US Citizen.. Been in India since 1985..

P

pareshshenoy

Registered Users (C)
Hi all,

I am a US citizen( DoB : nov. 5, 1982). I was born in New York City, and I hold a valid and legal US passport. Both my parents are Indian. We moved back to India in July 1985, and have been residing here ever since. We are currently staying in Bangalore, India. I have done all my schooling and education in India itself.

I have decided to pursue my higher education ( MS , Computer Science Engineering ) in the US. I have got an admit from University of Illinois, Chicago.

I have a few questions:

1. Will I have any advantage over other international applicants / students w.r.t financial aid in my university ? I will not be on a visa of any kind when I am studying , so will this make me eligible for off-campus job/internship oppurtunities immediately (i.e, in the first term itself)?

2.Will I be eligible for any additional kind of aid / grants?

2. Also, I have heard from people that it is much easier for a US citizen to land a job than an international applicant. Is this just a notion, or do companies pick people based on their strenghts/merits? Because doing an MS involves a lot of investment, and it would make sense for me to do so only if I am able to leverage the US citizenship to some extent... else I would be content with a job in India itself.

Awaiting replies at the earliest.

Regards,
Paresh.
 
Paresh,

This is not the forum to ask questions about student aid, but neverthless

1. Yes. You are eligible for all offcampus jobs,some univ's give Assistantships (TA/RA/GA) to US citizens/Residents ahead of intl students. Check with your department.
2. File FAFSA immediately. You will get loan money (interest free while in school). Pell Grants may be available. Federal work study too is available. You will get free money if you parents (of you since you are an "independent" student) have low income
3.Depends. On the average, if the company does not have to sponsor you , then its better for them. Side by side and all things equal, a USC/Resident is preferred to a F1/H1/L1. No question.
 
Thanks for the reply, Rahul!!

I had posted the same query in the "Education in USA" forum... was hangin there for over a week w/o any replies.. thot I wud try my luck in this forum, considerin the no. of replies to queries here....

Abt the FAFSA thing though...we hve been here since 1985.. will I still be eligible for it? I mean, my dad has been workin only in India since then... we hvent been payin tax to the US govt....

Regards,
Paresh.
 
pareshshenoy said:
I have a few questions:

1. Will I have any advantage over other international applicants / students w.r.t financial aid in my university ? I will not be on a visa of any kind when I am studying , so will this make me eligible for off-campus job/internship oppurtunities immediately (i.e, in the first term itself)?

2.Will I be eligible for any additional kind of aid / grants?

2. Also, I have heard from people that it is much easier for a US citizen to land a job than an international applicant. Is this just a notion, or do companies pick people based on their strenghts/merits? Because doing an MS involves a lot of investment, and it would make sense for me to do so only if I am able to leverage the US citizenship to some extent... else I would be content with a job in India itself. Paresh.
Click to expand...

1- Job (on & off campus) is no problem, you will not have any restrictions here in the USA. Thats an advantage over other international students.
2-It depends. There are some grants only for Green Card holders or Citizens. Its really hard to find aid or grant if you are going to pursue a professional degree. However you may be able to get some teaching or graduate assistantship with full or partial tuition waiver. As a US citizen you can apply for student loan.
3- Some federal jobs are reserved for US Citizens. You will also have an advantage if you find a job in private sector because the compny does not have to sponsor you.

Good luck.
 
All US Citizens/Residents are eligible to file FAFSA to get a GUARANTEED Student loan.

Focus on

a) Filing FAFSA
b) Applying to any and every 3rd party grant/loan available.
c) Maybe you/your parents can file a tax return for 04. If you had no income then file a 0 tax return. ie. a return with all zeros. You can use this to get some other scholarships

Worry about jobs once you complete 1/2 semesters. Focus on getting aid/scholarships now
 
just for my own education:

Isn't there a rule that says you needed to have visited the US before one was 18 to maintain a US citizenship even though it was by birth?

Thanks
 
Well, you did indeed "visit" USA, the day you were born

You were born in USA. You are a USC. (except for very very small case that your parents were consular officials here on diplomatic passport, employed by the Indian embassy - and you'd need to talk to a lawyer in that case).

-AD
 
bags3 said:
just for my own education:

Isn't there a rule that says you needed to have visited the US before one was 18 to maintain a US citizenship even though it was by birth?

Thanks
Click to expand...
I don't know about the mentioned rule. I can just comment from experience:
My wife was born overseas and got her citizenship by birth through her father. First time she ever entered the US was when she was 22 years old (In fact her first US passport was issued after she was 21).

Yalag
 
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