Tired of the rainy weather in Germany?
Can’t you hear the constant wailing anymore?
Do you feel like everyone is trying to talk you through your dreams?
!! THEN SINCE YOU AT THE COLLEGE OF THE DESERT IN BEAUTIFUL SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, COMPLETELY RIGHT!!
Have you also seen people look down on you because you did not go to high school and therefore cannot study?
According to answerresume, College of the Desert is your CHANCE to show these people! Shows these people that one also with high-school diploma and completed their training VERY WELL SUCCESSFULLY and study can!!
However, it is NOT easy!! Before you can come to college in Palm Desert, you must be able to show that you can pay for your expenses. You must show that you or your parents (if they want to pay for the costs) have at least $ 17,000 (~ 13,500 euros). For this you have to show a confirmation from your bank at the US embassy so that you can get a visa.
If you did it it will be easier!
You submit all kinds of documents (MicroEDU will explain everything to you and will always be there if you have any questions). Then you will hopefully get a confirmation from the COD and you will also be given all the important information on the way. You book a flight (don’t rely on STA Travel, compare prices and look for the cheapest!!).
You write an email to Darlene (or someone else from the International Student Office here) and let them know when you will be arriving. Darlene will then take care of a host family for you who will pick you up from the airport when you arrive (free of charge).
Don’t take so much luggage with you!! California is so different from Germany that it is better if you gradually buy things here (by that I mean NO or LITTLE warm clothes, because it can be 50 degrees in summer). In addition, there are always special offers for college students in America that you should wait for, otherwise you will get annoyed afterwards.
The first few days here will not be easy for you (it was the same for me !!). But after 2 or 3 weeks you will probably have settled in with your host family (I recommend the host family and not your own apartment here, because you pay the host family $ 500 a month and $ 600 upwards for an apartment of your own with a roommate). If you still don’t like staying with the host family or you don’t have to pay attention to the money, then having your own apartment with room mate (roommate) can definitely be great. Some of my friends here in college have their own apartments and are doing just fine.
IF YOU STILL READ MY REPORT HERE,
Then you might be really interested and I’ll give you some tips on how you can be successful here at the College of the Desert.
As soon as you have received your class schedule, go to your councelor and ask them if you really need an English as a Second Language course (only necessary if you have a TOEFL score of 32-46. You do not need the course for anything above that and therefore does not need to spend any money on it).
Do you want to make friends AND make money while you go to college?
Then I recommend that you apply for a student worker job!! You can earn around $ 500 a month with it and pay your rent with it if you have a host family. You can earn even more over the summer!!
I work in the Office of Student Life at the College of the Desert if you want to visit me.
Are you struggling with a course? For example math ?
NO PROBLEM! Here on campus there is the Academic Skills Center, where every student can get FREE tutoring and help with learning for exams!!!! THERE IS NOT THAT SOMETHING IN GERMANY!! I was always so bad at math in high school, but here at college I was able to improve my grades VERY significantly thanks to the Academic Skills Center.
If you use the ASC more often and for several courses, the chance increases that you will finish the semester with a very good average, which in turn increases the chance that you will receive a scholarship for the next semester (scholarships are from $ 500 to $ 1000 per semester for international students + external scholarships that you have to find yourself).
MAYBE THE MOST HELPFUL WHAT I LEARNED HERE IS TO TAKE OPPORTUNITIES WHEN THEY ARE AVAILABLE
That is emphasized always and everywhere in the USA. Friends make you aware of opportunities that may arise and when you have seized an opportunity, everyone is happy with you. So I learned to make decisions quickly and to seize most opportunities straight away.
!! I CALL THAT A LESSON FOR LIFE!!
Last but not least, I would like to emphasize how helpful it can be to be part of a student club here:
If you do that (just requiring you to put your name on a list and come to the meetings), your chances of getting a scholarship will increase again and you will learn what it means to volunteer and that there is something fulfilling to it to do something good for the environment or something different from everyone else. It also gives you confidence, respect from fellow students, and you make even more friends.
That’s it for me, if you have any more questions, ask Heike from MicroEDU!
She was always very friendly and helpful and has been helping me with my college decisions for two years now.
