ritiritiriti

I will be going to the US for my PhD studies on the F1 visa in Fall 2015. I am considering whether it is better for my husband to apply for a F2 visa or B2 visa? The purpose of his travel will be purely to visit me and for travelling together around the country as tourists from time to time. He has a long time job in the home country. The University website says that for tourist purpose dependents can apply for B2 visa, which is valid for 6 months at the maximum. I read some where that F2 visa is valid for as long as F1 holder's visa is valid. So isn't it better for my husband to have a F2 visa such that every time he wants to visit me the visa hurdle will be taken care of? Can some one tell me the pros and cons of applying for a F2 visa if the purpose if for the dependent to travel to US just to visit me? What does it imply for insurance expenditure for the dependent? Do I need to purchase insurance for the entire year? Look forward to your response.

Thank you for replying to my post. I want to pursue agricultural economics in the context of sustainable development, poverty and food security. Do you think in that case OSU suits better than Purdue?

I need to decide whether to choose Purdue or OSU to pursue by PhD in Agricultural Economics. I understand the Purdue is ranked higher for AgEcon, but Purdue has offered one-quarter time assistantship which is not enough to cover living expenses. OSU on the other hand has offered half time assistantship which will be enough. Also in some rankings OSU is ranked ahead of Purdue for AgEcon (exampleRankings: Resource & Agricultural Econ.Top Agriculture Universities Tallied For 2014 | Growing Produce). I need information on the following aspects to make an informed decision on the same: 1. Probability of finding additional one quarter time assistantship at Purdue. a. Is it possible to find this before arriving at Purdue such that I have enough assistantship to cover my expenses from the first semester onwards? b. If either yes or no to the above, what is the best way to find the additional assistantship? c. In case I am unable to find assistantship before arriving at Purdue, I will need to partially fund myself atleast for the first semester. The shortfall is about 4000$ per semester.Assuming I do find additional assistantship in the second semester, is it worth it to choose Purdue over OSU after accounting for all other factors? d. In case I am unable to find additional assistantship at all, do you think its wise to choose Purdue over OSU. For me, the only means of financing this short fall in the funding will be through a loan. 2. Nature and load of course work in both universities? 3. Since my interest is to pursue Agricultural Economics, while the course at Purdue is titled the same, in OSU it belongs to the Applied Economics degree. However a lot of work under this department is on Agricultural Economics. How different is the OSU course for students of Applied Economics who wish to pursue AgEcon and those who don't? 4. In terms of placements, how do students of both universities perform? Is there a focus on any sector by any of the two universities? How supportive is the department in helping students find placement, summer work etc.? 5. Are the universities individually part of any consortium that might provide me better exposure etc.? 6. What is the drop out rate in both universities and the reason? 7. My interest is to work in developing countries of South Asia. Do either of these universities focus on the same? If yes, can you suggest any professors? 8. Is there a difference in the focus on quant between the two universities? 9. What is your usual schedule? How many hours a day do you spend at school? Weekends? How social is the department? Do people hang out together outside of school? 10. How student friendly are either universities? 11. What is the difference in cost of living? 12. Any other factor that significantly sets the two universities apart from eachother and should be a factor in making the decision. I look forward to quick responses on these questions because I need to make this decision over the next 2-3 days!

I need to decide whether to choose Purdue or OSU to pursue by PhD in Agricultural Economics. I understand the Purdue is ranked higher for AgEcon, but Purdue has offered one-quarter time assistantship which is not enough to cover living expenses. OSU on the other hand has offered half time assistantship which will be enough. Also in some rankings OSU is ranked ahead of Purdue for AgEcon (exampleRankings: Resource & Agricultural Econ.Top Agriculture Universities Tallied For 2014 | Growing Produce). I need information on the following aspects to make an informed decision on the same: 1. Probability of finding additional one quarter time assistantship at Purdue. a. Is it possible to find this before arriving at Purdue such that I have enough assistantship to cover my expenses from the first semester onwards? b. If either yes or no to the above, what is the best way to find the additional assistantship? c. In case I am unable to find assistantship before arriving at Purdue, I will need to partially fund myself atleast for the first semester. The shortfall is about 4000$ per semester.Assuming I do find additional assistantship in the second semester, is it worth it to choose Purdue over OSU after accounting for all other factors? d. In case I am unable to find additional assistantship at all, do you think its wise to choose Purdue over OSU. For me, the only means of financing this short fall in the funding will be through a loan. 2. Nature and load of course work in both universities? 3. Since my interest is to pursue Agricultural Economics, while the course at Purdue is titled the same, in OSU it belongs to the Applied Economics degree. However a lot of work under this department is on Agricultural Economics. How different is the OSU course for students of Applied Economics who wish to pursue AgEcon and those who don't? 4. In terms of placements, how do students of both universities perform? Is there a focus on any sector by any of the two universities? How supportive is the department in helping students find placement, summer work etc.? 5. Are the universities individually part of any consortium that might provide me better exposure etc.? 6. What is the drop out rate in both universities and the reason? 7. My interest is to work in developing countries of South Asia. Do either of these universities focus on the same? If yes, can you suggest any professors? 8. Is there a difference in the focus on quant between the two universities? 9. What is your usual schedule? How many hours a day do you spend at school? Weekends? How social is the department? Do people hang out together outside of school? 10. How student friendly are either universities? 11. What is the difference in cost of living? 12. Any other factor that significantly sets the two universities apart from eachother and should be a factor in making the decision. I look forward to quick responses on these questions because I need to make this decision over the next 2-3 days!

I need to decide whether to choose Purdue or OSU to pursue by PhD in Agricultural Economics. I understand the Purdue is ranked higher for AgEcon, but Purdue has offered one-quarter time assistantship which is not enough to cover living expenses. OSU on the other hand has offered half time assistantship which will be enough. Also in some rankings OSU is ranked ahead of Purdue for AgEcon (example Rankings: Resource & Agricultural Econ. Top Agriculture Universities Tallied For 2014 | Growing Produce). I need information on the following aspects to make an informed decision on the same: 1. Probability of finding additional one quarter time assistantship at Purdue. a. Is it possible to find this before arriving at Purdue such that I have enough assistantship to cover my expenses from the first semester onwards? b. If either yes or no to the above, what is the best way to find the additional assistantship? c. In case I am unable to find assistantship before arriving at Purdue, I will need to partially fund myself atleast for the first semester. The shortfall is about 4000$ per semester.Assuming I do find additional assistantship in the second semester, is it worth it to choose Purdue over OSU after accounting for all other factors? d. In case I am unable to find additional assistantship at all, do you think its wise to choose Purdue over OSU. For me, the only means of financing this short fall in the funding will be through a loan. 2. Nature and load of course work in both universities? 3. Since my interest is to pursue Agricultural Economics, while the course at Purdue is titled the same, in OSU it belongs to the Applied Economics degree. However a lot of work under this department is on Agricultural Economics. How different is the OSU course for students of Applied Economics who wish to pursue AgEcon and those who don't? 4. In terms of placements, how do students of both universities perform? Is there a focus on any sector by any of the two universities? How supportive is the department in helping students find placement, summer work etc.? 5. Are the universities individually part of any consortium that might provide me better exposure etc.? 6. What is the drop out rate in both universities and the reason? 7. My interest is to work in developing countries of South Asia. Do either of these universities focus on the same? If yes, can you suggest any professors? 8. Is there a difference in the focus on quant between the two universities? 9. What is your usual schedule? How many hours a day do you spend at school? Weekends? How social is the department? Do people hang out together outside of school? 10. How student friendly are either universities? 11. What is the difference in cost of living? 12. Any other factor that significantly sets the two universities apart from eachother and should be a factor in making the decision. I look forward to quick responses on these questions because I need to make this decision over the next 2-3 days!