Brunel or USC (entry-level masters)

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thisisatest1994

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Hi all! I have been accepted into Brunel University in London and USC in the US.

USC is a dream, of course, but it is also very expensive. I did receive a sizable scholarship, but it'll still leave me with about 130,000 in loans if I don't receive any other aid. USC is 2.5 years, and starts in June. I live in Southern California, and went to UCLA for my undergrad.

Brunel is in London, and one of my dreams has been to live abroad. It is significantly cheaper, even including flights (the total cost will be about $40,000 including flights.). I can use federal aid/loans to fund it so that is not a big issue. Brunel is also on track for American accreditation, and will have it by this summer when the program starts. It is 2 years and starts in August.

I'm really not sure which way I'm leaning at the moment. I'm nervous about being away from my support system here in California. I'm also concerned that I would regret not going to USC, as it is one of the top schools in the world, and has been a dream school for so many years. I've only recently heard of Brunel, and I haven't been able to visit, because it is of course in London.

I am planning on returning to the US and completing my OTD. I know if I go to USC, the OTD program is expedited, so if I go to USC, I will probably continue my OTD there as well. If I go to Brunel, I'll also apply to other OTD programs, such as Boston, Columbia, etc.

Has anyone experienced either of these programs? Did anyone turn down USC for a lower-ranked school? Anyone who went to USC gained more financial aid than the original offer? Does USC allow for international fieldwork or experiences abroad? If you've gone to Brunel or the UK for OT, PT, or Nursing, how was your experience?

I'm at quite a loss right now, and I feel very nervous about choosing something I may regret.

Thank you all for your help!

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Did you decide which school to go? I'm currently applying to Brunel and would like to hear how your process was.
 
Did you decide which school to go? I'm currently applying to Brunel and would like to hear how your process was.


Hey, I applied to Brunel this year too! The only correspondence that I have received so far said
"We are pleased to inform you that your application has been passed to a member of academic staff in the department to determine if you meet the specific criteria for the subject area. We will be in contact once a decision has been made."
This was 5 days ago. Have you heard anything else besides this? I think I submitted my app towards the end of October.
 
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Did you/ are you applying to Brunel?
I started the process several months ago, but I never submitted it because I had concerns with the timeline of hearing back/getting my Visa/when I would need to move in order to start. I was also unsure if the UK degree would present any state licensing challenges, despite being acote accredited. Maybe you can comment on those things? I am still considering submitting.

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I started the process several months ago, but I never submitted it because I had concerns with the timeline of hearing back/getting my Visa/when I would need to move in order to start. I was also unsure if the UK degree would present any state licensing challenges, despite being acote accredited. Maybe you can comment on those things? I am still considering submitting.

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As far as the timeline goes for all of those things, the longer you wait to apply the more you push those things back. I applied I think towards the end of October or beginning of November and had my skype interview December 11th. As far as the visa goes, you're not allowed to apply for that until 3 months before the program starts. So if I starts in September, you have to await to apply for the visa in June. Then you get your housing situation together (easier to apply to live on campus which is guaranteed to all international students). I would probably plan to be there at least two weeks before classes start just to go to orientation and get things situated.
As far as state licensure, Texas (my home state) doesn't require anything special for international students as long as you pass the NBCOT exam the process is the same as far as I understand from looking on the website. I know California requires extra fieldwork hours for international students but it may be different because Brunel is now ACOTE accredited and they are the first international school to do so. So who knows what the state of California would require in that situation. The best way is to look on the OT website for the states you know you would want to move to and look up the requirements or better yet call them. You can just go ahead and apply to get the ball rolling and if you change your mind you don't have to go through with it. At least you won't regret not applying at all. Good luck!
 
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As far as the timeline goes for all of those things, the longer you wait to apply the more you push those things back. I applied I think towards the end of October or beginning of November and had my skype interview December 11th. As far as the visa goes, you're not allowed to apply for that until 3 months before the program starts. So if I starts in September, you have to await to apply for the visa in June. Then you get your housing situation together (easier to apply to live on campus which is guaranteed to all international students). I would probably plan to be there at least two weeks before classes start just to go to orientation and get things situated.
As far as state licensure, Texas (my home state) doesn't require anything special for international students as long as you pass the NBCOT exam the process is the same as far as I understand from looking on the website. I know California requires extra fieldwork hours for international students but it may be different because Brunel is now ACOTE accredited and they are the first international school to do so. So who knows what the state of California would require in that situation. The best way is to look on the OT website for the states you know you would want to move to and look up the requirements or better yet call them. You can just go ahead and apply to get the ball rolling and if you change your mind you don't have to go through with it. At least you won't regret not applying at all. Good luck!
Thank you for all of that information! I am looking into it. How did the interview go? Do you think you will go there if you get in?

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Thank you for all of that information! I am looking into it. How did the interview go? Do you think you will go there if you get in?

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You're welcome! I think the interview actually went really well and I am usually very anxious about interviews. It is highly likely that I will go there if I get accepted. There are more cost upfront (paying for visa, flight, etc,) But cheaper in the long run because its about $45,000 for the entire program instead of the typical average of $80,000 like what I've seen for most US programs. Plus, I've always wanted to live abroad and travel so it's the perfect opportunity. Let me know if you apply! Hopefully I will hear back soon.
 
You're welcome! I think the interview actually went really well and I am usually very anxious about interviews. It is highly likely that I will go there if I get accepted. There are more cost upfront (paying for visa, flight, etc,) But cheaper in the long run because its about $45,000 for the entire program instead of the typical average of $80,000 like what I've seen for most US programs. Plus, I've always wanted to live abroad and travel so it's the perfect opportunity. Let me know if you apply! Hopefully I will hear back soon.
Hey therapist2be, I was just looking over requirements to apply to Brunel, and I was wondering if you knew what they mean when they say you must have graduated from a "well-ranked" institution?
 
Hey therapist2be, I was just looking over requirements to apply to Brunel, and I was wondering if you knew what they mean when they say you must have graduated from a "well-ranked" institution?


Their requirement are so much more vague than American programs. If your university is accredited, it will meet this requirement. I actually went through a service called Study Across the Pond, You get an advisor and send them all of your application materials and they do they application for you. You log in to make sure everything is correct and then press submit. Everything became much more clearer working with them because they understand what the schools want. I couldn't figure out what their requirement for me would be as an American but going through ATP it's not hard. I've actually been accepted by the way and I do plan to attend. Let me know if you apply : )
 
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Their requirement are so much more vague than American programs. If your university is accredited, it will meet this requirement. I actually went through a service called Study Across the Pond, You get an advisor and send them all of your application materials and they do they application for you. You log in to make sure everything is correct and then press submit. Everything became much more clearer working with them because they understand what the schools want. I couldn't figure out what their requirement for me would be as an American but going through ATP it's not hard. I've actually been accepted by the way and I do plan to attend. Let me know if you apply : )

Hi! I just found out that I have interview for Brunel next Monday? What should I expect?

I went through Study Across the Pond too :)
 
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Their requirement are so much more vague than American programs. If your university is accredited, it will meet this requirement. I actually went through a service called Study Across the Pond, You get an advisor and send them all of your application materials and they do they application for you. You log in to make sure everything is correct and then press submit. Everything became much more clearer working with them because they understand what the schools want. I couldn't figure out what their requirement for me would be as an American but going through ATP it's not hard. I've actually been accepted by the way and I do plan to attend. Let me know if you apply : )
Oh my goodness, congratulations on your acceptance! :highfive: What an amazing adventure that will be! Also, thank you for the tip. :) I am intending on applying!
 
How was your interview with Brunel?

I didn't think it went that well, but I actually received a conditional offer from them today. They have you watch a video before the interview mine was about dementia; make sure you watch it and pay attention. Following the interview, you have to write an essay about what an occupational therapy student could take from the video. The interview was with their international advisor who is actually from the United States, she's very nice. Overall, I would say it was semi informal so nothing to be too nervous about and the questions were based on what I knew about occupational therapy and why I wanted to study at Brunel.
 
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I didn't think it went that well, but I actually received a conditional offer from them today. They have you watch a video before the interview mine was about dementia; make sure you watch it and pay attention. Following the interview, you have to write an essay about what an occupational therapy student could take from the video. The interview was with their international advisor who is actually from the United States, she's very nice. Overall, I would say it was semi informal so nothing to be too nervous about and the questions were based on what I knew about occupational therapy and why I wanted to study at Brunel.
Congrats on the offer!
 
I didn't think it went that well, but I actually received a conditional offer from them today. They have you watch a video before the interview mine was about dementia; make sure you watch it and pay attention. Following the interview, you have to write an essay about what an occupational therapy student could take from the video. The interview was with their international advisor who is actually from the United States, she's very nice. Overall, I would say it was semi informal so nothing to be too nervous about and the questions were based on what I knew about occupational therapy and why I wanted to study at Brunel.

I was just wondering why you acceptance was conditional because when they emailed me I didn’t have my Bachelors officially yet so they weren’t accepting me so was yours conditional based off of something else.
 
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