Moscow -> LA, is that possible?!

Student Lounge International Students
21

<p>Ok, so everyone goes to good schools. All schools are great. Peace in the world. </p>

<p>How do you know where I am from? </p>

<p>Life is hard that's true:) But it's still easier when you are at school as compared ot the real world. Because work is absolutely not so exciting. (I don't know whether you work, here many students have to work like 10 hours a week, so that shows you how boring the regular job can be if you do not have a good job:) ) So let' s all be happy that we are students. Period.</p>

22

<p>VeritaSeeker, why did you decide to major in environmental sciece?</p>

<p>manyzhka, what is your major at Yale?</p>

23

<p>Econ and German Studies</p>

24

<p>Yeah, I am glad that we have come to peace and understood each other :)</p>

<p>MGU has many flaws really; otherwise, i'd like to study here. But i don't want to stay :( The student here drink A LOT, i don't like stupid summer practices, which bring only drunken parties.. just wasting time. </p>

<p>
[quote]
How do you know where I am from?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I am not that stupid. Try vreac forum. </p>

<p>
[quote]
I don't know whether you work, here many students have to work like 10 hours a week, so that shows you how boring the regular job can be if you do not have a good job

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Usually, freshmen and sophomores don't work, cuz they are too busy with studies, or just don't want to spend their time working rather than drinking. But later (4th, 5th years) almost all the students work. </p>

<p>I sometimes have some computer jobs, like freelance translating (don't think that my english is too weak for this :)) or typing. </p>

<p>I don't know why u are not sure about Russian university life, you had studied one year in Russia.</p>

<p>
[quote]
VeritaSeeker, why did you decide to major in environmental sciece?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Cuz I know it very well, but I feel that it's not mine though. I wanna choose another major in American univ (if I get in, of course) But why do you wonder?</p>

25

<p>i am just not sure what i should major in. i like science but i do not want to work in medicine.</p>

26

<p>
[quote]
A question to PavelB. What is your SAT score?

[/quote]
Actually, I didn't taken the SAT for financial reasons. It was sort of short notice and the only chance was as a standby, which increases the price dramatically. I did, however, take the ACT, because their rules are more relaxed and it wasn't necessary for a standby fee. I got a 31.</p>

27

<p>Verita, I agree with you, SAT I math section is 'easy'. It only requires you to know basics of Algebra and Geometry, and be able to use your logic. And yes, you will see majority getting 500s, it's an average score in each section.</p>

<p>But trust me, not everyone in Russia can score high on these types of tests, most of them belong to 500s category. I am not talking about MGU kids, I am talking about average suburban, little city e.t.c. kids, there are tons of them, but you don't hear about them. You say SAT is easy for you in Russia, and you get like 800? Well, there are lots of kids in America that think it's easy, too, and get 800 without any huff-puffs. Your problem is that you consider yourself to be an average student, while you are not. You plan to apply to America, you participated in Olympiads e.t.c., so you are no different from kids here who call it 'easy'. I know Russian and post-Soviet kids who take SAT and score 500-600, and can't get over the limit. It's okay.</p>

<p>Your other argument was, that in Russia mathematics are stronger, and what is taught in America's universities is taught in Russian school. Well, in American school you actually select courses for credits, and kids who are ready for challenge take AP Calculus of different levels. At level 2 or 3 it can be harder than any math of MGU (I have an ex-classmate over there), it beats your мат анализ - матан. So as long as you want math - you take the course.</p>

<p>And finally, MGU doesn't provide as much educational opportunities as Harvard, Yale e.t.c. Not even in Soviet times, not mentioning nowadays when it became corrupt and full of bribery. American universities differ from Soviet ones simply because they emphasize personality, not simply the scores. You can get ALL perfect scores on all SAT I, SAT II and AP tests + have 4.0 GPA, but if that's all you do, you don't have any extracurricular activities or dreams - you are a zero, you will never get admitted. In most of Soviet countries, however, (including mine) score is more than enough. You score - you get in, no doubt about that. Now think why West is so developed and farther compared to Soviet countries. I recall very nice saying: если ты такой умный, то почему ты не такой богатый?/If you are so smart, why are you not so rich? American top Universities nurture personalities, that become presidents, other political leaders and e.t.c., and change the world.</p>

28

<p>
[quote]
Well, I'm having a kind of situation that makes me laugh and cry at the same time. Because I don't know what to believe:
I live in Moscow, Russia, and I want to study in USA. I looked at some SAT questions: they are easy! In Moscow people have to know all this stuff to study in 9th grade, I swear.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>SAT Math would be considered 9th-grade level at best in any European country (UK, France, Germany, even Spain or Italy !). </p>

<p>For any European student, I would actually recommend staying at home for your undergraduate course (which is much cheaper BTW in Europe) and then going to the US for graduate school.</p>

<p>Incidentally, there are many Russian/former USSR PhD students in the US and, unlike their undergrad counterparts, they all get full financial aid (at least in the top research universities!)</p>

29

<p>Unless you get extremly good SAT scores and are extremly promising and extremly poor.......you wont get enough aid...from anywhere.</p>

<p>and a 31 is not really good enough for ivy league full aid.</p>

30

<p>There a couple of misconceptions here.</p>

<p>Ivy League only gives need based aid - looking at your family's financial situation and providing money to make it affordable. What is affordable is a determination that the college makes, not your family. Many students and their parents still don't like what they are being asked to pay.</p>

<p>Alone's comments above are correct. The SAT is a national exam that is used for evaluation at a broad range of colleges and universities. Most U.S. students applying to the Ivies or other top universities/liberal arts colleges had the math materials at 13 or 14. However, their classmates who are qualified to go to the lowest ranked colleges may have had the material at 16 or 17 and struggled with it. The top students will have had a year or more of calculus; some will have gone even farther. That math is not on the test.</p>

<p>The american higher education system works quite differently than other countries' systems. A student here does not specialize early on. The U.S. system values a broad range of topics. You will be required to have a couple of semesters of history, literature, science, and arts. There will be many choices to satisfy the requirement. You may take modern English poetry while your roommate enjoys the British novels of the 1800s. Everyone's education ends up different from each others, not in general but in specifics.</p>

<p>The major exception to this is the engineering degree which has a more structured education. However they too have a few free spots that they can fill in as they please.</p>

<p>The U.S. has many terrific educational institutions beyond the Ivies. Please take a look at the ones listed at the Discussion Home marked Top Universities and Top Liberal Art Colleges. Several of them are need blind for international students and would give you a meaningful education. And many of them are equally academically demanding in their entrance requirements.</p>

31

<p>^ I second that, except Harvard is an ivy, and gives non-need based aid too.</p>

32

<p>Just a few points. First, SAT is not easy. Unless you know English well, you will not get competitive scores. Second, education at MGU has very little value. Most of the lecturers are terrible (you are forced to learn from the textbook). Many of your classmates are gonna be terrible (check MGU restrooms where the stall walls are smeared with feces). There are no mentoring programs. In short, it is a sink-or-swim system. The only decent program at MGU was at the math department (meh-mat) since it did not require large capital expenditures to be good, but even that went into decline since the 90s. Anyone comparing MGU with places like MIT, Princeton, or Harvard is delusional.</p>

<p>If you're after quality education, and can get into a top school in the U.S., you should by all means do it.</p>

33

<p>A friend of mine spent a year in MGU and then her family moved to NYC, and now she’s a student in Columbia. If I’m right, she’s an operations research major, but I’m not completely sure. She says that MGU was much harder academically. Yes, facilities are better in Columbia, but the quality of education is surprisingly better in MGU. I believe, that MGU’s position in world ranking is so low because all the research they conduct is published in Russian. Besides, professors usually concentrate on teaching only, as scholars who want to do research usually work not for universities, but for special scientific institutions. Another friend is a rising sophomore in UMiami and even though she was not in top 10% of my class, she made a Dean’s list and has 4.0 GPA in very rigorous classes.</p>

<p>And I personally have to agree that SAT is ridiculously easy for top Russian HS students. I got 800 in math without any preparation as everything that was on the test I studied in 7-9th grade. Not kidding. Writing is basic as well. Reading may be hard because of very advanced vocabulary, but if you spend a lot of time learning words it is pretty easy as well. </p>

<p>That being said, I will study in one of the top LACs in the US, even though I got into into MGU with full ride. The reason I did this was the idea of liberal arts education itself, the possibilty of choosing your own courses in a wide range of areas. But if I based my decision on the quality of education only I would have chosen MGU over pretty much any college in the US.</p>

34

<p>The SAT is easy for anyone with a brain.</p>

<p>1) It’s totally possible to study in the US on finaid. Of course, to be seriously considered, you have to have a good verbal score, a good (2-3, for colleges that actually give intl aid) essay, teacher recs in English, get the Visa, and whatnot. Outside of myself, the only Russians I know in colleges in the US are the ones who don’t need finaid, but that’s a self selecting sample, no?</p>

<p>2) mexmat in MGU was, and I suppose is still considered, world-class. But the social sciences and the hard sciences that require expensive laboratory equipment DO NOT EXIST IN RUSSIA AND HAVE NOT IN THE USSR. I would say Russian education is more rigorous - but what country’s Uni education isn’t, comparatively?</p>

<p>3) Generally, few people speak English in Russia, or have the agency to get out of the herd and do something as unusual as applying to HYP from Zazhopinsk.</p>

<p>That said, since you came upon this forum yourself and didn’t use google translate, I have great hopes for you. Despite what people say, admissions are easier for most internationals, and if you leverage yourself right, you can totally make something work.</p>