Independent Study Form - Georgetown College: Fill & Download for Free

For me, yes.And include all the top ranked schools in that - MIT, Stanford, Georgetown, Chicago, Northwestern, etc.Some returns on investment:Unique educational opportunities - for undergrad, the core classes are likely similar just about anywhere. But in upper level classes you start getting access to extraordinary faculty and experiences. E.g., at Cornell, I had a 20-student seminar with Carl Sagan and a 1–1 independent study on computer technology with the editor of IEEE.Peer group - my friends from undergrad are all doing really cool things 20+ years later. And if you’re a future entrepreneur, your ideal co-founders might be classmates too.First jobs - a lot of recruiters show up to campus.Credibility - it’s a simple resume soundbite requiring little elaboration.Caveats and notes:All of the above are what you make of them, so “worth it” might not be universal.Many if not most of the highly successful people I know did not attend top 20 schools, so by no means is it necessary.But, I would not say that the hype is without merit.And if by “worth” you are asking about price-tag, other than in-state tuition on a state school or getting a big merit scholarship somewhere, the price tags on colleges aren’t necessarily all that different — plus many of the top schools have big endowments that allow them to meet all financial need and can sometimes be less expensive than alternatives

You began applying for college, and your parents began preparing you, when you were somewhere between two and five years old. Did you ask "why?" Did they answer? Were you the six-year-old I was, spending a half hour slooowly opening and closing the refrigerator door until I found the switch that made the light go on and off? Were you the nine-year-old who got lost in the dictionary because you were foolish enough to look up "isopropyl alcohol" and each word led you to an equally unintelligible next word, until you gave up in defeat after an hour, knowing vaguely that there were lots of different kinds of alcohol out there, and only drink the one called ethanol?Then there was the educational system. Were you one of the kids I tutor every week or two, who can recite "seven plus seven equals fourteen," but if you ask them how much is seven and seven, they don't have any concept of what the words mean? (You should have seen the looks of utter sacrilege when I tore up a dollar bill to explain what a quarter was! Fortunately my statement that the bank would give me a new one was correct, so they have forgiven me.)Fast-forward to junior high. Do you look up the words you don't know? Do you read biographies, histories, science texts, even if you give up halfway through because "the Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" is a bit much for a twelve year-old, and you gave up on "the Brothers Karamazov" when you couldn't tell how many brothers there were? Do you wonder what would happen if...? Do you ask? Do you get a satisfactory answer?If you learned how to think, read, and question before high school, you're ready to prepare for college. If you studied math from flash cards, learned exactly one definition for each word and that one's the Microsoft Word definition, and only read the assigned books for each grade, you're ready for community college -- maybe.And you need not have been a total nerd to learn how to think. In fact, as a crippled kid, I had to be way better at sports. I had to hit an over-the-wall-home run, because there was no way I was running bases. I had to know all the lyrics to all the hit songs, to compensate for my off-key voice. I think my negotiating skills were learned at the Monopoly board. Games teach skills. (I don't know what skills the current app games teach, I must admit.)Now that you're ready for high school and have basic learning and writing skills, and we hope some studying skills as well, you're ready to begin applying for college.Colleges like kids who challenge themselves, not only in the depth of courses, but also in the breadth. So learn the difference between Running Start (a bad idea), Honors and AP (it depends on your school and the program.) Unless it's required for graduation (American History -- yuck! More generals and dates to remember!) then take as broad a range of courses as you can enjoy. We didn't have electives when I went to high school -- our biggest choice was Spanish or French -- but Art, Poetry, and some form of sociology were mandatory, so we wound up "broad" perforce.Colleges like kids who challenge themselves. These can be done in more defined ways now than they could when I was in school, but when I wanted to stay after school through the "detention and club" period and do independent study in chemistry, my teacher was happy to oblige. When I told my English Lit teacher that I just Would Not read Hardy, but would trade her three Mark Twains, she accepted. As I mentioned elsewhere, I had a lot of chores at home, so "activities" weren't on my agenda, but I could study for the State Spanish contest, build a science project, win the math contest, show my ability and interest in whatever way I could. We didn't have AP Spanish, but when I finished the program through twelfth grade in tenth, I got permission to spend Spanish period in the library translating Don Quixote.The point of all this is you don't prepare by taking X, Y, and Z courses. You prepare by learning X, Y and Z however you can learn them, and the more you can learn them by yourself the more impressive you may seem to the schools.Someone asked me about preparing for the SAT starting in 9th grade, and I wrote: read anything from the list of periodicals I recommend, high-vocabulary magazines like [deleted because they violate a Quora policy] No matter what your intellectual or political leanings, one of those should suit you.You might also want to increase your knowledge of the "generally known" subjects of cultivated westerners: Broad General Knowledge.Also, as you take practice tests, note every word you're not sure of, and look them up in the next day or two, before you've forgotten the context.That list of books, journals, stray topics, is not intended to replace flash cards; it's intended to spark interests. Some of you will care enough to figure out who Georgia O'Keefe was; some will get so involved as to notice her name is spelled O'Keeffe. Some will limit their knowledge of Michelangelo to the Sistine Chapel, and others will learn that it was his most hated work. He thought all painting was inferior to sculpture, and had to be repeatedly captured by the Pope's army and put back to painting when he really wanted his hands on some good Carrara marble. [Wiki]You may think I haven't begun talking about applying to college, but you're wrong. You have the broad knowledge needed to get a good score on the SATs. You have some totally ace recommendations. And you have at least three or four awesome essay topics.In your junior year of high school, you need to register for the SATs and start looking at colleges, at least on their web sites, and every chance you get in person. If you live in Heber Springs Arkansas, or in New Delhi India, you may not have a lot of opportunities. But there are 22 colleges within a 50 mile radius of Philly, and at least that many in Boston. You may take a school field trip to DC to see the Washington Monument, but with a little wheedling I bet you can get Georgetown added to the list of sights.Your school guidance counselor should be really good at this part, and if not, the Princeton Review and College Board web sites will give you all the dates and deadlines you need. If you can't figure them out on your own, you're really not ready for a good college.Next, remember the First Caveat: You Can't All Go To Harvard -- or the Ivies plus the rest of the Top 20. To get into any of those schools and a dozen more, you have to be in the top 2% of the WORLDBetween 2002 and 2012, undergraduate enrollment rose 24 percent overall, from 14.3 million to 17.7 million; Page on ed.govSo, conservatively estimating 4,000,000 entering students, the top 1% is 40,000 people. Schools like Yale, Penn, Harvard, have an entering class of 2,000, more or less. So the top 20 schools can, if they choose, fill themselves with the top 1% of students from the United States. If you look at the top fifty schools you might have room for the top 2% from around the world who apply.Then all those other fine steps besides taking the SATs. All top schools, and many not-so-top- schools, look for the same things: ability, energy, interest, intelligence. But so many prep books and consultants give the same answers to everyone that I try to help you around the "same" as everyone else" rejection.First, try to avoid being a stereotype -- the same as every other top student, whether international or resident: The Overachiever Stereotype on Your Academic Evidence FileSecond, make sure you choose the right schools: You Don't Want the Ivy League! on Your Academic Evidence FileThird, understand how U.S. schools make decisions: "Holistic" File Evaluationsand A Note to South Asian Studentsand plan your activities accordingly: What Makes an Activity Important? on Your Academic Evidence FileFourth, spend an enormous amount of time writing clever, interesting essays that are fun to read and make you seem like a good student to talk to at dinner:Please, Not That Essay Again!And fifth, figure out how you're going to pay for this:Can I Afford U.S. Colleges?Finally, what are the specifics of the school you're interested in? Often, the school is quite specific in telling you what it wants; you're just not trained in reading what it said, but start by trying.And that's how you get from being a six-year-old playing with the refrigerator light bulb to being a student at an actual Ivy League School (Penn) on a full scholarship.

Below are the top 10 Universities in the world with an option for a study abroad year.Syracuse University-Based around seven university-owned centers in Europe, Turkey, Chile, and China, Syracuse University offers more than 100 study abroad programs in 60 countries. Studying abroad at the university's centers gives students rigorous academic experiences (and field trips) with constant support of dedicated Syracuse faculty and staff.Elon University- Through their Global Education Center, Elon University offers a variety of study abroad programs to meet every student's needs. The statistics speak for themselves: At least 80% of students participate in a study abroad program during their time at Elon University.Boston University- In addition to independent study opportunities and traditional student exchange arrangements, Boston University boasts four university-owned centers around the world. It also has three university-supported study abroad program types on six continents, including programs at sea.Georgetown University - Each year, Georgetown University sends approximately 900 students abroad, where they can earn undergraduate and graduate academic credit in more than 50 countries. Representing all academic disciplines available at Georgetown, students may choose from 190 programs, each with varying degrees of on-site university support. Georgetown's three satellite campuses are located in Turkey, Qatar, and Italy.University of Evansville - The University of Evansville is a private university with about 90 study abroad programs available to undergraduate and graduate students. Evansville's "second home" is Harlaxton College in the United Kingdom, where the university's hallmark study abroad program takes place with faculty, support staff, and fellow students from Evansville and other partner schools.University of Washington- Impressively, the University of Washington offers more than 300 study abroad programs, representing thirteen global regions with opportunities for students to study at sea. Durations range from short-term programs of four weeks or fewer, quarter-long programs that align with the university calendar, semester-long programs of 15 weeks, and academic-year exchange programs.University of Chicago- The University of Chicago offers more than 50 study abroad programs to undergraduate and graduate students. Although the quantity may not be as varied as another top study abroad schools, the University of Chicago provides students with on-site staff at a majority of locations and four university-owned centers across the globe.Butler University- Approximately 500 students from Butler University study abroad each year. With 300 programs in regions that span from Australia and New Zealand, the UK and Ireland, to Asia and the Pacific, Butler offers maximum flexibility to fit each traveler's academic needs and personal goals.University of Delaware- The University of Delaware currently offers 126 study abroad programs available to full-time undergraduate students. Program length varies from three-month summer programs worth 12-15 credits, three- to five-week winter and summer programs worth up to seven credits, semester- or year-long student exchanges, and two- to eight-week unpaid internships.Northeastern University - From 150 to 200, the number of available study abroad programs at Northeastern University varies from one academic year to the next. Eighteen disciplines are represented, including political science, engineering, history, cinema studies, and architecture. Students may even find themselves studying in one of nine global regions, including Antarctica!Hope this helps let us know if you need more information about studying abroad.