The Epoch Times and New Tang Dynasty Television organized their first Los Angeles College Fair on Sept. 12. More than 50 educational institutions participated; including Harvard, Yale, the Universities of Chicago and Pennsylvania, Caltech, USC, UCLA, and UC Berkeley.
The event attracted more than 1,500 mainly ethnic Chinese students and parents.
Educational consulting companies also attended including Princeton Review, The Ivy Review, SAT Professionals, Chyten Educational Services, and others.
Owing to school performance and family income, among other factors, for the second consecutive year Business Week has picked the city of Arcadia as the “Best City to Raise Kids” in California.
Experts Shared Their Knowledge to Benefit Both Students and Parents
Tina (who preferred not to give her surname), a parent who attended the fair, said, “In this educational fair, I saw more children than parents. It is not easy to take a child to come here. But the children can give parents strength. For those parents who have poor English skills, they should come often to these kinds of activities, which will help them to absorb and learn more.”
Although the educational consultants spoke to the attendees in English, a simultaneous translation was provided for parents who only speak Chinese.
Tina, who has been living in the United States more than 20 years, found the simultaneous translation quite valuable.
“Some people describe Chinese immigrants in the United States as people who have just moved from Mainland China to a smaller version of China (Chinese communities). They need to be properly guided out of their own circle and into the mainstream society. Only having knowledge and general information is not enough; they must have knowledgeable experience. Today, the [educational] experts talked about a lot of knowledgeable experience, which amounted to constructive social education.”
He said, “In Harvard’s classrooms, 15 percent of the students wear glasses and are like Albert Einstein – the genius type. Another 15 percent are students such as the Olympic athletes or those with special talents who open a company and make a lot of money even before graduating from high school. The remaining 70 percent are in general, excellent, outstanding students. These students must demonstrate enthusiasm for learning on both their personal statement and interview. When we interview a student, I imagine how he or she would interact with other students in the Harvard cafeteria because the exchange between students is a time for inspiration.”
The University of Chicago was another top-ranking school at the college fair, and Alumni Association member Michael Mahern manned its booth.
Mahern feels that, although society has changed dramatically in recent decades, the University of Chicago still maintains a traditional style.
“This is not a place to train athletes. In this university, we learn critical thinking skills and the desire to explore concepts. Regardless of your major, simultaneously, students are required to take other elective courses to learn and understand other fields, and to learn how to think critically, so that after graduation one can engage in any occupation.”
Mahern is a good example of this approach. He decided to pursue an MBA after graduating in 1972, and he is now a playwright.
His interest in theater and writing spawned from participating in a film group while at the University of Chicago.
Finally, Mahern said, “Although the University of Chicago is not as famous as Harvard, we attract the serious student.”
John Wu, who worked as a student recruiter for China Institute of Science and Technology before coming to the United States, is still passionate about university education, and in his spare time he volunteers as a middle school counselor.
After hearing about the college fair, he and five other parents traveled over 50 miles from Westlake Village to attend.
He said, “The competition to attend the best universities in the United States and China is equally intense; however, in China, college acceptance is solely based on scores on the college entrance exam. For American colleges, only 60 percent of the decision is based on academics, while other considerations are based on your leadership, sports and arts skills, and other areas of development. These are soft standards and are very subjective.”
Universities in the United States are looking at academic achievement, which includes the high school GPA and SAT or ACT standardized test scores. For most Chinese students, establishing a strong academic record is of primary importance. Wu thinks that to get good grades, students must have clear goals and strong motivation.
The proctor for the exam was Nathaniel Cayanan. He said that the simulated Practice SAT exam questions are selected from the previous Practice SATs and, apart from not counting the scores, it is almost the same as the formal examination.
“It is free and open to the public. Any students can enroll in this exam, so their parents are receiving a bargain.”
In addition to scoring well on the SAT, having good grades in high school classes is a must. According to the experts at the college fair, the trend is, in addition to taking Advanced Placement (AP) courses, taking elective undergraduate courses at nearby community colleges.
The Ivy Review founder Alexander Hull said that taking AP courses at a community college is a great way to improve one’s GPA, but he warned, “Getting a ‘C’ or ‘D’ in an AP class isn’t as good as an A in an ordinary class.”
Wu, however, expressed different views. He said that even though taking classes at community colleges is more popular, not all private universities will recognize the credit.
However, because the achievement of Asian students is prominent, on some University of California campuses, the proportion of Asian students is as high as 50 percent.
This year, UCLA has officially announced a change on admission standards. Starting in 2012 it will no longer require students to provide SAT2 results. A UC Merced admissions officer, Juan Villegas, said such a policy change is to increase the opportunity for students who did not participate in the SAT2. But many Chinese parents believe that it is a form of discrimination.
Pankaj Sharma, former admissions officer for Johns Hopkins University, said that the SAT is more objective than the GPA because the latter is affected by high school teachers’ styles. Because the SAT is the same test for all students, it provides a more reliable reference for admissions officers.
Vocational Schools Provide a Shortcut for New Immigrants
Besides prestigious universities as well as public and private universities at the college fair, community colleges such as Pasadena City College, Platt College, and others also participated.
In addition, as Los Angeles is home to the entertainment industry, there are a number of art, dance, beauty, cosmetology, and culinary schools. Alhambra Beauty College, California College of the Arts, and Fei Tian Academy of the Arts were also present at the fair.
Students who attend vocational schools can apply for government grants and can often find a job immediately after graduating. These schools provide a shortcut for new immigrants to establish a new life in the United States.
A vocation that has seen a high growth rate in employment is nursing. As the “baby boomers” near retirement age, the demand for nurses should increase. According to legislative analyst Elizabeth G. Hill, between now and 2014, California will be short 12,000 nurses.
Nurses in the United States can be divided into three levels. From the top to the bottom are registered nurses (RN), occupational nurses (Licensed Practical Nurse, LPN, in California, it is called Licensed Vocational Nurse, LVN), and assistant nurses (Certified Nursing Assistant, CNA ). Registered nurses have the highest requirements related to medical knowledge and English proficiency.
Another type of shortcut for recent immigrants was also offered at the college fair. A U.S. army recruiter spoke to fair attendees about its recent launch of MAVNI (Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest Program). MAVNI is a way for immigrants who possess skills considered vital to the U.S. Army (doctors, nurses, and those who speak certain languages) to serve in the U.S. Army and be naturalized as U.S. citizens.
High-income Families Can Apply for Grants
According to experts like Michael Chen from Bay Area Grants, most parents are misled by friends, colleagues, and other professionals about the likelihood of receiving a grant.
Chen said, “The U.S. government has allocated $7 billion funding for financing students. It’s not necessarily true that high-income families do not receive grants. Understanding the rules of applying for grants is very important.”
Bay Area Grants expert Michael Chen pointed out parents often make the mistake of not applying for grants because their income and assets are too high (Photo: Ji Yuan / The Epoch Times)
Chen offers solutions for parents of students entering college by explaining the process of applying for financial aid.
