Please review our extensive FAQ’s.  If you find you still have queries please email us

What is financial aid?
Financial aid is a means by which students can reduce or eliminate the expenses that they will incur in the course of their education overseas.

What is cost of education?
Cost of education is a cost incurred for your tuition fees at the university.  It varies from country to country and from university to university. 

What is the cost of living? 
Cost of living is costs incurred throughout your stay at an overseas country where you will pursue your education.

Which state is cheaper for living?
States in the Midwest regions of America are comparatively cheaper to live in than Northeast of the West coast.

What are costs before admission?
These are costs of test registration fees, application fees, and mailing costs.

Are state colleges cheaper than private colleges?
Yes. The state colleges are cheaper than the private colleges, but a number
of private colleges give financial assistance and therefore turn out to be a cheaper option to take!

What are costs after admission?
These are living expenses, medical, personal and expenses incurred during your stay at the university.

How much does an undergraduate earn for an on-campus job?
An undergraduate student can earn between $2,000-6000 through on campus jobs.

How does a graduate student earn an on-campus job?
As a graduate, you can earn on-campus, if you are awarded an assistantship either teaching or research, as it will cover your living, tuition and other miscellaneous expenses. 

What is minimum wage?
Minimum wage is the dollar amount, which any person working legally in the USA earns per hour. This dollar amount changes depending on rules and regulations.

What are miscellaneous expenses?
Miscellaneous expenses could include your entertainment, traveling expenses, phone calls to your parents to name a few.

What is medical / health insurance?
All universities in the US require students to purchase a medical insurance.  Today you can purchase this here in India, or you can purchase this at the University abroad.

What is TA (teaching assistantship)?
Teaching assistants assist a professor by teaching an undergraduate class or checking exam papers. They are paid for this job, which covers most of their expenses while at the university.

How much does a TA earn?
Your tuition fee is waived, and along with that you will receive living expenses as well as money to pay for other expenses.

What is RA (research assistantship)?
Research fellowship/assistantship is an award that allows you to work in the capacity of an assistant to a professor on the research project assigned to him.

How much does a research assistant earn?
As a research assistant the student receives tuition wavier or pays in-state tuition fees and earns additionally to sustain living expenses through their education

What is a guarantor?
A guarantor is the person who legally co-signs your loan/financial aid documents. The guarantor takes the responsibility of assuring the bank that you can and will pay back the loan. If, in case you do not pay back then it is the responsibility of the guarantor to repay the loan.

Can I get a loan to study overseas?
Yes! There are a number of loans for students looking to study overseas.

What is a loan fee?
This is the fee paid for processing your loan application

What is a guarantee fee?
This is the fee paid to the bank on the principal amount and before the loan is issued to you.

What is merit based funding?
Merit-based funding is funding allocated by institutions on the basis of your academic profile and your personal achievements.

What is need-based funding?
Need based financial assistance is evaluated on your family’s economic profile.

Who can apply for need-based funding?
Only families of students who cannot afford to pay for their education are eligible to apply for need-based funding.

Who can apply for merit-based funding?
Students who have a good academic profile, and a number of achievements in extra-curricular activities.

What are SFG’s?
This is an acronym for Scholarships/Fellowship/Grants.

What is an academic profile?
An academic profile consists of your past academic records and academic awards/achievements.

What are scholarship scams?
These are private scholarship search services, which ask you to pay for finding scholarships, which match your needs. Since there are very few genuine services which offer free scholarship searches for you, beware of paid services.

What are financial aid packages?
A university offers a financial aid package, which consists of scholarships/grant and an on-campus employment program for the student. Hence this package helps you pay a large amount of your total cost.

How do I know which Universities offer financial aid to International students?
Please read up the brochures or the website of the universities that you are looking to apply to and you will know whether they offer any financial aid to international students

How do I apply for financial aid?
Ask the universities, to send you the financial aid form, which you should finish and submit before the financial deadline date mentioned in the application package of the respective university.!

What is a transfer option?
A transfer option is to complete at least 2 years of the Bachelors program and then apply for a transfer to the University that you want to attend in the US. The years waived off in your transfer status will depend on the courses covered in India and the grades for the same.

What are in-state tuition fees?
In-state tuition fees are fees paid by students who are residents of that state in the US.

What are tuition-waivers?
Tuition waivers are awards that waive your tuition fees. These could range from partial to complete tuition waivers.

What is a Bank letter?
A bank letter is the letter issued by the bank confirming the amount your parents can pay for your education.