<p>Well, I am an international student from Hong Kong and my desired major is science.</p>
<p>Michigan State had given me an offer plus a scholarship. </p>
<p>At the same time, Northeastern had given me a conditional offer.
I need to finish an English course before I can be admitted.</p>
<p>To be honest, I know my English is not so good. I scored 92 in Toefl and my writing is bad.
Do you think my English can really handle the university’s courses or the environment ?
OR I should choose Northeastern so I that can improve my English ?</p>
<p>Please give me some advice =]</p>
<p>@henry4565hk,</p>
<p>If you don’t mind living in a college town (E. Lansing) instead of a large city (Boston), I’d say that you should just take the scholarship from MSU. You are from hk not mainland China. So I am going to assume that your english level is not as bad as you think. And in case you struggle at MSU, you can always GO TO WRITING CENTER as I did for help (free of charge). In terms of handling most of your freshman year science classes (physics, general chemistry, biology, calculus, …etc.), you should be fine with strong Asian academic educational background (at least I had no problem). The only thing that you should focus on more, would be that of reading comprehension (read faster), and perhaps listening skill. So that by the time you take Organic Chemistry and some higher level science classes, you won’t struggle. That’s all I can tell you at this point! Sorry, I am very busy! Best of Luck & Go State!! lol</p>
<p>P.S. MSU has one of the largest Chinese international students in the nation, you won’t feel lonely.
P.S. (2) For your General Biology Class (the only class you might struggle freshman year due to language proficiency issue besides English 110), go to student bookstores and buy those typed-up transcribed lecture notes for slackers, you will thank me in the future! 881~ :)</p>
<p>@Sparkeye7</p>
<p>Thanks for your comment.
It really enlightens me.
Btw, do you mean that I can still seek for help to improve my English after I get into MSU?</p>
<p>@henry4565hk,</p>
<p>Yes, Writing Center is a great help and it’s free, excellent for proof-reading your papers. Also, be aware of the possibility of additional English writing test which is required by MSU once you arrive campus. And if you fail that test, you might still end-up taking those ESL / ELC Intense English College Prep Course(s) before you can actually begin your study.</p>
<p>Once again, know that those in class transcribed lecture notes for slackers usually are done by students hired by the bookstores with GPA no less than 3.5. Those notes will help you greatly before you master the note-taking or English skill. Plus, there will certainly be days when you simply miss classes due to whatever reason(s), and those notes will save your life (grades) when it comes exam time. They usually cost around $50 for the entire semester. (Ned’s bookstore used to sell them).</p>
<p>Last but not least, try to mix-up your Pre-med requirements courses by adding other ‘non-science’ classes such as ISS (Integrated Social Science) & IAH (Integrative Arts & Humanity) classes to lessen the load. After all, international students are required be full-time at all times, so you have to plan your schedule wisely. That’s all for now. :)</p>
<p>@Sparkeye7
Ok, I got it now.
Thank you very much
It helps me a lot.=]</p>
<p>Hi henry, 4 years ago I also applied to MSU and Northeastern. I ended up choosing MSU - it was a no-brainer because of the better student life and cheaper tuition (and better program in my major). The Northeastern co-op program is pretty cool and Boston is a fantastic city but not worth a bunch of extra money (especially since Northeastern is a 5 year program…yuck). </p>
<p>You can absolutely get help for your english at MSU when you first get here. There is mandatory orientation for all international students that will tell you about the various resources offered to international students. As Sparkeye said, there are TONS of international students at MSU so they are pretty well taken care of - lots of programs to help you with english and get you comfortable at MSU. You can easily get english tutors as well - it is even offered free in some places.</p>
<p>@fa-la-la-lena
thx for yr comment
I think I will probably choose MSU =]</p>
<p>See you guys at MSU XD
If you guys are still there~</p>