A stepping stone to your masters..



The pandemic has made situations uncertain. The economy has still not recovered completely. Even though it is in recovery mode now, it will take time to reach the pre-covid level. The employability is uncertain. Many might not have got their desired jobs after graduation and there are a lot of other options to do. But most of you will probably plan for a postgraduate degree.

If you are planning for a masters degree abroad then this question would definitely wander in your mind HOW TO SHORTLIST UNIVERSITIES? Even the aspirants who have a very good profile are confused about how to select universities. In this article, let me tell you some of the crucial factors that one should consider while shortlisting universities.

  • Your area of interest

  • Tuition fee and cost of living

  • Ranking of the university

  • Location and Post-study work

Let’s have a detailed look at each factor

YOUR AREA OF INTEREST

Out of all these factors, the most important one is the course that you are opting for. It decides the future of your career. The course you are opting for, need not be relevant to your bachelor’s degree, you have all the freedom to switch your major. Your chances of getting admission will be higher if your master's specialization is relevant to your bachelor's degree. If not, having a couple of years of work experience in that field would make your profile good. Now you are probably thinking about what makes a profile good? Well, that deserves a separate article. we will post it soon. Subscribe to our blog and stay tuned.

TUITION FEE AND COST OF LIVING

Tuition fees vary from university to university and obviously the cost of living also drastically varies from city to city. If tuition fee is your main concern, then prefer public universities where the tuition fee is low compared to the private universities. Tuition fees in the public universities in Germany are very low and even zero tuition fees in some universities. One should also research about the scholarships offered by the universities and various organizations in the country. Choose top universities which are in suburban areas, that reduces your cost of living. Numbeo is a very useful website where you can find living expenses for a specific city and compare it with expenses in your hometown.

RANKINGS

Do university rankings matter? Yes! Of course. Obviously higher the ranking, higher the reputation of the university which in turn attracts the best brains of the world. While shortlisting, one should not look only at the overall ranking of the university but also the subject wise ranking. Some universities might be ranked higher for their undergrad programs or for a specific department but not for the department you are aiming for. Being a graduate from a top university will take your profile to the next level. But at the end, irrespective of the ranking of the university, if you put in your 200% you will definitely succeed. There are lots of organizations that provide rankings. Here are some of the popular global rankings:

LOCATION AND POST STUDY WORK

Location plays a major role when you are searching for an internship or a job after your graduation. If your university is located in a high tier city, then lots of companies would be around the campus. It will give you an edge while searching for an internship/job. Now you might be thinking which country should I go to. For that you should do your own research like which country is best for your course, which country provides you better job opportunities and if you are planning to settle abroad then you should also check how easy it is to get permanent residence. 

Here are some of the other common questions you might have

When to start shortlisting universities?

Most of the universities open their admission portal a year before the intakes. So, I would recommend you to start shortlisting Universities at least six months before the start of the application for that intake so that you get an ample amount of time to make a good decision and you could also build your profile accordingly.

How many universities should I shortlist and apply?

You can shortlist and apply to as many as universities you want but each application fee would cost you thousands of bucks depending upon the university you apply for. It is always recommended to apply for 6 to 8 universities and the most important thing is to diversify your risk of getting admits.

How to diversify my risk of applying to university?

  • Safe - If your profile is well above the program’s requirements and standards, then the chances of getting an admit from that university is considerably high. It is not guaranteed that you will get an admit but the possibility of you getting an admit in the university can be as high as 70%.

  • Achievable - If your profile meets the program’s requirements and standards, then the program comes under the achievable category. The odds of getting an admit would be around 40%

  • Dream -  If your profile is below the admission requirements and standards of the program, then it might be difficult for you to get into it. But it’s not impossible. The possibility of you getting an admit would be in the range of 10 - 20%.

I would recommend you to apply to at least 2 universities from each category to diversify your risk.

Do I need to have my GRE/IELTS/TOFEL scores ready before shortlisting?

If you have exam scores, it helps you to filter out universities better with the eligibility requirements of the courses you are interested in. It is absolutely fine even if you don’t have exam scores now. You can shortlist universities with your expected/target scores and prepare for the exams as per the university requirements.

Do I need to get help from a consultancy for shortlisting universities and applying?

Absolutely not. In the modern world of the internet, you can get whatever details you want just by googling out. It is always recommended to get guidance from your professors, seniors, friends and relatives as they are the most reliable sources. If you are planning to shortlist and apply through consultancy, don't completely or blindly rely on them. In the end, it's your career, your money and your two years of life so do thorough research on your own.

If you think that you are not good enough to get an admit from top universities abroad, then you are really underestimating yourself. I have seen students with a decent profile getting admits from top universities of the world. All you need is to get out of your comfort zone and start working hard towards your passion and keep hustling. All the best !!

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