FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What can I learn in an IEC education fair?
The IEC education fair will give you an exclusive opportunity to listen and witness the close reality of studying in Canada and the United States. You will have the opportunity to ask questions to a bench of postgraduate admissions experts. The IEC education fair will also give you tips and tricks to make your Canada or USA education process easier.
Are Canada and USA education fairs beneficial?
Absolutely. IEC education fairs are meant for potential applicants like you. These fairs save you resources and time, especially when you are looking for every detail online. You will learn about general admission requirements as well as the specific program requirements that you need to fulfill. These fairs will also initiate a discussion forum where you can meet with admission experts and ask your personal questions.
Do you only help applicants who want to do postgraduate degrees?
YES! Our focus is to help applicants find the schools that will be the best match for them to pursue their postgraduate degrees (Masters or PhD).
Do I need to apply to become IEC applicant?
We welcome the opportunity to work with all applicants. We work on a first-come, first-served basis.
How soon can I get an appointment for an Initial Consultation?
We require your information at least 5 business days before your consultation to give our counselors ample time to review it.
How does IEC match counselors with applicants?
We focus on finding the counselor that best matches the applicant's interests, discipline, and schedule.
Is the Initial Consultation free?
The discovery call with our enrollment team is free of charge. However, the initial consultation is the first step of our customized admissions programs, and it is a paid service. The consultation includes a 90-minute meeting with a dedicated counselor, custom research, an in-depth profile review, and valuable feedback.
How can I get a more hands-on understanding of what IEC actually do with admissions consulting? What if it's not what I'm looking for?
We believe that you should schedule your free first consultation call. Here, you'll talk to an admissions advisor who can answer your specific questions about how our process works. The call is absolutely free, and we aim to help you regardless.
Do you assign me one personal consultant who will follow me through all my applications, or do you switch consultants at random?
We assign you a single personal consultant who will follow you throughout the entire application process, through every school and essay. We believe that having a single dedicated person who understands your background deeply and develops all your applications yields the most effective result.
What colleges will we aim for?
Our goal is to make sure you get admission to your choice of school and program.
Therefore, we plan to apply to a range of schools that are considered safety schools. Very roughly, safety schools are those to which we feel we have a > 90% chance of admission.
This is just the starting point for our list of schools. You may have special preferences for schools based on your personal interests, and we'll make sure to apply to all schools with which you have a good fit.
How many schools do you suggest we apply to? Should we apply to schools that are clear reaches?
Our admissions philosophy is that applying to more schools incur a small cost (an application fee) but has the chance of a large reward. To apply, you just need to fill out another application and possibly another essay.
The worst thing that can happen is that you spend a little more time preparing the application, pay the application fee and don't get in. The best thing that can happen is that you get admitted to multiple schools.
Therefore, we generally recommend applying to more schools.
Do you offer a Referral Program?
Absolutely! Our referral program is the perfect way to help someone find the right admissions consulting service while also earning a referral reward for yourself.
If you know someone who could benefit from working with IEC, please share their contact information with us or send them our way. As a token of our appreciation, for every referral that you send our way that results in a purchase, you will receive cash with a value of 5% of the purchased package's price.
To refer someone or to ask any questions, please email
info@ieconline.us
What makes International Education Center different from other Study Abroad consulting agencies?
At International Education Center, our guidance is personalized and tailored to each student and his or her specific needs and goals.
All our counselors are mentors and are PhD graduates of top tier schools in Canada and USA. More importantly, our counselors were once postgraduate admissions committee members and have had first-hand experience on postgraduate admissions.
As an applicant, do I need private postgraduate consulting?
At IEC, we offer holistic consulting that includes mentorship for all our applicants towards postgraduate admission.
Our philosophy is simple: we focus on an applicant's success to gain postgraduate admission.
What are the hours we can expect counselors to be available?
All our meetings and video calls are scheduled by the applicant for the evening or on weekends, and our applicants can contact us at all hours. Counselors typically get back to our students within a few hours, as counselors only work with a limited number of applicants at any given point in order to provide our applicants with high-level individual attention. Our counselors are always available via email for their applicants if any urgent or last-minute questions arise.
Counselors typically meet with applicants weekly but this frequency may vary based on applicant needs and workload with some applicants meeting mentors every other day and others on a weekly basis.
Do applicants work directly with the founder?
Elvis Lillyss, PhD works directly with few students at any given point. He also makes sure that each applicant is paired with the right counselor and works with the counselors in strategizing for their applicants’ success. However, Elvis is fine to work with you if you specically want him to.
What does a counselor do?
Although our main focus is to get applicants get into postgraduate program, IEC counselors put the focus on the applicant, not the applicant’s postgraduate application. IEC don’t just want our applicants to get into their dream postgraduate school – we want our applicants to succeed when they get there.
We help applicants with all aspects of their education, including extracurricular development, scholarship and award applications, interview prep, course selection, and of course, the postgraduate application process.
Will our communications be private and confidential?
IEC ensures complete privacy for our clients. All our employees sign NDA. All communications between IEC and our clients are kept entirely confidential. We received explicit written consent to publish all of the testimonials and client information shared on our website.
How does billing work?
IEC only accepts Mobile Money Payments. All billing is managed internally.
Where are you located?
Our headquarters are located at 5708 12th Ave W, Suite A, Everett WA 98203, USA. All of our services are offered via video conferencing, and our counselors travel across Africa given sufficient demand.
How do I get into contact with IEC if I have any other questions?
Please reach out to us via email at info@ieconline.us. If you’d like to schedule a free consultation, please fill out this form and we will get back to you within 12 hours.
In what ways are you different from other companies?
IEC is proud to have PhD holders as counselors. Our counselors taught and served as admissions committee members at top US universities and have had first-hand experience with thousands of Masters and PhD applications, reading essays, resume, and Statement of Purpose. Our counselors know what it takes to gain admission to postgraduate progam.
What is your success rate?
96% of our students have been admitted to one of the schools on their reach schools.
At IEC, we work with applicants from all backgrounds and disciplines. Our goal is to help applicants get into better schools with scholarship and to help them accomplish their academic goals.
Can I pick my counselors?
During the free consultation, we gather information about every applicant and this help us decide which counselor will be a good match for applicant's university goals, interests, and personalities. Our counselor assignment process is tested and proven to be the best and results oriented.
Can I switch my counselors?
We have found that applicants produce their best when they like who they’re working with. We accept request from applicants to switch counselors to whoever they want.
Will you guarantee admission?
Do we guarantee that students have the best chance of getting accepted by using our services? Absolutely. Do we guarantee that students will get admitted? Absolutely not. Guaranteeing admission is unethical, as we cannot control what goes on in the admissions office. As a reminder, here are our core values:
INTEGRITY: We behave ethically and does the right thing, even behind closed doors.
HONESTY: We're truthful and transparent in all interactions, whether personal or professional.
LOYALTY: We're faithful and committed to your success despite challenges.
FAIRNESS: We treat everyone fairly, regardless of race, nationality, gender, age, or other personal characteristics.
When is the best time to get started?
The earlier the better! To get started, please fill out this form and we will get back to you within 12 hours.
What is your refund policy?
All payments made are non-refundable.
Why should I attend the IEC education fair?
IEC Canada - USA Education Fair is a great opportunity for applicants to meet & apply to top universities in the Canada and the USA. Applicants can meet top admissions experts as well as top university officials in-person to answer all the burning questions. Applicants should keep their academic documents ready for review.
Is the GRE compulsory in Universities in Canada and USA?
Colleges & Universities in North America generally require GMAT or GRE. However, there are many universities with Masters and PhD programs that do not require applicants to have these exam scores. In short, you can easily get admissions to study in Canada and USA without these exams. Set up an appointment with admissions counselor to get detailed information about university requirements.
Will I be able to meet university faculty members at the fair?
Yes, you MAY be able to meet a few of the university faculty members at the fair. Because we have direct partnership with many Universities in Canada and USA and know their admission processes, not all our fairs are attended by University faculty members. However, IEC admissions experts will give you in-depth knowledge about the do’s and don’t’s of the application process and the important knowledge you would expect to learn from the brochure. Instead, you will be in a live conversation about the expected criteria for application and courses.
Can I attend an education fair from a remote location?
Definitely. We have blended learning and blended programs and conferences. Set up an appointment with admissions counselor to get detailed information about how you can join our fairs remotely.
How will education fair help me get admission?
IEC Education fairs are carefully constructed to inform you about the various Universities, courses, degrees, fee waivers, scholarships, and other prerequisites required to get into any university in Canada or the USA. You will also get a chance to voice your concerns and obtain solutions from the expert panel of admissions experts, who will guide you proficiently.
What document should I carry at IEC education fair?
As a participant, you must have at hand your academic transcripts, a list of your choicest universities, a checklist of all the questions you want answers to, your identity documents, etc.
How to prepare for an Overseas Education Fair?
As a participant, have your academic documents nearby. A checklist of all the questions you want answers to in order to clear any doubts you may have.
Which is the best exam to study for Universities in Canada and the USA?
The GRE is the most popular exam for students to be eligible to study Masters or PhDs in Canada and the USA.
Why would someone choose a state university over a top-tier university?
It's all about the Cash or the Money. Graduating from postgraduate studies free of debt is an amazing gift to be given. The cost of a top-tier university is exorbitant. More importantly, state Universities are partially funded by the state governments, hence, they don't rely on tuition fees to cover their expenses. Public or State Universities turn to have assistantships and scholarships for postgraduate students and International students.
What is the cost of pursuing Masters degree in Canada and the USA?
Cost is gategorized into two: Tuition and Cost of Living Expenses
.
Tuition costs between $15,000 and $30,000
Cost of living expenses ranges between $10,000 and $25,000.
Which cities in the US have a very high cost of living?
High cost of living impacts the overall cost of your postgraduate program.
As a result, if your University is located in expensive cities, the total cost you incur for your postgraduate program will increase.
On the other hand, if your University is located in less expensive cities, your costs will decrease. Most of the cities in the state of California have a high cost of living.
The following cities in the US are extremely costly based on living expenses like apartment rent, housing, electricity, groceries, food, transportation, laundry and other daily expenses.
1. New York
2. San Francisco
3. Washington DC
4. Boston
5. Los Angeles
6. San Diego
Which cities in the US have a very low cost of living?
In the US, there are a few cities with an extremely low cost of living.
If your University is located in these cities, the total cost you incur for your postgraduate program will decrease, even if the University is a private University.
Most of the cities in the state of Texas have a low cost of living.
The following cities in the US are extremely economical based on living expenses like apartment rent, housing, electricity, groceries, food, transportation, laundry and other daily expenses
1. Brownsville – Texas
2. Pueblo – Colorado
3. Fort Smith – Arkansas
4. Springfield – Illinois
5. Ashland – Ohio
6. Austin – Texas
How to Cover Costs While you are doing postgraduate in Canada or the US?
As a student, you are allowed to work for 20 hours a week. Pay for students usually range from 10 – 15 $/hour.
Is it possible to get into a good Canada or US university for Masters with a low GPA?
Most graduate programs require applicants to have at least a 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale. Your GPA of 2.9 is very low and would not meet minimum requirements.
Although it is highly unlikely, it is POSSIBLE for those minimum requirements to be waived.
An admissions committee might decide to do this if the student’s bachelor’s degree was completed many years ago and the student has demonstrated significant professional experience and growth since completing barchelor's degree, or if unusual circumstances contributed to the low GPA (e.g., sudden adverse health condition) and the candidate has an incredibly strong application otherwise (i.e., fantastic recommedation letters, amazing statement of purpose, phenomenal test scores).
Competitive programs will be looking to admit applicants with GPA’s much higher than the minimum, but the admissions committee will consider the various application materials you submit.
Does it really matter what school you get postgraduate degree from?
School does not really matter but the kind of courses you take and the kind of efforts you put in that puts you at an advantage, rather than the school. Hoewever, avoid degree or diploma mill from online universities with no regional accreditation.
How much is the cost of counseling for Master's and PhD Applications to Canadian and the US Universities?
Our counseling services for Master's and PhD applications are holistic. It is an End-to-End process with full guidance from our PhD counselors.
We have Basic Plan and Premium Plan.
BASIC PLAN (FREE)
* Master's and PhD applications are free. In this plan, we counsel you on how to go about the application.
We do not review application documents.
We teach you how to do it but we do not review and give feedback on your work or documents.
Our counseling and mentoring services in this plan is Free of Charge!
PREMIUM PLAN
(UNLIMITED-HOURS OF SERVICE)
* Master's application costs 2,500gh for Ghanaian applicants and $300.00 for all other applicants.
* PhD application costs 5,000gh for Ghanaian applicants and $500.00 for all other applicants.
Exclusive Access to:
Student portal
Feedback on Statement of Purpose
Feedback on Curriculum Vitae
Feedback on Personal Statement
Feedback on Letter of Intent
Feedback on Recommendation Letters
Sample Statement of Purpose
Sample Personal Statement
Sample Letter of Intent
Sample Curriculum Vitae
Sample Recommendation Letters
Webinar Recordings
Webinar PowerPoint slides
We provide unlimited services in this plan. Unlimited number of applications until you are accepted into a program.
Can I speak to a postgraduate admissions counselor before enrolling in IEC services?
Although we have high demand, we can coordinate a meeting with our counselors prior to enrollment. Click on the button below to schedule a meeting with one of our counselors. Thank you!
