by Viraat Harsh

From all that I had read, I was really very nervous from the day I took a date for visa interview. The fact that none of my first-hand contacts had applied for an F1 visa, nor did umartariq.com have a detail on F1 visa made me even more nervous. ;)

Ok so here it goes. F1 visa is Student’s Visa. To apply for F1 visa you should have an I-20 (SEVIS: Student and Exchange Visitor Information System form). Once you are accepted by a medical center/university for study there, if they require you to come on F1 visa, they will get you an I-20 issued and they will mail it to you by post. When you apply for F1 visa online, you will require the I-20 number (SEVIS number). Now the issuing of I-20 requires a payment to be made. Although the university that has accepted you, gets the I-20 issued, it’s you who has to pay the fees for it. So once you have the I-20 you can go to www.fmjfee.com and fill an online form (which is called I-901 and then you make the payment by a credit card) and you print out the fee receipt. This fee receipt is to be taken with you for the Visa IV.

To apply for the Visa IV date, the process is similar to the other types of visa other than you needing a I-20 (SEVIS form and SEVIS fee receipt). To remind you the steps are- fill in the DS-160 online, print the DS-160 confirmation, make a visa fee payment at an authorized HDFC bank (in India). Once you have the HDFC fee receipt, you can book you date for the visa IV.

Now comes the preparation for the interview. Make a file with all the required documents as you were directed (on the website) to keep once you booked your date for the IV. For me the list was something like this: 

• Visa appointment letter, 
• CEAC Barcode (DS-160),
• HDFC fee Receipt, 
• Affidavit of support (from my father saying he is capable of supporting me for all the payments required either for travel or study including if any unforeseen expenditure comes up), 
• Tax return forms of my father, 
• Original I-20, 
• KUMC acceptance letter (email), 
• SEVIS fee receipt (I-901), 
• State Bank of India certifying that my dad had the enough funds to support me, 
• Proof of SBI funds (copies of the statements), 
• Proof of my funds in other banks, 
• Proof of relation with sponsor (Birth certificate), 
• Copy of my passport with Original,
• Permission from my medical school stating that I was in the final year of graduation and was allowed to go for electives at KUMC and that I would have to return to India and complete the last year of graduation and will be given a degree certificate only after I complete my internship in India (this is a very very important document, I recommend all of you to get this made from your Dean’s office), 
• Marksheet of Std. 10 and 12, 
• Marksheets of MBBS exams, 
• TOEFL scorecard,
• Proof of accommodation at KUMC, 
• Affidavit of non-immigrant intent (stating that I am going only for electives and intend to come back to India so that my training during electives can help me work better in my country), 
• CV, 
• Snaps with family members (I know it seems foolish to keep things like these but believe me you will want to cross all levels of foolishness to get things right in the visa IV), 
• My temporary registration (we get one in India),
• Transcripts,
• Immunization records.

Well this is it for the paper work..

As far as differences between F1 and B1/B2 are concerned, there is no difference in the visa application process. 

1. As I have pointed it out earlier, you need an I-20 issued from the university for F1 visa and have to pay for SEVIS fee even before you can apply for the visa. Whereas for B1/2 visa no such specific document is required. In my opinion this makes it easier to get an F1 visa approved, coz you have a document from the university requiring you to come there. So unless you screw it up yourself, F1 visa is in your hands. So F1 visa has a plus point here.

2. Visa duration for F1 visa is only up to 2 months more than your desired duration of study. Like if you are going for an elective for 3 months, your visa duration will be for 4-5 months. Whereas for B1/2 visa you can get a multiple entry 10 year visa. Which is a big plus point.

3. When you get an F1 visa, on your visa is clearly mentioned which university you will be going to and it is taken for granted that you are going for that purpose only. For B1/2 visa there is no such restriction. I mean you might have earlier to decided to go to university A and applied for visa and later you get acceptance from university B so you can change your mind and decide to go for university B, there are no legal problems. (I myself faced a similar problem, I got my F1 visa for KUMC and later got acceptance from NWU also, for one month in the same period that I was going to KUMC for, but I had too much in mind and did not want to fall into the tedious process of status change etc. etc. so I had to turn down NWU)

This is all I could make out as difference between B1/2 visa and F1 visa. If anyone finds anymore differences please add the details here. So basically both the visa types have their own pros and cons. As long as you are getting a visa approved and going for electives, it does not matter on which visa you are going.

After the paperwork, came the preparation for the real interview, the thing which gives jitters to everyone. I have to say here that it has been exaggerated when people say getting a visa is tough and difficult, or purely luck. I agree, there might be exceptions but speaking in general, if your papers are right and you seem like a decent genuine guy, there is nothing to worry. But since nobody had told me it would be so easy I was trying to get prepared in every way I could.

I had made a set of questionnaire for the interview and I am pasting it here:

1. Why do you want to go to the US?

    I am going for elective rotation at Kansas University Medical Center.

2. What do you mean by elective rotation?

    Elective rotation is a short period of training in the US which medical students can apply for when in the final year of their graduation.

3. Where are you going?

    KUMC, Kansas City. KS

4. How did u get to know about KUMC?

    I heard about it from my friends and then I searched more about it on the internet. I mailed the International Programs Coordinator who then detailed me on rest of the things.

5. What do you know about KUMC?

    It is a University Medical Center, with a school of medicine. KUMC is the largest hospital for the people of Kansas State. Students get an opportunity to work in the clinics as well as in the labs. They make for a good center for research too. Every year they take a number of international students for elective rotations. They even have a separate house ‘International house’ for the students.

6. Where else did you apply?

    University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio

    Northwestern University, Chicago

    I applied to these universities, and UTHSCSA said they did not have a vacancy during the period I was interested in. And NWU said they would be able to confirm me only in May end because before that they accommodate their own students first.

7. Where will you stay?

    I will stay at the International House which is in KUMC campus and esp. meant for international students who go there for elective rotations. Later I will be staying at YMCA hostel or any hotels. (say if asked)

8. How will training at KUMC help you here?

    It will give me an exposure to the working pattern at a good center in the US, and will add to my experience of working in surgical branches. It will also give me an opportunity to see operative procedures using the latest instruments and techniques.If I am lucky, I might get an opportunity to get attached to a short term research during my stay at KUMC.

9. Mention names of some of the professors there.

    Dr. John Grant, an expert in endoscopic surgeries, Dr. Ania Pollack, oncologic neurosurgeon, gamma knife surgery

10. Why not elective in India?

    I wanted is to expose myself to the latest technologies and trends in US.

11. What exactly will you be doing in the elective?

    My job will be like that of a final year American Medical Student. I will be attending rounds, presenting cases, attending the outpatient department, observing various procedures in the operation theatres and if lucky, assisting in the procedures too.

12. Who is sponsoring you?

    My father

13. What is your annual income? (then how do you have funds in your account?)

    I am still a student, not yet earning. The funds in my accounts are mostly gifts from my grandparents and parents over the last few years. Also my savings from pocket money.

14. Have you ever visited any other country?.. (recall the dates of when you went)

    Yes I have been to Singapore and Malaysia for a pleasure trip.

15. Do you have leave granted?

    Yes I have permission from the Principal if my college. Do you want to see the papers?

16. Can I see you Business/visiting card?

    I am sorry I don’t have one.

17. Do you have a credit card?

    Yes.

18. Do you have any relatives in the US?

    No

19. How long will you be staying in USA?

    About 80-85 days

20. Will you work there?

    No

21. Will you come back?

    Yes of course, I am yet to graduate. I will be yet to complete 4 months of my graduate course before I can get the graduation certificate.

22. How can you assure me that you will come back?

    I am still in the final year of graduation. I will be completing my graduation after I come back. Would you like to see my Dean’s NOC which states the same? Moreover I am the only child to my parents.

23. What do your parents do?

    My dad is a doctor and my mom is a teacher.

24. What is your father’s annual income?

25. Does your father have any loans?

     No

26. Will anyone be accompanying you?

    No

27. When do you plan to travel?

    1st July and Around 25th Sept. return

28. Why do you want to return late after your rotation?

    Since I am going to the US for the first time, I want to visit a couple of places. I have a family friend in the US, Mr. XYZ, I would like to meet him and stay with his family for a couple of weeks. I would like to look around in the great country and learn from my stay.

29. Have you taken USMLE exams?

    No, not yet.

30. Are you preparing for USMLE exams?

    No, not yet. In the last year of graduation we are required to work in the hospital, and is quite taxing. I have to devote much time in the clinics.

31. Have you blocked your tickets?

    Yes

32. Do you have medical insurance?

    Not yet. I will be working on it after my visa gets improved.

33. What will be your total expense?

    Around 3000-3500 dollars

34. What places will you be going to while in the US?

    I will be staying for 2 months at Kansas City, KS. Then I am planning to visit New Jersey.

35. Do you have a scholarship?

    No

36. What will you do if your visa gets rejected?

    I will inform KUMC student coordinator and then reapply.

All this for the preparation, but the actual interview with a young Visa IV Officer (VO) went something like this:

VO: Hi

Me: Hello (smile on my face), How are you?

VO: I am good, and you? (smiling back)

Me: I am fine, thank you.

VO: F1? Where are you going?

Me: I am going to Kansas University Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas State.

VO: No tuition fees? Just $500 for the accommodation? Its basically a free ride. (Smiling)

Me: Yeah almost. I guess I was lucky.

VO: What are you going for?

Me: I am going for elective rotations.

VO: (confused look) Is it something like an observership?

Me: Yeah only partly different, coz in an elective you get to examine the patients and perform procedures, in an observership you can only watch the procedures being done. Moreover an elective you can go for only during the last year of your graduation while observership is after you have graduated.

VO: That’s impressive, but does it mean that you are not a doctor yet?

Me: Right, I am only a student in the last year of graduation. Only after I return and complete my rotations here in India can I graduate and become a doctor.

VO: I see. So when do you plan to leave?

Me: 1st of July

VO: Ok sir you visa has been approved, have a good day.

Me: Wow, that’s great!! Thank you, thank you so much. (And I was so happy and almost jumping with joy, so much so that the VO found it amusing to enjoy the luxury of a small laughter).

I had been asked to deposit only the I-20, photographs, TOEFL scorecard, and university acceptance letter before my name was called for the interview. That’s it. I was not asked to show any proof of funds or anything of that sort. Well may be I was just lucky, but being prepared with all the documents sure made me lot more confident. And so I believe, and you will agree that if you put in a bit, you can get electives too, coz you might be dumb and novice at all this but ‘I was once young and foolish like you’ ;) (I hope you can recognize the punch line ;) )

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