VirginiaCommonwealthUniversity_2

Global Education Office • Reserves housing • Provides airport pickup and orientation for exchange students • Coordinates buddy program • Orientation • Immigration Services issues

VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

Richmond, Virginia

• Capital of Virginia State

• Population of Greater Richmond

city: 200,000; metro: 1,200,000

• Founded in 1609 by English settlers

from Jamestown

• Capital of the Confederate States of

America during the Civil

War(1861-1865)

• 150km south of Washington, DC

• 460km south of New York

• 150km from the Atlantic ocean

beach

• 135km from Shenandoah National

Park

Virginia Commonwealth University

Est 1968

• 2 main campuses -Monroe Park

Campus and MCV Campus

• Additional campus in Doha,

Qatar

• Mascot is the Ram and colours

are black and gold

• Baseball, basketball, cross

country, field hockey, golf,

soccer, tennis, track and field,

and volleyball teams

• Wide range of courses: science,

social sciences, arts, business,

engineering, medicine and

nursing

• Over 30,000 students 21,000

UG

• 1600 international students

Academic Culture

• Strong emphasis on attendance & punctuality

• Different syllabus

• Lectures, labs, structure of classes/courses (modules)

• Credit/hours structure

• Honor System

• US education = 4 year undergraduate degree (major classes interspersed with

general education classes, electives, minor classes, etc.)

• Expectations outside of the classroom

Honors College

As a Partnership exchange student, you will belong to the Honors College

The Honors College provides:

• Advising and registration

• Facilities

• Benefits

• Honors Courses/Modules

• Special opportunities, seminars, student

organizations, etc

http://www.honors.vcu.edu/

Global Education Office

• Reserves housing

• Provides airport pickup

and orientation for

exchange students

• Coordinates buddy

program

• Orientation

• Immigration Services

(issues DS2019’s –

needed for your J1 visas)

Orientation

• Driving tour of Richmond

• Walking tour of campus

• Shopping trip to Wal-Mart

• Briefings on safety issues, immigration, academic issues, health services, library tour, meal plans

Amber Bennett Hill

Director, International Student and Scholar Programmes

Sarah Young

Exchange programmes coordinator

Accommodation

West Grace North Residence Hall

• Approx $6000/year

• On campus

• 2 persons per room

• En suite

• Laundry and cooking facilities provided

You will need to purchase: utensils, dishes, pots, pans, lamps, linen, and bathroom and cleaning supplies

Further info: http://www.housing.vcu.edu/

Food

• Students may buy meal

plans at the dining hall or

prepare meals in their

residence

• VCU recommend

purchasing a 100 block

plan (100 meals per

semester) with $75 ‘dining

dollars’ Current cost -

$801 per semester

• Vegetarian and Vegan

available

Dining locations:

• Shafer Dining Hall (main)

• Student Commons

• On campus: Starbucks, Chili’s, Quiznos, etc

• Off-campus locations with RamBuck

Student Life

• International Student

Activities

• RecSports, Outing

Rental Service, and

Athletics

• Alternative Spring

Breaks

• Student Performing

Groups: Music, Theatre, Dance

• VCU TelegRam

Student Life

• Student Organizations and Religious Groups

• Student Publications and Media: Amendment,

Blackbird,

Commonwealth Times, Ink, Poictesme, VCU

InSight, VCU TV/HD,

WVCW

• Lecture series,

workshops, seminars,

research conferences, etc

Richmond

Shopping

Museums

Colonial Richmond

Fan District

Culture

Virginia Highlights

Shenandoah National Park Charlottesville

Costs

reduced fees to UWE

Bursary of £1000 for

full-year students

pay for:

• Accommodation

• Visa

• Flights

• Living costs

Approximate costs as provided by VCU:

Meals: $3,000-$4,000 Airfare (round trip): $1,200 Miscellaneous (books,

immigration, insurance, transport etc) $2,500 Total $13,700

Costs

• Students are still eligible

for SFE Grants and

Loans

• In addition, subject to

eligibility, students may

apply for a means-tested

SFE Travel Grant to

cover costs of travel to

and from host institution

(flights), less the first

£303, paid

retrospectively

Further info:

http://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/ media/456058/travel_grant_fact_ sheet_1314_d_b.pdf

Support from external organisations

students can apply for BUTEX scholarships of up

to £500 to help fund their time abroad

http://www.butex.ac.uk/scholarships/how-to-apply/

and expertise on preparing to study in the USA – including tips on travel, visas, cultural differences and more

http://www.fulbright.org.uk/

Application procedure

• Interested students should register their interest using sign in sheets or

by emailing studyabroad@uwe.ac.uk

• Application deadline date and procedure will be communicated to

interested after Christmas

• Only top students considered – those who have:

• good attendance

• submitted coursework on time

• pass modules at first attempt

• an average of 2:1or higher

• Academic references and an interview may be required before you are nominated to VCU

• Once nominated, you will need to complete VCU’s application procedure and send this off with proof of finances

VCU Application procedure

• To be completed by Mid-March

• You must provide:

• Photocopy of passport

• Transcript

• Motivation letter

• Recommendation letter

• Proof of finances

• Application form

• Immigration fee $30

• Once submitted, VCU will

provide you with a DS-2019

which you will need to apply for your J1 Student Visa

• You will need to meet visa requirements and pass an interview at the US embassy in London to obtain your visa

Rikky Sweet – BA (Hons) Politics

The people I met were among the most intelligent, caring and interesting people

that I have had the pleasure of spending time with

What Students say…

By the time I came home I could see that the world was much bigger than the UK and I realised that there

were so many more possibilities than I imagined

Studying under a different education system allowed me to experiment with a different style of learning Work was faster paced and required me to adjust both my time keeping and the way I approached essays and revision This not only proved that I could adjust to different situations but also taught me new methods to

employ in my education back home

Access to professors with different research focuses compared to those here at UWE allowed me to

supplement my education and broaden my interests by pursuing fields of study not offered at UWE

My experience abroad taught me to be more appreciative of aspects of life here in the UK which were absent abroad – the countryside and a slower, more relaxed pace of life

It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to live in the U.S.A and experience American culture without the hurdles of emigrating or paying out for an expensive holiday Studying abroad is the perfect way of seeing the world in a way that fits in easily with study and is made incredibly straight forward by the excellent work between UWE and VCU’s study abroad teams

The hardest part is coming home!

Questions?