Why should you hire an advisor if your child wants to study in another country?
Some time ago we had a meeting with the mother of an Argentine student who was looking to study at a university in the United States. The mom told us how frustrated her son was at first when he was looking for information, that she suggested the idea of finding a counselor. At first, he refused because he said, ‘what can an advisor know that I can't find on the internet?’
We understand that some may think this way, so we thought we would take advantage of this experience to expand our points of view on how to address this situation. In reality, many times, it is the parents and students who do not know how to approach the advisor to get what they need.
First, as a customer, you must educate yourself on the basics of the educational system of the country you want your child to attend. It will take some time to do it, but take the time as you would when you want to buy a car or a house, since at the end of the day you are making an investment in the future of your child.
Second, when you hire a consultant, you need to be specific about what you want. In this case, we recommend that you determine how much of the budget you are willing to spend as a family. If you have more than $10,000, one strategy will be set, if they have less, another strategy, and so on.
Suppose you want to spend as little money as possible, and you want your child to study abroad. In this case, for the US it is best to select the cheapest STEM MS you can find. They need to understand that a STEM program is important because your child will get 3 years of work experience and the chance to earn money back.
Third, and most important, be patient. The process between searching for colleges, budget, country, is something you don't complete overnight, even if you hire an expert in the field, so your child and you as a parent have to take things slow to see the best results.