Applying for colleges in South Asia-Eligibility and admission procedure

Posted date: 29 Oct 2014

South Asia or Southern Asia is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities, adjoining countries to the west and east. Topographically, it is dominated by the Indian Plate, which rises above sea level as northern parts of India south of the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush. South Asia is bounded on the south by the Indian Ocean and on land by West Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia.The current territories of Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan form the core countries of South Asia, while Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives are generally included, and Afghanistan and Myanmar often added. By various deviating definitions based on often substantially different reasons, the British Indian Ocean Territory, Mauritius, Iran and the Tibet Autonomous Region are included as well. With the 7 core countries considered, South Asia is home to well over one fifth of the world's population, making it both the most populous and the most densely populated geographical region in the world.

Eligibility

Most schools require qualifications comparable to a U.S. Bachelor’s (Honors) degree (Four Year Degree Program). That means a minimum of 16 years of formal education. In the Indian context, it implies qualifying in a professional four-year degree like engineering or other such courses.If you have completed a three-year degree program in India, the advisable plan of action to maximize eligibility for U.S. graduate schools is to apply for a Post Graduate degree here in India. A one-year university affiliated program will make up for the fourth year of a U.S. Undergraduate degree.

Standardized Test

Many Courses and Universities in US require you to take one of the standardized tests like GRE, GMAT along with English Proficiency tests like TOEFL, TWE and TSE.

1.    TOEFL
2.    TSE
3.    GMAT
4.    GRE

Application Requirements

1.    Academic Records
2.    Standardized Tests
3.    Work Experience Details
4.    Letters of Recommendation
5.    Statement of Purpose (SOP)
6.    Financial Support
7.    Interviews (If applicable)

Application Forms

Send enquiries at least 15 to 18 months before the proposed date of admission. There are two ways to get application forms.

1.     Requesting Application Forms via email : You can request application forms from the universities website. Most universities have a form on their website which can be completed online to request application material.
2.     Requesting Application Forms via Air Mail : The other way is to send a request by airmail for application material. The request should contain a brief description of your educational background, academic objectives, source of financial support, English proficiency and standardized test scores.
3.     Downloading from the university website : Many universities have a downloadable and ready to print versions of their application forms on the net. These can be used for applying just as regular forms.

Work History

A number of professional and vocational courses require relevant work experience. For instance, many MBAs or master’s courses in information studies require at least a couple of years’ work experience.A detailed Resume is an important part of your application. It should include all information of professional work experience along with the details like positions held, achievements and range of work.

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of reference or recommendation letters play a very important part in your admission especially in courses that earn you a master’s or doctoral degree. A recommendation letter is a signed statement from a person who knows you well professionally or has taught you in a subject that is related to the course you are applying to. It should list your positive and negative qualities, strengths and other such information.
The author or teacher must indicate his position, how long he/she has known the applicant and in what capacity. He/she should briefly discuss the need, importance and usefulness of the study the applicant proposes to undertake. Authors are usually asked to rank applicants in their letters of recommendation, which helps admission officers to interpret the academic credentials of foreign students. Students should obtain letters of recommendation (often on the prescribed forms sent by the institutions) from teachers who know them as a person as well as a student. You may like to request your author to give concrete examples that may show your qualities and help your case.
Many universities have their own format and questions that have to be answered by the person who is giving the letter of recommendation on your behalf. Letters, which do not give enough information, can jeopardize a candidate’s chances of selection.

Statement of Purpose (SOP)

The personal essays, and/or statement of purpose, also play a very important role in the process of evaluating your application for both admission as well as financial aid because it gives the faculty assessing your application their most significant impression of you as an individual.
A personal statement should include reasons for choosing this particular course, your area of interest, the suitability of your education and experiential background for this course and your personal and present future goals.

Research Proposal (For Research Programmes only)

In addition to the above requirements, students applying for a postgraduate research program must also submit the following documents:

1.     Detailed research proposal
2.     Abstracts
3.     Research publications etc

The admission committed may also require special recommendation letters from professors of the academic institution where you last studied.
A number of professional and vocational courses require relevant work experience. For instance, many MBAs or master’s courses in information studies require at least a couple of years’ work experience. Most Uzbekistan universities are pretty strict about this.A detailed Résumé is an important part of your application. It should include all information of professional work experience along with the details like positions held, achievements and range of work.

Posted By

GSP Admin