How to study for free in the USA for a year: experience and recommendations of a student from Russia

In the 2019/20 academic year, Tatiana Novosiltseva studied at an American college in Wyoming under the Year of Exchange in America for Russians. The student told the magazine about her experience Tinkoff. Next - from the first person.

Photo: Shutterstock

During the program, I participated in political debates, opened a journalism club and felt the real American student atmosphere from the films. In the classroom, she made presentations about Russian culture and was the ambassador of Russia, and during the holidays she traveled to 20 states. For all this, I did not pay a cent from my own budget.

I'll tell you about the program, how to qualify, prepare for the trip and how to study at an American college.

What is YEAR program

The abbreviation YEAR stands for Year of Exchange in America for Russians. It is an annual US exchange program for Russian students. It provides the opportunity to study full-time at an American university or college, learn about American culture and develop academic skills in the chosen field of study. For example, I began to write better, improved my English and effective communication skills. The official website of the program - here to register:.

The program is funded by the United States and fully covers all costs of participants for visa, flights, university tuition, accommodation, insurance, monthly stipend and book allowance. In the process of studying, I did not spend a dollar from my own budget, only on souvenirs.

Who can participate in the program

The program is designed only for Russian citizens. For citizens of the CIS countries, there are similar programs, for example FLEX, in which Russian students cannot participate.

Other conditions are updated every year, I'll tell you more about them.

Age. Applications for the 2019/20 program, in which I participated, could be submitted by candidates born in the period from 20.07.1998 to 01.07.2001. At the time of application, I was 20 years old, I celebrated my second majority (21 years old) already in America.

Applicants born between 2021/1922/05.08.2000 and 25.07.2003/30/05.08.1999 (admission ended on November 25.07.2003) could apply for the XNUMX/XNUMX program. For candidates with disabilities, the terms have been extended - from XNUMX/XNUMX/XNUMX to XNUMX/XNUMX/XNUMX.

Student status. Until 2020, both students and schoolchildren who are suitable for age could apply. Now - only students of 1-2 courses of bachelor's degree and 1-3 courses of specialty. Master students cannot participate in the program.

Academic performance at a Russian university. It is important for applicants for a program at their university to study at "good" and "excellent" - I met this requirement. YEAR is not only about excellent students. For example, guys with a couple of triplets got into the program with me. Still, excellent grades are a significant advantage in selection. If a candidate is not performing well, it is important to be able to explain the reasons for this.

The criterion for academic performance exists because while studying in the program in America, you need to keep the GPA from grades - GPA - not lower than 2,0. If the study is worse, the organizers hold a conversation and either give a probationary period or send them home. One of the finalists of the 2019/20 program in which I participated was in such a situation: he did not pass the exams well. The organizers talked to him and gave him a probationary period, during which he was able to retake everything.

Another big plus for the candidate is social and volunteer activities and the availability of extracurricular achievements.

Fluent English, spoken and written. This is an important condition, because you will have to study at an American college on a par with native speakers. To confirm language proficiency at the selection stage, the TOEFL exam is taken, which is also paid by the program.

For me, the exam was a great motivation: I thought that if I didn't go to America, then at least I would get a certificate for free. At the same time, despite the testing, in the first days it was difficult for some participants to speak even to cashiers, so I recommend that you improve your English before submitting an application.

Return to Russia for at least two years after the completion of the program is a prerequisite for obtaining a J-1 student visa. Therefore, neither a wedding with an American, nor an adoption will help to stay in the country: several participants of the 2019/20 program, while they were in America, really made offers from US citizens, but because of the visa conditions, they still had to return to Russia and wait two years before reuniting with loved ones.

You can learn more about the requirements for applicants and the conditions for submitting applications. here.

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How is the selection

Now in YEAR there are three stages of selection: first, the candidate fills out a questionnaire and collects a package of documents for it, then goes through an online interview with the organizers of the program and then takes TOEFL. When I passed the selection, there were also three stages, but in a different sequence: filling out the questionnaire, taking the TOEFL, and then interviewing the organizers.

The deadlines for completing all stages of the selection change every year. But the selection itself for the program begins a year before departure. In the 2019/1920 program, it was possible to fill out a questionnaire on the website from October to November 2018, from December 2018 to January 2019, the TOEFL was taken, and from February to March, interviews with the organizers were conducted.

To participate in the 2021/22 program, it was required to fill out the application form and submit the documents before November 30, 2020. The semi-finalists will be interviewed until February 2021, after which the finalists and alternate finalists will take the TOEFL. The final decision will be announced in June 2021.

Now I'll tell you more about each stage.

Stage 1. How to fill out a questionnaire and write a cover letter

You must fill out the form online on the program website. In the questionnaire, the candidate indicates general information about himself, the desired direction of study, data on education, extracurricular activities, various merits and awards and writes a motivational essay in English about his own interests, goals and his desire to participate in the program.

When filling out the questionnaire, it is important to describe everything in detail and specifically. For example, in order to accurately indicate my school achievements, I searched the family archives for a long time for my diplomas for the Olympiads and certificates of the "Russian Bear Cub". Although the certificates themselves do not need to be downloaded - just a description is enough - I do not recommend attributing fictional achievements to myself.

When specifying extracurricular and volunteer activities, you also need to explain in detail what position you held there and what skills you acquired. For example, if you write that you were a member of the youth organization AIESEC, this will not be enough. It is better to write specifically: for example, that you were the project manager of outbound exchanges at AIESEC and managed such and such projects.

A motivational essay is a short text of up to 500 words in which you need to tell about yourself and your motivation. In the 2021/22 program, the essay had to answer the question of how the experience of participation in the program will help in achieving career goals. At an interview with the organizers, they can clarify some information from your essay.

I recommend that you take your essay seriously. For example, I frantically dialed it an hour before the closing date for applications. Although this did not prevent me from successfully passing the first stage, I was very nervous and thought that I could write a better essay - not a pleasant experience.

You must attach to the questionnaire scans of your passport, transcripts and one letter of recommendation, also in English, translated into English. If you do not have a passport, you can attach a scan of your Russian passport, but you will still have to urgently make a passport if you pass the selection.

A letter of recommendation can be requested from your teacher, mentor or supervisor who knows you well and is ready to positively describe you. For the 2019/20 program, two letters were required - I turned to the teachers, and they just signed the letters that I wrote to myself.

For the transcript, I independently translated the names of all subjects passed at the university into English and assured everything for free at the dean's office. First year students can attach their school certificates. Translations of documents and their scans do not need to be notarized, but they must be stamped by a university or a translation bureau - if you applied to it for translation.

At the first stage, most of the candidates are eliminated - for example, in the 2019/20 program, out of 650 applications, only 158 people were selected. Therefore, I recommend that you carefully fill in all the fields of the questionnaire and fulfill each of the requirements.

Stage 2. Online interviews in English with the organizers of the program

All semi-finalists of the program who have completed the application form and the letter of motivation receive a letter with a link to the interview record. The link can be used to choose a convenient time.

In my case, the interviews were conducted by three groups of organizers, two people each: a teacher from one of the host universities and a program coordinator from the American Councils organization. The interview lasted about 30 minutes. All this time, candidates were asked to clarify information from essays, checked what they knew about American education, and asked tricky questions about the possible difficulties of the program. For example, I was asked what I would do if my host family was constantly working and did not devote time to me, or how I would get out of the situation if I could not ask the professor about the assignment with a large flow of students.

This year, the Eurasia Foundation is organizing the program instead of American Councils.

I was the last person my group of organizers interviewed. So my interview took place in a relaxed atmosphere. It took place on February 27, but I only learned the results on April 12 - the wait was tedious.

Stage 3. Passing the TOEFL exam

This is the final selection stage in the 2021/22 program, but in my case it was preceded by an interview with the organizers.

The minimum passing result in 2019 was 60 points out of 120. The points above the passing pass did not affect the further distribution.

Before passing the exam, program organizers will send an email with detailed registration instructions and a payment voucher. The data from this voucher must be specified in a separate box when choosing a payment method for the exam. You also need to specify the program code as the recipient of the results.

According to my feelings, this stage passed much faster than the first. We were given a month to pass the exam - there was no time to prepare too much. The next exam in my city was only two months later, so they paid me to travel to Moscow.

We took the exam on computers in the testing center, it lasted four hours and consisted of four parts: speaking, listening, reading and writing. The results appeared in my account a week later - I scored 109 points.

The certificate itself is sent by regular mail, it's free. According to the rules, they can do this only once, but I made a mistake, indicating the address, and they sent it to me again after my letter with an explanation - also free of charge.

Official college placement

It is always a lottery: there is no possibility of choosing an educational institution in the program - the organizers themselves distribute the finalists.

I was sent to Northwest College - in Wyoming in the western United States, in the same state is Yellowstone National Park. An invitation letter from the program and information about the college arrived at the end of May 2019.

The city of Powell, which houses Northwest College, is small - only about five thousand inhabitants. I took the placement in this place as an opportunity to immerse myself in the life of a real American town, where there is no public transport and all residents personally know each other.

Almost all universities that participated in the program were located in the same small cities in sparsely populated states, but there were several people who were nevertheless assigned to the large states - New York, Washington and Minnesota.

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Preparation for the program

In addition to the three qualifying stages, the program participant must also undergo a full medical examination, obtain a student visa and agree to leave with his university - after all, he will have to drop out of studies in Russia for a year.

A complete medical examination is needed to identify pre-existing illnesses that can be exacerbated by stress during the move and throughout the program.

The survey results are drawn up in a special form from the program. The organizers do not pay for it, but on its basis they issue medical insurance for all participants. The insurance does not cover the costs of dental services and complications from illnesses that began before arrival.

In order to have time to undergo the examination, I turned to a private clinic. One appointment was enough - the doctor filled out the form in English in an hour. I spent 1100 rubles ($ 15) on this.

Obtaining a J-1 student visa took place in two stages. First, you need to submit an online application form DS-160 on the US Embassy website. The visa fee ($ 180) is paid by the organizers of the program.

The application is filled out in English. In addition to information about himself and the purpose of the trip, the applicant must upload his photo, taken no earlier than six months before the application.

The filling process is dreary and long, so I recommend putting more time into it and getting ready for the fact that the site often does not work, is buggy and at any time may give errors, because of which you have to start all over again.

In the second stage, applicants are interviewed at the US Embassy. We passed it in Moscow - the organizers of the program booked a separate time for our group at the embassy and paid for the flight and accommodation for the nonresident participants. When all the participants came to the embassy, ​​we were lined up by surnames, handed out documents and sent inside.

We were initially carefully selected by the program, so they did not ask us much during the interview - all the participants passed it without any problems, and they received visas. I was asked three questions: what program, for how long and where I was going. The entire interview took less than a minute, not counting the waiting hour. I received my passport with a new visa by mail a week later.

Approval of academic exchange at the university. I was in my third year at the Southern Federal University - SFedU, when I received an official invitation to college from YEAR. Despite the fact that I was supposed to graduate in 2020, the opportunity to study in America could not be missed. Therefore, I decided to arrange an academic exchange - so at SFedU they would transfer the subjects that I studied in college, and I would not have to study an extra year.

To arrange an exchange, I turned to the center for international programs and projects of my university: I provided them with a list of disciplines that I planned to study at Northwestern College, and I did the translated letter of admission myself. The exchange was approved for me, and also extended the deadlines for the summer and winter sessions and even kept the scholarship.

The only problem was that the Russian and American curricula did not correspond to each other at all: it turned out that some subjects had not been taught for several years, and the oral interpretation class turned out to be not translation at all, but oratory.

As a result, out of eight university subjects, only three were credited to me - in English, and the rest had to be taken upon arrival in May - June 2020. The coursework and diploma also had to be coordinated and submitted online.

Move

I flew from Rostov to Washington on July 23, 2019. The organizers paid for the flight, carry-on baggage, one piece of baggage and accommodation in Washington. Tickets were sent to the post office along with detailed instructions. The flight took 13,5 hours, excluding transfers. The organizers of the program met me at the airport.

Orientation in Washington DC became the starting point on our journey, after which we went to different states to visit our host families. In the year of my participation, for the first month we lived with the host family, and then - in student hostels. In the 2021/22 program, finalists will live with a host family throughout the year.

The orientation program in Washington was intense, so you had to get up at seven in the morning and break only for a 30-minute lunch. During the week, organizers and invited guests tried to highlight important moments of American culture and college life. For example, we were given a city tour and were told about the origins of the American Dream, popular student bodies, insurance, banks, and even relationships, in particular about what can be perceived as harassment. In addition, we were described the features of YEAR and were given a list of questions, in particular about religion and politics, which can and cannot be raised in the future host family.

In the first month, I managed to live with two host families living in neighboring houses. First, I was met by friends of my host family, who was in Honduras at that time, then I moved to the main family.

My host family consisted of five people: parents - Katie and Joe, their children - Gavin, Sloan and Leela. They also had three dogs. The kids are almost my age: my sisters went to high school, and my brother just started college. They lived where my college was, in Powell, in a typical American two-story house from the movies - with a backyard, porch, swing and bathroom in every room. I came to visit them even when I was already living in a hostel.

The most comfortable conditions were created for me in the house. For example, I was given a separate room with a bathroom on the first floor. The family cooked the food, and I could take anything from the refrigerator, which was full of food - everything in American traditions. In the evening we played board games or watched movies together. My host family was very friendly and didn't laugh at my stupid questions and sometimes my accent.

During a month of my life with my family, I managed to go camping with them, participate in a joint barbecue and even get into a Baptist church. The church visit was perhaps the most unusual cultural experience - it turned out to be its own coffee shop, and during prayer, a group of musicians sang and played guitar and drums.

Moving to a hostel and starting studies

At the end of August 2019, I had to move to a hostel. The program allowed you to choose any, but on the condition that the roommate or section was an American. I think this is important for a full-fledged cultural exchange - living with such a neighbor helps to understand the typical hobbies of Americans and how they lead their lives.

I chose the Lewis & Clark Residence Hall - Lewis & Clark. Living in a room with a neighbor at my college cost $ 1755 a semester. I made the application for accommodation on the website of the university.

In the application, you can additionally indicate your wishes for your future neighbor, for example, musical preferences, cleanliness, character traits. I'm not sure if all this is necessarily taken into account, but my neighbor was indeed American and most of the time she went to bed no earlier than 23:00, as I indicated in my wishes.

In addition to the application for housing on the site, I also issued a mil-plan - the number of meals in the dining room. You could also choose any mil-plan, so I, without stint, chose the largest number of meals - 220 pieces plus $ 50 for food in the student cafeteria. This money was transferred to the student's card account, which had to be shown for purchase under the mil plan. Such a plan cost $ 1835 per semester.

The dining room is typically American: every other day there were burgers and a lot of soda on the menu. After a month of eating there, I could no longer calmly look at fast food.

Orientation program. Before the start of the training, the curators of foreign students and the management of the college conducted an orientation program. It lasted from August 12 to 17 for international students and from August 18 to 20 for everyone. In fact, it was no different from the program in Washington, but I met 17 other foreigners from Japan, Korea and Germany.

To make us more imbued with American culture, we were shown the main attraction of Wyoming - Yellowstone; was taken to a cowboy rodeo - this is almost the main entertainment of the state. We were also introduced to the college and the city. We went on field trips to the library, watched a movie in the college courtyard and played Bingo for prizes.

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Scholarship and documents

In addition to covering tuition, room and board expenses, YEAR also provided a small monthly stipend ($ 175) and a one-time payment of $ 150 for cultural expenses. For example, a visit to Disneyland was credited to me as cultural expenses, but a ticket to a concert of a foreign artist in America did not fit this definition. The monthly stipend was enough for small expenses and, if you save up, even for budget travel during the holidays.

During my studies, I received about $ 2200 from YEAR for personal expenses, including a scholarship for April and May, when I already left America due to the coronavirus.

The scholarship was transferred to an American bank card - you could choose any. Most banks provided students with free services and even additional payments when certain conditions were met. For example, Bank Chase paid students $ 100 after they made 10 card purchases within 60 days. Unfortunately, this bank was not in my city, so I had to be content with only free service - I opened my card at Wells Fargo bank, it offered free service to schoolchildren and students from 17 to 24 years old. I still keep the map as a trophy.

Additional documents. To be able to use the resources of the college, all students in their personal account on the site issue a student pass. It's free, you can upload any photo for registration. You need a pass to enter the library and the gym, get discounts at coffee shops, travel, and so on.

Also, in order not to carry a passport everywhere, which Americans are staring at, I decided to issue an ID card. To do this, she submitted her documents to the nearest DMV - the vehicle department, an analogue of the Russian MFC - and paid $ 15.

Registration for classes

Classes are analogous to Russian lessons. You could sign up for them online on the college website.

American students can choose any class for the appropriate number of credits. Credit is a unit of measure for the volume of the curriculum: how much time a student should spend to master the material, complete assignments, and so on. The more difficult the class, the more credits you need to take it. For example, a yoga class is 1 credit, and an electrodynamics class is 4. To be considered full-time students, YEAR participants must study 4-5 subjects per semester. This is usually 12-15 credits.

Selected classes must be indicated on the program website and receive approval from the organizers for payment. We were not limited in the choice of classes, except for credits and two conditions: one subject must necessarily be about American culture, another one - in our major, that is, specialties. When applying for the program, I chose journalism as my major, so I had to choose a compulsory subject from classes in writing or communication. The closest subjects to journalism in my college are classes in interpersonal communication, photography and academic writing.

Many of the finalists who took a sabbatical from a Russian university went all out and took classes in choral singing, tango and pig breeding. I couldn't afford it because of my academic plan, so I was content with classes in English and communication. The five-course workload per week was too small for me, so I asked for free attendance at graphic design and debate classes for free - without an official appointment. During the debates, I even managed to ride across several states in America and get an additional scholarship.

My American College Study Program

First semester

• Introduction to persuasion
• Small business
• Introduction to Academic Writing
• Debate
• Native American literature
• Digital photography
• Graphic design

Second term

• Gender communication
• Oral interpretation
• American government
• Adobe Illustrator
• Debate
• Interpersonal communication
• English as a second language
• Shooting for the media

In addition to compulsory classes, all program participants were required to volunteer for 10 hours in the first semester. Local teams at universities often organize volunteer activities, so it wasn't hard to work 10 hours. I volunteered at international events in my college as an ambassador for Russia and helped organize a debate tournament.

In the second semester, it was necessary to take three interviews in the professional field of interest. Not everyone had time to hold them due to an urgent departure due to the COVID-19 epidemic. But I was lucky: I managed to negotiate and interview the editor of the local newspaper Powell Tribune right in the office. On the day of my visit, I was shown around the publishing house, introduced to the staff and even taken to the printing house.

In the 2021/22 program, another requirement was added - to select three social issues that concern the program participants, and make a video of them with other participants during their stay in the United States.

How was the study

Classes were held on different campuses, divided by major. I visited the communications and photography campuses the most. Classes usually lasted from 50 minutes to 3 hours, depending on the frequency and the teacher. In English classes, there was even an option to study every day for 20 minutes during lunch - for the very busy.

Classes were organized in much the same way as in Russia, only my college held more seminars and used a virtual platform for downloading homework, accessing the library and renting textbooks. The platform also displayed all progress, exam schedules and class enrollments.

It was possible to get to the necessary classes by appointment, and it was necessary to start monitoring it as early as possible - otherwise there was a risk of not getting to a good professor or to the required subject due to the limited number of places.

It was not difficult to study, apart from the fact that I typed a bunch of subjects and on some of them I had to sweat because of the difficult teachers.

At the end of each semester, exams are required in all subjects. I managed to complete everything with excellent marks, except for one easy subject, in which I could not finish my homework after returning to Russia.

Since the college does not provide an official list of courses, at the end of my studies I had to order an additional transcript. You can request it during the semester or after graduation in electronic or paper form.

College activities

The extracurricular life in college was very busy. From the very first days, 36 different student clubs offered a huge number of activities. Wyoming is a peculiar state, so it was necessary to immediately weed out cattle breeding and riding clubs. Since I chose journalism and communication as my field of activity, I also chose the appropriate club - political debates. During my studies, I managed to participate in more than 10 tournaments, competing on a par with the Americans, although I had never been involved in debates before college.

In my second semester, I already understood how student clubs work, and decided to open my own journalism club, in which we worked on a podcast about college life. To do this, you just had to apply to the college student council. There were three people in my club, including me, and our application was approved. Then we decided to take full advantage of the college and ask for financial coverage for the podcast recording technique and the site where we hosted the podcast - I can't show it, it's no longer working. Most of the council approved the application, and we received $ 300 for the project.

To use the money received, it was necessary to take a college bank card from the accounting department (it was common for all clubs) and make a purchase through it, and then return it. So we rented a domain and subscribed to a website builder. The recording equipment and studio were already in the college's music department, and they were happy to help us with editing.

Thanks to the council's contribution, I got my first taste of preparing and recording a podcast absolutely free. Unfortunately, after my departure, the club is not so active anymore, so there have been no publications lately.

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Return to Russia amid a pandemic

The YEAR program is designed for 10 months, but due to the coronavirus, all the finalists had to return two months earlier: on March 20, I received a letter stating that we were all being urgently returned and we should be ready to fly out of the States within two to three days. During this time, the organizers prepared and sent us return tickets. There were no options to stay with unknown prospects in a foreign country.

It was a vacation in March, and I, like many other participants in the program, traveled around the country - we were literally gathered from all over America. But the problem was not at all an unexpected return, but in the urgency of the situation. My flight was scheduled for the last day before the closure of regular flights with Russia: the organizers could not buy tickets a few days earlier. Therefore, I had to make it no matter what. And I had time: six transfers, two cancellations of flights, urgent reservations - and I'm at home.

Despite the emergency return and the fact that I did not even have time to say goodbye to many friends and fulfill all the plans set for the year, I am glad that I gained this experience and will remember it for the rest of my life.

If you would like to take YEAR training, here are some guidelines

• When filling out the application, take more time to write a motivation letter. Explain why you need this program and why you are worthy to take. Explore the features of the program, show your uniqueness and explain how you can prove yourself.
• Take care of your health in advance: undergo an examination, stock up on no-spa and heal your teeth - in America it will be very expensive.
• Follow the documents. Studying in America on a grant means you will constantly have to sign papers, fill out tax returns and keep an eye on registration forms.
• Sign up for classes as early as possible. The faster you enroll, the less likely you will need to get up at XNUMX am for class.
• Participate in clubs. Student communities provide the necessary contacts and dilute leisure time, and sometimes even allow you to receive additional grants.

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