What are visas for international students in the US?
There are three kinds of visas for international students in the US. The F1 visa is for students who go to the country for a long-term university study program. The M visa is meant for job training, while J visas are for short-term academic exchange programs.
For F1, the wait time is usually long, and the delay has further increased after the universities started accepting international students after the pandemic. Hence, it is not advisable to wait long to apply for the visa. A visa delay can eat up crucial time at the university.
Mankerian-Stem, Director of International Enrollment at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, told VOA Learning English, students should work with the Education USA office in their home country and attend events where they can learn about the college and visa application process.
She further reminded that many times students got accepted by US universities to join their courses but, their visas got rejected.
Most common reasons why students visas get rejected
- They have not taken an English test such as TOEFL, IELTS or the Duolingo English Test
- They come from a country with a high number of fraudulent applications
- They say that they have family members living in the U.S
- They say they want to work in the U.S. when their studies are over. If a visa officer thinks a student may try to stay longer than permitted, the student can be rejected.
How not to get rejected:
Mankerian-Stem said she wants her students to have good answers ready during their interviews. For this, students who are applying for visas should speak to international students who are already there. “That way they’re not surprised by these types of questions and they’re able to be honest, but also be very clear about what their intentions are."
