Happy Schools Blog
Letter of Recommendation: Dos and Donts
College admission typically requires at least 2 Letters of Recommendation (LOR) from candidates. Graduate School Admission committees evaluate the candidates’ credentials and the reference letters play an important role in…
Do Universities in America Verify the Bank Balance and Statement for Admission?
Do colleges and universities verify and validate the Bank Statements and Balance submitted by the students’ bank accounts before issuing I-20? It’s a trick question to answer, and I will…
How Much Bank Balance for F-1 Student Visa
Hello guys, I hope everyone is getting ready for attending his/her F1 Visa interview – preparing one’s visa documents, student loans, CA statements, etc. If you haven’t checked the previous…
I-20 Sample : Tuition Fees Breakdown for Bank Balance
In a previous post, I had listed some common questions regarding bank statement. Now I will be answering each question in separate posts. In this post, you can find information…
13 FAQs Questions about Bank Statement for F1 Student Visa
A bank statement is one of the mandatory documents necessary when applying for student visa (F-1). Many student visa applications get rejected for providing fake financial documents. Still up to…
Happy Schools Blog gets New Look
Finally after 2 weeks of importing contents into WordPress and updating the internal links, I was able to launch this site/blog 2 weeks ahead of the original schedule. With my…
How to Select Universities – Part 3
How to Select US Universities – Part 1 How to Select US Universities – Part 2 How to Select US Universities – Part 3 [this article] 7) Course Length This…
How to Select US Universities – Part 2
This blog post is the second of a three-part series of articles on How to Select U.S. Universities. How to Select US Universities – Part 1 How to Select US…
How to Select US Universities – Part 1
How is it to select U.S. universities for graduate school admission? This will be a 3 part article and by the end of 3 parts, you will be able to…
5 Ways to Check Graduate School Admission Status
After you have submitted applications to several U.S. universities, there are a number of ways for you to check on their statuses. If online admission status doesn’t give much information…
For Spring 2008 Students
Exclusively for Spring 2008 entrants, I have complied the following links for students in the different stages of their admission process. I will update this list regularly, for new contents,…
F1 Visa Interview Tips for USA and How to Answer Questions
Getting a U.S. Student Visa (F1) will get you one step closer to attending a college/university in the United States. Every international student must go through the U.S. visa interview…
Virginia Tech or UTD for Master’s Degree
Which University: I happened to come across your Happy Schools website. I found the contents in it very informative and useful. I am stuck in a weird situation here. I…
Spring Semester Students : Did You Decide on Universities?
At this point, having a low GRE score or low TOEFL score doesn’t matter. Admission had been given to you and now it’s time to decide on your choice of…
5 Tips to Make Your Graduate School Application Stand Out
Do you want to know how to make your graduate school application stand out among those of other applicants? Just follow the tips discussed in this article. After spending lots…
GPA Converter: Convert Academic Percentage to GPA (4.0) Scale
Are you looking for a GPA Converter to convert your academic percentage to GPA in a 4.0 scale? I have received around 100 questions from readers about how to convert…
How to Get Professors to Fund You via Assistantship
I’m back after visiting New York and Boston. Last week was a very busy one at my work. Hopefully I would be able to write regularly again. In this article…
Do you make these 11 Common Graduate School Application mistakes?
Almost every graduate school has an online application facility that works along with the traditional paper-based application system. Sometimes it takes a long time to fill out an entire online…
How to Get Admission in Ambitious University with Low GRE Score
I’m responding to a comment about the article Secret of Getting Admission with Scholarship. I’d disagree with the part where you said, “Why would someone has to waste a few…
How to Use Education Loan Money from India in USA in Demand Draft
I received this question from one of our avid readers, regarding Student Loans: If I apply for a loan, let’s say for $20,000 for the full course, what will it…
Job Opportunities for Masters in Network Security Degree
I’m planning to take M.S. in network and security and am going to apply this fall, but I heard people face problems in getting a job after taking M.S. in…
Estimate Your Admission Chances Based on your GRE Score (4 Examples)
I’m responding to a reader’s question about Statement of Purpose (SOP) and its importance in getting admitted to graduate schools in the U.S. Bindhu – I read your Happy Schools…
Writing AWESOME Statement of Purpose for Graduate School Admission
Are you looking for a Statement of Purpose for graduate school admission in U.S. colleges and universities? College essays (Statement of Purpose) and recommendation letters for graduate schools play very…
Pros vs Cons : Spring vs Fall Semester in the USA
You must have read my previous post on graduate school admission in Spring semester, which discusses the different types of questions and ideas raised by graduate students. If you haven’t…
My experience with Happy Schools : 2 months
During the last few days, all posts I made were related to graduate school admission, short listing of universities, colleges, GRE, and TOEFL. All were education related topics. It’s been…
Questions about Spring Admission in Graduate Schools
So many people have emailed me, asking for answers about the difference between Fall and Spring semester admissions to graduate schools in the U.S.A. I have actually written several previous…
Who Else Wants to Know About Student Loan Pay Off Time?
Are you planning to study abroad by financing the cost using student loan? In this article, I’ll be revealing some interesting facts about education loans, interest rates, and loan pay-off….
Double Your Admission Chances Even With Low GRE Score
A graduate school admission with scholarship, who doesn’t want that? I strongly encourage that you read the previous posts on “graduate school admissions” and other related posts by following the…
The Secret of Getting Admission with Scholarship in U.S. Universities
Have you ever wondered how to get a graduate school admission with scholarship? Each and every college student applying for graduate school admission has one big dream, i.e., to get…
Cost of Graduate Education in the U.S.
I have received a few emails asking me to write about how much would it cost to study in the U.S. I know many of my friends have decided not…
How to Search for U.S. Universities
I’m sure there are many readers who have waited for this post for the last few days and I did spend considerable sometime to get all the necessary information that…
No Last Name in Passport – Can I Apply at U.S. Universities?
I was browsing some posts at Orkut and there are so many questions for which I have answers. But I don’t have time to read all the questions in the…
University Ranking and Department Ranking
I’ve had Happy Schools for about 45 days days and I’m happy to see how the blog grew in popularity, especially when I receive valuable comments. I received some emails…
Proper way to contact Professors during admission process
Contacting professors at the right time will definitely help you get that that one dream I-20 you had been waiting for. This post is the continuation of the previous article…
Guaranteed Admission to Graduate School : One magical idea
Today, I’m going to write about one of important matter that would help you get admission to that one “Dream I-20” that many students have been waiting for. After you…
This happens after You send the Graduate School Application to the University
In the last post I talked about low GRE score options and your chances of admission if your score is less than 1,100. Today, I’m planning to write about these…
ISOA Health Insurance Review for International Students – Cheap and Cost Effective
In the above video, I interviewed a team member from ISO Health Insurance. From our talk, you can learn about their plans and some valuable information on how health insurance…
U.S. News Ranking : Is it a joke?
US news media is known to publish annual college ranking results. According to CNN: Rankings include the “reputation survey,” which is filled out by college presidents. This survey asks academic leaders…
How to find a part time job
Doing part time jobs would definitely make student life easier. It offers many benefits, but the most practical is that it will help augment your monthly living expenses. However, you…
Airport Pickup
Most Indian students associations in universities across the U.S. typically make arrangements for airport pickup for new students, including temporary accommodation. To extend these help, these groups usually require incoming…
Timeline – Students’ Spending Habits in the US
How do students spend money in the U.S.? It’s actually quite amazing when you think about how the spending habits of students change over time. For the first 3 months…
After Arriving in the U.S.
The following are some of the random thoughts and experiences a typical student will likely encounter and do after arriving at his/her final destination. Searching for seniors who have come…
Bank Account without SSN?
(Rewrite : what is SSN, why banks need SSN, what if you don’t have SSN, ID requirements for bank account. Target is International students new to USA, who are opening…
International Driving Permit: Do I need one?
(Rewrite: What is International DL, importance of having one while coming to USA, validity of IDP, driving with IDP, renting with IDP.) I personally wouldn’t spend time to get an…
First Week – New International Students’ Life in the U.S.
Your first week in the U.S. will be a good, memorable experience. I have seen friends who missed their parents and families while a few are already set to enjoy…
How I Applied for SSN in F1 Visa
I can still remember when I applied for an SSN (social security number) a few years back. A letter from one’s University is required when applying for an SSN among…
New College Student’s Laptop Buying Guide
One of the best investment you will do while being here to buying a laptop. Some of the schools will have 24 hours lab facility, but nothing comes like having…
Air Travel – How to Avoid Jet Lag?
So, how to Avoid Jet Lag after flying cross continents? When you are traveling for more than a day across multiple countries and Ocean, you stand a good chance of…
Bank Account Types : Free Checkings and Savings Account
Basically there are 2 types of bank accounts here in U.S. Checking Account ( No interest ) Savings Account ( Small interest, say 1% ) There are different varieties of…
10 Tips to Pack Your Suitcase for International Flight Travel
Are you going on an International Trip? Oh Boy. It’s suitcase packing time. It’s the fun when you are not used to packing suitcases for international air travel. 3 Tips…