What Students Say
Likes
- The education system is very straightforward and the marking system is very clear.
- Education focuses on basic concepts rather than textbook definitions and memorizing things.
- The research opportunities at my University are plenty and very well funded.
Dislikes
- The transportation is not that good, especially during winters.
- The rent is high and on-campus housing is very random and limited.
- The tuition for a master's program is very expensive with very limited TA/RA positions.
The reason I chose to go to the USA was the economic stability and a very systematic education system. It's much easier to stay here than in other countries according to me. The University of Michigan was ranked no. 4 in USA for civil engineering when I joined. However, the major factors were the course structure, flexibility in taking courses outside of the department, and research opportunities and funds. U of M being an R1 University is one of the highest funded Universities in the USA. As for the flexibility in coursework, I took half of the credits for my degree from outside of the department which gave me knowledge and insights of various other disciplines. All sorts of career opportunities can be achieved here. There are various career fairs and workshops to help students improve their resumes, network with potential employers and get well-earning jobs. The name of the University itself weighs a lot and it's not very difficult to get a job even during the recession. My overall experience in the past 2 years has been excellent and I have enjoyed my time here to the fullest. I did great in my academics, learned various subjects, networked with people, participated in various student-run organizations on campus, and made plenty of friends. My experience during my Master's was awesome and hence I decided to pursue my PhD from the same University.
Course Curriculum
The course curriculum is designed to help students learn basic concepts they can use in their professional lives. Both practical as well as academic insights are given for students so that a student is well prepared to go into academia as well as industry. In my course there's no industry experience but I did opt for research experience and continued a PhD in the same topic. Most of the Professors have had industry experience so they gave us valuable insights of the current practice in the field.
Faculty
The faculty-to-student ratio is pretty good in my department. The biggest class I took was around 20-25 students. But there are some classes in other depts where they may be a large amount of students but then that class has two faculties to maintain the ratio. Faculties are extremely friendly and approachable. The best faculties I had is my own PhD advisor and some other professors I had for a couple of my classes but I'd say all of the faculties I have been with have done a great job at teaching the subject. Faculties have contacts in industries and do help students get part time as well as full time jobs.
Campus Life
The University of Michigan has 3 campuses, Ann Arbor, Dearborn, and Flint. In the Ann Arbor campus, there are a lot of events going on in the downtown area. There are many libraries, and more than 100 student organizations. I took part in 2 of them: the Graduate Student Advisory Council (GSAC), and Wolverine Support Network (WSN). I currently am a member of the organization Clean-up Campus. I had a lot of fun in these organs and we organized plenty of events such as bowling, lunch with faculties, game night, movie night, etc.
Placement
The placement is amazing at our University. All of my friends who graduated from the master's program have been placed in huge companies such as KPFF, TY Lin, Black and Veatch, etc. Companies that visit our University include Tesla, SpaceX, Lucid, Google, and many other major companies. Most of the topmost national laboratories visited too but they offer positions preferably to US citizens. The median salary depends on the location. In Ann Arbor for a civil engineering master's the median salary is around 70k USD per year.
Accommodation
The rent I am paying now is 650$ per month. I live with 2 other roommates in a 2 bed 1 bath apartment. One of the roommate has occupied the living room. The rent for a private room with no one occupying the living room is very high here. And the price is much higher in the downtown area. On campus housing is a bit cheaper but it's very random and limited. Off campus is expensive and one may have to share room if they want to save on rent.
Exams
- When I applied there weren't any required scores as such but I did take GRE and TOEFL. My GRE score was 322/340 and my TOEFL score was 112/120. The main things at least my department looks out for are undergrad GPA, projects and research papers (if any). - SSC (10th) - 94%; HSC (12th) - 83%; VJTI, University of Mumbai - BTech Civil engineering - 9.02/10 University of Michigan, Ann Arbor - MSE Civil Engineering - 4.0/4.0 - Requirements: I submitted a Statement of Purpose (SoP), a Personal History Statement (PHS), 3 LoRs, and a CV. I didn't have to give any interviews to get into the Master's program but I did give an interview for my PhD admission. As of SoP, it's basically why you want a master's, why this specific program and why this specific University. You also need to explain how this program will help you build a better future while also presenting yourself as a strong candidate who deserves to be in the University. PHS is your journey in life so far. What motivates you, what challenges you faced and how you overcame such challenges? You also need to provide your cultural, educational and financial background responsible for shaping you as a human being. LoRs need to be written by supervisors or Professors that have known you and worked with you for enough time. At least 2 out of the 3 LoRs must be from people who have known you professionally for more than a year. CVs must include major accomplishments such as educational milestones, projects, papers, programming languages, etc. It must also include extra-curricular activities that you've been a part of.
Fees
I completed my master's program in 1 year (i.e. 2 semesters). The tuition per semester was 28k USD so total tuition I paid was 56k USD. Generally, it takes 3 semesters to get a master's.
