Adjusting to the U.S.

Neighborhoods  Areas close to UMD shuttle and metro are more convenient for new students  Popular places for UMD students - Graduate Hills/Gardens - Silver Spring - Seven Spring Village - Lakeside North - Powder Mill Village - Mazza grandmarc/The Enclave  List of Pros/Cons (Proximity, Construction etc.) LIVING

Furnishing  washingtondc.craigslist.org  Terrapin Traders  IKEA in College Park (  Mattress Warehouse  CORT- Rental TV and Internet  Comcast  Verizon Miscellaneous items  Target  Office Depot/Staples  PG Plaza (UMD Shuttle 133)  Greenbelt Beltway Plaza (UMD Shuttle 101) Settling in

Free! UMD Shuttle  Route Rider Appwww.transportation.umd.edu Metro Rail and Metro Bus   Driver’s license  mva.maryland.gov - Very useful as an ID - Special rules for Intl driver’s license holders TransportationLIVING

Buying a car  washingtondc.craigslist.org - private sellers  - certified used cars  - for car market value  - for car history Insurance  GEICO, Progressive, 21st Century TransportationLIVING

 Subway  Rudy’s in VMH - Coffee and snacks  Stamp Student Union - Fast-food restaurants outh Campus Dining Hall - 5 min walk from VMH  Restaurants on Route min walk from VMH Food on campus

LIVING Stores near campus  Giant, Safeway, Target, Shoppers, CVS, PEAPOD Ethnic stores  Silver Spring, MD - Han Ah Reum Georgia Ave - LA Mart University Blvd - Asian Food University Blvd  Rockville, MD - Maxim Hungerford Drive,  Hyattsville, MD - Patel Bros University Blvd E  Falls Church, VA - Greatwall Gallows Road Food - Groceries

Banking LIVING Stamp Student Union  Chevy Chase Bank  Capital One Route 1  Bank of America  Chevy Chase Bank  Citibank ATM 7-Eleven Good to know  ID for checking account  A debit card is as good as a credit card  SSN required for credit cards

LIVING  Major Service Providers: AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint  2 year contracts with high switching fees  Most of them require an SSN/ Security deposit to get a monthly post-paid plan (Except T-Mobile)  Without an SSN, your may have to use the pre-paid phones which cost more  Verizon has the best network coverage, but is more expensive and requires more documents from applicants  Long-distance International Phone Cards  Skype/Rebtel Phone

LIVING  Snow clothes  Prepare for a “Real” Winter Weather

SSNWORKING  Who is eligible? - International students with GA’s - International students with on-campus jobs -International students with an internship or full time job  International Education Services (IES) - Instructions - Request a Social Security Letter from IES  Rules and Procedures: - An offer of employment (i.e.: GA or TA on campus) - Visit Social Security Administration Office - You can choose the name that will appear on the ID  Do Not panic if you cannot apply for an SSN right now

Q&A