Running the Initial Search

So this is where things start to get really fun, because we’re going to start digging into the database and saving programs as favorites. And each week, we’re going to narrow it down on more criteria.

Screenshare: Beyond the States Database Walkthrough

So this is where things start to get really fun, because we're going to start digging into the database and saving programs as favorites. And each week, we're going to narrow it down on more criteria. But today, we're just searching. Our goal is to have this huge list at the end, based only on our budget, our area of study, and our qualifications. 

So we're going to use a budget that I talked about in the last video. And that's right around 12,000 euros a year for a three year program. So I'm going to search up to 15,000. And if something's sort of in the range, I can keep it, or just get rid of those few that are way out. Now, it's really important that you also click these other budgets underneath it. Otherwise, only the programs that fall between 10 and 15 are going to show up. So I'm going to click everything from 0 to 15,000 euros a year. 

For the example we're using, we’ll say the student has two AP scores already, is planning on having two more, but doesn't have them in hand. So because there are not four APs in hand, we're not going to select anything for AP or college credit needed. If I had no APs and wasn't planning on any APs, I would use this. But ideally, at the end of all of this, the list will include some that don't have the AP requirement that could be a safety school. 

So, then we're going to go general area of study. And when we did the examples before, it was Media Studies. We were talking about Ellie. So that falls under Communication and Journalism. So I know we spent all this time talking about specific areas of study last week, but right now we're going to do the search with the general area of study. Because since our goal is a master list, like this huge list, you don't want to miss anything that might be in there of interest. You have an idea of your interests now, so you know what you're looking for. 

And so, we're going to search. So there are 49 programs that fall under Communication and Journalism that are under 15,000 euros a year. I'm going to sort by specific area of study, because there will likely be things that you know you don't want. You know, in the case that we were looking at before for Ellie's, we know that she doesn't want Public Relations and Advertising. So we can kind of skim through that. You know, you're skimming here to see if there is something that catches your eye. 

So let's see here. Scrolling down, scrolling down. Because what we know, Communication and Media Studies, we know that that's the area. So when we get to that, the Communication and Media Studies, we want to pay special attention, but still skim through here. You know, you might be like, “Oh, I don't know what IT Communication and New Media is.” Then you read it, and you're like, “No, that's not me.” Or it might be that you're like, “Ha, I don't know. I need some more information on that.” If it's that you need more information, or that it looks somewhat interesting — and somewhat interesting is all we're talking about right now — you're going to add it to your favorites. So you just click the little heart, and it's going to go on that list of favorites for you to consult later. 

So we're going to Communication and Media Studies. And we're going to kind of, you know, go through almost all of those. So again, if it looks interesting, add it to the favorites. The only thing you want to be looking out for is if it's in Germany, you're not going to add it if you don't have an associate's degree or two years of college credits. And if it's in Sweden, and you're still in high school, you're not going to add it. You're also going to be careful of budget over here, because your search is probably higher than your budget. So you want to make sure that something that’s way out of your budget isn't going on your favorites list. 

And here's the funny thing, I searched up to 15,000. And the budget I had was about 12,000 euros a year. And look at that, there's nothing in that category. There are two that are like right at — there are three programs still under 13,000 that are out of my budget. Isn't this just crazy? I mean, you'd be hard pressed to find that in the US. 

So I'm going to do that for each of the general areas of study that are related to her specific areas of study. So we do that for Communication and Journalism. Again, sort by specific area of study, skim through all of them, but pay careful attention to the specific area of study that you've identified. Read through each and every one of those, and favorite the ones that look interesting. And see if it's aligned with your interests. We're going to dig deeper in coming weeks, but we just want to have your master list for now. 

So we're going to do that for Communications and Journalism. We're going to do that for Business. Now this is an example of why you want to sort by specific area of study. You know, so many of these — we don't even need to look at Sports Management, I can assure you that Ellie is not interested in. 

Now Sales and Marketing though, some of the Digital Marketing stuff, the Social Media Management stuff fell under that. So she'll probably look more thoroughly at that. Real estate, we know she's not interested in. So there's a lot that you can eliminate. You can go through this fairly quickly. And then, she would do that for Humanities as well. 

Remember to keep on your list those that need a little bit more information to decide. You know, you're not committing to anything right now. What you're committing to is having this list, that we're then going to break down by more subjective criteria in the coming weeks. You know, next week is going to be about location considerations. Then we're going to break it down by dealbreakers around, you know, school criteria and program criteria. 

And so, by the end of that, you're going to have this manageable list of programs that you can dig deep into and see if you like all the courses. We're just not there yet. So again, having a list of right around 20 is probably ideal for where we are. If it's more than that, that's fine. If it's less than that, that's fine. So have fun with this.