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Home International Student Services Apply for F-1 Visa Tips for Visa Interview

Tips for Visa Interview

The visa interview is your opportunity to tell the consular officer about your plans while in the United States and what you will do when you have completed your studies. You should be prepared to show the following:

  • You have received acceptance to an SEVP-certified school. Your Form I-20 verifies this.
  • You have the financial ability to pay for school costs plus living expenses (the amount shown on Form I-20). You may want to bring copies of financial documents you provided to UofM. These documents are evidence of the preparations you have made to finance your stay (for example, bank statements).
  • You are prepared for the academic program in which you plan to enroll. You may want to bring copies of any standardized test scores, academic transcripts, diplomas or certificates from previous study you provided as part of your application to UofM. 
  • Your stay in the United States is temporary (i.e., you are not permanently immigrating).
  • The interviewing official may be interested in how you intend to use the education you receive in the United States when you return home.

Words of caution:

  • Proofread all of your travel-related documents (i.e., Form I-20, Form I-901 SEVIS fee receipt and visa) to ensure they are correct. Especially make sure your name and birth date are written exactly the same way on all of your documents. If you find an error in a document, have it corrected by the people who completed the document before you apply for the next document in the process.
  • Proofread your visa when the consular official returns your passport to you – mistakes in the visa information cannot be corrected once you travel. If you find a mistake in your biographical data or your visa type, contact the embassy or consulate to ask officials to correct the error.
  • Be skeptical of anyone who claims the ability either to provide a document that you need or to get you a visa other than as this guidance suggests. Be especially cautious of advice or outside documents that come with a consultancy fee, or any visa promises from private companies.

For more information on submitting a student visa application, visit Travel.State.Gov, the official Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs website.