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How to Apply for a Student VISA You need to make an appointment with your nearest American embassy or consulate and apply for an F-1 student visa to come to the United States and study full-time. For in-depth information on the procedures for obtaining your student visa, access the World Wide Web: http://www.UnitedStatesVisas.gov. Before you apply for the visa, you should understand the process and the rules governing the issuance of a U.S. visa. Often, visa applications fail because students are not prepared. Don’t let this happen to you! Please read the following information carefully and contact us if you need more information. THE PROCESS Apply for your student visa as soon as possible to allow enough time for your visa processing! The embassy/consulate will accept your application but not issue your visa more than three months before the date you are required to report to Monroe Community College as shown on your Form I-20. The person who decides whether or not to give you a visa to come to the U.S. is a "consul." Consulates view you as someone who plans to remain in the U.S. permanently. The consul has to assume that your intention is not to return to your home. Do not be upset or take it personally if the consul says something like this to you! He or she must see you as someone who wants to emigrate to the U.S; it is their duty to treat you as such. Student visas are only given to persons who can convince the consul that they intend to return permanently to their home country. THIS IS THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR VISA DENIAL!!!!! You must have a good academic objective for coming to the U.S. and Monroe Community College to study that will prepare you for a career back home. You must be able to prove your qualifications for the program of study and that you can finance it. Be brief. Answer questions directly and to the point. Consuls can be impersonal when administering laws. In the U.S., laws are applied equally to all people regardless of status and gender. DO NOT TRY TO NEGOTIATE OR DISCUSS PERSONAL MATTERS with the consul. U.S. Government Officials require documents. You must prepare papers to show the consul that prove why you are qualified for a student visa. Keep a positive attitude. MORE SUGGESTIONS Be ready to clearly explain why you want to come to the U.S. to study at Monroe Community College. Why do you want to study in the U.S.? Why are you going to take this program of study? Why did you choose Monroe Community College? What career will your studies prepare you for back home? Present evidence of your educational qualifications for admission to Monroe Community College and the original copies of the financial documents you gave us. Your financial documents must match what appears on your Form I-20 (in item #8). Be ready to convince the consul that you will return home permanently after you complete your studies. Present documents that can prove you have “ties” to your home country, which are so strong they will require you to return. Prove that you have a permanent residence in your country that you do not intend to abandon by taking a photocopy of a deed or a lease to your home. If your family owns a business, take a letter from the bank describing it. If they own property take the deeds. If you have traveled to the U.S. before, emphasize that you have returned home before. If your program of study is in great demand in your country, obtain a letter from a possible employer stating that they are interested in hiring people with the degrees similar to the one you will earn at Monroe Community College. Do not emphasize any ties you have to the U.S., such as family members that live in the U.S. Practice your English. Unless you are going to study English on campus and it appears on your I-20 in item number 6, you are expected to be able to speak it and show your TOEFL score. The consul may ask you to read from a U.S. newspaper or discuss what your I-20 says. U.S. Employment is strictly controlled by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is not guaranteed. You are required to prove that you can support the costs of studying and living in the U.S. through funds that are available to you now. If you began your studies in another non-immigrant status (and you received a change of status to F-1), be prepared to discuss how your original purpose for being in the U.S. changed to that of a full-time student. Take transcripts to show what you have been studying. WHAT IF YOUR VISA IS DENIED? Denial on the grounds of 214(b) means that you did not present sufficient evidence that you will return home following the completion of your studies. 214(b) is the number one reason for visa denial. If you have been denied based on those grounds there is not much we can do except to advise you on how to better prepare for your next visa application. If you are denied on any other grounds please provide details to the college and we can try to advise you accordingly. This information was last updated on 8/15/03 - It is not legal advice - Please refer to http://www.UnitedStatesVisas.gov. for the laws regarding visa acquisition. | Admissions Process | Applying for the Visa | Entering the United States | Employment | Travel | International Student FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) |