How to get a student visa to USA
Student visa in the USA: how to get, documents and types of visas. This topic is of interest to many, so today we will talk about it. Foreign students need a visa to study abroad. The conditions and procedures for obtaining are different in different countries, today we will touch on obtaining a visa to the United States, and more specifically, how to legalize in the United States on a student visa.
Financial Guarantees for FMJ Visa Applicants
Another important question is whether you can provide your accommodation, a trip to America. If you have a sponsor, you need to prepare a sponsorship letter.
A bank statement is also required. Information about the movement of funds on the account, the amount of funds in his account. The sponsor can be a relative, spouse, organization, etc.
If you pay for the trip yourself, you need:
Bank statement
Information about the movement of funds
Applying for US F1 and M1 student visas in 2023
Obtaining a visa is a rather complicated and time-consuming task. A student visa can be issued to a person who has officially enrolled in a study program at a US educational institution, who has received confirmation from him. All partners of the educational expert are accredited educational institutions and therefore are licensed to provide educational services to foreign students.
After you have been enrolled in the course, the educational institution sends the original i-20 document . From the moment you have the i-20 form in hand , you can start collecting documents for applying for a visa.
When all the documents are collected, we begin filling out the questionnaires and scheduling an interview at the embassy.
We pay a consular fee (~$160), which is considered a fee for considering an application. It is necessary to print a receipt from the site, enter the student’s data, date, sign. Next, pay the fee. Do not forget to take your passport, be sure to keep the payment receipt, which has a unique code that you need to specify before signing up for an interview.
In addition to the consular fee, you must also pay the registration fee sevis. This fee is paid online on the official website, or by money transfer. The receipt of payment of this fee must be presented at the consular fee interview. The amount of payment for a student visa is about $200.
The next step is to complete the ds-160 form .
Next, we create a personal account on the embassy website and sign up for an interview. When registering, you must specify the unique code of the questionnaire ds-160 and the code of the receipt for payment of the visa fee. Then you need to print out the confirmation of the appointment for the interview.
A US student visa for language courses is obtained in exactly the same way as a visa for academic studies.
Features of obtaining a student visa in the USA F1
If you have entered a good university, then you will have no problems obtaining an F1 visa. In the US, there are universities with a bad reputation, which are supposedly designed to get a visa and stay in the US for good.
If the visa officer suspects you of wanting to emigrate, they will most likely refuse to issue you a student visa. Your goal is to show that you do not plan to immigrate to the US using a student visa.
Student visa for non-academic study M1
An M1 visa is required for a vocational profession, such as a chef, an actor, a military school, cosmetology, etc.
It is rare for anyone to travel to the US on an M1 visa as not everyone can afford vocational training because studying in the United States is one of the most expensive in the world.
J1 Student Exchange Program Visa
Students, teachers, interns, university professors, researchers can participate in the exchange program. To obtain this visa, you also need to pass an interview at the embassy, prove your connection with your homeland.
Exchange programs are needed so that students, teachers, interns from different fields of science exchange their knowledge, skills, and research.
Exchange programs can be different, some of which we will discuss below.
A popular summer program among students, lasting 5 months , May-October. 4 months of work, 1 month of travel. The main vacancies are the service sector: shops, amusement parks, restaurants, hotels.
Requirements:
full-time students
at least 18 years old
spoken English
Au Pair
This is a program in which we live in one of the host families and take care of the children. The contract is concluded for a year, in the future it can be extended up to 2 years.
Only required:
Knowledge of English
age from 18 to 26 years
certificate of good conduct
medical certificate
interview in English (for the host family)
no bad habits
possession of a driver’s license
experience from 2 years
recommendations
Camp Counselor Program
A program in which you, as an educator, are invited to work in a children’s camp around the country.
Required:
student, teacher, lecturer
age from 18 to 25 years
English (at a conversational level)
Inter Program
Students, recent graduates can get closer to American culture and gain work experience in their chosen field.
Required:
fluent English
age from 20 to 32 years
at least 2 years of work or study in the chosen field
personal qualities
Physician Program
A program through which doctors can conduct clinical, non-clinical practice in educational institutions in the United States.
Requirements:
medical education
age from 18 years
fluent English (must know TOEFL)
Secondary School School Student Program
Students can receive an American education at a private/public college while living with an American family or hostel.
Requirements:
age from 15 to 18.5 years
no more than 11 years of secondary education
not participate in such programs before
accommodation only in an American family or hostel
Students cannot work permanently, but can take one-time work with children, kindergarten.
Teacher Program
The program can accept foreign teachers and teach in higher / secondary schools in the United States.
Requirements:
age not older than 39 years (at the time of submission of documents)
Diploma of Higher Education
at least 3 years of experience
course description
knowledge of English
List of Documents for US Student Visa 2023
Form i-20
The i-20 form is at the top of the list of documents that must be submitted to obtain a student visa. This form is generated by SEVIS. This system stores information about:
educational institutions that have passed sevp certification
foreign students who came to the United States to study on FM visa categories attending these institutions
exchange programs funded by the US Department of State
exchange program participants
Form ds-160
This is an electronic questionnaire in which all the necessary questions are collected. Completing the questionnaire includes filling in the following items:
Student’s personal data
Travel Information
Details of the sponsor paying for the trip
Information about the last 5 trips to the USA
Contact information of the future educational institution
Parents’ personal data
Type of activity you are currently doing
Languages you speak
Countries visited in the next 5 years
Answer a series of security questions
Indicate the contact information of two people who can confirm the data about you
US student visa photo
Main photo requirements:
color photo
photo 51mm*51mm
photo on white background
fresh photo
photograph without headgear
neutral facial expression
both eyes open
no shadows in the photo
Example of an i-20 form and receipt for payment of the sevis fee
form i-20
sevis receipt
How to quickly and easily apply for a US student visa
First of all, in order to obtain a visa, you must contact the educational institution in which you are going to enroll. Provide all the necessary documents, pay the fee, after you receive the i-20 form to present it to the consular department and be able to go to an interview with the consul. Without this form, you cannot apply for a student visa.
After receiving the i-20 form, you need to fill out the ds-160 form, then schedule an interview. If the interview is approved you can plan your trip.
Interview at the US Embassy for a student visa
Schedule an interview at the US Embassy
You need to be very careful when registering for an interview, because even a minor mistake can cause a refusal.
You need to register only on the official website and only in English.
What to bring to your interview at the US Embassy
Required Documents
embassy interview confirmation letter
confirmation of the submission of the ds-160 questionnaire with a unique code
valid passport
one photo
Related Documents
The presence of such documents does not guarantee you a visa. Not the fact that the visa officer will request them. But it is better if you have them in a separate folder and, if necessary, politely ask the officer to look through them.
letter of invitation from friends/relatives
certificate from work
property documents
statement from the bank
How is the interview at the US Embassy
You need to arrive at the embassy in advance, there are always a lot of people and a long queue. If you are late, there is a high probability that you will be denied a visa.
Children under 16 are accompanied by both parents. If one parent is unable to attend the interview, a notarized certificate from the parent who is unable to attend the interview must be submitted. Which states that he/she is giving permission for the child to travel to the US, along with a photocopy of the original biographical and signature pages.
The first thing you will go for is a fingerprint scan. Next, you will have an interview with the consul.
There are no specific rules regarding appearance, but it is recommended to wear non-bright, slightly business clothes, do not wear a lot of jewelry, light makeup if required. This will be enough to make a good impression.
It is important to note that you can not take with you overall things, equipment, large bags, food, water.
During the interview, your ds-160 questionnaire lies in front of the consul and he focuses on it. Therefore, he has a preliminary recommendation and he already knows what questions he will ask you.
If we go to interviews in a group, choose one person who will answer the questions of the consul.
90% of the time the consul will ask you the purpose of your visit. The answer depends on the visa you receive. In our case, this is a student visa, which means you must answer that you are going to the USA for the purpose of studying.
Do not worry if the consul asks clarifying questions, this does not mean that you answer badly.
As you can see, most of the questions overlap with the questions on the ds-160 questionnaire. Answers in the questionnaire and at the interview must match. Any questions must be answered honestly so that there are no problems in the future.
Dependent family members of US students
If a student wants to bring their family to the States for the duration of their studies, all members must obtain a visa of the second category. It is considered a non-immigrant visa because it is dependent on the first category visa. M1 F1 visas can only be obtained by spouse, children under 21 years old. You can get a dependent visa only when the student receives a visa of the first category.
After the student receives the i-20 form, he must clarify that he is not traveling alone. To do this, prepare a separate form i-20 for visa holders of the second category.
In some colleges, it is already assumed that students will come with their families and this item is specified when applying. Family members do not have to pay the sevis fee, as they are not eligible for education.
The package of documents for obtaining a visa of the second category is exactly the same as for a visa of the first category. Documents confirming your family ties and significant evidence, for example, a wedding album, are connected to this all.
The term of the M2 F2 visa depends on the term of the first category visa.
To study, the holder of a visa of the second category needs to change his status to M1 F1.
Once you arrive in the US, you are no longer dependent on the student. You can travel, leave the country as long as the student has legal status.
If a student brought a child who turned 21 during the course of study, he must either change his status or leave the country. If a student receives a “green card”, then a holder of a visa of the second category also receives a “green card”.