Opportunities in Higher Education & Career Guidance

11th November 2015University of Kelaniya

A bit about me…

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Non-profit

Local & Foreign Graduates &

Undergraduates

Volunteer Driven

Youth led

We Arehttp://www.sl2college.org/faq

Done That,

And Now We Share It!

Been There,

Our Services

Online Forum

Work In Sri Lanka

Newspaper Articles

Research

SeminarsMentor

Program

Pursuing Graduate StudiesSL2CollegeUniversity of Kelaniya (11th November 2015)

Why graduate studies?

○ An investment for your future○ More than a qualification○ You are paid to pursue your interests in more depth○ Contribute to the world’s knowledge○ Opportunity to work with the best○ Gain an internationally recognizable qualification

Which graduate degree?

Purpose PathPursue a passion for learning and discovery

Improve career and professional prospects

Change of career paths

PhD

MSc/MA

MBA

Pre-Masters Masters• Postgraduate

qualification• Foundation for

a Masters • Coursework,

assignments, exams

• ½ time of a Masters degree

MPhil PhD

What to study?

• Postgraduate academic degree

• Coursework/ Research or both

• 1 , 1 ½ or 2 years

• Post graduate academic research degree

• Awarded to those who pursue PhDs

• Research • 2 – 3 years

• Post graduate academic ‘advanced’ research degree

• Research • 3 – 5+ years

• Research not given prominence

• Graduate level specialization

Masters of Science (MSc)

Graduate Diploma/Certificate (Grad.Dip./ Grad.Cert.)

Masters of Arts (MA)

Masters of Business Administration (MBA)

• Scientific thesis

• Natural sciences, humanities, business sciences, engineering sciences, mathematics and informatics

• Dissertation based on independent research

• Languages, history, geography, philosophy, fine arts but also social sciences

• Requires several years of work experience

• Finances, human resources, marketing, strategy and operations management

• Analyse a topic already approved

• Well-grounded theory of research methodology

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Masters of Philosophy (Mphil)

• Analyse and understand how to stretch limits of knowledge

• Contribute to existing pool of knowledge

(original research)

Just after Bachelors?

• PhD (gap years can be very negative in some scenarios)

• Post-Grad diploma/certificate to identify specialization

• Masters as a job requirement

With work experience?

When to study?

• Masters with a better idea of specialisation

• Mphil/ PhD after research• MBA

CourseUniversity

AccreditationQualificationsCostDeadlines

How to apply?

Start backwards;Application deadlineQualifying exam dates (e.g.: IELTS, TOEFEL, GRE, GMAT)References Essays

Scholarships(course/ university/ country/region specific)Amount awardedQualificationApplication procedure

Visa requirements and applicationAccommodationInsurance

Research Timeline Finance Travel

Enhance your LearningFocus on original research & international journal publications.Learn beyond the lecture halls

E.g. Udacity, Coursera, Free Online Courses (Stanford, Harvard,etc)

Practice your theoryLearn passively e.g. Quora

Embrace Opportunity

How to prepare

Subscribe to online communities• ml-news Google group• NLPeople• Sri Lanka AI and ML fb group

Build an open network of connectionsBuild an online presence

• E.g. Blog, Github account

How SL2College can help you? - Information

Forum:

○ Ask us anything related to higher education ○ Our network of experienced volunteers will find

the answers for you○ A repository of questions grouped by countries and

type of the question○ eg: sub-forum “Application process” under the

forum “USA”

Seminars:

○ Events which deliver information on specific topics○ eg: study opportunities in Australia

… Mentoring program

○ Aims to assist Sri Lankan students with achieving their higher education goals via a one-on-one interaction with a carefully chosen mentor○ helps you in undergraduate and graduate

application process

http://www.sl2college.org/mentor/

What is research?

○ “the systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.”

○ Standing on the shoulders of the giants

… Research collaboration project

○ Goal: to create research opportunities for undergraduates in Sri Lankan universities through collaboration with Sri Lankan professors, postdoctoral researchers and graduate students

○ A platform where researchers and undergraduates can share their interests and find potential matches for research projects

○ A valuable experience to learn how to do research, how to communicate results to peers. ○ Can result in publications and a good graduate school placement

http://www.sl2college.org/research-collab

Thank You

“Go abroad to enrich your life, but always return. Even if you choose not to return, never leave”

- Dr.Sanjiva Weerawarana CEO and Chief Architect of WSO2 Inc.