each university but generally require an honors degree, the
Honors degree.
Links are: www.usastudyguide.com and www.bintmusic.it
PHD in USA:
Another opportunity to study abroad can be a Ph.D., defined
PhD or Doctor of Philosophy. Normally the PhD is achieved only "by
research and thesis": this means that the student will not have to attend
classes but devote himself to the research and study.
The supervisor is the professor that the student refers and
is the supervisor who oversees its work. In special cases, subject to the
approval of the "Dean of Graduate Studies", a PhD thesis can be
co-supervised by two speakers. The need for a joint supervision must be,
however, motivated by the particular subject of the thesis such as to involve
more than one discipline.
The PhD can last differently depending on individual
campuses: usually the research period can vary from 2 to 7 years (3 years is
the minimum recommended). This difference is so high is due to two different
factors.
We must not forget that some PhD expects the attendance of
courses and taking examinations specific: some faculties require graduate
students to conduct laboratory demonstrations, to undergo periods of tutoring
and midterm.
The documents must be presented at registration:
• Curriculum Vitae translated into English
• 2 letters of recommendation
• A copy of the degree certificate translated into English
with legal value
• A certificate of graduation with a detailed list of exams
and related voting
• A certificate to verify their advanced knowledge of
English
Being the highest level of the university system, to access
a doctorate, you must have a Master's degree (M.Sc., MA, MBE, MIT, M. Phil.),
and only in special cases, a Bachelor's degree. The certificate of graduation
Italian is compatible with this course of study but remains subject to approval
by the University Admissions Office.
The PhD is accessible through calls issued by universities.
Links are: www.usastudyguide.com and www.findaphd.com
The Summer Schools and Summer Universities
The summer school represents the opportunity to study a
specific discipline (many, from the music to the economy) or to deepen their
knowledge of the language and culture of the country. Enrollment in these
courses does not imply the registration at universities; Courses last from 1 to
8 weeks and for access there is an age limit.
The summer universities are open to graduate students,
undergraduates and graduates. In addition to academic preparation appropriate
to the level of the courses you need a good knowledge of English (the most
selective universities may require to support the TOEFL - Test of Ingles’ as a
Foreign Language).
Both the summer school is the summer universities granting
certificates of participation and the latter also deliver to students of
credits.
Both training methods are extra. The units are different
depending on the course and the university (rarely spend less than 300 € for a
week of course) but also cover room and board.
The submission of the grant application and registration
forms can be found online or you can apply to the secretariats of the same.
Italian university students find information at their student office or the
office for international relations of their own universities.
Useful links are:
www.campamerica.co.uk
www.studyabroadlinks.com
www.jsa.org> Summer Programs
www.american.edu
www.iep.org.au
www.campleaders.com
Internship in South America:
To be well-equipped to face the experience of an internship
abroad must not only prepare their European CV but his heart, his head coming
in front to situations with attitudes not only strategic, but also comfortable
against different ways to stand eat, talk, speak and manage themselves the day.
The important thing is to face this experience without any preconceptions.
The value of the stage in terms of training and orientation
as a "bridge" between universities and the world of work is now well
established in the United States. In fact, many degree programs that require
students a compulsory internship at partner companies, for the acquisition of
practical skills that complement the theoretical training and enrich the
In general, those who enroll in college they choose a paid
internship or even prefer a part-time job, which, despite having a lower
prestige, gives the opportunity to meet the costs of university studies.
There are many search engines that allow you to search for
an internship by location and sector:
www.craigslist.com
www.monster.com
CollegeBoard.com
Aipt.org Association for International Practical Training
Idealist.org
www.princetonreview.com
Internship Programs.com
Rsinternships.com
Usa-internships.com
Very often the internships are not paid, or only provide a
refund. In the case where the stage lasts up to 3 months, visa, although it is
always better to have it, it is not strictly necessary. If, however, the
internship is paid or extends for more than three months, the visa becomes
