Before I came to the U.S. to pursue my undergraduate studies, I had read and heard that it takes about four years to complete the degree since most degree programs are between 120 and 130 credit hours. Thus, it was also my target but before I better understood the education system here as well as confronted the challenges facing international students, especially those with moderate language skills. Even though I am satisfied with my progress so far, I expect to complete the degree between 4 to 5 years from the time I started my first day of college.
I have completed about 53 units so I am almost halfway there to completing my degree. Most of my classes so far have been in general education which usually covers about half the requirements of a college education. Some of the courses I have taken include English, Accounting, Business Law, American History, and Psychology. I have really enjoyed the general education courses because not only they expose to different courses but they also enable you to discover your strengths and weaknesses. Fortunately, I have been able to confirm through the classes I have taken that my strengths and interests are indeed in business and choosing business major has been the right decision from the beginning.
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I am grateful for the fact that I don’t have to work for financial reasons why helps me focus more on studies. The government assistance has been quite helpful and in addition, you also continue to send money so I am indeed very lucky in this regard. Nevertheless, one cannot ignore the importance of real world exposure, thus, I plan to apply for internship opportunities next summer, preferably in one of the big 4 consulting companies like Ernst & Young and KPMG. There will be several benefits from this internship. First of all, I like consulting because I enjoy meeting people and these are one of the best consulting companies and often extend employment offers to successful interns. Thus, this will also secure my job prospects upon graduation. Second, these companies have extensive international presence, thus, I will be able to continue working for them after returning to home country.
You may already know I am required to take at least 12 hours in spring and fall to maintain my status as an international student. I started my undergraduate career by taking 12 hours in the beginning in order to make adjustment convenient. Now that I am better used to college life, I may be taking more credit hours, mostly 15 from now on. It is also possible I take few credit hours in summer semesters which should help speed up the progress towards graduation. I should be able to manage more credit hours because my soft skills such as time management and planning have improved and I have learnt about effective studying strategies to manage course load.
I believe international exposure is important that’s why I decided to come to the U.S. But I have learnt about study abroad programs that allow students to study abroad while earning credits at the same time. If possible, I would also like to study abroad, preferably in France or Spain. I will be taking regular credit hours but will also acquire greater international experiences in the process. I have talked to students who have studied abroad and almost all of them enjoyed it. I also believe it will be good for my career to have greater international exposure. And the best thing is that it will not affect the progress towards graduation.
