Guides
Up-to-date guides for international students: choosing programs, applying, costs, campus life and careers in the US.
172 articles
- Carnegie Mellon School of Drama: Broadway Alumni and How to Apply The School of Drama at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is one of the best-known conservatory-style theater programs inside a U.S. research university, and its graduates turn up regularly on Broadway, both on stage and on design teams. This article uses the 2025 Broadway musical… Jun 4, 2025
- Can You Go to Medical School Without a Science Major? Humanities and Policy Paths to Pre-Med Many students assume that "pre-med" means majoring in biology or chemistry. It does not. Pre-med is a set of prerequisite courses, experiences and an exam (the MCAT) that you complete alongside any major, and U.S. medical schools admit students from every field. This guide expla… Jun 4, 2025
- Computer Engineering at UC Santa Barbara: Program, Capstone and Admission Guide Computer engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) is a small, selective major that sits between electrical engineering and computer science. This guide covers how the program is organized, what the senior capstone involves, the combined BS/MS option, how… Jun 4, 2025
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Goldwater Scholarship Guide: Eligibility, Nomination and How to Apply
The Barry Goldwater Scholarship is the best-known national award for U.S. college sophomores and juniors who plan research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics or engineering. This guide explains, as of November 2026, who is eligible, how the campus nomination works, wha… May 30, 2025
- UCLA Law in The Hague: Semester Externships at International Courts For law students who want to work in international courts, few places matter more than The Hague, home to the International Court of Justice and a cluster of international tribunals. UCLA School of Law runs a semester-long program there, UCLA Law in The Hague, that places studen… May 28, 2025
- Food and Housing Insecurity in U.S. Colleges: What the Data Show and Where Students Can Get Help Tuition is only part of what college costs. Rent, groceries, transportation and health care can push students into skipping meals or moving between friends' couches, and surveys show this is common at U.S. colleges. This guide summarizes what the research says, what kinds of hel… May 21, 2025
- UChicago’s Humanities Master’s Programs: A Guide to MAPH and the MA in Digital Studies The University of Chicago is one of the few top research universities that offers stand-alone, one-year master's degrees in the humanities. Its Division of the Arts & Humanities, whose graduate division was established in 1930, offers a Master of Arts Program in the Humaniti… May 20, 2025
- Experiential Learning in U.S. Colleges: Types, Examples and What International Students Should Know "Experiential learning" is the term U.S. colleges use for learning by doing: internships, co-ops, undergraduate research, service-learning, study abroad, client projects and similar experiences that take students outside the lecture hall. Many universities now count these experi… May 20, 2025
- Open Educational Resources and Textbook Costs: How U.S. College Students Can Save on Course Materials Textbooks and course materials are a real part of the cost of a U.S. degree, and they are easy to overlook when you budget only for tuition, housing and food. U.S. colleges include "books and supplies" in their official cost of attendance, and the bill can run to hundreds of dol… May 17, 2025
- Inside U.S. Medical School: Simulation Labs, Clinical Rotations and the Road to Residency Becoming a doctor in the United States usually takes four years of college, four years of medical school (M.D. or D.O.), and then several years of residency training. Medical school itself has changed a lot in the past decade: students now start clinical skills training in their… May 17, 2025
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