Florida Atlantic University (FAU) has invited Bangladesh students to explore the opportunities it offers to international students to help shape their future.

“We are more than happy to invite all of you to join Florida Atlantic University (FAU) and have a very good experience at our campus, and be the next entrepreneurs in the world,” Harshal A. Sanghvi from the US university told UNB in an interview.

Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida.

Today, the institution serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students across six campuses located along the southeast Florida coast and is ranked as a top public university by the U.S. News and World Report.

“That's what we are here to let students know. We are not just here to promote education but we are here to promote their overall growth and take them to the very next step in their life,” Sanghvi said.

He said they are in Dhaka to promote the master's program and the courses they teach at FAU, especially the courses in the department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS).

He said he is also here to describe in detail the opportunities they have at Florida Atlantic University, as well as why a student should choose FAU, and the overall benefits that the master's degree program offers.

Encouraging the prospective Bangladeshi students, Sanghvi said, “We have a very good culture and environment. We have great academic and financial support that we give to our students in terms of the university offerings – placement, housing and residency, and a lot more to explore in Florida, especially in Boca Raton, where we are situated. And of course the students love Miami.”

During his brief visit in Bangladesh, he attended some students’ recruitment events along with StudyGroup and other partner agencies they have collaboration with.

The department of EECS at Florida Atlantic University offers Bachelor of Science (BS), Master of Science (MS), and Ph.D. degree programs in Computer Science (CS), Computer Engineering (CE), and Electrical Engineering (EE). FAU also offers MS degree programs in Biomedical Engineering (BME), and Information Technology and Management (ITM).

The EECS department has launched four new degree programs: Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Computer Science, BS and MS in Data Science and Analytics (DSA), and MS in Artificial Intelligence (AI).

In addition, the department offers graduate certificate programs in Artificial Intelligence, Big Data Analytics, Cyber Security, Energy Resilience, and Biomedical Engineering as well as undergraduate certificate programs in Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Data Science.

“We have a lot more to offer in terms of education and overall professional growth of the student. And in terms of the campus life,” he said.

“We also promote students to have their own startups, to have their ideas converted into prototypes and finally into a product. So they also learn how to work in the industry with their own ideas and thoughts coming in. That is something we really have to offer along with our master's degree programs at FAU,” he said.

“We have various positions in the university, which includes teaching assistantship, as well as research assistantship, which we offer to the students. Usually teaching assistantships are offered by the department. And research assistantships are appointed by the professors,” Sanghvi said.

He also said they support students with the tuition fees, as well as with the stipend so that they can leverage that cost when they stay in the city or off campus or on campus.

“We have other job roles available on campus where they can work,” Sanghvi said. 

“We have a very unique portal called handshake, where students can go and upload their own career profile. And then they can apply for some of the general positions we have in the university,” Sanghvi said.

Responding to a question, he said Florida is definitely an attractive place for people coming to the United States because the weather is generally good. “We don't have snow in Florida. That's where you get weather similar to what you have in Bangladesh and India.”

In addition to that, in Florida, there are lots of beaches where students like to go after their studies, of course, he added.

“That is again, a second attraction why people choose Florida. We have a very famous place called Miami where we see a whole cultural life where students like to spend their time and enjoy with their friends and family,” Sanghvi said.

He said most of the students are interested in pursuing masters in AI and masters in data science, which is a very booming field these days and it is an interdisciplinary course.

“Along with pursuing masters, many of the students tend to have their own startups and ideas converted into a large business. That is where innovation lies in joining FAU and that is why we welcome all the students to our university,” Sanghvi said.