Study Abroad, Overseas Education

Thursday 24 July 2014

TRICKS FOR WINNING SCHOLARSHIPS TO STUDY ABROAD

The decision to Study Abroad has been taken. The road to expansion, growth, fun is awaited. But, even though you are on the verge of having an experience of your life time, and that this experience would be worth every penny, not everyone can afford to do so. However, lack of money should not stand in between you and your plans for studying abroad. Scholarships- are a great way of funding your study program. The term itself suggests nothing less than a lottery! And as we all know, lotteries are won by fate, to those lucky few-This is the major reason why not everyone applies for scholarships. They fear of failure, or they think they are not meritorious enough to win the scholarship. Composing a winning scholarship application is not very difficult as one might wonder, hence, It is advisable for all study abroad aspirants to not presume circumstances or under estimate oneself. However, there are some tricks that you might give a shot to achieve that much-wanted scholarship. Firstly, APPLY! A lot of people are reluctant to apply, as they assume that they won’t win a scholarship and hence think applying is just a waste of time. Unfortunately, many students get caught up in this fear of failing and end up not applying. This only increases the chances of winning of the brave few who apply for scholarships. Secondly, apply for as many scholarships as possible. Applying to more and more scholarships will increase the chances of your winning a reward. Give yourself 4- 6 months for preparing yourself. Apply to at least 10-20 Study Abroad scholarships. Thirdly, CATH THE EYE! We all have something in us that make us unique and special from others. Well, use this special quality to craft a captivating application that can catch the eye of the scholarship reviewers. You can demonstrate your diversity without any limits. If you have had certain exclusive or uncommon experience, or you are the first person from your family who will go abroad, then utilize these aspects of your background to enhance your application. Scholarship programs welcome diversity in scholarship recipients with open arms. Fourthly, applying to study in non- traditional locations or in critical languages is another way to increase your odds of receiving a scholarship. There are a lot of scholarship programs who want to provide scholarships to applicants going to diverse locations. There is a higher probability of winning if you choose to study in a less popular or less- rated countries. For example, if you are planning to study in Czech Republic and along with you there are only five other applications to study in Czech Republic, you have a greater chance of winning. Similarly in the case of language study, the applicant is taken to be more competitive if he or she is taking up a critical language. There are so many languages that are high in demand but only few people study. You can still increase your odds in case you don’t want to study a critical language. This can be done by choosing a non- traditional location to study that language. Instead of studying Spanish in Spain, you can focus on Latin American; this will make it easier for you to get that scholarship that you are longing for. Creativity is the key! Put your creative skills to use, demonstrate your one of a kind creativity to make the scholarship reviewer wake up and pay attention to your application. If the scholarship requires a video essay, make a video that is engaging enough. If you are required to write an essay, make it as interesting and engaging as possible. Let the reviewer create images in his head while reading your essay. If possible use metaphors and poetry to enhance your essay. You can even consider using foreign quotes written in the language or country of interest. Scholarship reviewers have to spend hours reading through heaps of uninteresting and boring applications. Let your application be a breath of fresh air, something that would stand out and catch the eye of the reviewer. Lastly, and most importantly, follow the rules- To save yourself from disqualification after putting so much effort and time to create a winning application. Jot down the requirements for the scholarship on a check list and then check off each requirement as you go through the process of completing the application. Following these simple yet impressive tricks will help you achieve your dream of studying abroad. A scholarship is always an added feather to your hat, make the most of it. Create a positive attitude in yourself and go ahead, start applying!

Friday 11 July 2014

mapmystudy: PERMISSION TO STUDY IN ABROAD GRANTED

mapmystudy: PERMISSION TO STUDY IN ABROAD GRANTED: The cool and intelligent student that you are, have finally made a decision to broaden your scope, get a passport full of cities you can&#39...

PERMISSION TO STUDY IN ABROAD GRANTED

The cool and intelligent student that you are, have finally made a decision to broaden your scope, get a passport full of cities you can't even pronounce (yet). You are all set to make that life- changing decision to go out there and put your family and friends in awe of you and in turn become the apple of their eyes with that student visa passport that you have successfully achieved. Amidst all that excitement of finally getting a chance to study in abroad, you find not everyone who are close to you seem to be equally ready and delighted as you are. Initially, you may find even your friends not being very sure about your choice, which clearly indicates how tedious a task it would be to convince your parents to let you study in abroad. After having “the talk” with your parents regarding your plans, you will find yourself being attacked by all sorts of questions and concerns that you might need to deal with once you are in abroad. Scenarios to handle immediately after the discussion would be - your safety, the realities of finance for studying abroad, and quite importantly missing you! Despite all these concerns which are quite obvious for you to think about deeply, you feel ready to just go wild and explore, expand your imagination, language skills, and go as far as possible from the cultural barriers. Amidst all these emotions, you would still have to figure out a way to convince your parents to actually let you go and live your life, study in abroad and come back as a successful warrior! Convincing your parents could be one challenging task, as you know your mother would prefer you to stay at home, and avoid the potential dangers that can be caused to you if you navigate to unfamiliar places. Your father, would probably want to keep an eye on you all the time and so suggest you to take up a job nearby to your home. All their lives they would do everything to keep you out of any sort of dangers and keep you safe from the “big bad world”, make you as delicate as possible, and then they’ll tell you that you are not mature enough to go and study overseas! Whatever may be the situation, you know that you are up for it, you know you are confident enough, and can very well face the challenges that you might have to confront while studying in abroad. You have got to make your parents understand that you have got a good head on your shoulders, you are determined and yes, you know all about the value of cash. The three most important areas on which you need to focus to make your parents be confident about your study abroad plans is- your safety, your money managing skills, a well knitted connection with family and friends back home. Your safety is of utmost importance to your near and dear ones. Find out the emergency phone codes, the nearest locations of hospitals and police stations. Once you are done with your research, make sure you have relayed the information to your parents for their peace of mind. Secondly, you know money matters, you might study abroad scholarship, or you are spending all your teenage savings, or probably taking a loan from “Bank of Parents”. Whatever may be the case, your parents want to see you being smart with your money, more so when it comes to spending it in a different country. Finally, as you very well know no parent would want their babies to leave their nest and cut off all contacts with them, you need to make sure that you are well connected with your family and friends. Whether it is through phone calls, emails or skype, make sure you take out time for your loved ones from your busy and exciting stay in abroad. It would in turn let you and your parents be in peace of mind that their decision of letting you go is right one. As long as they have confidence in you that you are safe and smart in the foreign world, they won’t whine on trying to convince you to come back instead! Right after taking all the “precautions”, sit with your parents and discuss your study abroad options like mature adults. You would be surprised to see your parents patting your back. The transformation in you, just by doing a little research, showing that you are as concerned as they are, to be able to justify why study abroad is right for you, will prove to shock you ( certainly, in a good way) as a person as well as your family and friends. Get yourself organized, do your research and show your seriousness, it shall be worth the effort!