How to apply for US F1 Visa

All accepted undergraduate and graduate program students from India require an F1 visa stamping to get into the U.S.A and stay there for the entire duration of the program. In this blog we will try to address the most frequently asked questions on how to apply for a student visa, the basic documentation needed, and issues to tackle before you can confidently answer the F1 visa interview questions at the American consulate.

Visa Descriptions and Qualifications

If you are applying for regular graduate programs (like an MS/MBA degree) or undergraduate courses, you’d need an ‘F category visa’. As a student, you will need an F-1 visa and your dependents (if any) would need an F-2 visa.

There are also other types of non-immigrant visas like the ‘J visa’ (exchange visitors), ‘M visa’ (for vocational and non-academic programs), ‘B visa’ (visitor) and of course the ever popular H1B and L1 categories (work permits).There are two student visa categories, F-1 and M-1.

F-1: The F-1 visa permits students to enroll in a full-time course of academic study, leading to a degree such as the Doctorate, the Bachelor or Master’s Degree or a high school diploma.

M-1: The M-1 visa is for non-academic or vocational education, and it includes courses of study in fields such as aviation, language studies, gemology etc.

Criteria for qualification for student visa 

• Admit from a SEVP certified university: The first and the foremost criteria for going for the student visa is to have an admission from a (Student and Exchange Visitor Program) SEVP certified university. These universities can issue the I-20 (main thing which sets the visa process going). 
• Capacity to complete your degree: You should be able to demonstrate that you are capable of completing the MS degree in USA. This can be achieved by showing your previous academics (CGPA), GRE score & relevant projects.
• You have enough money to sponsor your education
• You should not be a potential immigrant and explains that you would return back to (home country) upon completion of your studies.

The I-20 form issued by the university and a valid Indian passport are two essential documents for obtaining an F1 (student) visa. Your passport must be valid for at least six months from the date of travel. 

Once you get I-20 forms from all the universities offering you admission you will have to decide which university you wish to join. Of course even if you book a date for visa interview for a particular university, you can change that university before you appear for the visa interview, either through VFS or directly at the consulate. 

Carefully check that the information printed on the I-20 form is correct and has no mistakes in spelling or the dates. If you find any mistakes send the I-20 form back to the university requesting them to issue a corrected I-20 form. If there are mistakes your visa can be rejected on technical grounds.

How to Apply?

• Complete the SEVIS (STUDENT AND EXCHANGE VISITOR INFORMATION SERVICE) form
• Go to www.fmjfee.com
• Click on Submit I-901 form and submit fee payment
• Fill out the information appropriately
• Finally pay the $200 Sevis Fee and save your receipt
• Completion of DS – 160 Form
• Go to http://www.ustraveldocs.com
• Fill out the form appropriately
• Don’t forget to save your Application ID
• Fill out the form and submit it. Now you are ready to take your Visa Date
• Create your profile at the UStraveldocs
• Go to http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/index.html?firstTime=No
• Click on Create Account
• Fill out the form appropriately
• Pay the Visa Fee
• At the end of the form, in payment option select over the counter – Axis Bank
• You have to take out the print of the slip opened in the new tab
• Take that slip to Axis bank and Pay $160  and receive the confirmation receipt
• Schedule an Appointment
• You must schedule two appointments; one for the VISA Application Center (VAC) and one for the visa interview at the Embassy  or Consulate
• You will need three piece of information to book an appointment: your passport number, VISA application Fee receipt,  10-digit bar code number from your DS-160 confirmation page
• Visa Application Centre appointment
• You will have to visit VAC for Biometrics test
• You will be required to bring 
• A valid passport
• DS-160 confirmation page
• Appointment confirmation page
• After visit to VAC, you will need to visit to the Embassy for the interview
• Visa Interview at US Embassy
• For visa interview, you will be required to bring the following documents:
• A printed copy of your appointment confirmation letter
• Current and old passports
• Supporting document as per your Visa type
• Applications without all of these items will not be accepted

Where Can I apply for an F1 visa in India?
 Candidates, who need to apply for F1 visas in India, will find U.S. Consulates in the following cities:

• Hyderabad
• Chennai
• Kolkata  
• Mumbai
• Bangalore (a virtual consulate) 
• The U.S. Embassy in New Delhi has a consular section as well

This means if you are located in other cities, you will need to travel to the closest U.S. embassy / consulate for the F1 visa interview and to get your student visa stamped.

In the next blog, we are going to discuss the most frequently asked questions for the F1 Visa and the best strategies to answer these.

Most frequently asked F1 visa interview Questions & Answers

Disclaimer: We aren’t any legal experts and this post is just to give you a quick overview of the F1 visa requirements to enter and live in the USA as a graduate student.

About Skill Maestro At Skill Maestro, We guide prospective students about the entire application process as well as suitable universities as per their profile/test scores. We have consulted dozens of prospective students for MIS across the globe. We have a physical presence in Indore where we also help students prepare for GRE, GMAT & SAT Follow Us  on Google+!

About the Author Pankaj has been consulting on the MBA application process / Study abroad opportunities since 2009. He is chief mentor and consultant at Skill Maestro, a GMAT prep and MBA admissions consulting company launched in 2009 and has since helped thousands of clients gain admission to the most selective business schools in the world, many with merit scholarships. He has been conducting seminars and webinars for various professionals to help them realize their potential for Top B-Schools. Being 97 percentile scorer (Top 3%) in GMAT, Pankaj has strong grasp on the exam structure and his comprehensive study material has helped thousands of candidates to score high in GMAT. His expertise in delivering flawless, scholarship oriented essays makes him most sought after admission consultants in India Follow him  on Google+!