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Saturday, July 19, 2008

- Private Student Loan Consolidation




Private student loans cannot, in general, be consolidated with federal student loans. The low interest rates on federal consolidation loans are not available to private education loans. Nevertheless, there are several options for refinancing private education loans.

Since most private education loans do not compete on price, a private consolidation loans is merely replacing one or more private education loans with another. So the main benefit of such a consolidation is obtaining a single monthly payment. Also, since the consolidation resets the term of the loan, this may reduce the monthly payment (at a cost, of course, of increasing the total interest paid over the lifetime of the loan).

However, since the interest rates on private student loans are based on your credit score, you may be able to get a lower interest rate through a private consolidation loan if your credit score has improved significantly since you first obtained the loan. For example, if you've graduated and now have a good job and have been building a good credit history, your credit score may have improved. If your credit score has increased by 50-100 points or more, you may be able to get a lower interest rate by consolidating your debt with another lender. You can also try talking to the current holder of your loans, to see if they'll reduce the interest rate on your loans rather than lose your loans to another lender.

Source and more info: finaid.org

Friday, July 18, 2008

- Student Loan Consolidation



It is important to know a student loan consolidation before students apply for the loan in a loan company. A student loan consolidation loan, also known as school loan consolidation, is a refinancing program where you the borrower transform all your student loans into one loan with a fixed rate, one monthly loan payment and one lender!

Consolidation gives you the opportunity to reduce the size of your monthly payment by extending the standard 10-year repayment plan to 15 to 30 years. When combined with low Federally-mandated interest rates, student loan consolidation enables you to pay less per month, improving your cash flow.

Extending the loan for that length of time may actually increase your overall repayment amount over time. However, depending upon the determined fixed interest rate, the amount of loan balances outstanding and the monthly amount you choose to pay, your actual student loan repayment costs may be reduced with consolidation!

More information: studentbenefitservices.com


Tuesday, July 1, 2008

- Sholarships: Ph.D Scholarship in Computer Science




Ph.D Scholarship in Computer Science

Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (EIPRS)

Beasiswa Penelitian Program S2/S3 Pendidikan tahun 2009
__________________________________________

To be eligible to apply for the EIPRS, you must:
1. be an overseas student who is eligible to undertake a higher degree by research candidature within UTS’s areas of research strengths, and

2. be able to commence in full time enrolment for the first time in 2009, unless:
- you commenced your HDR during 2008 but, due to the timing of your applications and subsequent enrolment were not able to apply for the 2008 EIPRS, or

- you have terminated any previous HDR enrolment within six months of commencement
3. not hold a research qualification regarded by UTS as equivalent to an Australian Research Doctorate degree or, if undertaking a Research by Master degree, not hold a research qualification regarded as equivalent to or higher than an Australian Research Master’s degree, and

4. not have held an Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) scholarship within the two years prior to commencing the EIPRS, and
5. not be receiving a scholarship for which course tuition fee is a component under any scholarship scheme to which the Australian Government makes a substantial contribution.

Eligibility for admission
PhD Degree
Applicants shall:
- hold a Bachelor’s degree with First or Second Class Honours, Division 1 or a Master’s Degree by research of the University of Technology, Sydney; or
- possess an equivalent qualification.
In addition, applicants will be required to provide satisfactory evidence of their ability to undertake advanced research appropriate to their PhD program.

Master’s Degree by Research
Applicants shall:
- hold a Bachelor’s Degree of the University of Technology, Sydney; or
- possess an equivalent qualification; or
- submit such other evidence of general and professional qualifications as will satisfy the Academic Board that the applicant possesses the educational preparation and capacity to pursue graduate studies.

English proficiency
Applicants whose formal education was conducted in a language other than English are required to provide evidence of their English language proficiency. Evidence of English language proficiency must be provided by the closing dates specified in this information.

Selection criteria
Scholarships will be awarded on the basis of academic merit, research capacity and research potential. The applicant’s intended area of study must be in an area of research concentration of the institution.

Scholarship Application Procedure and Requirements
- You must complete the International Student Postgraduate Application [pdf 74.5kb]. Mark the top of the front page of this form EIPRS Applicant.
- You must also complete the 2009 EIPRS application form[pdf, 46.9kb]

Supporting documents essential for your applications (required for International Student Postgraduate and EIPRS application)

- Research proposal detailing your research objectives, example of your key literature in your area of interest and a broad outline of the sequence and timing of the work that you plan to do;
- Evidence of prior research experience, including work for Bachelor’s Honours or Master theses, consultancies or industry-based research;
- The name of your potential supervisors (or supervisors) at UTS with whom you have discussed your research interest or have agreed to supervise your research project
- Reports from 2 referees, preferably from someone who are familiar with your research interest and who can confirm your capacity to carry out research. Use the the Academic Referee’s Report form (pdf 24kb).
- Resume or Curriculum Vitae including:
Details of any academic prizes gained during your tertiary studies
Details of any work experience (paid or unpaid) relevant to your proposed research project
Details of publication in academic or peer reviewed journals, published books or chapters of books
Details of patents achieved or any other output, for example, exhibited works (if applicable)

All supporting documents must be properly certified, these include:
- English proficiency test results
- Copies of degree(s) awarded and full academic transcript(s) showing the subjects studied, the marks obtained and an explanation of the grading system must be provided
- For documents not in English, the original language documents and an official translation must also be certified

Photocopies that are not certified will not be accepted.
Documents certified by a Justice of Peace will not be accepted.

Closing Date
1 September, 2008 at 5.00pm.
All application requirements must be received by the closing date.
- Incomplete applications will not be considered
- Late applications will not be considered
- Faxed applications will not be considered
It is in your interest to apply as early as possible

If you apply early and you are missing any documents you will be notified of this by UTS International and will have still have adequate time to supply the required documents before the deadline of the EIPRS application.
Applications must arrive at the address nominated on the application form by the due time on the due date. Merely posting the application by the due date is not acceptable.

Acknowledgement of receipt of EIPRS applicaton
An email acknowledgement of receipt of your EIPRS application will be sent to you when received by UTS international.

Notification of the outcome
Eligible applicants will receive email notification of the outcome of their EIPRS in late November 2008.

- Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship (EIPRS)




To be eligible to apply for the EIPRS, you must:
1. be an overseas student who is eligible to undertake a higher degree by research candidature within UTS’s areas of research strengths, and
2. be able to commence in full time enrolment for the first time in 2009, unless:
- you commenced your HDR during 2008 but, due to the timing of your applications and subsequent enrolment were not able to apply for the 2008 EIPRS, or
- you have terminated any previous HDR enrolment within six months of commencement
3. not hold a research qualification regarded by UTS as equivalent to an Australian Research Doctorate degree or, if undertaking a Research by Master degree, not hold a research qualification regarded as equivalent to or higher than an Australian Research Master’s degree, and
4. not have held an Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) scholarship within the two years prior to commencing the EIPRS, and
5. not be receiving a scholarship for which course tuition fee is a component under any scholarship scheme to which the Australian Government makes a substantial contribution.
More information here.

Friday, June 6, 2008

- Cabinet gives approval to Fulbright programme




The Union Cabinet today gave its approval to an agreement that will double the number of scholars exchanged with the United States of America under the Fulbright Educational exchange programme.




It has also rechristened the programme to Fulbright-Jawaharlal Nehru Scholarships and Grants.


Officials said the agreement provides for the creation of the 'US India Educational Foundation' awarding ‘Fulbright Jawaharlal Nehru Scholarships and Grants'. Initially about 240 students from India and a similar number from the USA will be sponsored annually under the programme.

The scholarships are given with financial contribution by the Government of India. The Cabinet's approval to the revised draft agreement would also provide equal participation of Government of India in policy and decision-making on the exchange of Indian and US scholars through equal participation in the board of the US-India Education Foundation.


Officials said that the move would serve Government of India's objectives of supporting and encouraging Indian studies, research, instruction and other educational activities for US citizens and nationals in India and Indian citizens and nationals in US schools. "The progamme encourages exchanges between American academics and Indian universities. Host institutions and organisations on both sides would have the opportunity to develop the desired linkages," officials said.

The Fulbright programme is also intended to support (with support to research and capacity building), the India-US bilateral initiatives of 2005-06 in agriculture, clean energy, climate change, science and technology, global issues of common concern etc, they said.

Source:http://www.business-standard.com/