Reviewed on Feb 12, 2025(Enrolled 2022)
What Students Say
Likes
- Location of the campus is in the heart of San Francisco downtown
- Class size is pretty decent with 15-20 students in each class
- Diversity of people from all around the globe
Dislikes
- Not as many career fairs as I expected
- Job fairs not conducted at the downtown campus
- Expected more workshops, seminars, webinars to prepare students for the job market
Course Curriculum
6
- The difficulty level of my course curriculum was pretty decent. It was a mix of both theoretical and practical.
- The most positive aspects of my course was the decent amount of workload that is easily manageable and allows you to do a lot more during your program. The most negative aspect of my course was the lack of technical knowledge that I was hoping to get through my course.
- The average number of students in my class was 20-25 at a time. There were around 15-20 indian students in my class.
Admission Experience
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Applied into:-
- University of California, Berkeley - Rejected, not sure what went wrong here. Worked really hard for the application and made sure everything was perfect and good to go.
- University of California, Merced - Shortlisted, did not receive confirmed admission
- University of California, Riverside - Waitlisted
- University of San Francisco - Admitted, Confirmed admission
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I really liked the location of the university. It is in the heart of San Francisco downtown. It really gives you the opportunity to be close to the tech ecosystem in the bay area.
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I had to submit an SOP, Resume, 2-3 Letters of Recommendation, IELTS/TOEFL scores and GRE scores were optional.
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IELTS/TOEFL scores are mandatory with a minimum score of 6 on the IELTS.
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My overall admission experience was pretty smooth.
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I applied to the Fall 2022 intake. Fall intake is the best time to come to the US as a student as you will have the opportunity to work full time off campus during your summer break.
The admission process took around 6 to 8 months from application to acceptance. I submitted my application in November 2021 and received my acceptance in January 2022.
Faculty
6
- The faculty-to-student ratio in my class was around 15-20 students per faculty.
- I really liked the faculty-to-student ratio in my class as I felt the faculty was able to give personalised attention to each student in the class.
- The teaching methodology of the faculty was decent enough.
Campus Life
8
- The campus experience in terms of events, fests, clubs and extracurricular activities was pretty good. My college has 2 campuses.
- One campus is in downtown San Francisco and the other one is in San Francisco city.
- The downtown campus is a smaller campus with just one building as the campus while the other campus in the city is the bigger campus with library.
Part Time Jobs
- There are part time opportunities available both on campus and off campus. A lot of students typically secure a teaching Assistant (TA). research Assistant (RA), or Departmental Assistant (DA) positions. The pay range for TA/RA/DA positions is typically somewhere between $20-$22 per hour. The other on-campus jobs available for students are in the cafeteria.
- Most indian student prefer working in a tech related job part time. Students typically earn $22-$25 per hour in their part-time jobs. It requires hard-work and dedication to earn a good part-time job in your desired field. You can apply to part-time jobs on your campus portal or through LinkedIn. You can also get a part-time job through networking.
Placement
4
- The full-time job opportunities available after completing your course totally depend on your knowledge, skills, dedication and hardwork.
- It really differs from program to program and each student is responsible for their own success.
- If you have a technical background, it is important to brush up your technical skills. LinkedIn is the best place to looks for jobs.
Accommodation
Off Campus
8
- I opted for off-campus accommodation. I got in touch with a few students from my university and we started looking for places together. We used online platform like Zillow to look for places.
- We asked our family and friend already in the US to help us look for places. They guided us in our house hunt and we found something very close to our campus.
Exams
- IELTS/TOEFL scores are mandatory, GMAT/GRE scores are optional. IELTS minimum score is 6 required for admission.
- 1 Statement of Purpose, 1 Personal Statement, 2-3 Letters of Recommendation, 1 Resume/CV,
Interview was not part of my application process. - Some students from my class did have an interview as a part of their application process though.
Fees
- $45,000 was the tuition fees, living expenses was around $10-$15k for the 1.5 years duration of my course.
- Fees are due semester wise and you also have the option to enrol in a payment plan that allows you to pay fees for each semester in a monthly instalment.
- The monthly cost of living in San Francisco on a student budget would be around $1250-$1500.
Scholarship
- Yes, there are scholarships available for my course. Yes, I received a scholarship during my course. The name of my scholarship was SOM MSIS (SJ) Scholarship and Frank D. Matousek Endowed Scholarship
- SOM MSIS (SJ) Scholarship - $3,500
- Frank D. Matousek Endowed Scholarship - $3,000
- Yes, my batchmates also received scholarship and other forms of financial aid.
