Let’s face it. Interviews can be downright stressful. No matter how ready you are, the interviewer always asks you a question that catches you off guard. Believe me, this situation has happened to me in many job interviews. Although I cannot guarantee that the Consulate Officer will not ask random questions, I can help you answer the more routine interview questions. My name is Arrin Hines, and I am the International Admissions and Retention Program Specialist at Tarleton State University. I have been a Designated School Official (DSO) for 8.5 years. I want to share 10 tips to keep in mind while you are preparing for your visa interview.
- Establish Ties to Your Home Country. The F-1 student visa is a nonimmigrant visa issued solely for studying at a US college or university. To receive an F-1 visa, you must demonstrate that you do not intend to seek employment or apply for permanent residency while in the US. Having a family member in your home country financially support your studies is one way that you can show strong ties to your home country.
- Strengthen Your English Skills. Your visa interview will be conducted in English. If English is not your native language, you should strengthen your conversational English skills before your interview. Language learning apps such as Duolingo, HelloTalk, and Babbel can help you practice and improve your English skills.
- Always Speak for Yourself. If a family member attends your interview with you, be sure to have a conversation with them to let them know that they may not speak for you. This is because YOU are the one who will be attending Tarleton – not your family member. Therefore, you must speak for yourself.
- Know Your Program and How it Fits into Your Career Plans. What are your career goals? Can you quickly and clearly explain what you want to do after graduation and how a degree from Tarleton will fit into these goals? Consider writing down your goals and then explaining them to a friend or family member. This exercise will help you think through and organize your thoughts into a meaningful, well-spoken answer.
- Be Brief and Maintain a Positive Attitude. Your visa interview will only last a few minutes, and your Consulate Officer will make up his or her mind about you within the first minute or two. So, do everything you can to make these precious minutes count. They will go a long way in determining whether you get your visa.
- Understand Your Supporting Documentation. Be very familiar with your supporting documentation, such as financial documents, I-20, test scores, and transcripts. For example, are you receiving a scholarship? If so, who awarded the scholarship to you, and why did you receive it? How long is your program expected to take? Are you academically ready for your intended program at Tarleton?
- Know Your Country’s Visa Requirements. Know the specific visa requirements for your particular country. For example, some countries may require a higher burden of proof regarding having solid ties to your home country than others. Please visit your Embassy’s website for more information about its list of visa requirements.
- Be Prepared to Discuss Your Future Employment. As previously mentioned in Tip #1, while you are in the US on an F-1 visa, your primary purpose is to study. It is not to get a full-time job and permanently move to the US. Therefore, you may be asked to prove how you will support yourself upon returning home, especially if you come from a country experiencing economic difficulties.
- Consider Your Dependents. A dependent is defined as a spouse or an unmarried child under 21 years of age. If you have dependents who will remain at home, how will you support them while studying at Tarleton? The Consulate Officer will want to know this information. Therefore, if you have dependents, be sure to give some serious thought to how you will support them while you are overseas.
- Remember These Special Considerations.
- Tell the truth on your visa application and at your interview,
- Disclose ALL your social media handles from the last 5 years,
- Disclose ANY previous arrests or convictions within or outside the US, and
- Thoroughly explain ALL prior visits to the US and in which visa status you entered.
Final Thoughts
Consulate Officers want to have candid conversations with students to discuss their intentions, family ties, career goals, etc. Conversations are authentic and let the Officer know how serious you are about studying at Tarleton. You need to help the Officer understand your situation by clearly and concisely explaining all the facts. Any fact about your case can be positive or negative depending on how you present it. The Officer will base their decision on whether your case makes logical sense. Therefore, you need to weave all the facts together into a cohesive, logical story and highlight the best parts of your case. Do not let the Officer connect the dots and make false assumptions about you.
Now that you have read these tips, do you feel equipped to tackle your visa interview? The more prepared you are, the more confident you will be in answering any question that the Consulate Officer throws at you. Please see below for additional information about visas. Best of luck at your interview, and I hope to see you soon at Tarleton!
Additional Resources
Education USA has created a series of webinars about studying in the US. Topics include student visas, financing your studies, American campus culture, and more.
US Travel Docs and the US State Department’s Study and Exchange website both provide detailed information on applying for an F-1 visa.