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International
Students
Welcome to Wingate
University! We hope that your international experience will be a
positive opportunity for growth and development. You are an
important part of our campus life and each of you brings diverse
cultural perspectives that enrich our community. Please take
advantage of every opportunity to share your experiences with other
students, staff, and faculty.
Being an international
student brings a unique set of obligations and considerations. An
F-1 visa means that you are here to study under guidelines
established by the United States Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS). It is very important to follow these
guidelines, especially after the events of September 11. This
guidebook should answer some of the most frequently asked questions
about international student regulations and policies. If you have
more questions or do not understand something please contact the
appropriate school official.
Designated School Officials (DSOs)
Jennifer Armentrout,
Director of International
Studies
(Primary DSO, or PDSO),
(questions relating to USCIS,
employment, SEVIS)
704-233-8034 or
j.armentrout@wingate.edu
Nicci Brown,
Registrar
(DSO),
(questions relating to USCIS,
employment, SEVIS)
704-233-8126 or
brown@wingate.edu
You will find that
there are many other students, staff, and faculty on campus who will
be glad to help you, whether you need a ride to Wal-Mart or
someplace to stay over a holiday. It is up to you to ask!
SEVIS:
What is it?
Beginning August 1,
2003, all international students must have a record in the Student
and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). Each semester, the
PSDO (Jennifer Armentrout) must confirm with the Bureau of Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) that each international student has
enrolled at Wingate for full-time studies and is otherwise
"in-status" (see page 4). The PSDO creates a record for each student
and reports on his/her status each semester in SEVIS, the online
reporting system maintained by USCIS.
Other things must be
reported in SEVIS also. You must meet with the PSDO to request the
following:
- Authorization to
reduce your course load to part-time
- Program extension
(extending your studies past four years)
- Off-campus
employment
- Reinstatement to
status (if you have violated any of the conditions of
maintaining status)
- Transfer to
another U.S. college or university
- Reporting of a
new address
All of this
information will be put into SEVIS and a new I-20 will be generated.
Students cannot access the database; information can only be
updated/requested by a DSO.
Staying "In Status"
Before your I-20 can
be signed each year, the DSO will check to make sure that you are
"in status" as far as the USCIS is concerned. To maintain your F-1
student status:
- You must be a
full-time student. Full-time means 12 hours or above for an
undergraduate student. Permission to drop below 12 hours may be
granted under very limited circumstances in advance;
see PSDO
- You CANNOT
work off-campus without written permission from USCIS. See
PSDO at least 3 months before you would like to work to
begin the application process – USCIS is very strict about
letting international students work off-campus.
- You may only
work a maximum of 20 hours per week on campus. The applies
during a regular semester; you may work full-time between
semesters (i.e. over the summer) as long as you are registered
for the next semester and intend to resume your studies at
Wingate
- Do not let
your I-20 expire or become out-of-date. Item #5 on the I-20
shows you how long your I-20 gives you to complete your studies.
If you need longer than that, you must file for an extension
(see PSDO) at least 30 days before the expiration date.
Also make sure your major is listed correctly. If your major
or the time you need to complete your degree changes, you must
notify PSDO. Your I-20 gives you permission to attend
Wingate University only. If you would like to transfer, you will
need a new I-20.
- Do not let
your passport expire. If the expiration date is six months
away, call your home country’s embassy in the U.S. to see what
you must do.
- Notify PSDO
any time your permanent address changes. You should also
make sure that she has your current email address, campus box,
and phone number at all times.
What
if I fall out of status?
In some cases, you can
file for re-instatement to F-1 student status with USCIS; there will
be a fee (see PSDO). If your appeal is not approved, you will have
to return to your home country within 30 days. The longer you
wait to apply for re-instatement if you have violated any of the
above conditions, the less likely your application will be accepted.
You may even be barred from re-entering the U.S. for several years.
Leaving and Returning to the
U.S.
Before you leave the
United States to go home or to travel, be sure that your I-20 has
a current DSO signature. The back of your I-20 should be signed
and dated by either Jennifer Armentrout or Nicci Brown; the signature
shouldn’t be more than one year old on the date that you expect to
return to the United States. We recommend that international
students have their I-20 signed at the same time each year – usually
at the end of the spring semester.
What
if I forget to get my I-20 signed?
When you go through
customs at a U.S. airport, the official may let you back in
the country. He/She may issue you a temporary form allowing you to
stay in the U.S. for 30 days while you get together the necessary
paperwork to be officially re-admitted. If this happens, bring the
form to PSDO immediately.
Make sure you have the
following documents ready to present to customs:
- Valid passport
- Valid F-1 visa
stamped in your passport. It is legal to remain in the U.S. with
an expired F-1 visa as long as you are in status and have a
valid I-20, but if you leave the country with an expired F-1 you
will not be able to re-enter the U.S, except for trips of less
than 30 days to Mexico and Canada
- Valid I-20 with a
current signature
- Valid I-94
Employment: On-campus and Off-campus
Students should be
very careful about working off-campus. A violation of USCIS
regulations regarding international student off-campus employment
may jeopardize your opportunity to work in the U.S. in the future or
obtain legal resident status. When considering applying for an
Employment Authorization Document (EAD), always consult with the
PSDO to determine eligibility and go over procedures in detail.
On-campus
You do not need
special permission from a DSO to work on-campus. To find out what
kinds of campus jobs are available, see someone in the Office of
Financial Planning. You will need to get a social security number to
get paid (see page 8). You may work no more than 20 hours per week
while school is in session. You may work up to 40 hours a week
during breaks.
Off-campus
Students may work
off-campus only under limited circumstances. Off-campus work
authorization must be granted by USCIS. To get this authorization,
you should see the PSDO at least three months in advance of
the date you would like to start working. You must have been a
student at Wingate for at least nine months before you can apply for
any of the below options. It takes at least three months to get a
work authorization card from USCIS, so plan ahead (CPT is the
only exception – see below.) These are the situations under which
you can apply for an off-campus work permit:
1. Curricular
Practical Training (CPT). This type of employment is
usually done via a paid internship that is required of your degree
program. The purpose of CPT is academic, not financial. To be
eligible for CPT, your academic advisor must submit a letter stating
that the employment is either an integral part of your degree
program or is required as part of an academic course, and include
the course name and the number of credit hours you will receive for
the work experience. You will also need a letter (on company
letterhead) from an employer stating: a) Your job title/job
description; b) Exact start/end dates; c) Hours per
week; and d) Employment address/phone number. You must
have written permission from the PSDO on your I-20 BEFORE beginning
CPT employment. You should submit this paperwork at least two weeks
before the beginning date of employment. CPT authorization must be
renewed each semester. Although there is not a limit to part-time
hours of CPT, students should keep in mind that 12 or more months of
full-time CPT will cancel out post-completion OPT.
2. Optional
Practical Training (OPT). Students
generally apply for OPT over summer break and/or after graduation.
Although the employment must be related to the major program of
study, OPT is not as strictly academic as CPT. You do not have to
receive academic credit to engage in OPT employment. You must apply
to USCIS (through the PSDO) for OPT at least three months before the
proposed date of employment (You can apply up to 120 days before
your proposed employment start date.) Students are given a total of
12 months of full-time OPT, so if you use three months of OPT one
summer you have nine months left, etc. Many students wait until
graduation to take advantage of the full 12 months at once. You may
travel outside of and return to the U.S. during post-completion OPT
with a valid work authorization card from USCIS. NOTE: USCIS charges
a $340 fee to apply for OPT.
3. Severe Economic
Hardship. Students may apply to work off-campus by proving to
USCIS that there is a serious economic need to do so. USCIS will
need to see documentation of an unforeseen and drastic change in the
student’s financial situation that did not exist when the student
was first given an I-20. Examples might include a severe devaluation
of the student’s home currency, political changes in the home
country that have displaced the student’s means of financial
support, or other unforeseen changes in the student’s finances (like
unforeseen medical expenses). You should include a personal letter
explaining the situation and any other documentation you can provide
(like bank statements, newspaper/internet articles, copies of
medical bills, etc.) Your sponsor/parent may also wish to submit a
letter explaining the reason(s) for the change in financial ability
to support you if appropriate. Economic Hardship must be renewed
each year. NOTE: USCIS charges a $175 fee to apply for Economic
Hardship.
Health Insurance
Wingate University and
the federal government require that international students have
health insurance for the duration of their studies. Even though you
may already have health insurance in your home country, it may not
cover you in the U.S. If it does, coverage is probably fairly
limited and would not cover expenses such as medical evacuation
(which could literally cost tens of thousands of dollars). You
should know that health care in the United States is very expensive.
Just one night’s stay in a U.S. hospital can cost up to $10,000.
Because appropriate
medical coverage for international students is so important,
students are automatically enrolled in a policy through HTH
Worldwide. This policy was chosen after extensive research into the
best, most cost-effective policy for our international students. You
will be automatically enrolled each year. Coverage begins in August
and ends in May, the length of the normal academic year. A charge of
$477 will be billed to your account each fall. If you are planning
to stay in the U.S. for more than nine months, you will need to
purchase additional coverage ($53 per month).
HTH maintains an
excellent website at
http://www.hthstudents.com/
if you would like more information. You will be assigned a Username
and Password to access personal information.
Social Security Cards
Every U.S. citizen is
issued a social security number for identification purposes by the
government. We use this number to fill out tax forms, to apply for
loans, to get a driver’s license, etc. International students will
need a social security number to work on-campus (or off-campus --
see "Employment"
above.) A new policy by the Department of Motor Vehicles also says
that you must have a social security number to get a driver's
license. You do not need a social security number to open up
a bank account.
You must have a job
already lined up to get a social security card. Once you have a
job, these are the things you'll need:
- A letter from
your employer. (Print this
sample letter to give to your employer as an example of what
information must be included be in the letter.)
- A letter from
Jennifer Armentrout.
- Your I-20, I-94,
passport, & visa
- A completed
Social Security
Card Application. You can also get the application in Nicci
Brown's office, or at the Social Security Office.
Once you get everything
together, you will need to take the documents to the Social Security
Office in Charlotte (or Wadesboro):
Suite
300, 5800 Executive Center Drive
Charlotte, NC 28212
(800)
772-1213
Office Hours:
Helpful Websites
USCIS
http://www.bcis.gov/graphics/index.htm
eduPass: General
information for studying in the U.S.
http://www.edupass.org/
Foreign Embassies
in Washington D.C.
http://www.embassy.org/embassies/
Foreign Embassies:
Websites
http://www.state.gov/misc/10125.htm
Green Card Lottery
http://usagcls.com/index.asp?Prom=googleGCL.html
Social Security
Administration (frequently asked questions)
http://ssa.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/ssa.cfg/php/enduser/std_alp.php?p_cat_lvl1=16
U.S.
Embassies/Consulates Overseas
http://www.state.gov/www/regions_missions.html
International House
is a non-profit organization established in 1981, dedicated to
serving the international community of Charlotte and encouraging
cross-cultural communication and understanding.
http://www.ihclt.org/mission.asp
