Variety Of Institutions

There is no governing body in central ministry to standardize the education in United States. Each and every institution can choose own programs and different admission standards. In USA, there are approximately 3000 universities offering programs for undergraduate, above 1000 universities offering Masters Degree programs and around 400 universities provide the Research Doctoral or PhD Degrees.

Educational Institution College is the independent institution offering four year undergraduate program in liberal arts and sciences. It is a Bachelor’s Degree which is the basic requirement for graduate studies.

Following are the variety of Institutions available in USA to acquire higher education.

Universities:

Universities in simple language are academic institutions in larger form comprising undergraduate colleges, graduate schools and professional schools. Graduate schools provide 1 or 2 years of excellent and advanced programs in fields of arts and sciences issuing Masters Degree of M.A., M.S. and Doctoral degrees. Professional schools are the institutions imparting specializations in a particular field such as law, pharmacy, medical, business administration etc.

There are two types of Universities:
Public Universities:
Public Universities are also known as “State University” as these are state affiliated institutions. Public Universities tend to be very large number of enrollments of about 20,000 or more students. Hence, getting admission into it is more difficult than any other private institutions. These institutions are comparatively less expensive. Moreover, international students can easily get teaching assistantship and on-campus jobs. Even most of the universities offers full or partial tuition fee to the students involved in teaching and research assistant. As these universities are supported by the state government, they give more enrollment preferences to the in-state students. All international students are subjected to be out-of state.

Private Universities:
Private Universities are supported by investment income, student tuition fees, research contract and private donations. Tuition fees are higher than the state universities. These universities charge same tuition fees to both in-state and out-state students.

Hence, the quality of education in both types of universities is same, however both differs major in tuition fees and funding.

Junior College Or Community College:

Junior colleges or Community colleges are undergraduate colleges that offer two years of academic studies after secondary school at a comparatively low cost. They offer associate degrees and certificate programs with duration of few months to a year. After earning Associate Degree, the student has to join 4 years college or University to earn the Bachelor's Degree.

Generally, these colleges are run by definite community by their own trustworthy people. The students who cannot afford to go to university for four year study program will select such community colleges which impart education in very nominal fees. Most of the Community colleges offer undergraduate programs, but there are some good community colleges which also offer graduate level programs also.

Vocational And Technical Institution:

“Polytechnic Institutes” are the name given to the Institutes of Technology. These institutions provide graduate and at under-graduate level programs in the field of Engineering and Sciences like basic sciences, social science and humanities. Vocational and Technical Institutions are also famous for their renowned research programs which attract international students. These institutions are specialized in giving training to the skilled trade and technical fields of employment. After completion of the program, the student is awarded a certificate based on which they directly join the technical job.

Getting admission for the student in these universities highly depends upon the application package of the student that includes resume, previous work sample, and letters of recommendation. The academic fee for these programs normally ranges from $7,000-$35,000 per year that excludes cost of living of the students.

University Ranking:

The Rank of the university in USA plays a vital role for the international students in the enrollment process. The international student should apply for the university that fits their personal and financial criteria. University ranking in USA is defined by various organizations on the basis of over-all academic quality, faculty and infrastructure. Ranking is not done by government of US or any other educational organization. The most commonly referred top colleges ranking report is the one which is published by US News and Business Week.