So for you that have been following my blog (jaelaaahh... sok beutt), I want to resume my last post about "the process" for me finally getting the school.
Well first of all, now I'm at the point of counting days. Too lazy to think about the packing, what to bring, what to manage before I leave (gahh!). I just came back from US embassy, got my Visa approved (tho it is still in the process). But I've just also booked my ticket :|
*Mudah2an beneran dapeett yee visanya bo*
FYI bukan e mau mamer tapi tiketnya mehoonngggg gilaaaaa x((((
It was $1500 for one way to Denver from Jakarta, so kalo diitung 13200x1500, hampir 20 jeti aja buat tiket :(
*nunggu THR dateng*
Well I have asked some friends and colleagues, and yes they told me that usually tickets are not covered. Jadi yasudahlahyaa... *ikhlasinn*
Anyway busway, the last time I was babbling about how I finally came to decide to apply for the school because one of my colleague really encouraged me to do.
So the next thing I did was sending out an email to the professor. I figure that the explanation about this will be somehow quite long, so I will do it more systematically:
1. How do I know which professor should I be contacting?
*) I always knew I wanted to go to CSM. I want to do Geophysics. Some of friends and colleagues I knew, graduated from there. And there is one name that I kept hearing, the name of the professor with the research program which I'm really interested in. Let say the Prof's name is Tom (well it IS his name). Tom is the director of one of the research programs in CSM. (note that in one department, there are several research programs, you can gain the information from the school homepage). So Prof Tom is the one who decide which applicants are eligible to get admitted to the program. He is also the one who connect with the sponsors (companies who give funding to the school). So in conclusion, he is THE guy.
2. What would you contact him for? What do you want to communicate to him about?
*) Basically, I introduce myself first. My name, which University I graduated from for my bachelor degree, my GPA, my major, how long I have been working, what is my job description, which company, what project I have been working on, what are my accomplishment. I also gave him information about my IELTS and GRE score (so at least he would know if I have a big chance to get admitted or not, if I apply). After that I informed to him that I have done a research on the website about the program, and find it really suitable to my background and my work experience. So giving several reasons why I'm really interested in that particular fields, I ask the chance to apply to the program. And also the opportunity to get funded for the program.
The response from the Prof would vary, of course. But in my case, the Prof was responding in a really positive way. He then told me that it would approximately be a 2-year program for masters and that the possibility to get funded is high. So THAT became my first motivation to really apply through the school system.
3. What did you do next?
*) I just applied to the school through the website and follow all the instructions. The most important part that we have to provide basically are:
- GRE score
- IELTS score
- CV/Resume
- Motivation letter
- Recommendation letters
For me the most struggling part was the recommendation. Because it has to come from the recommender directly (sent from their email address). So I had to remind them all the time, while also make sure I did it in a very nice way. Plus keep in mind that this part is extremely important. So make sure the person is someone who really knows your job or your educational experience. In my case, I asked 2 people from the company I'm working on (both are managers position) and 2 are from my previous university (the dean of faculty and the professor that advising my undergraduate thesis).
The process took approximately 2 months to get the answer whether I'm admitted or not. It was 2 months since I completed all my application and credentials.
The important part is, after I finished submitting all through the system, I emailed the Professor again to confirm that. Why? So when they have the committee meeting with the department's staffs, he would remember. Well it's better to do more than less. Plus there are maybe a lot of other applicants, so it would be good to have someone knowing which one are you among the others.
It was a quite hard time to wait for the decision tho, lol, because I was very anxious whether I got it or not. Whether I got all credentials submitted or not..
But anyways, as all of us know already, no pain no gain ;)
I'll get back to you on the next post...
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