So, there is one guy I know in Korea and he wants to transfer to texas A&M.
The problem is that he wants to go as a Freshmen, and I told him that it would be impossible and dishonest to do so because he already is going to school in Korea. Then he tells me that a study abroad company had suggested him to hide his Korean college records and proceed to apply as a freshmen.
Of course I told him to be honest(what’s with the companies that encourage these uninformed students?), but I can’t do anything directly since I am in the US and the other is in Korea.
What should I tell him to encourage to apply as a transfer? He says he is going to apply Cadet Corps, and thinks that there is no way that the school will find out his Korean college credits. Is that true?
I’m not sure there’s anything you can say that will change his mind. It seems he’s being encouraged to mislead schools, and has no problem with it. In your place, I would tell him you think it’s a terrible idea. I would tell him he risks having an acceptance rescinded, and his reputation questioned by other schools should his ruse be discovered. I would refuse to give him any college tips or advice going forward. But short of alerting the schools he’s applying to, there’s not a whole lot you can do.
Even if you tell the school there is no way to prove it. The school can’t release his school records without his permission. There is nothing you can do but stay out of it.
Lying on an application is a really, really big deal in the US. It might come back to haunt him even 20 years into the future - all it takes is one vengeful friend from college blowing the whistle on him. While I understand the appeal, I wouldn’t risk it.
Please tell your friend that Texas A&M has a HUGE honor code system. They do not tolerate those who cheat or lie.
It is an even bigger deal in the Corps of Cadets.
Some schools may say they have an honor code, but trust me…at Texas A&M it is a BIG BIG BIG deal. Honor code violations are “one and done”…meaning you are immediately done with the school.
Well lets see if he is still going to lie on application. I can’t believe that the company is telling to deceive the school!
If he still wants to play a game, I will tell him go ahead. No one but he will be responsible for his future that will collapse with one snitch
@osnappu I can’t take some seriously when half of that persons’ posts are: pm me pm me pm me * 1000000.
Maybe you are reading bunch of other kids essays to see whose essays are the best to cheat on?
Yes, if he lies on his application he can be denied admission, be thrown out after admission, and even have his diploma rescinded after spending his parents hard-earned money and four years (or more) studying here.
The advantage to him of applying as a transfer is that some of his credits may actually transfer and allow him to finish college quicker and/or get into higher-level classes sooner. Maybe he’ll like that notion.
@happymomof1 I don’t know if there are similar things in US, but there are so, so many for-profit and predatory study abroad company that prey on un/misinformed foreign student families. Most of time they would use scare tactics so that the clients completely depend on the companies, and charge them ridiculous amount of money for so simple tasks, like filling some documents that you can fill out by yourself. They are horrible people! I am so happy that my parents did almost everything by themselves.
He also doesn’t know much English so I dn’t think he can take advantage of English websites. I will tell him anyway. He is a friend only because of our parnets and his parnets know each other -_-.
Update: He says his GPA in korean college is 2.5/4.5, which is…subpar. He wishes to to transfer as well but he’s afraid that he will not get in due to his low GPA and that he will get less scholarship from Corps Cadet?
Is there anyway he can get in as a freshmen by forfeiting his Korean school college?
First things first. Is your friend a US citizen? If not, has he found out if he can join (and stay in!) the cadets, and whether he’d be eligible for service scholarships? (I did a few minutes of online research and it looks like every cadet joins the army, navy or air force ROTC program? And while ROTC programs are non-committal at first, they do seem to require a service commitment and US citizenship in the junior and senior years of college?)
He seems like to apply as a transfer. Since he has double hurdle(International and transfer), he won’t get much scholarship, meaning it would be better to apply private schools as well.
He told me he has inherited about 166,500$ from her mother. His father is a doctor, but not willing to pay for his education(which is very unusual…for Koreans). By the way, doctors in Korea don’t make much money like American doctors do.
Do yall know decent, affordable public/private schools for this guy? He is looking forward to apply to VMI and TAMU
I teach in a university-based ESL program, and I have seen the results of some of this predatory agent behavior. Right now I have a Korean student who was promised by his agent that he would be able to be admitted by our university once he finishes his English classes. That student got a rejection letter last week. He was told to study for a year at a community college and get decent grades there before reapplying for admission. Our program coordinator thinks it is possible that the transcripts were not evaluated correctly and has asked the student to have his full transcripts be evaluated by WES.org. Depending on those results, the coordinator and the student will meet again with the international admissions office and the student will reapply, or the coordinator will counsel the student on the best choice of community college to attend.
Several of my Korean students have mentioned enlisting in the US military. I do not know if it is a real option for them. They seem to believe that that is possible, and that if they do that they will be able to 1) avoid their required military duty in Korea and/or 2) get a green card easily. I don’t know if either of those things are true. To be perfectly frank, the Korean students I’ve had who did complete their military service before coming to the US have been much better students. They are goal oriented, disciplined, and more emotionally mature - just like US students who complete military service before enrolling in college.
$166,500 / 5 = $33,300 each year for one year of English and four years of college. If any of his college credits would transfer, then things would go quicker. This is a workable budget if he is willing to look at some of the more affordable places. His grades probably won’t get him a scholarship anywhere. If his English is good enough, he might be able to skip the year of language study or finish up in less time.
Thanks for that link @paul2752 ! It looks like Koreans are eligible because of their language. That does give your friend an option once he would get here.
However, he has to get his English into good shape, and he has to actually get here. He would not need to study at any particular college or university, just one where he would be able to find a recruiter - and those are all over the place.
