Application procedure
FAQ for this page!
Introduction
Once you get the application materials from the foreign universities, it is
time to start applying. Since each application involves expenditure
(application fee + postage cost), you should now narrow down your choice to
at most five or six universities. In your reduced choice list you must keep
at least one institute which is highly likely to accept you.
What to send ?
Typically each university requires you to send the following.
- The filled in application form
- Application fee
- Official transcripts (usually 2 sets)
- Recommendations (usually three sets)
- Statement of purpose
- Course list and CV
- Official ETS scores
Filling in the application form
Read the instructions given by the university very carefully before
filling in the form. Here are the answers to
some frequently asked questions that might help
you.
You should always try to use the online application form if that is
possible, i.e. if you have an internationally valid credit card. It saves time, money, trouble, and you can be sure that your
application is on file. Although it might sound surprising, but university staffs in US are as clumsy as their Indian counterparts.
Application fee
You may either draw a bank draft on some American bank in favour of the
institute you are applying to, OR you may request some senior student
to make the payment for you. In the former method it will immensely help you
to have an account in some American bank. Should you choose the latter option
here is a list of seniors that you may like to browse
through.
It is also possible to get 'Dollar Drafts' made from any Indian bank which has overseas branches, e.g. SBI or IOB. They are made only from branches which has a ForEx divison (notably the regional head offices). But post 9/11, rules have got stricter. Contact bank officers for more details.
A final word of caution, since new rules have been recenly implemented, the bank 'babus' might not be fully aware of it. So, they might unnecessarily demand more than needed. It is best to speak to known people or officers at the Head Offices.
If you are using an online form, ask a senior to supply the
credit card number. The senior will not (and should not) send the number
over email, as it is not safe to do so. However, all online forms have an
option to postpone submitting after filling in the details. You are given
an username and password which you can use to submit the form later. So
fill in the details, do not submit, email your username and password to
the senior. Then the senior can submit the form after entering the credit
card info. This is the most hassle free way.
Official Transcripts
Usually each university asks for two sets of official transcripts. So if you
are applying to n universities you should prepare 2n sets of transcripts.
Each set of official transcript should contain attested copies of
- Your Bachelor's degree certificate
- Your Bachelor's degree marks list
- Your Master's degree certificate
- Your Master's degree marks list
In case you still do not have the last two then substitute them by their
provisional versions.
Put all these attested copies in an official envelope from the
dean's office. After glueing the envelope have it sealed with the dean's
signature. Finally put a transparent adhesive tape across the seal. Do not
forget to write on the envelopes the addresses of the place where you are
sending it.
Since attesting all those papers usually takes time,
submit the things to the dean's office well ahead of time.
These must always be sent by post, even if you apply online.
Recommendations
Recommendations are one of the most crucial instruments used to evaluate
you. So be careful to choose your recommender. Remember the following points.
- If more than one students take recommendation from the same
recommender for the same place, then usually the
recommender orders the students according to their merit.
Clearly the students down this ordered list are at a
disadvantage. So you should carefully choose your recommender
after discussing with your fellow applicants.
- A recommendation is valued based on many things among which two
are the repute of the recommender and how much he/she has
praised you. And usually there is a trade off between the two.
The application materials usually contain three recommendation forms, which
you should request the recommenders to fill in. But many universities also
accept recommendations written on ordinary letter heads. Before giving the
recommendation forms to the recommenders you should write your name , degree
sought and the department applied to in the places provided on the form.
The form will ask you to specify whether you want to waive your right to
see the recommendation. You should waive it. It is believed to increase
the seriousness of the recommendation letter. Do not forget to sign the form
at appropriate places, since once the recommender fills in the form you have
no right to open it again.
- Along with the recommendation form also give copies of
your marks lists to the recommenders.
- Clearly write on a piece of paper the date by which
you want to mail your application packet. Give this paper
to your recommender.
- If you are taking more than one recommendation from the
same person try to give him/her all the recommendation
forms at the same time.
- Recommenders are busy persons. So submit the
recommendation forms to them at least three weeks ahead
of time.
These must always be sent by post, even if you apply online.
Statement Of Purpose (SOP)
The SOP is expected to be an essay written in good English delineating
your interests, motivations and aspiration. Typically applicants find it
somewhat confusing to write a SOP. The best way to start about it is to
look at examples in our
SOP sample page. Also, there is whole website about
SOP at http://www.statementofpurpose.com.
When writing your own SOP first jot down the points you want to write
about. Remember the following tips.
- Write in a flowing style. Do not be formal.
- Mention whatever achievements you might have had. Support all
these with attested documents.
- Avoid specific mentions about some particular person(s) or field(s) of
research.
- Do not imitate a SOP written by anybody else. However, after writing
one for yourself, have it checked by different people.
- Don't forget to sign the SOP at the end.
More detailed hints on writing SOPs may be found here.
Online forms provide space for the SOP.
Course List
The course list is supposed to contain the topics that you have covered
during your Bachelor's degree and Master's degree. Copy of the syllabus
from the students' brochure may be used for this purpose. However it is
a better idea to supply the names of your teachers along with a detailed
description of the syllabus. Here are two examples that you may download:
(Sauvik's course list was provided here by Mr Abhyuday Mandal.)
Some students like to attach a CV with their application. Here are some
downloadable examples:
Also it is good idea to give
a list of
the presentations and projects that you have done. For instance, here are the
presentation list and project list
as submitted by some other ISI student while applying abroad.
Officially reported Scores
The GRE and TOEFL scores used by the universities to evaluate your merit
must be the scores reported officially by the ETS
. Thus, though many universities also ask you to send a xerox of the
student's score card for the GRE's and TOEFL, yet this report is not considered
final.
ETS would send your GRE and TOEFl scores to at most 4 universities free of charge. You get to specify the university names right after you take the examinations.
To request ETS to send your official scores to more
universities you have to use addition score request forms.
You may download these forms for TOEFL as well
as for GRE.
However, it is ALWAYS a good idea to send a xerox copy of your
student's score report to the university.
The official score must always be sent by ETS, even if you apply online.
