Applying to US Universities

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(article contributed by our user, Ravi Kumar Assudani of Stanford)

9/11: My first day in the USA

Full of enthusiasm and hope we (me and my would-be roommate Kushagra) landed at the San Francisco International airport. Walking at the airport, I had all sorts of thoughts crossing my mind that how this new chapter of life was going to be. Escaping from the customs with bags full of pickles and Indian spices, we walked out of the airport and were received by students of Stanford University.

9/12: The journey begins

Last night when I entered the campus it was all dark and I really couldn’t appreciate its scenic beauty. On my first morning in US as I removed the curtains of my room the view of the campus was mind blowing. I had a good sleep as opposed to most of the other people who were affected by jet lag. We were handed with some booklets when we took the keys for our room including information about apartments, time schedules of upcoming events and tips to settle down at campus. All these had lots and lots of information and I always wonder if anyone ever reads those. In the evening we went for a walk exploring the campus and appreciating the greenery. The weather was good but still it felt cold in the evening, we were both wearing woolens while on the other hand many girls there were moving in small shorts. Though it was good for us but made us feel even colder.

9/13: The Pan IIT picnic at Fremont

Thanks to Kushagra’s senior who got us tickets to Pan IIT picnic, an event when all the IIT alumni of the Silicon Valley get together. We drove all the way crossing a really long bridge at 100 kmph crossing the bay. I have heard it takes a while for IIT guys in States to get to attend major alumni events, we were lucky to get this chance in 3 days. The meet was simply amazing and it felt as a welcome party for us. It gave us a chance to meet our seniors and from other IITs and get an overview of our life after Stanford. There were people who graduate 2 years ago to people who gradated 30 years ago and we two were the only students who didn’t even started their graduate studies. Along with all this there was football, volleyball and above all lots of food and drinks!

9/14: Food Food Food… its all free!!

The first orientation we attended was Stanford Indian Association (popularly known as SIA) orientation. Along with answering all our questions regarding mobile connections, bikes (actually cycles), stores etc. it gave us a great chance to meet all the Indians at Stanford. As usual we were again handed lots of informative booklets. That night was fun, we made many new friends and above all had good food and it’s all free. Stanford is well known for its generosity regarding free food and above all it gives you a break from cooking.

9/15 Job hunt starts

I realized after meeting fellow Indians at the SIA get together that I was one of the rare peoples in Mechanical without any funding. By this time I had interacted with many seniors too who gave all sorts of fundas regarding funding possibilities. I started applying for possible assistantships to profs, by mailing them, calling them or even meeting them in person. I went from call centers to library to stores and started applying. Time passed away really quickly in attending different orientations, looking for jobs, etc.

9/16 International Students get together… free food again!!

This was a great place where we met lots and lots of international batch mates. We made many new friends but as usual the most exciting thing was again the free food. There were lots of things to eat but alas my bad luck… being a vegetarian I had very few options. In fact there was just one vegetable that too went over before my number came. So it was like everyone was having 2-3 varieties of non-veg. and I was feeding on chapaties, some cheese and salad. After that we all went to Palo Alto downtown around half hour from campus for our first Grad night out. We went to some really good pubs but again my good habits made me cry, when everyone was holding wine glasses I was staring at them with cold coffee in my hand. Anyways it was our first night out in US and it was really fun.

9/17 Asha - Giving back to India

This was my best day at Stanford so far. There was an event organized by a non-profitable organization called Asha’s Stanford division. It was a tracking event on one of the hills in Stanford. Lots of Indian people gathered and climbed up the hill chattering all the way. The view from the top of the hill was enthralling. After our return was the food party and we had our best meal ever! Most importantly it was Indian dinner that too all vegetarian.

The first week was full of meeting people, making new friends, appreciating all sorts of beauties, collecting booklets and enjoying tons of free food. First week was simply great and I expect it moves the same way for my entire stay.

Ravi Kumar Assudani,
B.Tech. 2008, IIT Guwahati
First year Master of Science student
Mechanical Engineering Department, Stanford University

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Randy Pausch, a Prefessor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University died earlier today of complications from pancreatic cancer. He was 47. He is well known for his lecture in ‘The Last Lecture’ series at CMU, delivered in September 2007. At that time, doctors had given him a few months time to live. The last lecture series is a lecture where a professor delivers a lecture in a hypothetical scenario assuming this would be his or her last lecture. Ironically in case of Professor Pausch it was indeed to be one of his last lectures.

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Many International applicants to US Universities do not get a chance to know the people of USA till they actually arrive in the country. The perception about the American people is often based on movies, novels, news coverage or just word of mouth. The media coverage depends on which part of the world you live in.

No matter what you know or have heard about the American people, you are likely to be pleasantly surprised by the fact that people are very nice, polite and helpful, even towards strangers. The first thing you will notice here is that people smile a lot. They even say Hello, Good Morning, How are you doing today, to anybody whom they come across. You will be further surprised to find that people will open and hold doors for you to get in. If you are lost on campus and ask for help someone will not only explain you the directions but may even walk with you to show where you need to go.

It is advisable to learn the optimism, cheerfulness and manners so that you come across as a likable and well-mannered person when you interact with people of various nationalities at a US University or outside the campus. It is important to greet people with a smile or Hello when they greet you. In USA eye contact is very important, so look in the eyes while talking to someone. If they offer a hand, shake their hand firmly and with enthusiasm. Open and hold doors for others while entering a building if someone is right behind you. Allow people to come out of an elevator before you try to get in.

The key is to be very proud of your own culture and at the same time learn the local culture so that you have a great experience in USA… and remember to smile!

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University Language Services organized an essay contest and they found that the Students Who Attend Schools in More Than One Country See Benefits of Both.Following is a direct quote from the Press Relese.
Nervous about studying in America?
Don’t be.
Foreign schools are more rigorous than their American counterparts, say students who have studied in the United States and abroad.

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Today is Black Friday. Contrary to what it sounds, it is actually a good occasion! In USA, the Friday after Thanksgiving is celebrated as Black Friday. On the day retailers offer one of the best shopping deals.

How is that relevant to our readers? Well, students are always on a tight budget. Usually the students who are new in US miss out on this great sale because they do not know about it. We hope some of our readers can save some money if they are aware about the Black Friday sale.

A reletively recent shopping phenomenon is Cyber Monday. On this day most businesses offer amazing online deals. As a student, it may be the time to buy a laptop or other electronic items you have been thinking about.

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This post is first in the series about culture and life at US Universities. Adjusting to a new culture is an important part of success at US Universities. There are norms in every culture about what is acceptable and what is not. Even within USA, hugging may be appropriate in some settings and totally inappropriate in some other. Shaking hands is almost always a appropriate behavior. A good thumbrule is to ask or find out before indulging in any behavior that may be offensive for someone.

For more insights read this article by Ruth Mantell