What to do before you apply for foreign degree?

Pursuing overseas education was never easy. A dull job market, coupled with the recent
depreciation of the rupee, has made it even more difficult for Indian students aspiring to study
abroad. Financial readiness of students has become a crucial parameter for selection, apart
from other factors which include academic record, T!F"#I!"T$ scores, statement of
purpose %$P& and '(!#')AT scores.
*Financial backing of the students is the first thing the university checks at the time of
submitting the application. Parents have to show the bank guarantee letter, their financial
stability and networth to prove that they are in a position to support the student+s education
and living e,penses abroad,- says $araswati .ishwanathan, founder and principal counsellor
at 'yan Foundation, a firm offering consultancy services for overseas education. *Parents are
usually the sponsors of their children+s education. They may also have relatives abroad who
may be willing to sponsor partly. At the time of visa interview, the visa officer has a right to
seek documents showing the parent+s or relative+s networth.-
If you are planning to pursue a degree abroad, there are /01 sources of funding. First comes
scholarships and aids, which vary from course to course. 2owever, these scholarships and
aids are far and few. 2ence every student has to start the admission preparations at least a
year before the admission deadline, suggest counsellors . Following are some suggestions
which may help you arrange the funds for your overseas degree.
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Ideally students should plan one year before the admission season starts. *$tudents who plan
to take admission in Fall /561 %ctober /56107anuary /568& have already started identifying
universities and funding options for courses of their choice,- says )s .ishwanathan . For
instance, an )9A, a )aster+s degree or Ph: programme re;uires you to give certain e,ams
such as '(!#')AT and T!F"#I!"T$.
It is better you give these e,ams at least 6506/ months before the admission deadline. After
the e,ams, every student has to undergo a routine process of writing essays, statement of
purpose, filling application forms and applying for financial aid# scholarship. The entire
application process, which includes transcript evaluations, essays , letters of reference etc, is
time consuming , say education consultants. This will give some e,tra time to the students to
scout for aids and bursaries.
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*$tudents should opt for countries which offer employment opportunities after the course
completion,- says .ishwanathan. *If you pass out from a good university in the =$, the case
for 206 9 .isa becomes stronger,- she adds. $imilarly, in a country like <anada, the
government pro0actively supports immigration of skilled workers from other countries .
!,penses and financial aid are other crucial determinants. *<ountries such as the => or
<anada are more e,pensive than the =$ simply because the e,change rate is much higher.
2ence affordability becomes a key issue in these countries,- says 3eha (achh, a )umbai0
based counsellor. Aids depend solely on the field of study, hence a student should understand
the nature of such financial assistance before applying for one, advise counsellors. *For
instance , the funding for an )$ course comes through assignment such as research assistants
? while for a Ph:, it is usually in the form of a tuition fee waiver,- says (achh. There have
been instances where a student gets an aid after completing the first semester . In such cases,
students who have opted for education loans can re;uest the bank to stop the ne,t tranche of
the loan.
*There are always two stages to a loan. ne is the approval stage and another is the disbursal
stage. Although, the total loan amount gets approved in principle, it+s disbursed on an annual
or semester basis, depending upon your re;uirement,- says 2arsh (oongta, <!,
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<ounsellors recommend that a prospective student who is pursuing a Ph: or a )aster+s
degree should network with the professors of the relevant subjects and universities in her#his
area of interest. If a student finds synergies with any professor, s#he may get a suitable aid on
the professor+s recommendation . *In <anada, there have been instances where students
pursuing )$ have got an aid even before leaving for that country because they have pro0
actively interacted with professors on their areas of academic interests ,- says )s
.ishwanathan.
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*Ideally, students and parents should have a clear idea about their affordability before short0
listing the universities. This will give an idea if there is any shortfall in funds and how the
student can raise that money. !ducation loans and financial aids figure amongst the most
popular ways of financing your overseas education. =niversities allow students to opt for /01
family sponsors.
9ut, if you have a relative who can partly sponsor your education, it can reduce your overall
loan burden. nce you get a job, you can pay off the dues to the family members,- says
(achh. 9anks offer education loans, but the collateral and the terms are more stringent for
overseas degrees. The collateral could be in the form of F:s, 3$<s, insurance policies or
even a house worth the loan amount. The ma,imum loan amount is capped at . /5 lakh and
the repayment period varies between A years and B years. The repayment of loan starts a year
after the completion of the course or si, months after securing a job, whichever is earlier.
*)ost foreign or private sector banks charge a simple or compound interest on the loan. If
you do not repay it during the study period, it keeps getting added onto the principal amount.
2ence it is in the best interest of students that they or their family pays off the interest
component of the loan during the study period. That eases the repayment burden to a
considerable e,tent,- says (oongta.