F-1 Student Guidelines

For F-1 students, in addition to other applicable policies and procedures, they are required to observe the guidelines herein in order to maintain their F-1 status.

General Requirements

• Enroll by the 1st day of each term as a full-time student (18 hours or more of instructions per week).
• Inform the school within 10 days of the following changes: home address, contact information, sources of financial support, immigration status, and dependent status.
• Do not engage in unauthorized employment.
• Be sure to have a valid Form I-20. If your Form I-20 is about to expire, report to your student advisor about your intent to extend your program by completing and submitting the Service Request Form at least 30 days prior to the expiration date indicated on your Form I-20 and submitting it to your DSO.
• Provide the documents requested by the school within 10 days for any filing required by the school for compliance with any regulatory agencies.
• If you are a new student, report in person to the school and fully pay the invoiced amount agreed upon in order to undertake the courses in a timely manner. The tuition is due for the period and for the program indicated on your application form. The period of stay on the Form I-20 should be consistent as requested on the application form. No partial payments will be accepted.

Exiting the School

To avoid being terminated from SEVIS for failure to enroll, a student who plans to leave the school must complete and submit the Notice of Intention to Exit form by the 1st day of the term required to register.

When transferring to another SEVP approved school, the acceptance letter from the school must be submitted together with the Notice of Intention to Exit form. If the student does not meet the minimum attendance and/or academic requirement, the student will be released in terminated status.

Leave of Absence Policy

A student may request a leave of absence or take less than the required course load (less than 18 hours of instruction per week) by completing the Vacation/Drop Below Request form. Leave of absence is for continuing students and cannot be abused to extend the student’s transfer period between schools or stay in the U.S.

A student must meet one of the 3 criteria below for a leave of absence to be approved.

• Annual Vacation- A student is eligible for up to 60 days (2 terms) as vacation after completing 7 consecutive terms as a full-time student.
• Temporary Absence from the US- A student may be relieved from the registration requirement for the terms where the student’s absence from the U.S. is greater than 6 class days. The absence period will be determined by the plane ticket’s departure and arrival dates, which will later be verified by the student’s Form I-94.
• Medical Leave- A student who needs to take a reduced course load or no course load due to medical reasons must provide an official letter from a licensed physician. A leave of absence due to medical reason(s) cannot exceed 3 terms altogether during the student’s studies.

Traveling Outside the U.S.

A continuing student who has a multiple entry F-1 visa (not the F-1 visa obtained by the change of status in the U.S.), may be allowed to re-enter the U.S. if the following criteria are met:

• The student has a Form I-20 with current information that is signed by the DSO on pages one and three allowing travel outside of the United States.
• The student's visa and passport is valid (not expired) at the time when the student reenters the United States.
• The student returns and resumes his/her studies within four (4) terms.