A good amount of students arriving in US for higher education tend to transfer to other schools for variety of reasons like funding issues, on campus jobs, go to better university, study with friends, etc. Let me explain you clearly if you can really transfer and what the conditions are. I will caution you what not to do. I was a victim !
Can I transfer to another University before First semester?
Yes, you may, depending on the school’s policy and their consent with few conditions! It is usually not recommended by international advisors or DSOs to suggest you to do this in first semester. Ideally, every university wants you to study first semester in their university and pay some tuition as you came to US with their Visa. Let me caution you, every school policy is different; some may have policy not to do any transfers at all in first semester. So, it depends. If you ask them this question or call them, they will straight away not tell you that you can transfer and they will say, it is recommended that you study with us for the first semester and we do not encourage you. I did call couple of universities and they exactly gave ame the same answer. So, there is a big ‘IF’ saying it depends on University. But, if the International advisor or DSO thinks and the policy of University is in your favor, you can easily transfer in first week. Here are some of the conditions…
Conditions for Transfer of University before First semester :
Here are few conditions that are pretty much mandatory for your transfer to happen smoothly
- You should be admission to the University you are transferring to with a valid I20.
- You should be in United States on F1 Visa and with valid I94.
- You should be in proper legal status.
- The transferring University you wish to go should be willing to accept your transfer
- The classes should not have started at the transferring University you wish to go.
- You should not owe any fees to the University you are transferring from.
- The University should not have policy to prohibit transfers during first semester.
There might be few more conditions like, your department head at the university you are planning to transfer from might have to approve your transfer. If you meet all the conditions, you are set to seek transfer from DSO and ask for a transfer.
How does University transfer work ?
Your status information is maintained in SEVIS(Student and Exchange Visitor Program) records. It has all your legal status info, schools info, when you entered US, etc. When you ask the University to transfer you to anther university, all they do is, they release your SEVIS Info from their school and indicate the transfer school in SEVIS record. When you go the new transfer University, the international advisor again updates your status and you are all set. There is a catch here, the university should properly transfer you in SEVIS system, if not you will end up into problems as explained below.
What you should NOT do ? What can happen if you are not properly transferred ?
Your info should NOT be deleted in SEVIS by the institute you are transferring from. The DSO should do a proper release of your SEVIS record and indicate your transfer University. If they delete your SEVIS record or do something wrong, you will be OUT OF STATUS. This is what exactly happened in my case, I asked for transfer and they denied my transfer, but I insisted for transfer. The international advisor was mad at me and deleted my SEVIS record related to their University and told me that I do not belong to their University anymore. She gave me some paperwork indicating that she deleted the SEVIS record because my transfer was not approved by the department head and herself and the student insisted to transfer. I did not know what I was doing, I asked other advisor and she told “I was out of status at that point of time and I have to reinstate my status at the new University I was transferring to”. I came home and googled info and got scared. It is a long process… To re-instate, at the new transferred university I had to re-apply with all my documents like Bank statements, passport, I94, new I20 and a requisition letter asking to re-instate my status to the USCIS . It is like getting visa second time in US. If USCIS were to deny my reinstatement appeal, I would have had to leave USA and come back home. I did not have Social Security Number and I was not allowed to work because I was out of status for almost 2 to 3 months. It was a big tension for me. Luckily it went well and the people at new University were very supportive and I transferred. Overall, the key point is, do it the right away and clarify if they have released your SEVIS properly for transferring, if not you would be in deep trouble ! Trust me, you do not want to go through all the tension.
What’s the lesson ?
Overall, the key point to tell you is, you have to work carefully with University advisors / DSO at both universities and seek proper transfer to be in legal status. If not, you might end up in OUT of STATUS can be on the verge of leaving the country due to status issues. Be Careful !
What was your experience ?
i’ve completed my first sem masters in bussiness and leadership.now I want to change the university and want to join computer science.
is it possible?
Hey kumar,
I got admission in ‘X’ university and taking visa on its I-20..but after going there,i want to take a transfer to some better university than ‘X’ after 1st semester..is it possible and what is the process?
Hi, I am currently pursuing my Fourth year Bridge program in Computer Science in USA. This is because I have completed 3 years program of Under Graduation from India.Recently through a website I got to know that few universities take students with 3 Years Under Graduation for the Masters program in Computer Science.Now I’m in my 3rd Quarter of Fourth year Bridge program. I was planning on discontinuing this program and apply directly to the Masters program, as in my current Fourth year bridge program I have been given more of unwanted electives than the subjects related to my Major.
If i discontinue with this fourth year bridge program I’ll not be given any certificate,So is it OK if I apply to other University just as a International graduate? I don’t want to apply as a transfer student as the subjects I have taken in last 2 quarters are no way related to my Major.
Will this have a negative affect over my Application to other University as I won’t have any documents to prove I was pursuing my Fourth year bridge at the University? If i do apply to other University will they be able to see the records of the University where I did my Fourth year Bridge Program?
Please be real..only reason students transfer in 1st semester is to join a fake university which gives CPT from day one. they only come to a real university since F1 Visa can be easily approved instead of the fake university. these students have no intention of studying but only working on CPT and adding fake experience to their resumes.
Every College should ban 1st semester transfers and only allow transfers in 2nd semester . IF a student insists on 1st sem transfer he should be charged the whole year fee as a penalty.
Hello,
i got i20 from silicon valley university, and i want to transfer to another university in the first semister.Is it possible , if yes please share the process
If your school by any means mistakenly delete your sevis can it be restored if they want to or you start all over again
Hello this balram, i got f1 visa stamping for 4 years with 221g clearance on feb 4 , 2015. But my college reporting time is jan 26,2014,now should i defer my admit r i can go through with this? If i defer my admit my sevis number will be changed, then how should i clear the port of entry in US ? Please suggest me please .
As i read in your blog about sevis cancellation, i would like to know suggestion from you. My friend came to US 2 weeks ago with one university and he changed to other university and reported the old university about transfer but the old university people cancelled the sevis record. When called upon this topic they are saying only one word YOUR SEVIS RECORD IS CANCELLED. New university people are asking for sevis because the new university now my friend joined has no i20 yet as he applied as transfered student after coming to usa. It would be very thankful if anyone can give me suggestions. This happened 2 weeks ago but realised now when we caled old univ people. Kindly help me out with what to do..
hi,
I got 288 in GRE. My Expectation was 310+. Now My Consultant suggest that go on current score and you can transfer to other university after retaking gre. Is it possible?
Hi kumar,
I got my F-1 visa for X university in Dec 2014. I came to US on X university. When I came came to US I would like to take transfer but my university had rule that I have to finish my first semester at X University. so I am doing it now. My first semester at X university will finish by 30 April 2015.
I already have issued I-20 for Y University for fall 2015. Y-University will started in 1 Aug 2015. I am going to take transfer from X University to Y.
Can you please let me know who will hold my F-1 status if I am taking transfer from X (April) to Y (Aug). During summer(May, June, July) I am not going to have any courses so will it impact on my immigration status or no? or Should I go back to home country?
Hello i have F1 visa of X university i had to be in that university for Summer intake 2014 , due to some personal reason i could not go to US and admit my self i have the i20 also , now i want to join Y university , so sir if i get i20 of Y university can i travel to us on X university visa and get visa converted or else i have tourist visa as well, should i travel on that?
HI kumar,
I’m in some weird situation. I came to US in august’14 and later in next semester I transferred to other university in January’15. But due to some emergencies I have to travel India and I requested for temporary absence from school and told them I’ll join next summer’15, they dint accept my request and warned me that they will terminate my SEVIS. If they terminate my sevis, do I need to attend visa interview again or can I re enter US with new I20 from other school just paying sevis fee?
Thank you!
Hi
My case is complicated.
I got visa for “X” University and I am applying for transfer immediately before my first sem itself to “Y” University.
And I need to go to India during feb for 2 weeks for my cousin’s wedding. I know that I need not go for visa stamping again but I am scared whether this will affect my port of entry or travel or visa?
Could you please help on this?
Also, one more question is… I have heard that “X” university might loose its accreditation in future, if I join “X” university itself in the worst scenerio, Will I have to face any consequences in case it looses its accreditation in future like Out of status or credits loss ?? I am trying to contact my university itself reg. this but I have not got reply from them.
Please input ur thoughts on this.
Thanks!
Hi kumar
I have the same problem like you my sevis is deactivated by previous collage. can you please provide steps you followed to rerentry .
please help me its very urjent this is my first semister i entered to usa before a week ago they and requested to transfer my sevis from x university to y university with out notifying me they deactivated my sevis right away. please help me.
Prudhvi,
First thing you need to do is talk to the DSO/ International student advisor at Y University and explain your situation. The DSO at Y university will issue you and I20 and help you with the paperwork that you need to send to Depart of State. Basically, the DSO will ask you write a small letter indicating your situation and then along with that you will send the new I20 and any other supporting documents that your DSO says to attach with that. It will be processed by the Dept of State/ USCIS and you will get back the info. Some of these things could have changed in the last few years, you need to speak to the DSO and the Y university and get this going ASAP. Do NOT delay. There is NOTHING to panic, just be cool and follow the process suggested by DSO at Y university, you will be fine. Good Luck !
Kumar,
In one of posts i saw that i need to submit funds to complete my masters i dont have any bank statement in united states i have statement which i went to visa and loan approved document on previous collage. so what i need to produce and as you know my sevis is deactivated due to reason not reporting/presenting so as you mentioned above what reason might be helpful, to my consideration y collage is some what better than previous so i took this decision but i am not sure. can you please suggest me .
Hello , I had done graduation in BE (ENTC)-2014. Four year aggregate is 57% and got degree with first class from pune university-65%.. I wrote GRE and TOEFL and got scored 275 and 69 respectively. I want to know should i apply on this score? What will be job prospects? Will these scores matters at time of job or criteria like in india? I had published a research paper will it help? Should i apply to low tution fee university and manage to complete the degree, so what will the status or value in usa of tht degree? In the end, i have to repay the loan completely? or should i try cannada ? or should i write again exam?….tell me
I have got a weird case here, one of the university(say U1) I have applied to is saying that I have submitted the application late so they can only consider it for spring 2016. I badly wanted to get into that university. So, if I get an admit in some other university(say U2) for fall-2015, and admit in U1 for spring 2016, can I transfer my admission after my first term from U2 to U1 ?
Yes Mahesh, it is very straighforward for transfer and you should not have any issues. You need to coordinate the transfer by talking to DSO and both the schools. You can initiate this process after you enter USA. First secure admission at U1. After entering USA, you can speak to U1 and tell that you would like to transfer from U2 and it should be easy thing to do. Many students do this. Also, one key thing, make sure you take courses that are transferable to U1 from U2.
Sir, my first semister will be from 14 januafy 2015 at Texas Weslyan University. But i am going to New York so i want to be admitted in new university over there. What would be the process for that? I want to be transfered before my first semister. Please help me.
Sir, I got visa for VIU and i planned to make a deferral for next semester i.e, Summer intake in March2015..do i need to attend Visa Interview again? please answer
Hi Kiran,
I also got the visa for VIU and want to defer to summer intake.
how are you deferring? Can you tell the process.
I stay in hyderabad and wr do u stay.
Hi Saketh,
Just u nd to fill deferral form and send it to admissions dept with 65$. It takes around 7 to 10 business days for dem to prepare and send a new i20 to you. Please join wid me in facebook in F1 Visa Experiences blog so dat v can exchange info on the college. All the Best..Tk care..bye
Yea okay, how to add u on fb.
This is my fb id Saketh Karpe
Thank u
T.c bye
Hi
I got visa for one University and now I got admission for other University. So I am planning to go to USA and do transfer to the other. My question is: I would like to know if I transfer from one university to other, Do I need to attend a visa interview again if I go back to India in case of emergency or holidays?
Please reply.
Thanks
No need to go for Visa Stamping again.
Hi kumar.
Myself Pranav.
I got visa on x university . Now i want to transfer to y university .which I dnt have y university admit.i have applied to y university on dec13th. Will I get admission before submitting i94 form
Please help me
Hello Kumar, your case is really horrible. I have visa for UMBC and I wanna go to RIT. do u have any idea whether UMBC has any such rule like compulsory one sem or anything like that? Please help
Sam, I do not have specific details, you would need to talk to the International Student advisor or DSO at that university.
Hello,
I’ve got admission from fall semester at university and with that admission I changed my Visa from F2 to F1.Because it takes long time to change statues in USA they gave me I20 which is start from January 2015. Now I have got my F1 and I can start from spring semester, But suddenly the university told me that they could not readmit me for spring. they don’t say anything about the reason. At First, I wanna to know that, can university do that ? Second, can I transfer to other university?
hello sir,
i have 32 backlogs with repeatation counted gre 285, ielts 6.5. I am unable to get admits from univs but then my consultant wants me to join for MBA n after going u.s shift to any graduate program. i want electrical engg. is that possible shifting from MBA to EE??
Hello,
I am currently pursuing my undergraduate degree in Mechanical Enginnering at India and soon i am getting my greencard in december 2014.
I am currently in 3rd year of my undergraduation in india.
My. University is Gujarat Technological University.
I have 3.1/4.0 GPA
My question is What are my chances to get. into NJIT as a Transfer student? And. How much credits will transferred?
Should i go for applying for transfer student or Should complete my Undergraduation at India and then move to USA for Graduation (MS)
Please help me i am Stuck, Pull me out!
how many times we can transfer to other universities.
Hey iam facing the same situation not out of status though but reg transfer.
I got both X & Y I20. I got visa for X and came to usa. but I wish to transfer to Y before my sem ends at X i.e in between the sem because other will start by then.
Y DOES NOT FALL in 30 days arrival in usa. so I register for Y at first. X is ready to transfer but they say that you have to earn min 6 credits to STAY IN STATUS AT THEIR ‘X; UNIV so they say transfer after 1st sem which is of no use as other coll will not take as tht program takes only once in a year.
Can I register 1/2 subjects(if required) to stay in status at X and then take transfer immediately in a week.
Please let me know if i can really transfer.
sory in 4th line it shud be ‘Y’.. I shud register for Y first…..
sory again it shud be I shud register at X univ first.
Hello house,
I have quite similar condition and a question to ask, I am a student in X university and planning to transfer to Y university. Y university asked for me to fill out a visa clearance form which I realize that the DSO in my current (X) university has to fill and there’s a place like SEVIS release date. My question is, I am not really sure if I want to transfer.. I just want to see if this new(Y) university will provide some type of funding/aid since my current school does not.
Can I let the DSO in my current school know that I am not really sure of my transfer plan and I might have a change of mind any time? Please help and thanks a lot in anticipation.
hello,
I need help, i got visa on XX university(Michigan state) but i need to transfer another YY university(Delaware state) which i have’t admited from YY university. So planning directly going to YY university for admiton.
1) Is there any problem in immigration that my port of entry is different that mentioned in my visa.
2)Last reporting Date mentioned in XX i20 is on august 13th and YY university classes starts from September 2nd. Is there any problem if i enter USA on july 28th ? Why because YY university i want to transfer classes start from sep 2nd and i am entering USA one month before. So XX university creates any problem to transfer ??
Please help me friends its urgent.Thanks.
Hi
did you get through this? my nephew facing same issue right now.. Let me know how did this go with you…
you can reach me at 630.four14.6834
I got Utica College i-20 and it’s visa stamping in my passport on May 6 , I tried to create my password to Utica College and my student ID wasn’t allowing me because it can’t be found . I called to Utical College International office to report the situation , the advisor said my admission was cancelled on 1st April before I received my I-20 they posted on 28th March . I already have the F1 Visa stamping in my passport for Utica College and the valid I-20 from Utica College . With such a problem , have I fallen out of status ? Can I still get into United States and then transfer into a different school by gaining a new school admission I-20 ? I check my SEVIS payment online it still indicates PAID with my information available online when I check it . Am I still out of status even tho my SEVIS is still available online and the receipt still has all my information ? Please reply as soon as possible cos I am still in the country where I got my F1 visa and worried I will be returned at the port of enters
Hi,
I have a query.This may be a bit weird. But do guide me if anyone has a clue about it.
I initially joined in a university ‘X’ and had a GA too under the program director. Now,this guy is a real egoist and gave me a tough time including harassment at work. I Couldn’t complain as he was the HEAD of the Program and believed that no action would be taken against him. By the end of the 1st semester, this guy gave me enough bad time that i felt so miserable and came back to India deciding i would never go back.
After 4 months, i realized that i had dropped the golden chance and decided to go back before my VISA expires. So, i wrote to the Graduate studies and they activated my SEVIS which they terminated after i left. Now, since i did not have any option , i wrote to this proffesor indicating that i am going to come back for summer. He was real pissed off at me for not intimating him after i left. He wouldnt allow me to register for courses. Now, i have to go back in another 10 days to avoind my VISA getting expired.
I wish to transfer to another university without getting a bad record here and avoid academic suspension or losing status.
what are the options i have? plz guide.
Hello,
I have one question. I have got visa stamping on one university (University of Findlay) for MBA, however I later thought of joining MS IT and got my admission done in Valparaiso University. During this process I had defer one semester and got a new I20 from Findlay University for Summer intake (I also have the I20 of Valparaiso for summer intake). My only problem is the transfer fee which is mentioned on Findlay’s I20. How do I save my $3000 as it is a huge amount. I would rather use the money for my studies. Please help me and guide me through this.
Thank you my friend for sharing your experience. I’ll have a same process in two weeks later from now.
between all the conditions you mentioned in the article, the last one (The University should not have policy to prohibit transfers during first semester) is the most ambiguous. I, through one of my friends, asked the international adviser about any particular policy for transferring in first semester, and the adviser had no idea why a student should do that in first semester! anyway I hope this means that there is not any restriction in transferring in first semester for this university.
one more thing I want to ask, I found plenty of sites which CLEARLY states there should not be any problem to do this if you are eligible, but why there is still so much problem? is it legal they terminate you SEVIS status, while they should simply release your SEVIS? Do you complain about what that adviser did to your status? If something goes wrong is it possible we refer them to these sites?
http://www.ice.gov/sevis/f_1_transfers.htm#_Toc174419529
http://www.f1studentvisa.com/transferring-in/english.aspx
http://studyinthestates.dhs.gov/students/resources/transfer/f-transfer
http://studyinthestates.dhs.gov/students/resources/transfer
Hi sir
I got i 20 in ITU california,some people saying it is waste univ, may i have chance to transfer to another universiry with out having i20 of new university
hello Bharath ,
I have same doubt. I am also looking for transfer procedure. Can we do it before first semester ?
hello,
i hv applied for jan 2014 for undergraduation engineering and as you knw i will miss one semester i hv got in a engineering college in india . my mother is lik do ur first semester in india can i take a transfer nw i dnt wanna miss my first sem
It is not possible to transfer your credits from India to US.
HI,
I just wanted to know if there is a possiblity to change into another degree program of different university after one semester. I.e , if i am pursuing M.s in C.s in some university, can i shift to another university into M.s in MIS without repeating the first semester?
Brother,
This process is very helpfull. I have got a problem. I have got m visa approved for one univ and would like to transfer to the other. International advisors of both the universities accepted for this. Now the problm is first i would be reporting at Gannon, complete my transfer process and then report at wichita . The transfer process will be done. Once its finished i must return back India for attending my brother’s marraige which is a mandotory thing for me. And after marraige i am planning to travel back US on aug29th. As i my transfer process is completed, this time i would like to report at wichta directly. So will i face any problms during port of entry 2nd time ?
Hope u reply soon. I have been nervous regarding this.
Thank you.
Hi Kumar
ur artucle and the entire comment threaad has been really helpful.. I can only hope that this threat is still active n u reply to my comment..
I’d really appreiate if you would give me the name of the college where you have faced this problem. I wanna make sure that I do not get stuck there..thnx
Also, considering the long line of comments to your article.. I undrstnd that switching colleges post the 1st term is a common practice.. hence unless the college I would be attending poses any hurdles, a transfer should be a smooth process right..?? is there any interview of sorts with some authorities for this process jus like a visa intrview.??
appreciate a reply..
Dear Sir/Madam,
I’m Shakil Ahmed, a MBA (Master in Business Administration) of fall 2012, from Viterbo university which is in Wisconsin state,city of lacrosse . I got my visa at the last moment for which i couldn’t join this fall semester and now i’m planning to join next coming spring semester.i’ll be visiting NY first and my tentative date is 15th Dec 1month prior to my university semester starts.now i’m willing to stay back in NY and continue my studies in NY.i would highly appreciate if you give me an advice on the proceedings of the transfer systems as soon as possible.
THANK YOU.
Best Regards.
I am a dental student from India. I have been granted admission for X university, and have received I-20 from them. I was waiting to hear from Y university (my preferred univ), but since I hadn’t up till now, I went ahead and applied for visa interview for F1 for X. Now I received a provisional acceptance from Y. I would like to first delay my appointment for X, till I receive a sure shot acceptance from Y, then cancel my appointment for X, and reapply for F1 for Y, is that possible? Can I use the same HDFC bank fee receipt for applying to Y?
Thank you very much.
I am in U.S.A , Now my admission was cancelled in the starting of first semister can I transfer to the other university ..Please reply urgent.
please reply
is there any problem created at airport while entering USA back from INDIA when u have just recently transfer from ESL college TO some X-university. due to some reason.
already have 5yrs of X-university visa, and also done 1st semester in that university.
pls pls pls helpppppppppppppppppppppp urgent
I am doing my Btech 2nd year in Mechanical Engineering.
I wanted to go for transfer case in Brigham Young.
I just wanted to know what all must I do to get a transfer case.
And what must be my percentage in my third and fourth semester.
Pls help me as I am really tensed.
Pls guide me with all A to Z procedure.
I have applied for SAT exam what should I do after that ?
Akki,
Every university is different. Some accept transfer students, but some do not. Honestly, there is no single process. You should email the school you plan to transfer and ask them what they need from you for successful transfer. For you to successfully transfer, they should recognize your current schools courses and give credit for them…Send them the course list, syllabus and verify everything.
Bro my situation is complicated. I got in a uni. Applied for change of status then myspring semester i20 was cancelled because visa hadn’t come in time . visa came in a week aftr term startee. So basically it almost got cancelled the day my application of changing to f1 got approve . What so u think I should do here?
hi sir,
my name is rakesh..i got a gre score of 830 and my btech % is 58%..and i had 18 backlogs ..and i am abt to write my ielts xam.plz say that will i have a chance to get a university in us..and if i can change there to a better uniersity..i don’t know what to do ..i am losing all my hopes.please do help me . i am waiting for ur reply sir..thank u
Rakesh, Your GRE score has to be improved a lot to increase your chances of getting admission in good school. I cannot comment on IELTS. Just stay positive, prepare well and try again, if you think studying in US is your passion…
I got my visa stamped on X university. The university rule clearly states that you cannot transfer before completing one semester. I want to transfer to a community college [Santa Monica College] and I have it’s i20. Will my university bend the rules if I request? Or if I have to do a semester, will I lose credits on transfer.
Karan, It depends… Typically, you will not lose any credits, if you take courses that are similar to the courses of your program in the transferring school.
HI,
I wanted urgent info for the below questions:
1.I got f1 visa to X university for fall 2011,MSCS..But after that i got i20 from y for fall 2011,MSCS.. so planning to get transferred to csu fullerton..so can i transfer immediately for fall 2011 after going to US??when should i do it??what are the procedures??
2.I got many pre req stating that i have done undergrad in ECE background..but i have completed some of the pre req in my under grad work like dicrete math and linear algebra and operating systems ..can i waive it??how and when can i waive it??
3.one more doubt can i complete my course work within 2 yrs including pre req if i take more course work/sem??or is it impossible to do that??
4.I have a bank loan and it is taken for X university will that loan also be transferred to y university??what should i do for dat?
Nitha,
Here are my thoughts:
1. It depends on the school. You should talk to your international advisors at both the schools and then take a decision. Some schools let you do that, some do not…
2. It depends on the program and school…For few courses, you can…if you can show your previous course work and talk to advisor, you can get them waived.
3. Yes, it is possible. You may have to take summer courses.
4. You should talk to your Bank about this as they are the ones who dispatch funds. In my case, my bank was flexible. They asked for new admission letter, I20 and some other paperwork and they converted the loan to fund for new school after transfer.
Hi Kumar,
In the above reply you just mentioned bank will be still continue to fund us when we change and submit them new admission letter, I20 and some other paper work. what do you mean by other paperwork…Can you please explain little bit about the other paperwork you did.
Hi Kumar,
Thanks for this article. You mentioned @ the min conditions for transfer before 1 semester.
“The classes should not have started at the transferring University you wish to go.”
I have read through the ice website couple of times and couldn’t see any mention of this. http://www.ice.gov/sevis/f_1_transfers.htm#_Toc174419531
So i am in a case where the transfer in school start date (May 2) is before the transfer out school start date (May 31). I am planning to enter US on May 1 and then request for a transfer on May 2. So basically i will be getting the transfer approval after my new Start date. Will this be a problem?
Should i ask for for Start date extension at the new school?
Also how early can we request for transfer from the transfer out school? (i checked with my school and they said i will be able to report only on the orientation date which is way ahead of May 2).
I am considering two other options
1. Apply for a new visa.
2. Spend one semester in my current school (summer semester).
What do you think @ this options?
You are doing a great favor to me man. I hope this query will help other ppl too. Waiting for your reply.
hi kumar, thanks for sharing your experience and also for your valuable suggestions.
I have small doubt regarding transfer after arriving to US.if the new university international advisors accept for my transfer then whether the old university international advisors transfer or reject my SEVIS(cant guess what they will do) , will there be any problem?
If both of them agree, there is no problem. If the old University adviser does not agree, then you may run into problems like I described above.
hey really thx a lot, it will be very much helpful for me, as i m intending to transfer my university as soon as i go there. But other than I20 and admission letter is there another letter req from the new university stating that i m interested in this particular student ?? If so please inform me how to get it and what need to be in that letter …
And please tel me What do you mean by I94 and proper legal status ???
Thanks a lot
You do not need anything else. I did not had anything. It was just a phone conversation that I had with new school adviser and she said yes. I told her I will transfer and she said, they would accept me. Well, what I mean is, when you enter port of entry, you will be given I-94, make sure the officer at port of entry puts in right info like F1 and D/S. Read this : Sample I-94
and also watch this video http://redbus2us.com/us-port-of-entrypoe-procedures-%E2%80%93-video-2-min/
Hello,
I am currently in 6th semester of my B.tech (computer science) course in India. I have 2 more semesters left to complete my engineering. I am planning to get transfer to an US university so that I can complete the remaining course in the US and can get a US degree. Also I can get an international exposure.My college is also offering a program called 3+1 wherein we can study here for 3 years and get transffered to the US and complete rest of our course in the US. I want you suggestions. I really want to complete ma engineering there and get better exposures. Our college is offering UMass,Lowell university. Is this a good program? Also, is this university a good university ?
Abhishek, Personal opinion, I think it is a great idea to come to US for final year. You will learn so much stuff here and get lot of exposure. If I had a chance, I would do my bachelors from US school. Just look at your financial situation and take the call. I am not really up to date with Universities info, so I cannot really speak about the schools. I like the education system in US, check this for info : http://redbus2us.com/bachelors-and-masters-education-system-in-usa-vs-india/
I know that the system is really good over there. But my actual problem is that many of students who opt for transfer programs are spending a minimum of one year extra because of lack in credits. When we get transferred to US not all the credits if indian universities are counted. Thus i just wanted to know whether I may need to spend more then one year in the US for the completion of my BS or not?
Yeah, you may have to depending on the School and if the amount of credits that can get transferred. You should send an email or talk to the school and ask them how many will be transfered and then how many credits do you have to do to graduate, then you can get a realistic estimate and plan.
This is all shit ,i jus came to us with i20 of x univ ,and transferred to y univ with out any havoc ,this is all a easy process as my x,y univs are both A grade univs theres any problem in transferring .i jus applied for transfer and got all the documents-thts it they have transferred my status to my new colll.Do not get tensed up guys
Kamalesh, The university you came to was really helpful to you and let you do it. But, the situation explained here is where the University does not do want to transfer you and may create complications to your transfer. This article is just intended to explain the worst case scenario and warn the complications. I was the one who went through all the complications and am writing this from my experience and I did not make this up my friend ! This is not meant to scare or tense anyone !
Hi Kumar,
I got I20 from X,Y universities(dont want to mention university names)..and i appeared for visa with X university and got visa with X university.
Now i want to transfer to Y university and Y university is ready for that but the problem is X university has a rule that we have to study at least one semester before transfer and it is clearly mentioned on the university website but i was unaware of that.
Please help me..if i can do anything..
The reason i want to transfer to Y university is because of my health reasons and i want to be with my family friends who stays near by Y university..
Please help me..
Thanks in Advance..
Ramesh, If the University has a rule to study for at least one semester, then it is tough. It is very hard to work against policies of University and they do not consider our situation. If you try to push them against rules, they may try to delete your SEVIS info rather than transfer and you will be in out of status. If you get into out of status, it is big pain to apply for F1 visa re-instatement and I know the pain. It is very risky too. My honest suggestion is, do not do anything against the rules and cause trouble to yourself. You can transfer after first semseter. I know it can be very hard to be away from friends and family…, but if you think, you only have 4 months to go 🙂 It will go by soon. Look at the other positive side of coin, you get to experience the culture and style in two universities !
hello,
I am a student planning for ms in u.s.a.i got i20 from gannon university and visa from in the name of gannon university.the university orientation is on 4th jan but as i dnt have much time to be thr at 4th i asked the university official to give me an xtension date,so they gave me xtension for jan 15th.Now iam interested to got to university of northern virginia,i have the i20 of that college in the form of soft copy.am thinking to go directly to university of northern virginia on jan 10th and from ther i will cl to gannon university and say that am transferring to norther virginia university.so, will they transfer my admission like this?.or i need to compulsorily got to gannon university and inform them to transfer my admit?..iam totally confused.please help me.thank you
No, you cannot go to Northern Virgina without going to Gannon Univ. Your Visa indicates that you are going to Gannon and also your SEVIS record indicates the same. You will have to first go to Gannon. Also, you have to talk first with International advisor at Northern Virginia University and get an official I20 and Yes from them that they will accept your admission if you transfer from Gannon Univ. Only if Northern Virgina Univ says yes, then you should approach Gannon International Advisor and ask for transfer. Also, at Gannon Univ, they will have to properly transfer SEVIS indicating your transfer otherwise you will become out of status. Overall, you will have to come here and do all this. You cannot do anything from there. When asked at Port of entry be careful and say Only Gannon. Do not mention anything about the transfer.