riverboy: hey all. am new here,i did my interview on the 25th of april. it was my second interview and i must confess i got lots of help from all ur postings.This was how my interview went by 8am.
Me-goodmorning ma
Vo-goodmorning
Me-how ws ur nite?
Vo-fine.says pass me ur docs
Vo-whats ur purpose of ur trip?
Me-i want to go to usa to study biology/biological sciences in claflin uni in south carolina
Vo-how did u no about the school
Me- igot to no abt the school through the research i did in the internet n while i ws doing the research i madeuse of some search tools such as peterson school finder n princeton review.
Vo-who told u abt the school
Me-i said the same thing,then she smiled
Vo-is this the only school u no that offers this course?
Me-no ma
Vo-why did u apply to only this school?
Me-actually i applied to lincoln uni in penn n claflin uni last year,but as my visa was denied last yr,claflin kept contacting me telling me that they were interested in me
Vo-why were they interested in you
Me-they were interested in me cos they see a leadership quality in me me and more over my SAT n Toefl scores were ok
Vo-can i see the score sheet
Me-yes ma,then i passed it to her
Vo- wha did you get in Toefl.
Me-i told her 110. Then she said the total score was what? i told her 120,then she smiled and said."you did a nice job. me too i smiled and said thank you ma.
Vo- whats ur SAT score.
Me-i told 1720 she said what percentage high it was.i said about 70% high
Vo-who wl be sponsoring you
Me-my dad's younger bro,then i called his name
Vo-is he in the US
Me-no
Vo-where you given any scholarships.
Me-yes a full honors scholarship
Vo-looks into my i20 and says then what will my uncle be paying for.
Me-he will be paying for my pocket money and my flights ticket
Vo-what does my dad do for a living
me-my dad is late.she says sorry and ask if it was why my uncle is sponsoring me. i said yes
Vo-what does ur mum do for a living
Me-she is a seamstress.
Vo-how many siblings have you
Me-we are 3.am the last born.i have an elder bro and sis.
Vo-what do they do.
Me-my bro is a final student of imsu and my elder sis is married
Vo-why didnt ur bro go US to study.
Me-i dnt no,maybe he didnt research whenhe was lookin for admission and more over he is the 1st son so he wants to stay back and keep things in order
Vo-when did you finish seconary school
Me-2008.
V0-what have you been doing since then.
Me-before i graduated from secondary school,we had a little financial prob so as soon as i graduated i got a job in my uncles company were i worked as his personal assistant,although as i was workin i was also attending extramural classes to help me in uni courses
Vo-what are ur plans after graduation.as soon am done with graduation i must come back to Nigeria to do my compulsory 1yr NYSC.......Vo interjects me and said you still have more yrs wont you like to do ur mastersat once.
Me-no ma i must come back to do my NYSC cos its one step before another..although i will still do m master later cos i wish to become a professor aleast when am 35yrs..
Vo-types some thing in her system..she has alwys been typing....passed all my docs to me and said that my visa has been approved that i should have a safe trip.she also gave me a collecting visa paper like that
Me-smiles and said have a nice day..
That was it. pls note that as soon as you enter the embassy ur interview has started cos cameras are watching you.just chillax,smile when necessary,and dnt relax or keep ur bag on the canter while talking to any of the Vos.stand erect and look in to their eyes.a friend that went for the us interview classes in the us embassy in abuja told me all these thing..but remember above all to put GOD 1st cos HE is overall VO..i wish you all sucessin ur interview.
pls now i have gotten my visa. when can i enter the US. can i go to my uncle's place in new jersey maybe june or july before reporting to school in august..pls i need replys

Congrats riverboy, I know you've been through alot,God shall see you through.....you can ONLY enter USA 30 days before the reporting date on your I-20.

ApachaiHopachai: Hey guys got my F1 visa approved today. The wealth of information here helped a lot. My interview was pretty short.
VO: Why are you going to the US?
ME: I am going for my postgraduate study.
VO: Which school?
ME: Tulane University New Orleans(@bodeplot )
VO: Which course?
ME: Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.
VO: How long is your program?
ME: 84 months.
VO: where did you do your first degree?
ME: OAU Ife in Nigeria.
VO: Ok did you do a masters there as well?
ME: nope, am going for a straight PhD.
VO: So how you paying?
ME: I have a TA that covers for my Tuition and living expenses.
VO: nods his head, ok you can go pick up your visa a Ikeja on Tuesday...enjoy Tulane.

Na silent smile I just dey smile till I reach house. Thank you to everyone on this thread.

Congrats dude(GREAT IFE),so happy for you...my regards to Moses when you get there!

Congratulations to prettychyna and ivory23456....wishing you girls all the best in your pursuit!

kofsy:

Looool are you serious? Pls what's the full name of the school? I mean WVU

West Virginia University

technolee:
Let us keep representing..... See you soon @ wvu

you'll meet hundreds of GREAT IFE guys at WVU, just spoke with one some minutes ago...I'm proud to be an alumnus too!

Congrats to all who got their visa and to those preparing for their interview, the ONE who brought you thus far shall perfect it IJN!

imperiouxx: @Isobutylene,

Congrats. PhD rocks....abi? Seems you're a chemist too? Cheers!

Thanks Bro.....I'm a mixture of Chemist and Engineer, I'm a Chemical Engineer.....yeah PhD is the way for people like us!!!

I was scheduled for the 8a.m interview on Sunday (yesterday) and got to the embassy around 7:05am cos it was a 15 minutes walking distance from my crib, behold I was the first to get there. Security check started at 7:30am before I entered the waiting room. After finger prints were taken I was asked to wait till I'll be called upon for the interview. I began muttering "Thou O Lord shall arise and have mercy upon me for the time to favor me, Yeah the set time has come". After like 10 minutes, I was the first to be called for the interview on counter No. 2.

V.O: Good Morning
Me: Good Morning
V.O: why are you going to the US?
Me: For my PhD Studies
V.O: where?
Me: Told him
V.O: wow!...that's my state
Me: Really?
V.O: Yeah, it's a very good school, you'll enjoy the soccer...blah blah blah
V.O: So, who's gonna pay for your studies?
Me: I'm on a full scholarship
V.O: Really?
Me: Yeah,(so I gave him my offer letter from the department)...he read it
V.O: You mean the university gave you this? (Guess he was surprised at the enormousness of the assistantship)
Me: Yeah
V.O: Can I have your college transcripts?
Me: Sure, here they are....first gave him my BSc transcript, then he later asked for my MS transcript
(He was typing something which I cared less about)
V.O: Are you gonna enroll for any language program
Me: Nope, English is the official language in my country Nigeria and I have passed the English language requirement
V.O: Okay
V.O: Have you ever travelled to Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen etc (He asked because I'm presently in a Gulf country)
Me: Nah, Nah, Nah
V.O: Okay, this is your first time of going to the US?
Me: Yeah
V.O: Okay, I will approve your visa and it will be ready in 3 days, go to the back over there and pay for the delivery at the FedEx stand. The cost is an equivalent of 2,700 Naira.
Me: 3 days?
V.O: Yeah, 3 days
Me: Thank you
I was just singing in my heart as I left the Embassy with joy in my soul because now I know that DREAMS COME TRUE!!!

bodeplot: @ALL... please i nid ur advice, univ of nebraska lincoln gave my frnd admission for PhD into Fall 2013, but with no funding, however, they said the univ doesnt have funding for graduate students dis 2013/14 session and he can accept or defer for 2yrs..pls, what do suggest he shud do e.g forget it,defer or go, and is there any possibilities that they will give funding the next session. thanks in advance

Bros, you shouldn't have applied to that school at first. I recall not receiving any response after emailing Prof Gustavo Larsen, who partially researches in my field,last year July.And there was a time the Chem Engring dept was looking for chairman,that was when I knew the dept is shi*tty! Its better you email POIs before applying to schools next time. Wishing you all the best.Good Night.

OjaP:

Hahaha, I am not a pro oooo. I just believe all hustlers must have researched/know the way/path to green card in America. Through marriage? Through job? Through business? Through assylum? Pick anyone wey you want.........lol

this cracked me up.....laughed hard my colleagues at the research institute thought I've gone mad!

OjaP:

You are fine...America is not Nigeria where you will have to beg a professor or carry his/her bags before they attend to you. You should be happy you have a Prof with a lot of experience, who prolly is an emeritus, which technically means he has published the results of his several researches in reputable journals, has friends/colleagues in research institutions, highly connected and can recommend you for future jobs etc.

I would personally go for the old Professor...Experience they say is the best teacher.

Thanks OjaP...I'll have to decline offers from other schools ni yen o..

winbyforce: @Isobutylene,congrats mehn! Can't say the same for me.I got a rejection from weill cornell pharmacology a few days back and haven't heard anything from albert einstein of yeshiva and stony brook pharmacology.Guess i didnt apply to the right schools. May be our friends on the yankee side of this thread can be of help to me(advice). what second-rate biomedical schools can one apply to? is my GRE too low for doctoral admission?
my stats: MSc pharmacolgy(ibadan) with weighted average of 67%
GRE: V-152,Q-157 AW-3.5
TOEFL-104
please criticisms are welcome. i need to get it right this time.

It's better you apply to more schools, I also applied to 12 schools,..so far I've gotten response from 5.Still expecting from other schools...but by God's grace your expectations on the remaining schools shall not be cut off!

Yeah, thanks guys!!!...Though overall, UH ranks highest among the three but the truth is that the Professor in my field of expertise (Reaction Engineering) is an old man (his interest is closest to mine among all) and I need an Assistant Professor or at worst an Associate Professor. I don't want to be begging my advisor to review my manuscript before sending it to Journal for publication, in view of that, I need someone who is still VERY active in research!

Hi guys,I really appreciate you guys for providing valuable information on this thread. Now, I need advice from guys already in the States. I have been admitted into the University of South Carolina, Lousiana State University and University of Houston for a graduate program (PhD), with full tuition waver and assistantship. Now, I would like to know the best of these 3 in terms of cost of living,life in general (i.e.boring or lively) and relaxation centers. I do not trust my findings on the internet so I need a first-hand information from my fellow Nigerians. Thanks in anticipation.