Transition Expert Blog

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Information regarding admission:



Most (Almost All) Universities in USA require TOEFL (Test of English as Foreign Language) for foreign Nationals and GRE (Graduate Record Examination) for both In state and Out state Students.

TOEFL is waived for countries whose native language is English Like UK, Australia, Canada…).

For Foreign nationals three Letters of Recommendation sealed) ,copies of Official Transcripts sealed) (Note: Some Universities accept Copies verified by Notary) are required. For Working people they may get two letters from current Employers but generally Letters from Professors are preferred.

Most of the Universities require Undergraduate GPA to be 3/4 (US system). It is equivalent to 80/100,12/20*(China) and 1st Division ,65%*(For most Indian University).

The Deadline for Fall Semester are from Dec 15 to July. But apply as early as possible. Many decisions are made before the deadline. Foreign nationals may take up to 8 weeks to hear their results. In state students may hear within 5 weeks.



Financing Education



Facts

The cost of Study Tuition and fees) in USA varies from $5000 to $35000 (or more) per year.

The cost of living depends on location. For example States like Washington, California and area around New York is costly.

In general the cost of living may vary from $6000 to $10000.

Renting an apartment can vary from $450 to$1000 (or more). Downtown (Chicago) may costs around $1200 for studio while it may be around $400 for Des Moines (IA).

Grocery is Really cheap (Walmart!).

It is assumed that students will live in shared Apartments, Live out of Campus and have less Telephone bills and other expenses are at bay.

Most of (nearly) all expenses Living only not Tuition fees) can be met while working on Campus Jobs. The hourly pay for on Campus jobs Pay from $5 to $15 (sometimes more) per hour.

Foreign Students can work for 20 hrs per week and 40 hrs per week during summer. Students may be allowed to work out Campus after nine months of their arrival at USA.

Students receiving any type of AID Like TA/RA/Fellowship or GA don’t have to worry about costs. But Students not receiving any AID must come prepared for Tuition fees and Living cost for initial 2-3 months.

In some Universities TA/RA cover part of tuition fees and not all tuition fee is waived.



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With the increased interest in Blogging (web Logging), many web hosting providers now provide an assortment of free usage, open source blogging software packages. Among the most popular of these blogging tools are B2evolution, WordPress and Nucleus. Each of these programs offer similar basic features, so the question arises as to which one is easiest to use and would be appropriate for the requirements of your particular website.

The answer lies in the true purpose of your blog website. If your primary goal is to share your opinions and ideas with the general public, you would want to utilize a different blogging tool than a user who was creating product blogs as a commercial sales effort. A blog for search engine promotion would have entirely different requirements. All of these uses are viable reasons to create a blog, however each requires different features to be successful.

WordPress Blogging Software

Available for free download at: http://wordpress.org/

It is hard to beat WordPress for general personal blogging. WordPress is an open source, state-of-the-art personal publishing platform with a focus on presentation and usability. Everything related to creating and updating your blog is available through an intuitive graphical interface. With WordPress there is no need to compile your work. You simply write your column. You then select the features you want and your blog is instantly created and published to your website.

If you are on vacation, you can schedule your uploads for some date in the future or even email your column to the server! The system allows multiple users with multiple blogs divided into categories and sub-categories. This allows multiple family members or friends to create their own blogs along with yours.

Easy customization and the availability of many “plug-ins” that provide more functionality (add new features as you learn) makes this software a very good choice for most individuals.

B2evolution

Available for free download at: http://b2evolution.net/

B2evolution is another advanced web log tool that features an integrated XHTML validator. It supports recursive subcategories, cross posting and has a really cool integrated “skinning” system.

The “skinning” system allows you to create multiple blogs in separate categories with different appearances for each blog. You simply “change the skin” for the blog to create a totally new look and feel.

The “skinning” feature, combined with the built in multi-user administration management tool, makes the system robust enough for more commercial endeavors, such as product promotion blogs. If you have much to publish with multiple themes, this is the software you are looking for.

Nucleus Blogging Software

Available for free download at: http://nucleuscms.org/

Though Nucleus is an extremely robust blogging tool in its own right, it also contains some powerful features that can provide benefits in promotion of your blog.

Nucleus offers the ability to optimize its URLS, creating simple page addresses that do not have and “&” or “=” characters. This makes the pages search engine (and user) friendly. Another great feature is the ability to show the contents of multiple weblogs on one page. This could allow a
website owner to manipulate the optimum text / keyword balance on pages for better search engine rankings.

Nucleus also provides RSS and Atom feeds that can be extremely helpful when promoting a website. If part of your blog’s function is to work as a search engine marketing and promotion tool, Nucleus is an exceptional software package.

Each of these blogging software packages offer the basic tools that you would need to create a successful blog and all three are PHP – MySQL open source (free to use) packages. You should try to select the software that helps you achieve the long term goal that you have in mind for your website based on the unique extra features offered by each.

The art of blogging is the web phenomenon of the 21s century, being used both for personal use and as a business toll, but what is it that makes a successful blogger?

Here are a few tips to successful blogging that I have gleaned from my experiences – I hope they help!

1: Keep it interesting.

Nobody will read a blog that is not of interest, so the foremost point when blogging is to keep interest levels high. You can do this by injecting a certain flair into your blog, by demonstrating an interest in the subject that goes beyond the norm. Passion and dedication are the key words – write as if you mean it!

2: Invite participation.

Those reading your blog should be actively encouraged to comment, and you should be willing to enter into a discussion about the points that are raised. Comments from readers may – and often do – enhance the subject, and give you, the blogger, a new angle on things.

3: Read other blogs.

Reading other blogs on the subject, and commenting on them in your own blog, is a good way of building up the essential trust and interest that goes with successful blogging. Referring to others gives an air of knowledge and interest that is not given by inferring you are the be all and the end all. Also, this enables you to build up a relationship with other bloggers, creating a networking effect that can only be of benefit to you all.

4: Controversy can be beneficial.

Don’t be afraid to be controversial, but take care not to let it become offensive. There’s no better blog than one that raises others eyebrows and invites controversial responses.

Above are simply a few of the main pointers to creating a successful blog, and as you go on your experience will enhance the quality of your blogs.