July/Aug 2013 by SPAN magazine

JACQUELYN MARTIN © AP-WWP

State Department photo State Department photo

JACQUELYN MARTIN © AP-WWP

Above: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (right) with India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid in New Delhi in June. Below: Secretary Kerry participates in a meeting with Minister Khurshid before the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue. Below center: Secretary Kerry (right) with Neha Juneja, CEO of Greenway Grameen Infra, during the “U.S.-India: Green and Affordable Innovation” expo. Bottom: Secretary Kerry (center) and U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz (second from left) with Indian entrepreneurs developing products in the clean energy and technology sectors.

Top and above: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks on U.S.-India relations in New Delhi. Left: Nobel laureate and Director General of The Energy and Resources Institute R.K. Pachauri (left), U.S. Ambassador Nancy Powell and Secretary Kerry in New Delhi. Below left: Secretary Kerry at a dinner with Indian business leaders at Roosevelt House, the residence of the U.S. Ambassador, in New Delhi.

July/August 2013 For notification of new content, write to ezinespan@state.gov

http://span.state.gov

SANJAY SUCHAK/Montgomery College

V O LU M E L I V N U M B E R 4

28 29 32



Helpful Hints From Visa Officers



Educating Entrepreneurs By Howard Cincotta



Are You Gritty Enough for College? By Jane Varner Malhotra



Powerful Higher Education on a Local Level By Michael Gallant

7 8 10 11

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13 14

How EducationUSA Can Help You By Elizabeth Thornhill



Road Map for Study in the United States

Planning Ahead By Don Martin



Financing Graduate Education in the U.S.



What is a MOOC?



Schools of Their Own By Carrie Loewenthal Massey



Global Education By Steve Fox



Evaluations

JANE VARNER MALHOTRA

Community Colleges

A New Generation of Crime Fighters By Jeffrey Thomas

From Delhi to Kent By Maura Zurick



American Dorm Rooms By Sriharsha Masabathula

Bizarre America By Anne Walls

Let’s Go By Steve Fox

By Don Martin and Wesley Teter

Publisher Walter T. Douglas

Editor in Chief Adele E. Ruppe

Editor Deepanjali Kakati Associate Editor Richa Varma Hindi Editor Giriraj Agarwal Urdu Editor Syed Sulaiman Akhtar Copy Editor Shah Md. Tahsin Usmani Editorial Assistant Yugesh Mathur

Art Director Hemant Bhatnagar Deputy Art Directors Qasim Raza, Shah Faisal Khan Production/Circulation Manager Alok Kaushik Printing Assistant Manish Gandhi Web Manager Chetna Khera

Research Services Bureau of International Information Programs, The American Library

Published by the Public Affairs Section, American Center, 24 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001 (phone: 23472000), on behalf of the U.S. Embassy, New Delhi. Printed at Thomson Press India Limited, 18/35, Delhi Mathura Road, Faridabad, Haryana 121007. Opinions expressed in this 44-page magazine do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Government.  Articles with a star may be reprinted with permission. Those without a star are copyrighted and may not be reprinted. Contact SPAN at 011-23472135 or editorspan@state.gov

Travel

Courtesy SAIS

36 © Getty Images

Women’s Colleges

Courtesy Mills College

International Relations

American and international students excel at community colleges.

Powerful Higher Education

On a Local L Photographs by JEANNIE PENG-A ARMAO/San Jacinto College

By MICHAEL GALLANT

Above left: Abel Narajo (left) and Olimpia Reyes demonstrate techniques used by dental assistants at San Jacinto College in Texas. Left: San Jacinto Collegeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s non-destructive technology student Joel Norton (left) trains on finding cracks with ultrasound.

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Photographs by SANJAY SUCHAK/Montgomery College

Left: The humanities and social science building on the Germantown campus of Montgomery College in Maryland. Top left: The Rockville Science Center on the Rockville campus of Montgomery College. Top: Montgomery College President DeRionne Pollard (second from right) chats with students at the Rockville campus. Above center: A student works on a sculpture on the Rockville campus of Montgomery College. Above: Faculty members from three Indian institutions of higher education visited the automotive technology bay at Montgomery College to talk with students and observe the college faculty. JULY/AUGUST 2013

COMMUNITY COLLEGES

Level

marketable skills.

Right: Montgomery College student Kim Nguyen works with contamination-sensitive materials inside a controlled atmosphere glove box. Center right: Montgomery College freshman Julie Hance throws a pitch during a game against Anne Arundel Community College. Right: John Deamond, an instructional assistant in the art department of Montgomery College’s Takoma Park/Silver Spring campus, pours molten aluminum into a mold for a student project. Center right: Students in Mary Shapiro’s dance class at Montgomery College’s Tacoma Park/Silver Spring campus. Above far right: Students work in the open lab at San Jacinto College’s Central Campus Interactive Learning Center. Far right: The student center lobby at San Jacinto College’s Central Campus.

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Photographs by SANJAY SUCHAK/Montgomery College

“ ”

Community colleges let people develop new,

ommunity colleges are proud to provide access,” says Carolyn Terry, instructional dean of humanities at Montgomery College in Maryland. “At four-year universities, it becomes more prestigious to claim how few people you admit, but community colleges are open-enrollment institutions. Every student will find something that fits his or her abilities and interests.” Such a welcoming philosophy has helped over 1,600 community colleges provide educational opportunities for students across the United States. It is a trend that many in India are actively working to jumpstart in their own country as well. For several years, Montgomery College has worked with the U.S. Department of Education, the Indian Ministry of Human Resource Development and corporate partners to support India’s project to open 200 community colleges within the country, says Terry. “India has a well-defined and prestigious university system, but there’s still a tremendous

need for workforce education, for people to learn new skills and technology,” she continues. “The government of India is putting a huge amount of resources into developing a community college system that can provide education for millions of people. Ultimately, this system may grow to be as large as 10,000 community colleges.” For Terry and her colleagues, the partnership has manifested in exchanges between faculty and administrators. Montgomery College has welcomed delegations from India to its campuses, providing guidance on topics like curriculum design and support services for students. “We act as consultants to help India build the kinds of institutions that they need,” Terry says. Community colleges in the United States let students work toward a two-year associate’s degree, providing a core education that can be transferred into a four-year bachelor’s degree program—or simply stand on its own. Community colleges also offer technical and career-specific training. For example,

What is a community college? http://goo.gl/XRJ5P

Montgomery College http://cms.montgomerycollege.edu/ http://cms.montgomerycollege.edu/indiainitiative/

American Association of Community Colleges http://www.aacc.nche.edu/

7 Steps to Success at Community College http://goo.gl/CbV5V

When Did Community Colleges

ot many years ago, community colleges were widely thought of as subpar schools, places where people went when they had nowhere else to go. These days? It’s a completely different story. More than 45 percent of post-highschool students in the United States attend community colleges, says Montgomery College Instructional Dean Carolyn Terry, and the two-year institutions are now regarded as serious places to get a good education. Community colleges have even grabbed prominence in popular American media, playing central roles in novels, movies and NBC’s comedy show “Community” in recent years. Why the shift? “Higher education costs have increased so much for universities and student debt has topped a trillion dollars in the U.S.,” says Terry. “Community

colleges are affordable and the credits are transferable. Also, students don’t have to go away and live somewhere else in order to get a strong education.” A focus on workforce development has also been a major factor in the rejuvenation of community colleges’ collective cred. “People are realizing that you can’t simply train for a career that’s going to last you for 40 years,” says Terry. “You need a place where you can get your skills upgraded or brush up on your technical knowledge—and most working adults don’t want to go to a university for another four-year degree.” With higher enrollments come new opportunities for community colleges to innovate, invest and cooperate with other institutions. “Community colleges let people develop new, marketable skills,” Terry says. —M.G.

Photographs courtesy San Jacinto College

Become Cool?

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 5

Go Online

Montgomery College’s offerings include programs on automotive technology, information technology, radiology, graphic design technology and the rapidly expanding field of cybersecurity. David Pan, U.S. Army veteran and former Montgomery College student, originally enrolled in a four-year university, but did not find the opportunities he was seeking. “It was hard to get a good teacher sometimes, or even to be seated in the classes I needed to take, so it was also hard to choose my educational direction,” he says. “At Montgomery College, if you want to take a class, as long as you qualify, you can do it.” The atmosphere and diversity of Montgomery College also appealed to Pan, as they do to many students. According to Terry, 2013 saw the college welcoming over 200 students who travelled from India to study, as well as nearly 700 from Cameroon and hundreds more from other nations. “There was less pressure,” Pan says of the college’s inclusive culture, “but, at the same time, the college

ROB VANYA/San Jacinto College

San Jacinto College culinary arts instructor Sean Perrodin (left) and student Ricardo Medrano (right) observe as Macey Maples prepares vegetables during a regional SkillsUSA competition.

Terry recommends studying hard for standardized English language tests like TOEFL and IELTS. “The better you do on those exams, the more advanced you will be in your placement when you come here,” she says. “Also important is finding someone in the local community around your college where you can make a connection—family, a friend or an organization that can help you build a network to support you during your studies.” Though community colleges provide plenty of opportunities, such inclusion can sometimes come at a cost. “Since they’re so inclusive, community colleges find themselves trying to meet many needs at the same time, but with limited resources,” says Terry. “There are some hard questions being asked about if it’s possible to continue being ‘everything to everybody,’ or if limits have to be imposed.”

Published with permission from the Web site of the American Association of Community Colleges

was professional and took the task of education very seriously. It worked for me and I got a lot of knowledge out of it.” Pan plans to return to Montgomery College in the near future to learn new computer languages. For students coming to community colleges in the United States from India,

Struggles over resources aside, the core philosophy of community colleges continues to be hugely attractive to students, regardless of whether they live in nearby neighborhoods or oceans away. “Access is something that defines the community college experience,” Terry affirms. “If you come here, you will find something for you.” Michael Gallant is the founder and chief executive officer of Gallant Music. He lives in New York City.

U.S.-India Higher Education Dialogue: What’s It All About?

6 JULY/AUGUST 2013

at the 2012 U.S.-India Higher Education Dialogue in Washington, D.C., former Secretary of State Clinton emphasized the importance of widespread, affordable job training. At the 2013 higher education summit in New Delhi in June, Secretary of State John Kerry described three areas of focus for U.S.-India cooperation on higher education. “First, we’re going to look at the importance of community colleges to meeting the demand for higher education,” he State Department photo

ommunity colleges may seem like an unusual focal point for collaborations across borders but, if the U.S.India Higher Education Dialogues of the last couple of years are any indication, accessible education is an important international topic indeed. The first summit was held in October 2011 at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Kapil Sibal, then India’s Union Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD), and former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were present to begin discussions on topics like investment in developing new educational opportunities for both nations, avoiding education-related scams, nurturing international research partnerships, and creating other collaborations between faculty and students. In a speech

said. The Secretary called the launching of a new effort by the American Association of Community Colleges and the AllIndia Council for Technical Education to ramp up community college education in India “an extraordinarily important initiative.” Increasing people-to-people exchanges is the second area for intensifying partnerships between the United States and India, he said. “Finally, we need to make sure that Indian students have access to the sort of high-

tech training that is critical for success in a knowledge-based economy,” Secretary Kerry said. In the presence of India’s HRD Minister M.M. Pallam Raju, he also announced the second round of awards under the Obama-Singh 21st Century Knowledge Initiative, which will bring together top U.S. and Indian researchers to collaborate on scientific discovery and innovation. For more on the dialogue, go to http://goo.gl/srQ48. —M.G.

How

EducationUSA Can Help You

he United States has over 4,500 accredited colleges and universities and hosts more international students (over 765,000) than any other country in the world. Over 100,000 of these are Indian students. This educational exchange provides a strong foundation for the partnership between our two countries and brings a wealth of talent and diversity to U.S. campuses where students share in creating the new ideas and knowledge that will help shape the 21st century. The U.S. government, along with the higher education community, is strongly committed to maintaining American campuses as gathering places for intellectual exchange and innovation. To encourage international students to consider studying in the United States, the State Department supports the EducationUSA network of over 400 advising centers in more than 170 countries. In India, EducationUSA advising centers, providing free or low cost services, are located in seven cities. The United StatesIndia Educational Foundation (USIEF) hosts advising centers in its offices in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, and will soon open a fifth center in Hyderabad. Look for EducationUSA@USIEF. EducationUSA advising is also available at Yashna Trust in Bangalore and at Indo-American Education Society in Ahmedabad. Advisers conduct regular sessions for students and parents to explain the applica-

By ELIZABETH THORNHILL

tion process and how to put together a strong application for an accredited U.S. institution. The information provided by them is accurate, comprehensive and current. It helps students explore the full range of institutions—two-year community colleges, small liberal arts colleges, large state research universities, and other types—to find the one that best fits their needs. The key to a successful application is making time to research, being organized and collecting necessary documents. EducationUSA advisers can guide students through the process, but students may also work independently using “Your 5 Steps to U.S. Study,” the international student section of the EducationUSA Web site at http://www.educationusa.state.gov/. This site has resources, checklists and guidelines on the requirements for degree programs and other study options. An important goal for EducationUSA centers is to reach students wherever they live. In addition to “Your 5 Steps to U.S. Study” on our Web site, EducationUSA centers in India maintain Facebook pages that have over 50,000 fans. The centers regularly conduct webinars that feature representatives from U.S. institutions who help students understand the application process, financial aid possibilities and give a glimpse into student life on an American campus. Students may also use the toll-free help desk (1-800-103-1231, Monday through Friday, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.) to speak to an adviser directly. Another way EducationUSA helps students is by maintaining strong connections with U.S. colleges and universities. When admissions officers and recruiters from U.S. https://www.facebook.com/EducationUSA institutions visit India, https://twitter.com/edusaupdates EducationUSA works with them to maximize their interactions with http://www.educationusa.info/mobileapp/ Indian students. EducationUSA http://www.youtube.com/EducationUSATV

Go Online

EducationUSA

https://plus.google.com/+educationusa/posts

Photographs by ALTAF QADRI © AP-WWP

Students talk with representatives of Northwest University (top) and University of Colorado (above) during the 2012 USIEF-IIEEducationUSA fair in New Delhi.

centers also organize annual education fairs. Check the Web site (http://goo.gl/mB4mf) for information on the upcoming USIEF-IIEEducationUSA fair in September 2013 in New Delhi (9/7), Kolkata (9/8), Chennai (9/10), Hyderabad (9/14) and Mumbai (9/15). Students will have the opportunity to meet representatives from almost 50 U.S. institutions. An important service that no accepted student should miss are the free predeparture orientations offered by all EducationUSA centers. These provide important advice on academic and cultural aspects of living and studying in the United States. Elizabeth Thornhill is chief of the State Department’s EducationUSA Advising Branch.

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 7

Road Map Are you thinking about studying in the United States? Imagine the possibilities—the United States has many types of institutions, academic and social environments, degree programs and exciting subjects in which you can specialize. Here’s how to get started:

START PLANNING WELL IN ADVANCE • It can take 12 to 18 months to prepare a successful application. • Application deadlines vary from institution to institution—many are between early October and early January.

THINK BEFORE YOU SEARCH • Why do you want to study in the United States? • Why do you want to do this now? • What type of degree do you want to pursue?

BEGIN YOUR SEARCH

PREPARE FOR STANDARDIZED TES TS • Depending on your level and field of study, you will need to take standardized adm issions tests. • Remember that test scores are only one part of your application. • Undergraduate applicants will nee d to take an English-language test like TOEFL iBT, IELTS, etc. and potentially exams like SAT or ACT. • Most graduate school admissions committees will require the GRE or GMAT as wel l as an English-language test.

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grams, • Begin researching pro d an funding opportunities ts such en em uir req n tio ca appli ts. tes as standardized • Use Web sites like EducationUSA.info, CollegeBoard.org or GradSchools.com. with at • Create a spreadsheet of ms gra pro 20 to least 10 interest in the left hand criteria column, and all of your . top across the the list, or • Don’t narrow down s takes do a rank order yet—thi . rch ea res time and more

for

Study in the United States

Part of the Education Series with Don Martin and Wesley Teter

PREPARE FOR THE ESSAYS . • Write out each essay question on a separate sheet use can ou er—y answ your of e Then do an outlin bullet points for this. Show your knowledge of the program by explaining why you are a good fit. Reflect on personal questions such as: what experiences led you to consider studying in the United States? • Make sure your talking points for each essay are wholly in line with what is asked.

DECIDE WHERE YOU ARE GOING TO APPLY • Ask the admissions staff if they can put you in touch with current students. • Start narrowing down your list of options, selecting four to six institutions that match your academic and professional interests. Begin reviewing the instructions for each application. • Request official transcripts. Remember: EducationUSA at the United States-India Educational Foundation (USIEF) offers attestation and educational advising services. • Speak with your current professors or professional contacts about writing letters of recommendation. • Take the necessary standardized tests and send official score reports to each institution.

FINE-TUNE YOUR APPLICATIONS • Thoroughly recheck your essays. • Prepare to pay your application fees. • Review your online application and be sure you have fully and accurately answered all questions.

Good luck as you prepare to study in the United States! During the coming year, SPAN magazine will offer a series of articles with detailed advice on how to prepare your best application(s). To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 9

It is the most critical part of the graduate school application pr ocess.

Planning head A By DON MARTIN

Photographs © Getty Images

s dean of admissions at several American universities, I read thousands of applications over an 18year period. As time went by, it became clear to me which applications had been prepared with thought and care, and which had been thrown together at the last minute. Those in the latter group were far less competitive due to the following reasons: 1. Essays were filled with typos and grammatical errors. 2. Essay questions were not fully answered. 3. The essay was for another institution. 4. Application fees were not submitted. 5. Directions were not followed—there were five recommendation letters instead of the two required. 6. A résumé was not included. 7. Entire sections of the online application were left blank.

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As dean of students at Columbia and University of Chicago, I held open office hours with students. In many instances, those who came to see me were upset about certain aspects of their student experience, and felt they had been misled about what to expect once they arrived on campus. When questioning them about how they decided to enroll, a typical answer was, “You’re the Ivy League,” or, “You’re ranked in the top five,” or, “In India, you are considered to be a very prestigious institution.” I wanted to say, “And?...You visited our campus, either in person or virtually? You contacted current students and alumni, asking them about their student experience? You thoroughly checked out our curriculum and faculty?” In many cases, they had not done any of these. Graduate school is not something to take lightly.

Financing Graduate Education By DON MARTIN and WESLEY TETER

unding for graduate study in the United States is offered in a variety of forms, including research and teaching assistantships. Roughly 40 percent of international graduate students in the United States rely on these and other forms of financial support from U.S. universities and colleges. Most graduate students rely on personal and family funds and other sources to supplement financial aid offered by the university. Keep in mind that students in the STEM fields—science, technology, engi-

 Contact faculty in the United States who will be interested in supporting your research. Prepare thoughtful questions in advance—don’t ask questions that are answered on the university or college Web site.  Take time to prepare and score well on standardized tests such as GRE/GMAT and TOEFL iBT or IELTS.  Prepare outstanding essays and a statement of purpose. Outline your ideas and make sure your talking points for each essay

neering and mathematics—are especially competitive for financial aid.

address what is asked in the question.  Focus on strengthening relationships with your recommenders—you will need outstanding letters of recommendation.  Submit professional and polished applications on time.

How can you compete for financial aid?

The key to being admitted with funding is to distinguish yourself from the competition by carefully selecting schools and enhancing your application. Here are some things that you can do to strengthen your application:  Research thoroughly. Use EducationUSA’s services and comprehensive Web sites like GradSchools.com to find the best overall fit and graduate program.

Don Martin is a former admissions dean at Columbia, University of Chicago and Northwestern; and author of "Road Map for Graduate Study." Wesley Teter is a former regional director for EducationUSA in New Delhi. He is also the editor of the multimedia outreach campaign, 10 Steps to Study in the United States.

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 11

EDUCATION

in the U.S.

Standardized Test Scores

Not the Deciding Factor M

any students in India put undue pressure on themselves when it comes to standardized tests. If you are considering studying in the United States as an undergraduate or graduate student, consider these tips to help you get started:  Don’t obsess about getting high scores—the added stress will not help you perform at your best.  Test scores are only one part of your application.  Give yourself time to practice. It can take one year or more to prepare an effective application.  Many students are admitted to outstanding schools with average or even below average standard-

12 JULY/AUGUST 2013

ized test scores. The reverse is also true—many students with excellent scores are denied for acting arrogantly or not demonstrating how they can contribute to a given university or college.  Focus on fit, not rankings and test scores. You are more likely to be admitted and enjoy your educational experience if you research your options and find a program that meets your needs and expectations. Remember: life has many paths to success and happiness. To learn more about the standardized tests you may be required to take, visit www.EducationUSA.info.

Go Online https://www.edx.org https://www.coursera.org https://www.udacity.com

It involves a major investment intellectually, socially, emotionally and financially. It is wise to take about a year to do your research and prepare your applications. If you are considering starting your program of study in the fall, you will want to start your search two years ahead of time. Why two years, you may ask? Typically, graduate schools start accepting applications just under a year before the intended start date. In order for you to have time to thoroughly evaluate all of the information you will receive and read, you will need at least a year before applying to gather that information and review it. You should have your application materials completed at least a week to 10 days before the deadline, so you have time for review, making sure everything is in order, meets application requirements, and is the way you want it. By taking time to do your research, and also to prepare the best application possible, you are ensuring that the admissions committee will be able to focus on what you have provided, not the mistakes you made, and that once enrolled, you will be confident that you made the best choice for your graduate education. Don Martin is a former admissions dean at Columbia, University of Chicago and Northwestern; and author of “Road Map for Graduate Study.”

What is a MOOC?

Will Badges Replace Degrees?

offer a glimpse of education’s future. But there are questions yet to be answered: Who will grade 100,000 papers? Can coursework completed through a MOOC earn the same credit as coursework undertaken on a campus?

Photographs © Getty Images

Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, take education out of the classroom and make classes from top-rrated universities available to anyone who can connect to the Internet—for free. MOOCs are in their infancy, but their potential is huge. To some, MOOCs

MOOCs by Numbers

$895,000

66%

Amount the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation gave to the American Council on Education to test the viability of MOOCs for college-transfer credit.

Coursera students who are from outside the United States.

190 160,000

participants in

Stanford University’s free online artificialintelligence course in 2011.

Former Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, a Harvard dropout, thinks MOOCs could help employers measure what you know, instead of where you went to school. World Economic Forum/Courtesy Wikipedia

Number of countries represented in the

Traditionally, employers have looked to university degrees to measure job candidates’ qualifications. MOOCs could change that. The American Council on Education will review certain free online courses offered by elite universities and might recommend that other colleges give credit for them. Some providers of MOOCs are bringing in revenue by selling information to employers about high-performing students who might be a good fit for jobs. Coursera, one of the largest providers of MOOCs, has contracted to license courses to Antioch University in Seattle, Washington, which would offer versions of the MOOCs for credit as part of a bachelor’s degree program.

“The ideal would be to separate out the idea of proving your knowledge from the way you acquired that knowledge.” —Bill Gates

Text courtesy eJournal USA

Courtesy Mills College

Schools

Above: Mills College in California is home to NCAA Division III teams in cross country, rowing, soccer, swimming, tennis and volleyball.

14 JULY/AUGUST 2013

Photographs courtesy Chatham University

Their Own By CARRIE LOEWENTHAL MASSEY

Young women

WOMEN’S COLLEGES

thrive at women’s colleges across the United States.

Top left: Mellon Center at Chatham University in Pennsylvania. Top right: Performance by the Chatham University choir. To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 15

Why Choose a Women’s College? http://goo.gl/w7yIy http://goo.gl/xLfX6

The Women’s College Coalition http://womenscolleges.org

Mills College

http://www.mills.edu/

Chatham University

Go Online

https://www.chatham.edu/

10 groundbreaking American women’s colleges http://goo.gl/c0SFK

Women’s College Alumnae— Notable Firsts

Courtesy Mills College

http://womenscolleges.org/alumnae/notables

16 JULY/AUGUST 2013

Located on 135 acres in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, Mills College provides a progressive, rigorous liberal arts education for undergraduate women.

Courtesy Mills College Courtesy Chatham University

or women looking to study in the United States, there is a less-considered option that can open a world of opportunities: attending a women’s college. The U.S. Women’s College Coalition boasts 47 names on its roster of schools that span the country and offer unique educational experiences for female students. The schools’ populations are generally on the smaller side, many with fewer than 500 students and few with more than 2,000. The schools frequently have exclusively female undergraduate populations but may open their graduate studies programs to men. It is the single-sex undergraduate environment that makes the difference for the attendees, however. According to a recent Forbes article titled “What’s in a Women’s College?” females are driven to tackle traditionally maledominated areas in academics and clubs when they attend a women’s college. “Choosing to attend a women’s school is the opposite of ‘comfortable’ because it challenges students to step outside of gender norms and engage in new leadership roles,” says the article. Top: At Mills, students learn to find their voices in an environment that recognizes multicultural values and women’s perspectives.

Above right: A window painting competition on “International Sisterhood” by students of Chatham University. The contest is part of Chatham’s Battle of

the Classes, a weeklong competition between all class years.

JULY/AUGUST 2013

“ ”

There’s a huge amount of support for not just being a woman but being a person in society and a lot of push and drive from

professors to be successful

Courtesy Chatham University

Aisha Gonzalez, a 2013 graduate of Mills College in Oakland, California, found invaluable the small class sizes and the alumnae involvement. “There’s a huge amount of support for not just being a woman but being a person in society and a lot of push and drive from professors to be successful as women in the bigger picture,” Gonzalez says. Indeed, Mills prides itself on being a place where women can be who they are—or discover who they are—while knowing they are in a place that values the testing of creative and intellectual limits, says Joan Jaffe, associate dean of admissions at the college. Mills accepts 60 to 65 percent of its international applicants, Jaffe says. International students have many merit scholarship opportunities, awarded based on academic performance and scores on certain standardized tests. Attendees can choose from the most popular majors, which include English, psychology, biology and studio art, or they can work with faculty advisers to create an individualized course of study. Mills also offers six five-year programs that provide accelerated tracks to earning both bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Options include degrees in business administration, education and public policy. The consolidated five-year plan gives “significant financial savings for students with clear career goals,” Jaffe says. Chatham University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania also brings women opportunities to fast-track their advanced degrees. Combined bachelor’s and master’s courses are available in business, health sciences, sustainability and the environment,

Courtesy Mills College

as women in the bigger picture.

Top: Mills College offers a 10:1 student-to-faculty ratio.

18 JULY/AUGUST 2013

Above: A soccer game at Chatham University.

advantage of the range of courses and recreational activities offered at the college, which include horseback riding, yoga and swimming.

Courtesy Mills College

Courtesy Chatham University

Left: Laughlin residence hall at Chatham University. Below: A student room at Mills College. Bottom: Mills students can take

and creative and liberal arts, according to Study Abroad Coordinator Karin Chipman. Chatham partners with nearby Carnegie Mellon University and Duquesne University to offer other accelerated graduation programs in arts management, information systems management, healthcare policy and management, public policy and management, biotechnology, computational mathematics, and forensic science and law. Access to this array of study options at Chatham comes with many scholarship opportunities for international students. “Chatham offers renewable merit scholarships of $7,000 to $16,000 per year, [which] are available for international undergraduate students,” Chipman says. Students “can also apply for renew-

able World Ready Women Leadership Scholarships of up to $3,000 per year,” she says. Chatham accepts about 28 percent of its international applicants. Like Mills, which integrates its women into the vibrant fabric of the San Francisco Bay Area, Chatham exposes its students to the “four distinct seasons, amazing architecture, and…wealth of culture, sports and social entertainment,” inherent to the Pittsburgh scene, says Chipman. It is “the perfect mix of a quiet, beautiful, safe campus within one of the most livable cities in the U.S.,” she says. Back on campus, she adds, “international undergraduate students…receive personal attention from the admissions process and orientation through graduation.

Faculty and staff know students by name and will stop to make conversation.” Gonzalez enjoyed the same eagerness for ongoing discussion outside the walls of the classroom from the very first time she visited Mills College. This energy, coupled with the support she felt from the college, framed her positive experience there. She sees Mills as a place where any young woman can flourish. “There’s so much support for not just learning but for developing all aspects of your identity. Even if you are someone who is not completely sure of your direction, you are going to find yourself here in one way or another,” she says. Carrie Loewenthal Massey is a New York City-based freelance writer. JULY/AUGUST 2013

KAVEH SARDARI

Global Education By STEVE FOX

International relations programs at American universities attract students with “realistic idealism.”

20 JULY/AUGUST 2013

idealism,” says Felisa Neuringer Klubes, director of communications and marketing at SAIS. “They want to have an impact on the world and they understand the interconnectivity of the world. They would like to have some kind of footprint beyond making money.” Graduate programs in international relations provide students with “a more comprehensive picture of how the public, private and nonprofit sectors can work together to create and impact policy,” says Leigh Sloane, executive director of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs (APSIA), whose 60 member schools and affiliated programs include top global international relations programs. Courtesy Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies

everal years after founding Chintan, a New Delhi-based nonprofit organization honored by the U.S. Department of State for its work on behalf of the city’s waste pickers, Bharati Chaturvedi decided she needed to broaden her vision of what the social action group might accomplish. “I didn’t want the poor and marginal, or Chintan, to be held back because they were advised and led by someone whose mind was stuck,” she recalls. Chaturvedi applied, and was accepted, to the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C. The experience was life-changing, giving Chaturvedi a new perspective she believes has helped all aspects of her work. “The world has always been interconnected, but it’s a new ‘global’ now on account of crises like climate change, which require an international perspective beyond national boundaries, and beyond a ‘them and us’ way of thinking,” Chaturvedi says. SAIS and other international relations programs attract students with “a realistic

Courtesy Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Above left: Students of Johns Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C. Right: Robertson Hall at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Below: Students and faculty members of the School of Advanced International Studies during a study trip to Agra.

JULY/AUGUST 2013

Courtesy Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs

“ ”

These programs really develop critical thinking through a pluralistic approach to education.

22 JULY/AUGUST 2013

just in terms of [covering] their tuition, but also in terms of the time they get with faculty, the small classes, the programs. All of that investment gives them the motivation to go into public service, and they can do that because they’re not leaving here with a mountain of debt.” While some international relations graduates go into the private sector, most are focused on helping solve the world’s problems, says Sloane, who notes that younger students were galvanized by the 9/11 terrorist attacks. “For them, 9/11 was a real awakening in terms of the dangers that are out there,” she says. “They saw that there are people intent on destroying another way of life, and that a small

Above: Students at Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Below: A student (left) of the School of Advanced International Studies at Marine Corps Air Station in Yuma, Arizona. Twenty five students attended the three-day trip to the weapons and tactics instructor course at the station to condition their strategic perspective with Marine Corps knowledge and experience.

(Continued on page 24.)

CPL. SAMUEL A. NASSO

“These programs really develop critical thinking through a pluralistic approach to education,” Sloane says. “There’s a multidisciplinary aspect to the degrees because they encompass economics, political history, culture, policy analysis. Students develop skills in a broad set of areas.” In the fall of 2012, 19,107 students applied to APSIA’s 21 full-member schools in the United States and two overseas schools. Of those, 9,444 were admitted and 3,349 actually enrolled. Slightly over half (55 percent) were women and about 25 percent came from outside the United States. These students had outstanding academic records and usually had worked or lived abroad. They faced annual tuition and fees ranging from $20,000 to about $70,000, although some programs, notably Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, defray some or all of students’ expenses. “Ours is almost like a venture capital model,” says Elisabeth Donahue, assistant dean of public and external affairs at Woodrow Wilson School. “Students come and we invest heavily in them, not

KAVEH SARDARI CALLAWAY PHOTO

Top: Walter Andersen (right) speaks during a class at the School of Advanced International Studies. Above: The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts. Below: The Fletcher School’s Hall of Flags. Below right: The Edwin Ginn Library of The Fletcher School is one of the largest specialized libraries in the field of international affairs.

s the much-discussed “pivot to Asia” by the United States accelerates, India—and universities offering South Asian studies— will play an important role, says a veteran U.S. diplomat-turned-professor. “For a combination of reasons, mainly economic but also including security issues, India is surely going to be an important factor in that pivot,” says Walter Andersen, who retired as chief of the U.S. State Department’s South Asia Division in the Office of Analysis for the Near East and South Asia, and now teaches at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, D.C. “In terms of international relations programs, India is growing in importance,” he adds.

SAIS is one of a number of top-flight U.S. universities emphasizing South Asian studies. Others include The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts, the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University in New York City and the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington in Seattle. Indian themes have drawn students throughout the years, says Christian Lee Novetzke, associate professor in the Jackson School’s South Asia Program, who sees that interest enduring. “In the ’60s and ’70s, the study of Hinduism and religion was huge; then in the ’80s to ’90s post-colonialism took off; then came film studies,” Novetzke says. “Most recently, perhaps after 9/11 as well as India’s financial upswing after liberalization in the ’90s, we find more people interested in economics, strategic studies and so on. But many students have an interest in India because of its vast and rich history that is also a continuous one for at least 3,000 years. And there is this contemporary calling too—India as emerging economic power, as nuclear and strategic power, as a leader in the IT industry, etc. This has a strong attraction for many.” —S.F.

CALLAWAY PHOTO

South Asian Studies Becoming More Popular

Courtesy Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs

Below: The fountain in front of the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University. Bottom left: A discussion during a class on management challenges in emerging markets at the School of Advanced International Studies. Bottom right: A class in progress at Woodrow Wilson School.

“ ”

There’s a multidisciplinary aspect to the degrees because they encompass economics, political history, culture, policy analysis. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia http://casi.ssc.upenn.edu/

Cornell University, New York http://sap.einaudi.cornell.edu/

University of Wisconsin-Madison http://www.southasia.wisc.edu/

Indiana University, Bloomington http://www.indiana.edu/~isp/

Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut http://www.yale.edu/seas/

Michigan State University, East Lansing http://asianstudies.msu.edu/

The University of Texas at Austin http://www.utexas.edu/cola/insts/southasia/

Syracuse University, New York http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/moynihan/ programs/sac/

Harvard University, Massachusetts http://southasiainitiative.harvard.edu/

Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California. KAVEH SARDARI

group of them could have an enormous impact. It raised understanding of the importance of international relations and conflict resolution. There was a new group of people who felt a new urgency about this, and had a new opportunity for careers in these areas.” Students from India currently account for only a small portion of those entering international relations programs. “Many Indian [graduate] students gravitate toward information technology and the sciences, less so to international relations,” says Sidney Jackson, director of admissions at SAIS. “But we want more students from India because they bring such a great perspective.”

University of California, Berkeley http://www.ias.berkeley.edu/southasia/

University of Virginia, Charlottesville http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/soasia/ index.html

University of Chicago, Illinois http://southasia.uchicago.edu/

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey http://southasia.rutgers.edu/

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor http://www.umich-cseas.org/

Kansas State University http://www.k-state.edu/oip/south-asia/

Courtesy Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs

Many ManyAmerican Americanuniversities universities offer offer courses courses inin South SouthAsian AsianStudies. Studies.Here Here are are aa few: few:

Photographs by CCJS staff

Right: A demonstration during instructor Laure Brooks’ class in the University of Maryland’s Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Brooks (far right) teaches courses on policing and research methods. Below: Graduate students Simon Lou (left) and Teddy Wilson explain assistant professor David Maimon’s cybercrime research during Maryland Day at the university in April. Below right: Crime lab dollhouses on display during Maryland Day.

A New Generation of

Crime

Fighters

University of Maryland excels at teaching criminology research. By JEFFREY THOMAS

“ ”

The global interest of people in issues of justice is another reason these programs are becoming more and more popular. “That’s really what our faculty do and are very good at doing. We bring in a lot of grant money and students get the opportunity to work on projects that are in areas of great interest.” One example is the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), says Simpson. Directed by Gary LaFree, a professor of criminology and criminal justice, it is one of 12 U.S. Department of Homeland Security centers of excellence throughout the United States. According to the START Web site, the yearlong graduate certificate program provides participants advanced education on the causes, dynamics and impacts of international and domestic terrorism. The program is tasked with developing a better understanding of the terrorist radicalization process and the evolution of terrorist groups, and with strengthening the resilience of U.S. citizens in the face of terrorist threats. “That’s a good example of how our faculty provides opportunities for students to do research in cutting-edge areas,” Simpson says. She also cites a program in life-course criminology, which seeks to understand delinquency and crime over the entire span of CCJS staff

CHRIS GARDNER © AP-W WWP

he University of Maryland offers a program in one of the fastest-growing fields of study and employment: criminology and criminal justice. Since its creation in 1969 as a distinct entity, the university’s Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice has become a leader in criminal justice education and in research on topics like crime and delinquency, law enforcement, juvenile justice, criminology, courts and corrections and terrorism. The Maryland program was one of the first out of 28 criminology and criminal justice doctoral programs in the United States. Outstanding faculty is the biggest reason for the program’s success, says Sally Simpson, professor and former chairwoman of the department. Faculty members’ research “is high-quality, it’s cutting edge, it’s salient, and that translates into a terrific doctoral program,” says Simpson. “They publish with their graduate students, they train the graduate students, who then go out and continue the tradition.” The department currently has 58 masters and doctoral candidates, 7 percent of whom are international students. “Doctoral programs mainly are interested in training students in research,” Simpson says.

Above left: Gary LaFree heads the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) at the University of Maryland. Left: Incoming graduate students of the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice.

26 JULY/AUGUST 2013

National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism http://www.start.umd.edu/start/ Top: Crime lab instructor Tom Mauriello demonstrates how to lift fingerprints. Above center: Mauriello demonstrates a polygraph test in the crime lab. Above: CCJS graduate class with associate professor Laura Dugan (right).

people’s lives—another “critical area of research” in which the department excels, Simpson says. Weiwei Liu, a doctoral candidate from China during the 2008-9 academic year, says her most valuable learning experiences were working as a research assistant at the department and at University of Maryland’s Center for Substance Abuse Research. The center examines the problems drug and alcohol abuse create for individuals, families and communities. “For me, learning how to conduct research is like an apprenticeship,” she says. The experience prepared her to work as an independent researcher. Liu says the size of UMD’s program gives students flexibility. “No matter what you are interested in, it is almost guaranteed that you can find a faculty member who is also interested in it.” The program is “very interdisciplinary, which I think is attractive to students,” Simpson says. In addition to faculty with backgrounds in criminology and criminal

justice, the department has psychologists, economists and sociologists. Liu also cites the location of the University of Maryland at College Park in the Washington area as providing students with “unique resources” and “great opportunities to gain research experiences.” “As our programs become more visible and people internationally are interested in the kind of training that we can offer—especially in quantitative analysis…a lot of people come here to get the training that they need to go back and do some evidence-based kinds of research in their own countries focused around their criminal justice systems, how they operate, how the programs work or don’t work,” Simpson says. “The global interest of people in issues of justice is another reason these programs are becoming more and more popular.” Jeffrey Thomas is a staff writer with the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Information Programs.

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 27

CRIMINOLOGY

Photographs by CCJS staff

http://www.ccjs.umd.edu/

Go Online

University of Maryland’s Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Helpful Hints Visa Officers

From

e know students can be nervous about their interview with a visa officer. We understand why. You have thought long and hard about spending years of your life studying in the United States and you want everything to go well. Visa officers also want your interview to go well. Here are some helpful hints from our visa officers in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and New Delhi to help you along.

applied to in advance is not always an option so they have invested in developing campus experiences through virtual tours, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube videos. Many of these spaces have the latest updates on student orientation, campus, housing, transportation, labs and equipment among other practical topics. Check them out on institutions’ Web sites.

Verbal communication is key

EducationUSA advisers in major cities are available to talk with you about all aspects of the education process—from choosing a college to preparing for your visa interview. They are a really good resource! Check out www.educationusa.info/India and www.usief.org.in. The toll-free help desk of the USIEF (1-800-103-1231) is available Monday through Friday, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Most visa officers don’t ask for documents in the interview. So, do not rely on papers to tell your story. Instead, we want to have a conversation that helps us understand if you are a credible student who can afford the program. Try discussing out loud what your financial situation is and why you chose the university or college you plan to attend. There are no wrong answers. Just get comfortable talking about your decision to study in America.

Know your school

e n i l On S. Visa /in

Gopply for raavUel.docs.com A

ust

:// http

The first person you speak to about studying in the United States should not be a visa officer. Students who have had verbal communication with university or college admissions and financial aid offices are more comfortable talking about their choice of school and what they hope to do once they graduate.

Get advance information about the institution

U.S. institutions realize that visiting colleges or universities you have

28 JULY/AUGUST 2013

Talk to an education adviser

No need to use a visa agent or coach Genuine students study hard and gain admission to a U.S. university or college based on their hard work—not because an agent or coach helped them. If you are smart enough to get admission, you are smart enough to fill out your own visa application and explain to a visa officer why going to America is the right choice for you. Agents cannot guarantee you a visa. In our process, we believe that genuine students do not need their services. Text courtesy the Consular Section, U.S. Embassy, New Delhi.

Educating Entrepreneurs

MARK ALMOND © APWWP/The Birmingham News

Above: Entrepreneurs Ashton Clark (top) and his twin brother, Ryan, launched a number of online businesses, beginning at age 13. They are business and accountancy graduates from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Right: Dan Daly (second from left), director of the Alabama Innovation and Mentoring of Entrepreneurs Center, speaks with business and law students at the University of Alabama. The program teams law, business, engineering and science students with researchers to verify their inventions are patentable and marketable.

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 29

ENTREPRENEURS

here are a few tech companies that have an almost mythical creation story: college dropouts working out of their garage to turn an idea into the next big thing. Yes, it has happened—we have examples ranging from Apple to Facebook. But the truth of the matter is that turning a good idea into a successful business requires a discrete set of skills and knowledge—and the best place to learn them is often in schools that focus on the elusive concept of entrepreneurship.

HEATHER COIT © AP-WWP/The News-Gazette

By HOWARD CINCOTTA

Courtesy University of California, Berkeley

A growth industry

The number of American schools offering programs in entrepreneurship has exploded in the last decade. The Kaufman Foundation, based in Kansas City, Missouri, finds that 2,000 U.S. colleges and universities offer courses in entrepreneurship—about two-thirds of all schools in the country. Internationally, the 2012 Global Entrepreneurial Monitor Report estimates a worldwide count of nearly 400 million entrepreneurs in 54 countries.

Contemporary entrepreneurship education has not only grown, but spread beyond its familiar business school boundaries, so that the entrepreneurial approach of taking on initiatives and risk can now be found in many liberal arts and science curricula, not to mention professional training in engineering, medicine and law.

Courtesy Blank Center/Babson College

Entrepreneurial Competitions

striking feature of U.S. entrepreneurial education is the number and variety of contests sponsored by colleges and universities. At Babson College in Massachusetts, for example, students participate in an annual “Rocket Pitch”: three minutes, three PowerPoint slides—no questions. The school’s Entrepreneurial Thought And Action B.E.T.A. Challenge involves more elaborate presentations with a $20,000 prize each at finals. How many of the entries into these college contests translate into viable businesses is unclear, but they do offer a snapshot of how entrepreneurship education is sparking innova-

JEFF MOREHEAD © AP-WWP/Chronicle-Tribune

Courtesy University of California, Berkeley

Left: A participant at Babson College’s “Rocket Pitch.” Below left: University of California, Berkeley Bplan winners. Below: Santiago Jaramillo, winner of the Taylor University Business Plan Competition 2012, delivers his presentation on online consumer behavior.

30 JULY/AUGUST 2013

At the same time, the core entrepreneurship curriculum has remained fundamentally the same, focused on the basic building blocks of how to start and run a business, how to prepare a business plan and how to grow your business, says Candida Brush, chair of the entrepreneurship division at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts.

tion in a remarkably diverse range of fields. The first product by Nutraceutical Market Solutions, winner of the Stern School’s $50,000 Social Venture Competition, is a pill that is superior to conventional iron supplements for treating endemic iron deficiency in pregnant Indian women. At the University of Texas at San Antonio’s Student Technology Venture Competition, the $100,000 prize went to Leto Solutions, comprising eight students who developed a prototype that uses a thermoelectric cooling system for prosthetic limbs, thereby reducing the likelihood of skin infection and painful blisters. But Leto didn’t win the competition simply with its technology. It had a well-honed business plan for how the company would translate its innovation into a profitable business. At the University of California, Berkeley, entrants in the Lester Center for Entrepreneurship’s Bplan competition had opportunities to be mentored by entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley and practice their presentations in front of audiences of venture capitalists. Among the latest winners: Seismos Technologies, which has developed a low-cost technique to increase output from an oilfield by pumping carbon dioxide into an underground reservoir, extracting and separating the oil and carbon dioxide, and then recycling the CO2 back into the well. —H.C.

Photographs courtesy Babson College

Far left: Audiences at the University of California, Berkeley Bplan presentations. Left center: The Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship at Babson College in Massachusetts. Left: Candida Brush, chair of the entrepreneurship division at Babson College.

research—understanding and talking to people of very different backgrounds.” Such a skill set is hardly limited to business students. Babson, for example, has launched a one-year master’s degree in management, with a focus on entrepreneurial leadership, specifically for liberal arts students with undergraduate degrees in other fields. An entrepreneurial background can be important to almost anyone entering today’s job market, says Dan Schawbel, managing partner of the consulting firm Millennial Branding. Economic changes and global competition mean that the old pattern of trading in your college degree for an entry-level job is evaporating, he says, and even paid internships no longer lead to full-time employment at the rates they used to. One answer is entrepreneurship. “Smart companies fully understand that if they don’t innovate, they won’t exist in the future,” writes Schawbel in his blog. “By recruiting young entrepreneurs, they bring new perspectives and youthful ideas into the workplace.” Howard Cincotta is a U.S. State Department writer and editor.

“ ”

They need to learn techniques of personal observation, even anthropological research—understanding and talking to people of very different backgrounds.

How do you define entrepreneurship? http://define.babson.edu

Entrepreneurial Studies

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/majors/ business-entrepreneurial-studies http://www.entrepreneur.com/topcolleges/ undergrad/0.html

Go Online

Harvard Business School defines entrepreneurship as “the pursuit of opportunity beyond resources controlled.” This formulation tries to capture several qualities that distinguish entrepreneurship from other kinds of business activities, according to Harvard business professor Thomas Eisenmann. In other words, entrepreneurs may potentially reap high rewards, but they must operate in a world of high risk, intense competition and great uncertainty. Babson incorporates this world of risk and uncertainty into its core course, which all students take, called Entrepreneurial Thought And Action. The course stresses that students have to apply two kinds of logic in their work. One is predictive logic, using the familiar tools of financial research, data analysis and strategic planning. But they must learn to employ creative logic as well. “They need to understand what the opportunity space entails, which could mean a new technology without any existing standards, or a...social issue,” says Brush. “They need to learn techniques of personal observation, even anthropological

Bplan—University of California, Berkeley, Startup Plan http://bplan.berkeley.edu/

New York University Stern School of Business—Berkley Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation

PUNDIT/Courtesy Wikipedia

Teaching uncertainty

http://goo.gl/kNTkG

JULY/AUGUST 2013

JANE VARNER MALHOTRA

Are You

JANE VARNER MALHOTRA

Gritty Enough for College? By JANE VARNER MALHOTRA

TED Conferences

Likening it to initiative and perseverance, growing research heralds grit as a key component to a student’s success in college. Grittier students face obstacles with determination and focus, and are not discouraged by setbacks. Kids with grit are in it for the long haul, and will put in sustained effort to reach their goals.

Right: Angela Duckworth of the University of Pennsylvania. Center: David Burke is director of college counseling at Pembroke Hill School.

BETH BRYANT

What is grit?

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania assert that grit enabled the tortoise to beat the hare. In a 2011 article in Wired magazine, University of Pennsylvania psychology professor Angela Lee Duckworth describes a variety of research into aspects of grit, including a study of spelling bee contestants. Conclusion: The winners studied and practiced. A lot. Gritty people succeed through deliberate practice to acquire skills, says Duckworth, who developed a simple, self-reporting method called the Short Grit Scale to help measure a person’s long-term stamina and focus. While Duckworth’s test is designed to support research at the University of Pennsylvania, universities across the United States are exploring a variety of similar methods to measure grit in potential students. Based on decades of research by the University of Maryland’s Professor Sophomores during a Emeritus of Education William chemistry class at Pembroke Sedlacek, Oregon State University Hill School in Kansas City, developed a brief questionnaire Missouri.

SUSAN MCSPADDEN

op of the class. Perfect achievement test scores. What more proof does a university need that you would be the ideal member of their student body? In today’s competitive admissions, many American schools aim to see beyond the numbers. Grades and SAT scores only reveal the surface of a student’s ability to succeed in a college setting, where a variety of appealing distractions and complex challenges test even the most academically-talented young people. Skills that help students truly succeed at university and beyond include curiosity, creativity, integrity, leadership, the ability to work with others, and—the hot new favorite—grit.

STUDYINGinABROAD

Get your grit score http://goo.gl/U4R3V

Grit Scale

http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~duckwort/ gritscale.htm

ETS Personal Potential Index https://www.ets.org/ppi

How Children Succeed http://goo.gl/9fX8G

Go Online

AMERICA

INTERNATIONAL STUDENT ENROLLMENT

Enrollment Trends

800,000 700,000 600,000 500,000 400,000

+172%

300,000 200,000 100,000

1950-551 1960-661 1970-771 1980-881 1990-991 2000-001 2010-111 2011-112

TOP 10 PLACES OF ORIGIN

Nearly 70% of international students in the U.S. came from 10 countries.

2011-22012 % of Total

called the Insight Résumé to assess an applicant’s noncognitive skills. These include a gritty “preference for long-range goals to immediate needs,” as well as self-confidence balanced with a realistic self-appraisal. For several years, the Educational Testing Service has promoted its Personal Potential Index to help graduate schools evaluate an applicant’s ability to succeed. The Web-based tool aims to measure attributes such as creativity, teamwork, ethics, organizational skills and resilience. While the skills themselves sound worthy, some question the ability of any standardized assessment to get to the core question: Can this applicant survive, thrive and, in the end, contribute something positive to an educational community?

CANADA

SOUTH KOREA

TURKEY

JAPAN CHINA TAIWAN SAUDIA ARABIA INDIA VIETNAM

MEXICO

BY REofGION

ORIGIN

Why holistic admissions? At Pembroke Hill School in Kansas City, Missouri, Director of College Counseling David Burke describes holistic admissions as a way for colleges to see beyond the numbers. “There’s a recognition in admissions circles that objective measures are helpful, but only to a point,” he says. “Those subjective skills—leadership, problem-solving, teamwork, grit—after you’ve worked somewhere for more than a week, you know that these are as important as native intelligence to getting something done!” Burke recently finished a four-year term on the board of the Common Application, where he helped design essay questions that would reveal student grittiness. Along with teacher recommendations and interviews, good essays help admissions staff discover the noncognitive qualities they seek. Burke explains, “Colleges want to know a student’s story. Maybe the mother has to commute an hour to work every day and so the student has to get dinner on the table for the younger sister. Maybe the student took over the Spanish club, and turned it...into an organization with 30 kids tutoring ESL students at a neighboring school.” These stories reveal information about the character of a student—information that colleges want to know. As most colleges and universities continue to use more traditional methods, such as essays, for understanding a student’s nonnumerical qualities, the jury’s out on the new methodologies for assessing grit. The growing body of research holds promise, leading educators and researchers to consider the next question: How can grit be nurtured? Jane Varner Malhotra is a freelance writer based in Washington, D.C.

64%

11%

Asia

Africa

Europe

Middle East

Oceania

Latin America

North America

FIELDS

International Students 2011/12

STUDY

Physical and Social Sciences: Life Sciences: 8.6% 8.7% Fine and Applied Arts: 5.5%

Math and Computer Science: 9.3%

Engineering: 18.5%

Intensive English: 5.1%

ACADEMIC LEVEL of

Business and Management: 21.8%

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

9.5% 6.6% Associate's Sophomore

8.8% Senior

Other/ Undeclared: 22.5%

17.3% Doctoral

—Bachelor's—

9.1% 7.1% Freshman Junior

22.6% Master's

18.9% Other/ Unspecified

TOP 5 HOSTING INSTITUTIONS University of Southern Californa 9,269

University of Illinois Urbana Champaign 8,997

New York University 8,660

Purdue University Main Campus 8,563

Columbia University 8,024

You are free: to Share - to copy, distribute and transmit this work.

SOURCE: iie.org

Information provided by: http://www.onlinedegrees.org

ONLINE DEGREES.ORG

NONCOGNITIVE SKILLS

JANE VARNER MALHOTRA

During the 2011/2012 school year, nearly 765,000 international students came to study in the U.S. Who are these students? Take a look:

From Delhi

to Kent By MAURA ZURICK

fter saying goodbye to a bus full of family members at the airport, Shakshi Paul, a sophomore computer science major, ventured to America to achieve her goals. As Paul reminisces about her homeland, she said she has embraced American culture and style, but continues to hold on to her traditions. Even as Paul wears a pink hoodie and sweatpants, her closet speaks worlds about her Indian roots.

Finding a new home: Kent Paul said she has heard many people describing [New Delhi] as noisy, fast, crowded and polluted, but she loves her city. “I think there’s this personal attachment to this city because I grew up there and all of my education was done there,” Paul said. “It’s home for me. It’s really like a combination of Washington, D.C. and New York City.” Paul grew up in New Delhi and said she lived there for about 12 years,

so she knows what a big city is like. She said that she wanted to go to a small school overseas to study abroad. “I wanted to go to a quiet place because I have never lived in a place like Kent,” she said. “I wanted to go to a place where I didn’t have any distractions. You can go to a place like Los Angeles or New York and get involved in things that aren’t academic. I want to focus on my studies.” She said one of the biggest benefits of living in Kent is that she is able to have a part-time job while going to school, something that is very rare in India. “I work on campus and study as well. I would never have been able to do that in India,” she said. Paul works in the Undergraduate Studies Office.

Missing India Even though Paul has adjusted well to living and studying in a foreign country, she said she can’t wait to go home. She said the number

34 JULY/AUGUST 2013

One Indian Student’s Journey. one thing she misses is her family, but she is also dying for one of her mom’s home-cooked meals. “I just can’t wait to see my family. When I talk about the family, I mean the whole family.” “All of my aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, parents and my brother, all came to say goodbye to me at the airport, they all had to be there. We all filled up this bus and drove together. We all went to the airport and had this huge family standing together and saying goodbye. It was so nice. I miss them.” She said when she was planning to come to Kent her mom did all of her shopping in just 10 days. Paul got her visa around December 12 or 13 and was supposed to fly on January 3. She said her mom basically did everything, even packed. “I was like ‘how am I going to live without her?’ Even today, she tells me recipes and gives me advice and stuff on Skype.”

American

wing to the vast diversity of students in U.S. colleges, it is not surprising that American dorm rooms come to reflect that breadth of personalities and cultures. In my experience, as an undergraduate with a major in economics and minor in philosophy from Ohio Wesleyan University, I have seen that dorm rooms often assume the nature of the person who occupies it. Broadly, there are two types of dorm rooms: extroverted and introverted. An extroverted dorm room is one whose door is open around the clock, for everyone, and is bustling with activity 24/7. Typically, features of extroverted rooms include gaming hubs, fun and snack-filled meeting areas, and a rush of students walking in and out. Want to make friends in a jiffy? This is the place to go. These rooms often become venues for heated debates on issues including, but certain-

Dateline Delhi

http://www.datelinedelhi.org/

Paul said there are many differences between America and India, but the most obvious one is the lack of festivals and holidays. “The only things I’ve celebrated in the year that I’ve been here were

Dorm Rooms ly not limited to, sports, politics, college life and entertainment. Introverted rooms, on the other hand, are in direct contrast to extroverted rooms. This type of room is occupied by students who prefer to spend as much time as possible inside their rooms. The room, then, becomes a hide-out, a peaceful place to relax and rejuvenate at the end of the day, especially after a hectic college day—which is almost every day at an American college. Also, one would typically expect that introverted rooms would house students who prefer to study late nights inside their rooms, without any disturbance from the outside world—a privilege often denied at libraries in American colleges!

loves her. She is popular everywhere, all over the world, really. In India, our movies have music, they’re like musicals. India music is for celebration. It’s a tradition. I’m a big fan of Mohammad Rafi. He’s a big legend in India.”

The future Paul plans to finish her undergraduate studies in Kent, but go home for summer intersession to see her family. She knows what she wants to do with her life and is already on track. “When I am done with my computer science degree, I want to get my MBA in the States,” she said. “ I want to find a job where I can travel around the world because I don’t want to stay in one country. I don’t want to be a citizen of any other country though. I want to be an Indian, but I want to travel. I want to travel so much that I get bored with it. I want to go from one continent to the next.” Maura Zurick is a reporter for the Daily Kent Stater.

By SRIHARSHA MASABATHULA

There are, however, some common aspects of American dorm rooms: a clutter of books, clothes, sports equipment, electronic gadgets and, most importantly, an unending stock of drinks and snacks. Most rooms also have a fridge and microwave, especially for the popular instant noodles— the authentic American college student midnight snack. The question then is, how well-kept are these rooms? While it varies widely from room to room, one may reasonably expect that extroverted rooms are messy, to the extent that it is difficult to walk across them without stepping on an array of objects. One must, however, keep in mind that a lack of organization in the room does not mean that the occupant finds it difficult

to find things that he may need. In other words, the occupant is vividly aware what lies where. Introverted rooms, of course, are more difficult to decipher, much like an introverted person, so I will leave that to your imagination. Beyond the comfortable bed, study desk and closet, my fellow students have never failed to surprise me with the effort they are willing to put in to make their room look extravagant. Be it glow-in-thedark posters that require installing sophisticated lamps, or hanging blankets from the roof above the bed to separate it from the study area, creativity peaks inside dorm rooms. American dorm rooms, therefore, play an important role in completing the college experience

by helping students balance their personal and professional lives in the manner that best suits them—an important rehearsal for life beyond college. Sriharsha Masabathula is a Bachelor of Arts from Ohio Wesleyan University ’13. He is currently a Young India Fellow ’14 (www.yifp.in) in New Delhi.

STUDENT LIFE

America versus India: The differences and similarities

Thanksgiving and Christmas, which is great because families have an amazing time,” she said. She said in India they have festivals almost every two months. Paul said some of the cultural taboos and expectations are also very different like Indians will offer food and drink to house guests. She said even if the guests are finished eating, the hosts will put more food on their plates. A big cultural taboo would be calling an older person by his or her first name. “If you meet someone elder to you, you cannot call them by name, ever,” Paul said. “The lady I live with here, I call her by her first name but back home you can’t do that. It’s bad. A simple Namaste is great no matter who you are talking to.” The one thing that can be found in India and America is Lady Gaga. Indians and Americans all love her. She is just as popular there as she is here. “I mean the only two kinds of music that I listen to are Indian and American,” Paul said. “I love Lady Gaga, everybody

Courtesy Sriharsha Masabathula

She said she talks to her family on Skype, and that is how she keeps in contact with them. It also helps her feel less homesick since she can contact them easily on the Internet. Paul doesn’t have any relatives in the United States and didn’t know anyone when she first came to Kent. She said this is a good thing because it has made her independent, and she has learned to solve her own problems. When Paul talks about Indian food, there is a longing undertone in her voice. “Indian food for me is my mom’s food. I’m not a big fan of going outside and eating,” she said. “My mom is this amazing cook.”

Bizarre Ameri The United Statesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; wild and wacky roadside attractions. By ANNE WALLS

Everyone knows America as the land of

gorgeous travel destinations, but what about home of the weird? You may think this after taking a road trip across the vast countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s many highways and country roads and seeing some of its

more eccentric roadside attractions. 36 JULY/AUGUST 2013

The Cabazon Dinosaurs: Cabazon, California

KEVIN STANCHFIELD/Courtesy Flickr

ca On a particularly desolate stretch of Interstate 10 in the vast desert that covers much of Southern California, a strange sight appears in contrast to the dry, cracked earth and sand-colored hills. Make that two strange sights: an apatosaurus…and a T. Rex. That’s right—two enormous dinosaurs, rising from the desert floor and commanding every eye that passes to look their way. Sure, these are dinosaur statues, not the real things. But they are still a shock. “Ms. Dinny” the apatosaurus and “Mr. Rex” were built over 30 years ago as a roadside attraction that features a gift store in the belly of Dinny and a lookout point—for the brave and able-bodied who want to climb the many steps—in Mr. Rex’s teeth.

TRAVEL

http://www.cabazondinosaurs.com/

To share articles go to http://span.state.gov JULY/AUGUST 2013 37

BEN SCHUMIN/Courtesy Wikipedia

Alamogordo, New Mexico

PETER MEADE

World’s largest pistachio nut America is known as the home of many of the world’s largest, man-made oddities: biggest ball of twine, biggest thermometer, even biggest steak! But biggest nut? The proud home to the world’s largest pistachio can be found right off Highway 54 in Alamogordo, New Mexico (far left). This 30-feet-tall nut was built by Tim McGinn in 2009 as a monument to honor his father, Tom McGinn, who passed away in 2007. Tim, who now owns the family pistachio business, went into his latest crop of pistachios and found the most perfectly shaped nut. He then employed a welder, painter and stucco artists to help him make his dream tribute a reality. The most touching part about this memorial is that the elder McGinn loved going on road trips with his family and exploring the exciting roadside attractions along the way. So his son, Tim, decided the best way to honor the memory of his father was to make him his own roadside attraction, to be enjoyed by families for years to come.

http://mcginns.mybigcommerce.com/ worlds-largest-pistachio

Foamhenge

Natural Bridge, Virginia They say obsession takes many forms. In the case of Mark Cline, his obsession with sculpting has resulted in a full-size replica of Britain’s Stonehenge…only Cline’s is made entirely of foam. Hence the name Foamhenge. It is situated right off Highway 11 in rural Virginia (above left). Cline got the idea for what he calls his “greatest achievement” over 15 years ago, when he walked into a warehouse and saw oversized foam blocks. The idea was instantly born. Cline has taken care to make sure each piece replicates the shape of the original structure. Now that’s dedication…literally.

http://enchantedcastlestudios.com/foamhenge.htm

The Big Duck

Flanders, New York On Interstate 495 in Long Island, 120 kilometers from New York City, lies a 20-feet-tall, 30-feet-long duck, known as—what else?—The Big Duck (far left). Built in 1931 by duck farmer Martin Maurer, 38 JULY/AUGUST 2013

The Shoe Tree

Belding, Michigan This oddity is actually a series of roadside attractions, because it seems that shoe trees, like the one on Zahm Road in Belding, Michigan, are a countrywide phenomenon. There are over 10 reported “shoe trees” in Michigan alone, with many more around the United States. The Belding Shoe Tree (left) is said to have started when a Depression-era boy, too poor to buy shoes and dying of frostbite, cursed the tree for not “having shoes growing on it.” Then, on the first anniversary of his death, a pair of shoes was seen hanging from the tree. Another shoe tree in Nevada, which has since been cut down, bears the legend of a newlywed couple who got into an argument below it. The wife reportedly threatened to walk away from the husband and their car, so the husband took her shoes and tossed them up into the tree, where they stuck. Years later, after they made amends and had their first baby, they returned to the tree and tossed a pair of baby booties up there as well. Today, travelers from all over stop by these legendary roadside attractions to try their hand at getting a pair of shoes to stay in the branches.

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/31914

Attractions? Can’t get enough of America’s odd monuments and sideshows?

Take a detour to these additional wacky spots. Largest Ball of Paint—Alexandria, Indiana

An accident became a tourist attraction when a man dropped a baseball in a vat of paint in 1977, then got the idea to paint hundreds more coats on it. The ball of paint currently weighs in at over 1,580 kilograms.

Life-Size Chocolate Moose—Scarborough, Maine

Though technically this roadside attraction is indoors, people travel from far and wide to see the anatomically-correct moose made of 770 kilograms of chocolate, and affectionately named Lenny.

Wee’l Turtle—Dunseith, North Dakota

In 1982, an industrious man decided to make something with all the spare wheel rims he found lying around—and the Wee’l Turtle was born. Two thousand rims later, this 18-feet-tall creature not only attracts crowds, it also reminds them that Turtle River State Park is nearby.

Largest Catsup Bottle—Collinsville, Illinois

If you are driving on Route 159, eating a big bag of French fries—don’t worry. The world’s largest catsup bottle is just ahead. Built in 1949 for the local bottling factory, this 170-feet tower catches the eye of condiment aficionados everywhere (below left).

Coral Castle—Miami, Florida

Take a peek at this mysterious castle (below right), hand-carved by one man between 1923 and 1951 in a fashion so mysterious, some say he had superpowers…and evidently a lot of time on his hands. —A.W.

CHRISTINA RUTZ/Courtesy Wikipedia

http://www.bigduck.org

Wild Roadside

The Big Duck boasts tail lights from a Model T car for eyes and used to house an egg market in its belly. The design of the duck was so unusual that Maurer actually patented it. This duck may have concrete wings, but it sure likes to travel. Over the years, the land it sat on has been earmarked for other endeavors so it has been moved three times—but then ultimately moved back to its original home in Flanders. Talk about an unusual migration pattern! Though you can’t buy eggs in its belly anymore, the duck still hosts plenty of visitors to its Long Island nest who come to shop in the gift store inside. Listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, the Duck even hosts its own holiday celebration for the locals. When Santa comes to flip on the decorative lights, everyone knows it’s going to be a jolly holiday indeed.

Want More

Anne Walls is a writer and filmmaker based in Los Angeles, California.

JULY/AUGUST 2013

By STEVE FOX

Harvard students blend wanderlust and witinto successful travel guides. From top right: Let’s Go Director of Publishing Michael Goncalves, Editorial Director Claire McLaughlin, Product Manager Luis Duarte and Researcher Ian Armstrong.

Harvard senior Luis Duarte, product manager for Let’s Go. “Our strategy is to continue creating content for those people but to enhance that with online content, finding a nice middle ground that also includes things like e-books and mobile apps.” Let’s Go partners with many companies, using a publisher to produce the guides, selling banner ads on its Web site and sharing in revenue from items like tour bookings. Indian visitors account for about 3 percent of the audience at www.letsgo.com, according to Duarte. A private company, Let’s Go is part of Harvard Student Agencies, which provides services such as laundry and tutoring to students. Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California.

in the American library: “Destination America,” by Charles Wills. Available at the American Library in Chennai, Mumbai and New Delhi. “Weird U.S.: The ODDyssey 40 JULY/AUGUST 2013

Continues,” by Mark Sceurman, Mark Moran and Matt Lake. Available at the American Library in Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai and New Delhi.

American Library http://amlibindia.state.gov

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Travel books

A.D. 72.” From Let’s Go: “You certainly don’t have to pay to see the Colosseum— you’ll glimpse it on magnets, postcards and every vista throughout the city. Still, paying for a walk through the interior is worth it to truly appreciate the structure for what it was: an ancient (and gorier) equivalent to Fenway Park.” Fenway is a baseball park in Boston, Massachusetts. McLaughlin says readers tend to get hooked on Let’s Go’s unique style. Let’s Go writer-researchers, who receive round-trip airfare and a daily stipend while researching destinations during their summer breaks, are paid between $10 and $15 per page. Let’s Go managers, who work about 20 hours a week throughout the school year and full-time in the summer, choose their successors each year from a staff of about 200 students. Reviewers remain anonymous. “We don’t blow our cover, because people are going to treat you differently if they know you’re writing a review,” McLaughlin notes. Like other book publishers, Let’s Go has adapted to the Internet and now offers online versions of its content in a variety of formats that include videos, blogs, e-newsletters, downloadable PDFs, e-books and free iPhone and Android apps. Smartphone versions of the guides cost between 99 cents and $2.99. “People still like books—our sales come mostly in books through retailers like Barnes & Noble and Amazon,” says

Photographs courtesy Let’s Go

enny-pinching, backpack-toting American students are a familiar sight in many countries, a phenomenon due in no small part to the wildly successful Let’s Go series of travel guides begun in 1960 by a Harvard freshman in his dorm room. Written by students for students (and many others), the irreverent guidebooks and accompanying online content now provide concise advice on more than 70 cities and countries on six continents, offering guidance not just on cheap hotels and restaurants but also on ways for travelers to help host countries with volunteer work. Let’s Go, which claims several million readers, has prospered in a tough business by having a distinct point of view, says this year’s editorial director, sophomore Claire McLaughlin, and avoiding “brochure-ese.” “Sometimes, when you read a travel guide, it tells you what the place is like but it doesn’t really tell you if you want to go there,” says McLaughlin. “Our main thing is we want to produce funny, honest and opinionated reviews.” The Let’s Go series began shortly after Arthur Frommer published his then-revolutionary “Europe on 5 Dollars a Day,” and the still-competing guides take decidedly different approaches. Here’s Frommer on the Roman Colosseum: “Now a mere shell, the Colosseum still remains ancient Rome’s greatest architectural legacy. Vespasian ordered the construction of the elliptical bowl, called the Amphitheatrum Flavium, in

L E T

ora Saalman (above right), a Beijing-based associate in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment, visited New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Pune and Hyderabad in April and May. The first American to earn a Ph.D. from the Department of International Relations at Tsinghua University in Beijing, Saalman wrote her dissertation in Chinese and focused her research on the impact of U.S. and European export control shifts on Sino-Indian military modernization. Saalman met with several think tanks, faculty and students of universities and officials of India’s Ministry of External Affairs during her visit, which was organized by the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. http://carnegieendowment.org/experts

esha Khare, an 18-year-old California resident, won the $50,000 runners-up prize at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair by developing a tiny device called a supercapacitor, which allows an LED to fully charge within 20 to 30 seconds. According to the Intel Foundation, Khare’s project “builds on existing research in the area, and specifically aims to create an improved supercapacitor with increased energy density, while maintaining power density and long life cycle.” Her invention has potential applications for car and cell phone batteries. http://www.intel.com

he soulful melodies of Rabindra Sangeet reverberated at Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts (below and bottom) during an annual parade to commemorate the 153rd birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore in May. The two-hour procession was organized by Swaralipi, a Rabindra Sangeet academy in Boston. Scores of members of the Bengali community were joined by their non-Bengali friends for the celebration. http://www.harvardsquare.com/

Photographs courtesy Kallol Basu

Courtesy Society for Science and the Public

Courtesy U.S. Foreign Commercial Service

RAMESH JAIN

.S. Ambassador Nancy Powell launched American Business Corners in Mohali and Patna in May. Speaking at the Patna launch (below), Ambassador Powell said, “Trade brings people together, creates jobs and provides countless new opportunities for people in both of our countries.” During her two-day visit to Bihar, she also discussed the trade and investment climate in the state with senior executives of several trade organizations and met Governor D.Y. Patil and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. During her visit to Chandigarh and Mohali, Ambassador Powell met senior leaders of the Haryana and Punjab governments and interacted with young parliamentarians and state legislators. http://newdelhi.usembassy.gov/pr051413.html

State Department photo

http://goo.gl/nAVj2

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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets young Indians

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry chats with young Indian leaders who have participated in programs in the United States as he arrives at Lodhi Gardens in New Delhi in June.

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