Frequently Asked Questions.
Now that you/your friends have an offer from UC, here are some of the things that must be on your mind.
1. When am I going to hear from the university? Is there a set date...?
No, there is no set date on/before which you will hear from the admissions office. Business school usually starts rolling admits out really early in the calendar year. Engineering school starts in late Feb./early March. I got my admit letter on Apr. 17th, if I still remember right. A friend of mine got it on the 10th of May. So, if you haven't gotten yours yet, hang in there. Please be patient, you'll hear from the university soon.
2. I got an admit. How do I confirm my acceptance?
Step 1: To confirm your acceptance, sign & scan the acceptance letter and other related documents and e-mail them (And a scan of Step#2) to the CEAS grad office - Julie Muenchen muenchjd@ucmail.uc.edu or Barbara Carter - CARTERBJ@ucmail.uc.edu, who ever emails you the acceptance. Please do this before the deadline mentioned in the email.
Step 2: From a bank that can do foreign exchange, get a "Dollar Draft" (They'll know what it is) for $100 (or the amount mentioned in your email) payable to "University of Cincinnati, CEAS" (CEAS- College of engineering and applied sciences) for engineering students. For other departments, the respective college name goes up there. Confirm this with your other friends.
Step 3: Send out a hard copy of acceptance letter and other documents with the dollar draft via express mail to the university.
Step 4: Upon receipt of your deposit, you will receive an email from the international office to upload your documents (will be listed in the email) which will take about 3-5 business days for approval.
Step 5: Request for express shipping of your i20 to you so that you can track it. Once it's sent out, you will receive a tracking number as well. Express shipping is better as you don't know how much time will regular mail take and may delay your visa if you've already scheduled it.
3. I applied for an MS program, but I got an MEng admit. Why? What is MEng?
MS=Coursework +Thesis. MEng=Coursework + Management courses, no thesis.
MEng can be finished in a year. MS depends on how long your thesis takes.
Upon talking to the people at the engg. grad office, I got to know that faculty from each dept. serve on the admissions committee. based on what you've written on your Statement of Purpose (SOP) and your Statement of Research (SOR) and your overall application, they decide if you should be offered an MS or an MEng admit. So, chances are, even if you applied for an MS program, you may be offered an MEng admit.
Happened with me. On specific differences about MS and MEng, upsides and downsides, differences in job prospects, how to convert to MS from MEng, check out this page.
4. I have no friends in Cincinnati and don't know anything about the place. How do I look for a house where I can live?
We've all been through this. Don't worry, we're here to help. Jump to this page to know everything you need know on how to get started with house hunting.
5. What is the on-campus job scenario like?
Check out
6. What about books? Do I need to buy books or do I get them at the libraries?
