First Day in a New Office

This month we have landed a new office space in the Shanghai Culture Commercial Building just one block to the east of Nanjing Road close to the Bund (Wai Tan). As we have been working to build out the office in Shanghai we have become more aware of the need to communicate our passion – our vision in our printed material and daily operation. The challenge is always trying to translate culture, meaning and passion through words.

As we began a process to translate and think about our vision statement

Experience Life International is committed to the worldwide development of people and ideas for the increased wellbeing of all nations.

we put the following word pictures together that really help define who we are and what we do. I believe its helped us think about what we ought to say even in our native tongue.

One will probably not be able to find a perfect translation of the words. Our vision, each word and phrase is rooted in an attitude of wishing the best for the lives of all people of all nations, of all cultures and of all languages. The effort required us to think through the IDEAS and then give a try at translating the “heart of the message.”

As a company, ELI 360 has dedicated our time, energy and resources to helping all people around the world in the pursuit of bringing about a better standard of living, a better way of life for everyone.

If you think of two basketball teams playing against each other, MOST people just support one team and feel happy when the opposing team loses. We at ELI 360 support BOTH teams and cheer each time ANY player (regardless of which team) makes a good play. We want all players to be successful and find a great sense of fulfillment and have a good sense of “self-worth.”

In the same way, our greatest desire is that all people be able to develop their individual talents, abilities, gifts and resources to the maximum BUT WITHOUT harming or hindering others in the process.

In a family, normally, when everyone works together and everyone uses their talents and abilities for the benefit of the whole family, then everyone has a better life: inter-personally, economically, and in the sense of being able to just enjoy daily life in the family.

In the same way, in a company, normally, when everyone works together and everyone uses their talents and abilities for the benefit of the whole company, then everyone has a better life: inter-personally, economically, and in the sense of being able to just enjoy daily life in the company.

In the same way, among the nations of the world, normally, when everyone works together and everyone uses their talents and abilities for the benefit of all nations, then everyone has a better life: inter-personally, economically, and in the sense of being able to just enjoy daily life among the nations.

ELI 360 advocates for developing a lifestyle that reaches for the maximum for each individual BUT not for self-aggrandizement but rather for the purpose of contributing to the improvement of the community (whether the family, the company or the nations).

Can’t help but say “come by and visit with us next time you’re in Shanghai. And, to those who live there Mr. Shen, our Market Manager, will be happy to serve you tea.”

Shanghai Culture Commercial Building
355 Fuzhou Road, Suite 807
Shanghai, China 200001
Office phone: 86-21-53083722

上海文化商厦
上海市福州路355号807
邮编：200001
电话：86-21-53083722

While I lived in Portugal, my summers basically consisted of enjoying the beautiful beaches, and taking a trip to Texas to visit family. I like to think that the Mediterranean climate and breath taking scenery is to blame for my laid back approach to summer, but who knows right? One thing that was drastically different when I moved to Texas was the amount of jobs that are reserved and catered to high school students in the summer. In Portugal nobody my age worked, partly because it is just not easy to get a job at the high school age. There are two main reasons why working in the summer can be beneficial to a student. First of all, it adds to your résumé and shows future employers that you have a good work ethic; and second of all, it allows you to save money and learn how to be financially responsible.

Rest and Relaxation:

The first thing I want to do after my last final is to sleep for about 12 hours, and there is nothing wrong with that! One of my absolute favorite ways to relax is to go fishing. I make sure to take plenty of time in my summer to be able to fish, and usually plan a trip around it. Another great way for me to relax while gaining some great experience is to go abroad. Experiencing different cultures is a valuable resource and one of the best ways to broaden your worldview and become a better global competitor in todays intercultural economy. Whether you like to fish and travel, or sleep and play video games; make sure you take time in your summer to fulfill those needs, so you do not feel like you constantly have to do them during the school year, when your priority should be studies!

Summer school:

This is a great way to earn some college credits and get a head (or catch up) with relatively easy, but intense courses. Depending on the establishment classes can vary on time, some of the ones I have encountered are 8 hours a day for a week, four hours a day for two weeks, or a month online. For international students who do not plan on staying in the host country for the summer, online classes are a great way to earn credit without having to be away from family or worrying about housing.

Mission work:

This is always a great choice this time of year because you are able to fully immerse and commit to your mission. I have had two big mission trips during this time where I went to Bulgaria, and the other time to Romania to serve orphans by building playgrounds and teaching them English. Not only do you help better their lives and spread the good word, but you also meet many great friends and make life long memories. You might be surprised at how good it feels to give expecting nothing in return, and just how much you actually do benefit form selfless acts.

Balancing:

Now the real challenge is how to healthily balance all of these possibilities into a productive yet replenishing and relaxing summer. If you can find a job, and are not strapped for cash, work part-time somewhere for half the summer or find someone in your possible profession that you can shadow or intern for, while you are not working during this time you may spend time with family or friends relaxing and taking time to recover from the school year. The other half of the summer could be spent trying to rack up some college credit if you can, or using your time to serve locally or abroad. Do not feel guilty about enjoying your time off and relaxing, this is good for the mind and the soul, and is a necessary part of the summer! But beware that sleeping in all the time and only spending time to relax will make your summer pass by so much quicker!

My Summer:

I will give an insight into my summer as an example of a pretty well balanced schedule so that you can get an idea on how to make your own. I just finished my last final on Tuesday May 8^th, and will continue to work both my part time jobs (26 hours a week total) until the end of May. In June I will take a month to move houses and spend time for myself here in Abilene to relax (remember this is important)! I saved a two week period here in case I could afford taking a summer course, However with my current financial situation I was unable to. In the begging of July I am going to take a weeklong trip to Arkansas, kayaking camping and fishing with a group of Christian friends as a retreat/man trip. In the middle of July I will leave for Portugal to visit my family, and reconnect with the Young Life group there and minister to high school kids in the area. I will return in the middle of August to come home and prepare for the upcoming school year and will start my part time job again.

Remember that your main role in life at this point is to be a student! And that is very important, and grades should always come first during the school year. You are also only human, so having time to relax and enjoy God’s wondrous creation is a great blessing, and essential to the cycle of the school year.

Summer is a time for experiences, whether that be visiting a new country, shadowing a profession that interests you, learning about new things in summer classes, or trying new things that benefit your understanding of our broad and diverse world; this summer is a great time to take advantage of these great opportunities. I encourage everyone to be thinking to the future and to build on your experiences and résumés so that when it is time to begin your career, you have a foot in the door and stand out from the crowd.

Blessings this summer in all that you do,

Nikolai Rabinovitsj

Valparaiso University's library.

In the U.S., we tend to use the word college to refer to higher education in general. For example, most people in the U.S. would say that someone is “at college” or “going to college” even if the student is studying at a university. This can be confusing for non-U.S. students and their families since the word ‘college’ can have very different meanings around the world.

But even when non-U.S. families understand that this is a generic term, they may still be unsure about the difference between a university and a college, and not fully understand the different types of colleges found in the U.S.

To gain a better understanding of these terms, let’s start with the definition of university. A university is an institution of higher education that is made up of multiple schools and colleges. If you visit Valparaiso University’s website (www.valpo.edu), for example, and click on “Academics”, you’ll see that there are five colleges, a law school and a graduate school that, together, form Valparaiso University. These colleges are both part of the university, as well as distinct and somewhat autonomous entities.

Another good example of the college/university distinction is Harvard University. If you apply to Harvard University as an undergraduate, you will actually apply to Harvard College, which houses most of the undergraduate, liberal arts departments and engineering programs. Harvard College is a part of Harvard University, which is also made up of Harvard Business School, Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School, etc.

Now that we have a basic understanding of what a university is, let’s talk about colleges. A college is an institution of higher education comprised of different departments, but not multiple schools and colleges. Take Calvin College, as an example.  It is a college consisting of different departments offering primarily liberal arts degrees. If Calvin College ever decides to create a college of business or a school of engineering, it may very well change its name to Calvin University.

Another way in which the term college is used in the U.S. is in reference to community colleges or junior colleges. These are institutions of higher education that focus on vocational and professional programs, as well as two-year academic programs that allow students to transfer to a four-year college or university to complete a bachelor’s degree.

The table below should help in understanding the different types of colleges in the U.S.

It is important to note that you will find a few exceptions in the use of the terms college and university.  There are “universities” that are actually colleges, and “colleges” that are universities.  Boston College, for example, is a university not a college (and it is not in Boston!).

One area in which the distinction between colleges and universities becomes important is in the U.S. News and World Report college ranking system.  For more information about this, I encourage you to read my post entitled “U.S. News and World Report College Rankings”.

Visit with Mayor's Office | Sau Paulo

Most recently, these partnerships caught the attention of city officials in the Sao Paulo area.  “We were excited to hear that ELI 360 representatives were asked to brief the mayor and other key figures on our work in education and career development,” Presley said.

“ELI 360 is well positioned to provide effective international marketing solutions to private high schools and universities in the U.S. Steven has been instrumental in making this a reality. Furthermore, as education consultants we have a portfolio of services to help students in the U.S. and abroad discover what we call their ‘personal blueprint.’ These services, developed over a period of two years, assist students in discovering a ‘best fit’ pathway for education and career.”

Steven Gist has over ten years of experience in international admissions and recruiting. He holds a Master’s degree in international  education from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, Vermont, and has lived and worked in several countries including China, Belgium, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore. He is co-author of the recently released Peterson’s Guide to Applying Successfully to Top U.S. Universities (Chinese Student Version).

ELI 360 is an international education consulting company that works to connect non-U.S. students with life-changing educational opportunities at U.S. universities and high schools.  The company is committed to the worldwide development of people and ideas for the increased wellbeing of all nations.

Written by a colleague, Danny Ellison MEd LPC-i, who leads our education and career coaching services.

The style of approach to career choice is a paramount contemporary issue. Oftentimes students will aimlessly drift throughout the world of academic and practical experiences until they happen upon an occupation that they eventually choose to pursue, never realizing the objective reasons behind the attraction to the occupation or the areas of challenge they may face along the way. This is what is called a reactive approach to the career decision-making process.

Thankfully, there is an opposite to this reactive approach called the proactive approach to career choice. People who take a proactive approach to the career decision-making process do so with a marked sense of  intentionality and a good understanding of the tools available to them along the way.

In the 21st century, according to the U.S. Department of labor, the average individual will likely experience 3-5 career changes during their lifetime. On top of the 3-5 career changes one may experience, an individual may also transition between 7-9 jobs within those careers. Although career discovery is a lifelong process that may include several job changes and career adaptations, this phenomenon is partially due to the fact that people, specifically adolescents, initially approach career selection with a minimal amount of progressive structure, purposeful career research, congruency analysis and patience.

Progressive Structure

Even with the vast amount of assessment resources available on the market today, large numbers of students still cannot differentiate between their childhood fantasy career (a natural component in eventual career selection) and a realistic and congruent career path based on observable and measurable qualities within themselves. This is, in part, due to a sense of uncertainty about where to begin and what pathway of self-discovery one should take.

A progressive structure is crucial to an effective career discovery process. It ensures methodology within a framework of meaningfully chosen tools and offers guidance throughout the entire process. Career guidance without a progressive structure is like attempting to drive a vehicle without gasoline, the tools may be there, but the momentum-creating force is missing.

Purposeful Research

In order to practically understand assessment results, an individual must engage in purposeful research in the general direction of the congruent pathways that assessment results reveal. Today’s generation is surrounded by information, resources and opportunity to gain experience, but too many young people remain perplexed as to how to approach these areas. An effective career guidance system must offer a variety of research material in an easy to navigate manner that specifically communicates to adolescents and challenges them to actively participate in the discovery process .

Congruency Analysis

Taking assessments is one thing, but once a student has the assessment results in hand, what is the next step? The most crucial piece to any assessment battery is the ability to interpret the results and discover the unique characteristics of the person within. The goal of career assessment is to determine if the occupational pathway that an individual is on is in fact a pathway that is congruent with the personality of the individual.

Consider the way a magnet operates. If the appropriate poles match up then it is difficult to separate one magnet from another. They are naturally attracted to one another. But, if the poles do not have the appropriate attraction to one another they will work against each other. They will never truly connect. The magnet may be temporarily forced together using external force, but in the end the naturally opposing forces will take over and the magnets will prove to repel one another.

The same is true with respect to congruency. If an individual discovers a congruent career path, there will be a mutual attraction between that person and the career path that will serve to constantly motivate the individual to achieve and grow within a career. But the opposite rings true when there is no congruency between the individual and the career pathway. It will be a constant struggle to find motivation, and almost impossible to experience growth and achievement. The majority of motivating factors will come from extrinsic factors such as the necessity of earning a paycheck and other basic provisional needs. These needs are commonly referred to as deficiency needs, and can be further researched through a study of Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

Patience

In order to accurately and effectively discover these intrinsic career preferences, one must allow patience to have its place in the process. It is counter-productive to approach the career decision-making process with the mindset that it should only take a few hours or a few days. The human psyche is extremely complex, and it is also unique to each individual. It takes a great amount of patience to accurately evaluate one’s preferences at work, and luckily with adolescents, there is usually time to allow for patience to do its work.

Work preferences result as the culmination of positive personality achievement and life experiences that define an individual’s perception of a particular career path. Assessments given at the appropriate times during development and maturation are useful tools in discovering and pursuing a congruent career pathway.

To be absolutely clear about the appropriate use of assessment tools within the context of career discovery, it must be said that, assessments are not meant to reveal an individual’s career-related future as one may picture a crystal ball specifically revealing all of the answers to life’s problems and issues. Quite the opposite, assessments are intended to narrow vast fields of career-related societal involvement down to a manageable few areas where an individual may begin the process of research and experience.

In the end, it is highly important to have a framework by which an adolescent can progress through the process of whole person self-discovery. ELI 360 Guidance presents such a framework; a framework that creatively encapsulates the four areas mentioned above in a progressively structured package. This robust curriculum utilizes 40 video-based learning sessions that range in topic from contemporary market evaluation and career-related research to study habits, character development and even financial decision making skills that will prove to be invaluable as an adolescent works toward college or career.

The video-based curriculum is reinforced by 6 carefully chosen cutting-edge assessment tools that serve to identify many of the most important intrinsic components of an individual. The cumulative result of the ELI 360 Guidance program is the development of an all-inclusive Blueprint report. This Blueprint report is the collective assembly of all assessment results and other variables from within the program, and the Blueprint serves to merge this information together into an understandable and transferable format for use in university planning and/or career selection.

ELI 360 Guidance is an excellent program that offers solutions to one of the most involved and complicated processes that today’s adolescents encounter; the process of career choice.

When using any ranking system as an assessment tool, it is important to understand how it is formulated, as well as its strengths and limitations.  In this post, I’ll give a brief overview of the structure and methodology used in the U.S. News and World Report’s ranking system.  I’ll also discuss common criticisms of this system, as well as its usefulness as an assessment tool in the college choice process.

The U.S. News college rankings have been around since 1983.  The most current edition ranks 1,526 institutions of higher education, and breaks them down into the following categories:

National Universities – There are 251 national universities in the country (172 public, 101 private, and 7 are for-profits), based on categories developed by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The universities offer a full range of undergraduate majors, as well as master’s and doctoral degrees; many strongly emphasize research, defined by the Carnegie Foundation as Research Universities (very high research activity), Research Universities (high research activity), and Doctoral/Research Universities.

National Liberal Arts Colleges – The 280 national liberal arts colleges emphasize undergraduate education and award at least 50 percent of their degrees in the liberal arts (defined by the Carnegie Foundation as baccalaureate colleges-arts and sciences).

Regional Universities – Like the national universities, regional universities (as defined by the Carnegie Foundation as universities-master’s larger, medium and smaller programs) provide a full range of undergraduate programs and some master’s level programs. They offer few, if any, doctoral programs. The 626 total regional universities are ranked within four geographic areas: North, South, Midwest, and West.

Regional Colleges – These institutions (defined by the Carnegie Foundation as Baccalaureate Colleges-Diverse; Baccalaureate/Associate Colleges; Associate’s—Public 4-year, Primarily Associate’s; Associate’s-Private Not-for-profit 4-year, Primarily Associate’s; and Associate’s—Private For-profit 4-year, Primarily Associate’s) focus primarily on undergraduate education, just as the liberal arts colleges do, but grant fewer than 50 percent of their degrees in liberal arts disciplines. At these schools, at least 10 percent of undergraduate degrees awarded are bachelor’s degrees. There are a total of 370 regional colleges, ranked within four regions: North, South, Midwest, and West.

As indicated in these category descriptions, the classifications are not created by U.S. News, but are based on the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, which is a highly- respected and widely-used system for categorizing U.S. colleges and universities.

Colleges that are given a numbered ranking by U.S. News (usually the top 75% in each category) are considered tier-one colleges. The remaining 25% in each category are simply listed alphabetically as tier-two colleges.
The U.S. News ranking system uses sixteen criteria in its assessment of colleges and universities.  These are:

• Acceptance rate
• Average alumni giving rate
• Average freshman retention rate
• Average graduation rate
• Number of classes with fewer than 20 students
• Number of classes with more the 50 students
• Expenditures per student
• Faculty compensation
• Number of faculty with Ph.D.’s or terminal degrees
• Graduate rate performance
• High school class standing
• High school college counselor rating scores
• Peer assessment
• Number of full-time faculty
• Average SAT/ACT scores
• Student to faculty ratio

Most criticisms of the U.S. News ranking system focus on its methodology.  Some argue that the criteria don’t measure a college’s impact on student learning, are subjective and encourage institutions to gather as many applications as possible to appear more selective.  Others point out that peer assessment and college counselor ratings can be very subjective, and favor institutions that are already well known.  The most outspoken critics on this point will call it a popularity contest without much substance.

Another major criticism is that the U.S. News rankings don’t help in trying to find a college or university that is a good fit for a student.  “Fit”, in this case, refers to finding a college or university that matches a student’s academic abilities, maturity level, background, personality and educational goals.

I strongly agree with those who criticize the use of this ranking system without taking “fit” into consideration.  On more than a few occasions, our company has worked with families who sent their son or daughter to a large state or private university because it was a top 100, national university according to the U.S. News rankings.  They did not try to determine if the university would provide the appropriate environment for their child.  In many cases, the students became overwhelmed, made unhealthy choices or simply became lost in the crowd.

Another criticism I have of this ranking system is that it creates the impression that regionally- ranked universities are inferior to nationally-ranked universities.  This is unfortunate since most highly-ranked regional universities (and some regional colleges) would fall somewhere in the 170 to 100 range when compared with national universities, and many of the academic programs offered at these regional universities are as good or better than comparable programs at top-100 national universities.

Valparaiso University, for example, is a regional university that is ranked number four in the Midwest region.  Its College of Engineering, however, is ranked in the top twenty-five among all undergraduate engineering programs in the nation, and its civil engineering program is ranked number four in the nation.

In summary, the strength of the U.S. News and World Report ranking system is that it can help non-U.S. families understand the different types of colleges and universities in the U.S.  It can also provide a somewhat objective framework for assessing general academic quality.  Its main weaknesses are that it does little to help students know if a university is a good “fit” for them, and that it can create the false impression that regionally-ranked colleges and universities are inferior to those that are nationally ranked.

In our work as educational consultants, we regularly use and refer to U.S. News rankings.  However, because of the system’s limitations, we consider ranking as only one of a variety of factors when assessing the overall quality of a university, and whether or not it is a good “fit” for the clients we serve.

As a follow up to this article, I recommend reading Erik Presley’s post about the characteristics of excellence we look for when assessing the quality of a university.

After so many years in higher education consulting I’m compelled to address a continuing misconception in the international community: the high regard for brand identity in the pursuit of intelligence or knowledge. What do I mean? There is a generally accepted idea that future job placement and advancement is dependent on which university one has attended.

Without completely addressing all issues with this philosophy I do want to enumerate a few factual and common sense contradictions to this philosophy.

First, a hiring business or organization will care more about the presentation and demonstration of the applicant’s ability to contribute to the company. The name of an institution will not accomplish that need. What is critical is the resume or job application’s ability to present what the individual is capable of and this is done through awards received during the time at the university and the extra-curricular activities presented.

Second, let’s be honest. Jobs are found through the network of relationships, not by the brand. Will the brand help? Only if the student exercises emotional intelligence to flex those muscles and build contacts. This can be accomplished at any reputable institution of higher education. A comical hypothetical, impossible scenario is connecting with Bill Gates based on an institution’s degree; this is because he did not finish at any university – he dropped out.

Distinguished or Reputable University – The Qualifications

What qualifications would I give to distinguish a university as a reputable university? I begin with stating, “one that is accredited is a must.” Second, a university that has a proven track record. This is defined by several characteristics listed in ELI 360’s 13 Characteristics of Excellence.

3.  Graduates are readily admitted into graduate or professional schools.

Eighty plus percent (80%+) is the required placement rate for a university that partners with ELI 360.

Note: The national average for medical school acceptance is 45.2% of all applications according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. (Acceptance increases with higher MCAT and GPA scores.) Therefore, by selecting an ELI 360 university you have a 25% better opportunity with hard work to gain admission into a medical program.

4. Graduates gain employment in the first 90 days after graduation at a rate better than 70% in their career field.

5. Graduates who have gained a reputation of success in their career.

6. Another important characteristic of reputable universities is alumni who consistently state their education was provided by professors rather than graduate students who are working on their higher degree.

Other factors that contribute to the strength of academics consists of the university’s environment for learning. While these aspects can be debated in any discussion they are widely held as common sense.

7. The university offers a strong set of majors.

8. The university maintains a true small class size environment.

With faculty to student ratio’s of 11 to 1 toward 20 to 1 students will be well served by the expert professor instead of graduate students.

9. For undergraduate students the most important contributor to education excellence is who teaches in the classroom; is it a graduate assistant or the professor?

For ELI 360 we look for universities that have 70% or better of the classes taught by professors.

10. The university employs 70% or more of their faculty who have their terminal or highest degree in their field.

All ELI 360 universities partners have a 70% or above faculty with their highest level of education and they teach in the classroom which ensures field expertise is offered in the classroom setting.

11. The university has a student population between 2,000 and 12,000 and has all the campus property within an undivided land area surrounded by residential areas. These two characteristics ensure the highest possibility of safety and friendly university community.

12. For international students the remaining characteristics of excellence are issues of opportunity and leadership development.

13. Finally, for an international family to invest in U.S. higher education they are the wiser if they send their child to the middle section of the U.S. to a private university in order to ensure they have a genuine American culture experience away from their own ethnic group.

As a side note most families know the famous private universities like Baylor, Duke, Emory, Northwestern, Purdue, Rice, SMU, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, etc. these are all in the middle United States. ELI 360 Universities are all in the same geographic area and provide all the qualities discussed above.

ELI 360 Available States

Two inevitable follow up questions are, “How much credit is given?”, and “What do students have to do to have their A-level work recognized by a U.S. university?”.  The answers to these questions are a bit more complicated since they vary from university to university.

How Much Credit?

The amount of credit offered usually depends on the A-level subject studied, and the grade earned on the subject exam.  The most common policy is to give students six credit hours for subjects without labs (e.g. math, economics, etc.) and eight credits for subjects with labs (e.g. chemistry, physics, etc.).  Students typically have to earn a “C” or higher to receive this credit, though some schools require a “B” or higher.  Some universities will offer half of the above-mentioned credit for non-faling grades lower than a “C”, while other universities will offer less credit even for grades above a “C”.

For those unfamiliar with the credit system in the U.S., students must pass 128 credit hours (give or take a few hours) to earn a bachelor’s degree.  To graduate in four years, students must earn at least thirty-two credits per year, or sixteen credits per semester (there are typically two semesters in one academic year).

With this in mind, let’s take, as an example, a student who studies history, economics, chemistry and physics as A-level subjects and scores two As and two Bs, respectively, on the exams.  At most U.S. universities, this student would earn six credits for the economics and history classes, and eight credits each for chemistry and physics.  The total number of credits earned would then be 28, which is just shy of a year’s worth of university credits n the U.S. (See Table 1 below).  The most credits I’ve seen awarded for A-levels in my ten years of working with international students is 32.

Table 1

How Do I Get Credit for My A-levels?

In the same way that credit awarded for A-levels differs from university to university, the way in which A-level work is evaluated for credit can differ from university to university, as well.  Some universities, for example, require students to have their A-level results evaluated by a third-party credential evaluation service.  The most commonly used are World Education Service (WES) and Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE).  (As a side note, if a university requires you to get an evaluation, and ECE is an approved evaluator, I would definitely go with ECE.  They are easy to work with, and the process tends to take less time, and be less expensive than using WES).

Some universities will do their own evaluation, and will ask students to provide the syllabi for the A-level subjects they studied along with the A-level score report.  Other universities have worked with A-levels enough that they will have a chart or table on their website which lists the subjects they will accept, and how many credits they will give for each subject along with the qualifying grade.

In Summary

U.S. universities will award university-level credit for GCE A-levels and similar qualifications from around the world.  The amount of credits awarded, and how the credits are evaluated differ from university to university.

Our Partners

All of our partner universities offer credit for A-levels results.  Contact us to find out what you’ll need to do to have your A-levels recognized by these universities.

Overview
Medical training in the U.S. takes about eight years. This is usually a combination of a four-year bachelor’s degree at a U.S. college or university (to obtain the prerequisite courses needed to apply to medical school), and a four-year medical degree from an accredited U.S. medical school.  These eight years are typically followed by two years of residency to begin specialization.

In addition to studying the prerequisite courses needed to apply to medical school, students must also take the Medical College Admission Test , commonly referred to as the “MCAT”.  More information about the MCAT can be found here.

In general, gaining admission into medical school is a highly competitive and challenging process for U.S. students. As you will see in the section below on medical school and international students, it is an even more competitive and challenging process for international students.

Cost
In 2010-2011 the median total cost of attendance was $49,298 US and $66,984 US for public and private universities, respectively.  There are not many scholarships or grants available for medical school in the U.S., and most students finance their training using loans.  In 2010, the median debt at graduation was $150,000 US at public institutions, $180,000 US at private, and $160,000 US combined.  This does not include the cost to obtain one’s four-year degree prior to entering medical school.

U.S. Medical Schools and International Students
Gaining admission to a U.S. medical school can be challenging for non-U.S. students. Much of this is a funding issue. Since international students don’t have access to funding sources that are available to most U.S. students, there is a fear that non-U.S. students will lose funding before they can complete their education. And since the tuition that medical students pay doesn’t actually cover the cost of medical training, medical schools are wary investing in students who may not be able to complete their training.

Because of this, some U.S. medical schools don’t admit international students, and those that do require students to show the ability to pay two to four years worth of educational costs up front ($40,000 to $200,000 US).

Non-U.S. students determined to pursue medical training in the U.S. should visit the following websites, and also consider if loans or funding would be available from their home country.

www.internationalstudentloan.com/intl_student/

www.estudentloan.com/content/begin/ international.asp

www.teri.org

www.nelliemae.com

In addition to funding issues, of the 125 or so medical schools in the U.S., only 50 accept non-U.S. students. These tend to be the more expensive private universities.

To give you an idea of how challenging the admissions and funding process is, consider that in 2003, the American Association of Medical Colleges reported that of the 559 international students that applied to medical school in the U.S., only 82 actually enrolled. And so, of the 16,538 students that entered U.S. medical schools in 2003, only 82 were non-U.S. citizens.

Most of this information comes from an excellent article that can be found on the website for the National Association of Advisors for Health Professions. In fact, I highly recommend reading the article in its entirety at the following URL:

http://www.naahp.org/Default.aspx?tabid=2564

Another great article at this website lists most of the medical schools in the U.S. along with their admissions policies toward international students. This can be found by following this link:

http://www.naahp.org/Default.aspx?tabid=3312

Options

• Consider an MD/PhD. These programs are highly competitive but may be more open to international students.

• Consider an international medical school either in your home country, the Caribbean, or another country.

• Look into the International MD Program at George Washington University, a program designed for international students who would like to enter an American medical school but wish to practice in their home country.

In Summary

Medical training in the U.S is an expensive, lengthy and competitive process. International students who are committed to medical training in the U.S. must be outstanding students with the ability finance $180,000 to $250,000 US (or more) in educational and related costs over the course of four years. The total cost of a student’s education will vary depending on the cost of education prior to entering medical school.  This is usually three to four years at a U.S. college or university, which can cost between $60,000 to $200,000 US, depending on financial aid awards.

In addition to considerations of time, cost and competitive admissions, those that plan to return to their home country to practice medicine need to consider what their government (or the entity that regulates licensure for medical doctors in their country) requires of foreign-trained physicians to become licensed practitioners.

It’s helpful to break down the time between now and August 2013 into three six-month chunks of time, and know what you need to be doing during each of those phases.

January to June 2012 (Testing and University Search)

• Register and prepare for the SAT – I suggest doing this in May or June. The next available date is October, which is getting close to many universities’ application deadlines or deadlines for applying for prestigious scholarships.
• Register and prepare for TOEFL or IELTS – Check with the universities you are interested in to see if they require this of students from your country.
• Be fully engaged in the university search process – go to education fares, visit websites, talk with college counselors, meet with your school’s college counselor, seek the advice of admissions consultants.
• Have a goal of having identified 5 to 8 schools to which you would like to apply by May.
• Continue to be involved in extra-curricular activities
• Keep your grades up! GPA and class rank really do matter to U.S. universities.

July to December 2012 (Applications and Further Testing)

• Understand application deadlines as well as application deadlines for prestigious scholarships
• The summer is a good time to work on personal statements or essays you may be required to submit
• Begin to identify teachers and community members who know you well and can write a strong recommendation for you.
• Submit applications – September is the earliest I would recommend submitting applications. Most priority deadlines for prestigious scholarship deadlines will fall somewhere in November or December. Even for schools that don’t have deadlines, some of their merit-based scholarship for which they have limited dollars will have been awarded by January.  A good goal is to have your application in no later than December 15.
• If you want to try to improve your SAT score, you will have opportunities to do this in October, November and December. Remember that universities will use your highest SAT score when determining admission and financial aid.

January to August 2013 (Evaluating Offers, University Choice, Preparing to Travel)

• Sometime between January and April, you’ll receive final offers from universities and it will be time to decide
• Once you’ve decided, you’ll need to get your visa
• Forms forms forms! (housing form, health form and finalization forms)
• plane ticket and preparation for travel

Of course, there is a lot more that could be said about each one of these bullet points. The goal of this blog, however, is to raise awareness of the need to start the process early and to provide a point of reference for knowing if you are on schedule in the university selection and admissions process.