What Students Say
Likes
- The most important thing i like about my University is the amazing Library. It's a 14 floor building with individual and group study rooms, great collection of books and excellent service.
- The neighborhood of the University is quite calm which is another aspect that makes me want to stay within the campus.
- The lush green trees in and around the campus which are well-maintained make it a great sight during all seasons of the year.
Dislikes
- The weather sometimes gets unpredictable and it's hard to attend classes in peak winters.
- The faculty could be improved.
- The intake of students can be filtered out by ensuring quality over quantity.
Course Curriculum
8
- The difficulty level of my course is medium. It was more theoretical during semesters 1 and 2 but semesters 3 and 4 are purely practical which makes it a combination of both theoretical and practical.
- The positive aspects of the course are inclusion of machine learning courses and the flexibility to choose from a variety of electives.
- The negative aspect about the course would be that it doesn't include any subject on visualization which is actually needed for a Data Scientist.
- The average number of students is 20 to 25 depending on the course with a vast majority of Indian Students in the Masters class.
- There would be around 15 to 20 Indian students which is about 80% of our class.
Admission Experience
- I applied to 5 universities- San Diego State University(SDSU), Kent State University(KSU), University of North Texas(UNT), Northeastern University(NEU), State University of New York(SUNY) at Buffalo.
- I have received admits from SDSU, KSU, NEU, SUNY
- I was rejected for UNT with a deferred admission to the Spring semester due to class load. I guess I could have secured an admission for the following semester.
- I chose Kent State University over other universities because of the slow and serene atmosphere the University provides which I thought will be better for my Masters. Additionally, I connected with the Professors before and discussed the coursework.
- Steps involved:
- I had to submit 3 letters of recommendation along with a Graduate Resume, SOP, Marksheet of Undergraduation, and proof of funds.
- IELTS - Mandatory (with a minimum score of 6.5)
- GRE- Not mandatory
- Overall the experience was smooth with quick responses and good support from the department.
- I applied for the fall 2023 intake because i was keen on starting my Masters during the big intake. Also the courses offered during the first semester were available only in Fall therefore I was keen on joining the fall semester.
- I applied to the University during January 2023 and got confirmation of acceptance on April 30th 2023. So it took almost 3 months for the acceptance letter. After this, i20 took about 3 weeks.
Faculty
8
- As I mentioned earlier, it's quite tough to secure a part-time or full-time job while on campus and there is not much support from professors too.
- I admire Prof. Kim Jung Yoon who taught us Computational Health Informatics. His approach to the course closely aligned with our understanding of the subject and ensured the assignments reflected the core concepts.
- Faculty to student ratio is 1:10 and this is an advantage as we can reach out to our professors for any doubts or clarifications during office hours.
- The teaching methodology is definitely sufficient to secure a job because all the professors are well prepared and strong in terms of the core concepts.
Campus Life
10
- My college has 6 campuses and mine is the main campus.
- Kent state university - Kent Campus, East Liverpool campus, Astabula campus, Stark campus, Tuscarawas, Trumbull.
- There is a stellar Library, recreation center with gym, indoor and outdoor stadiums, and a Health center.
- Major campus festivals include Black Squirrel festival which is a once in a year celebration including marathons, charity, other cultural parades.
- There are multiple Student organizations and some of them are purely for Indian Students such as KIA, KIDA.
Part Time Jobs
- Typically 5 out of 60 students would secure an assistance such as Teaching assistant, research assistant or departmental assistant.
- Pay range for these positions is around $15 per hour.
- Other on-campus positions include support staff at the Library, Student center information desk and International student service office. These part time positions have hourly wages ranging from $11-$13 depending on the position.
- The maximum hours of work allowed per week is limited to 20 hours during classes and 28 hours during holidays(such as Summer break and Spring break)
- It may sound discouraging but finding an on-campus job is a matter of luck and networking. So once you get an admission, start connecting with the students and request for recommendations.
- Most students work on-campus at the Dining services or Library as support staff. The hourly pay at these places is around $11 . With regular classes in place, working for 20 hours a week is manageable. To secure an on-campus job, one should create an account on Handshake as a student and look for jobs. For any eligible job, a student will have to fill out the application and meet the concerned Manager.
Placement
4
- Considering the current situation only 40% of our senior batch was able to secure full time jobs with 6 months of graduating.
- Most of them secured a job with an average net salary of $80,000. So the expectation can be between 60k to 120k.
- Main platforms for finding jobs are Handshake, Linkedin, Indeed. There are other career fairs that the career exploration and development center organizes where we can network with employers and discuss future opportunities.
- Majorly Healthcare institutions hire graduates from the Data Science graduate program.
Accommodation
Off Campus
8
- I opted for off-campus accommodation. For this, I enrolled in a telegram group for housing and reached out to the concerned rental agency.
- The monthly rent for a 2bhk in our community is $1430 with all the facilities like gas, electricity, washers and dryers, internet included.
- There were absolutely zero challenges in finding the house.
- Yes, always lookout for the right roommates and keep your expenses at check. Do not spend more on the housing when there are good options within the budget.
- My accommodation is about 1.8 miles from the main college building and 1.5 miles from where my classes are held. Most Indian graduate students stay off-campus in different communities. There is not one specific area where you'd find maximum Indians.
Exams
-
Required exams is a language test(IELTS, TOEFL, or Duolingo)
GRE is not mandatory but preferred. -
Documents needed :
Statement of Purpose,
LOR (3 minimum),
Latest Resume
Marks sheet of all the semesters from Undergraduation. -
There was no interview as part of the application process therefore the admission was purely based on the merit and SOP.
Fees
- The total fees for Masters is $30,000 in addition to the medical insurance which costs about $1300 per semester. The living expenses for an off-campus housing is around $300 for a shared apartment.
- The fees at my college is charged semester wise.
- The average monthly expenses would turn around $400 at the most.
- We do have campus buses which are free for all students so there is zero transportation charge.
Scholarship
- I haven't received any scholarship.
- None of my batchmates have received financial aid because it's almost impossible to get one here.
- There are very less scholarships for Masters students and it's rare that an international student gets a scholarship.
- The count of students who receive a scholarship is not explicitly known because those stats are unpredictable.
