So You Are An International Student and Want to Join the MALAS Interdisciplinary / Cultural Studies MA Program at San Diego State University #sdsumalas

by Kennii Ekundayo, MALAS 2022-24; Phd Art History Program, Stanford University, Fall 2024 

Have you visited the program’ website yet to get detailed information on all that it entails? 

If not, then that’s a good place to start: https://malas.sdsu.edu/#Admissions_Information_Come_Join_Us

The last application cycle opened in October 2023 and closed this Feb 2024. It should likely follow the same timeline for this year’s, so you should keep an eye out for it. It’s better to get all of your application materials submitted, at least, before the end of the year. This is a precautionary measure so that if you have any missing information, you’ll have sufficient time to send it in. At the same time, knowing how the international academic transcripts systems work, you should apply for yours to be sent by your institution(s) to SDSU also before the end of the year. So keep that in mind.

The last time I checked, the CSU application fee was around $75. It might have changed now or not, so you should keep this in mind.

Upon admission, there’s an enrollment fee that proves your intent to enrol. It used to be about $400 in my time and could be subject to change for new intakes. Then, you’ll also pay to register for SEVIS which is your official student immigration record. Your I-20 would then be sent to you by the school’s international student center which is the most important part of your visa application, alongside your proof of fund. Then, upon your interview at the embassy, the visa officer makes a decision on issuing you a visa. What is most important for this step (visa interview) is to show how important the program and interdisciplinary research is to your career, and your interest to contribute back to your home country. Upon request, the MALAS graduate director will provide a letter of support for this too.

Finally, gather your coins  or show a strong proof of financial support from a sponsor because you will need this to show that you can foot the two-year cost of attendance. It is expensive with additional new costs for international students which is notwithstanding the out-of-state tuition you have to pay already alongside your regular tuition.

To recap, before resumption, you pay this: application fee + enrollment fee + SEVIS fee (used to be $350) + visa fee + health insurance (for the Fall semester which is around $900). The tuition total for Fall will be around $10k which is including the out-of-state fee. The good thing is that you can opt to pay the out of state fee within a 3-month installment which should offer some temporary respite.

Some other costs to consider:

- you have to purchase a mandatory campus-approved health insurance plan every semester. Otherwise, a hold is placed on your account and you will not be able to register your courses, which will ultimately violate your visa status.

- housing goes for approximately $1,000/mth.

- don’t worry so much about your living costs (housing + feeding + transportation), you can get assistantships or other on-campus work opportunities (sadly, you cannot work other jobs outside the campus due to immigration restrictions) which can be channeled toward this bit, but it’d be a really tight budget for you.

- working on campus (only 20hrs per week allowed for all international students) should make you around $1200/mth after taxes. 

All in all, I think you’ve got ample time to prepare all application materials as dictated on the website.  All of the above, especially the monetary figures, are subject to change and this is just off the top of my head considering lived experiences. Good luck with your application!