ALLEX 第三階段 - 學校配對 (下)/ Step 3 School Matching Part 3

除了學校條件和地點的評估之外，配對通知最重要的一份書面文件就是LOU了。這是由配對學校所提出的Letter of Understanding。基本上是包含學校提供給你的獎學金條件的初稿，當中也會定義你的教學內容以及時數等等的規範，情務必詳閱並要在這個時間點和David Patt先生溝通清楚任何你不了解的地方，這是你之後與學校的合作準則，請不要大意。當然這份合約也是你財務規劃的基本原則，配合上你應該早就有底的財務預算你應該可以很快的抓到自己的大約花費狀況。在此就不贅述。

決定要接受ALLEX的配對之後，接下來就是一連串的文件準備。與ALLEX進行的文件作業David Patt先生會在這個時間點通知你，而另外很重要的部分則是要提供給學校的申請文件。是的，這個部分就跟一般申請研究所一樣都要準備申請文件，每個學校看科系可能都會有些不同，但大致上包含：推薦信2到3封、學校申請書、財力證明、英文版大學成績單和大學結業證明請學校寄到申請學校以及最重要的SOP（Statement of Purpose）。

通常這些文件ALLEX會在一開始就提醒大家提早準備，也最好是真的提早一點聯絡你的學校安排，像魚子醬已經畢業多年，很多學校的文件都滿花時間準備的。另外推薦信，不管各位是打算請老師或是老板幫你寫，也請提早與對方聯絡，並多給對方一點時間。千萬不要前一天兩天才跟對方說，讓人措手不及，或是因為對方行程延誤了你的繳交時間。而你自己會需要花時間的就是SOP了。

SOP簡單地說就是你告訴學校的審核人員為什麼你要去那個學校就讀以及為什麼你適合去這個學校就讀。你可以大略的提到ALLEX ，但是絕對不要把ALLEX描述成你決定去這個學校的唯一原因。基本上這是一個很好的機會回想一下自己的初衷，並且把它整理成一個有說服力的想法，任何你經歷過的人事物，以及你未來希望成就的都可以涵蓋在內，這也是個好的時間點去看看學校的課程內容，思考一下哪些課程是你有興趣的，而且會對你的未來有幫助的。這個部分會是SOP裡應該包括的重要內容。當然，在你完成基本的草稿之後，David Patt先生會非常樂意幫助你並給你意見。

學校文件部分建議大家儘快寄到學校，並且此時可以試著主動和你的學校聯絡人接觸，簡單有禮貌的一封信就是個很好的開始，感謝歷屆ALLEX老師的努力，學校的聯絡人對ALLEX的印象都很好，也都很樂意幫助。這個關係建議大家要好好經營嘍！

若是你也到了這一步，非常恭喜你，很快的你就要踏上旅程，正式的成為ALLIES了！

Other than assessing the schools and the location, there's one important document you need to pay close attention to before agreeing to your ALLEX offer. The LOU (Letter of Understanding) is the key document from your host school defining the details of your scholarship, working hours and teaching duties/hours. It's a draft of your contract with the host school so please make sure you understand ALL that's written in the document. If you have any question or doubt please do clarify with Mr. David Patt at this point and no later. It is certainly an important reference to your financial planning at this point given you already have the basic structure as I have mentioned before. You should be able to have a clear idea of your budget by now.
After accepting the offer, the following steps are basically documents. For ALLEX related documents you will get clear instructions from Mr. Patt. But you will also have to provide required documents to the host school where you will get your graduate degrees from. The process is just the same as any application to a graduate program. The exact documents required might be slightly different from school to school, however, it should include the basics of 2~3 recommendation letters, application to the school, financial prove from your bank, transcript from your college as well as the certificate to be sent directly from your college to your graduate school. And last but not least, the SOP (Statement of Purpose).

ALLEX will definitely remind you to prepare ahead and early and it is indeed wise to prepare earlier for the documents that can be prepared easily. For Caviar's case, it took a little more time to get the transcript and certificate since I have graduated from college quite a long time ago. Make sure to consider the processing time the school will need to actually have the documents sent to you. Also for recommendation letters, no matter you are getting these letters from your teacher or boss please make sure to let me know at least 2 to 3 weeks earlier since they will be busy so you don't want to have surprises and delay because they are out on business trips or something. Plus it is incredibly rude to give them only 2 days notice for such document.

As for SOP, it is basically a document telling the school administrators why you want to go to their school and why you are suitable for that school. You can definitely mention ALLEX in your SOP but you should not use it as the main nor the only reason for your application to your host school. Take this chance to think again about your initial motives of doing ALLEX and reassure yourself of why you are doing it, and wrap them into a positive and persuasive article that includes your past achievement and experience that shaped you so far. Also, it is very important to check the courses of your host school and start thinking what are the courses you will be interested in. Your plan of your course work and study is important to be included in the SOP. Of course after you have your draft ready, you can always seek advice from Mr. Patt. He's always there to help and has always been very helpful to all ALLEX participants.

Try to have the application documents sent to your schools as early as possible so they can review and confirm with ALLEX sooner. At the same time Caviar would strongly recommend you to starting approaching the contact person of your host school. A simple but polite greeting e-mail will definitely do, and try to keep the communication flow. Thanks the effort of all previous ALLEX participants the contact people of the host schools are very friendly and have very good impression with ALLEX program so please help to maintain this relationship.

If you have finally reached to this point, then congratulations! Soon you will embark on this journey and officially become one of the ALLIES! (That's how we call ourselves!)


*related posts 相關文章*

ALLEX 第一階段 - 申請/ Step 1: Application 

ALLEX 第二階段 - 面試/ Step 2: Interview 

ALLEX 第三階段 - 學校配對 (上)/ Step 3 School Matching Part 1
ALLEX 第三階段 - 學校配對 (中)/ Step 3 School Matching Part 2
ALLEX life in Wichita, Kansas