Staying
in Status
| SEVIS
Requirements | Address
Changes | Full-Time
Enrollment |
| Transfer
| Program Extension
|
SEVIS
Requirements
All international students at the University of North
Dakota have new SEVIS I-20 forms for themselves and
for any dependents that they may have with them in
the U.S.. SEVIS stands for Student and Exchange Visitor
Information System, and from August 1st, 2003, all
old I-20 forms have been replaced with SEVIS documents.
With the advent of the SEVIS system, international
students at UND need to be aware that failure to abide
by the regulations of their F-1 student status could
have serious consequences for their future in the
United States. Once a violation of status has taken
place, there are no “easy fixes”. Please
feel free to consult with your International Student
Advisor at any time should you have questions, because
immigration regulations can change frequently.
At this time, UND is using the SEVIS RTI (Real Time
Interface) system. All new and continuing international
students must have their records validated in the
SEVIS system each semester. The International
Student Advisor will check that students are enrolled
and registered for a full course load before validating
the student's record each semester. If a student
is not registered for classes, their SEVIS record
will not be updated, and will expire after a certain
time. At that point, the student's I-20 will
become invalid and cannot be used for travel.
One of the
principal purposes of SEVIS is for the U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Sevices (USCIS) to have access to
up-to-date student immigration records. It is
the student's responsibility to keep these records
up to date by informing their International Student
Advisor in a timely fashion of address changes, enrollment
changes, changes in major and the need (if any) for
a program extension. Failure to meet these requirements
can have serious consequences for international students.
Please talk to your International Student Advisor
if you have any questions about SEVIS.
Back to top
Address
Changes
All students are legally required to report an address
change to USCIS by notifying their International Student
Advisor within 10 days of the change. You may notify
the International Student Advisor of the address change
by email
or by completing the Change
of Address Form. Failure to do this can
jeopardize your student status. Please also
remember to update the UND Registar's Office or update
your address on Campus Connection.
Back to top
Full-time
Enrollment
All international students must be
enrolled full-time during the fall and spring semesters.
For undergraduate and graduate students, UND defines
“full-time” as a minimum of 12 credits.
Graduate students with a quarter-time assistantship
must enroll for a minimum of 8 credits per semester.
Graduate students with a half-time assistantship must
enroll for a minimum of 6 credits per semester.
Any exception
to the full courseload requirement must first be approved
and authorized in SEVIS by the Office of International
Programs. Students who drop below full time
status without prior authorization from their International
Student Advisor will be considered "out of status"
and will have to apply to USCIS for reinstatement.
Click here to download
the Reduced Courseload Request Form.
Back to top
Transfer
Students must notify the Office of International Programs
both of their intent to transfer and the name of the
school that they intend to transfer to. The International
Student Advisor will update the student’s SEVIS
record to show a “transfer out” and a
release date. After the release date, the school that
the student is transferring to will have access to
the student’s SEVIS record, and can print them
a new SEVIS I-20 form. If you are applying to
more than one school, you must make a concrete decision
about the school you wish to transfer to so that we
can transfer out your record to the correct school.
Students who are transferring to another school may
receive a "Transfer Eligibility Form" from
that school as part of the transfer process.
The International Student Advisor at UND will need
to complete that form and return it to the transfer
school. Please call 777-4231 and make an appointment
to have this form completed.
Back to top
Program
Extension
If you will be unable to complete your program of
study by the completion date on your I-20 form, you
must apply for a program extension before this completion
date. Students will only be granted an extension under
certain circumstances. One of the conditions
of F-1 status is that international students must
be making normal progress towards the completion of
their degree program. Delays caused by academic
probation or suspension are not acceptable reasons
for program extension. The delay in completion
must have been caused by compelling academic or medical
reasons. Students who fail to apply for a timely
extension will be considered out of status, and will
have to apply to the USCIS for reinstatement.
To apply for a program extension, you must have your
advisor complete a Program Extension Request form
and return that form to the Office of International
Programs. Click here
to download the Program Extension Request Form.
Back to top
|
