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René Villarreal
Undergraduate Admissions & Info Shop
Director
International
Student
Undergraduate General Admission Requirements
International students applying for admissions
to undergraduate studies must apply for an I-20 A-B Form and must comply with
the following:
*Note:
the I-20 A-B Form must be presented along with a valid passport
and copy of an affidavit of financial support to the nearest
American Embassy or Consulate to obtain a student (F-1)
visa. All students pursuing a masters, bachelors, associate degrees
or a certificate must obtain an F-1 VISA unless they possess another type
of VISA which allows them to attend school full or part time.
Institution Transfer Procedures
A student on an F - 1 VISA maintaining status may transfer
to another institution of higher education in the U.S.A. The required length of time a student must remain at the school which
issued the original I-20 has never been determined. However, the student
must attend at least some period of time. There should be no break in between long semesters. A student cannot
obtain an F-1 VISA on an I-20 issued by a specific university and attend
a different university when first arriving to this country. This will automatically
place the student off-status and will be ineligible for student's benefits.
A student on F-1 may attend another institution during summer vacations
without transfer documents provided he/she will return to the original
school the following long semester.
A student on status transferring from one university to another must
follow these steps:
- notify the DSO (International Student Advisor) of plans to
transfer. DSO will request information on student’s status at prior
university
- apply and be accepted by the new institution
- submit a new letter of financial responsibility and proof of income
- submit a new I-20 no later than 15
days after classes begin
New DSO must add name of old school, new I-20 A/B and I-20 ID# from
old form. Sign it, indicate transfer was completed and return student’s
copy.
DSO will send a copy of new form to the old school and submit to
the INS
Data Processing Center within thirty days.
Transient Summer Students
A student who attends full time at any university in the United
States and wishes to attend summer school at this institution needs to:
- bring a copy of a valid passport with VISA
- bring a copy of an I-94
- bring a copy of an I-20
- letter from the university's international student advisor
stating student is in good academic standing and on legal status
No new I-20 need to be issued from this institution if the student is
only taking a few courses during the summer and is returning to his/her
university in the fall. If the student decides to remain at this institution, proceed immediately
with procedures applicable to transfer students.
Maintaining Status
To maintain status as an F-1 nonimmigrant, the student must
attend the school whose I-20AB was used to gain admission to the United
States. The student may not transfer to another school until he or she
attends the original school and obtains the permission of the designated
school official of the original school and completes proper transfer notification
procedures. The student must attend school full time for at least the
full academic year (eight or nine months). Students in semester-system
schools may take the summer off as a vacation. Students in quarter-system
or trimester-system schools may take any one of the terms as annual vacation.
An undergraduate student must carry at least 12 credit hours each school
term. Any deviation from this minimum requirement should be discussed by
the faculty adviser and the foreign student adviser. Student athletes should
discuss these regulations carefully with their coaches and foreign student
advisers to avoid conflicts. The regulations allow each school to determine
what constitutes full-time attendance by graduate students (9 hours), but
they, too, must attend school for eight to nine months each year. faculty
and students would be particularly careful to check with the foreign student
adviser when the student is enrolled in thesis credit hours since such
enrollment is often for only one or two credit hours.
Additional requirements of maintenance of status include a good faith
effort to keep a valid passport at all times, not accepting unauthorized
employment, and not transferring schools or changing programs without going
through prescribed procedures.
Health Insurance For International Students
All international students holding non-immigrant visas and
living in the United States must maintain approved comprehensive medical
insurance or coverage while enrolled. All international students from Mexico
will be excluded from the required health coverage, with the exception
of any student from Mexico who is on a J-1 visa and must show proof of
insurance under USA regulations. The cost of the insurance in the amount
of the premium approved for the U.T. System Student Health Insurance Plan
will be charged to the student. This charge may not be paid through an
installment plan. Information on the student health insurance program is
available through the Student Health Office.
Note: If you are a Naturalized Citizen or Legal Resident Alien, please
bring your certificate or card with you.
Note: University graduate admission status does not automatically
ensure admission to a college/school graduate degree program. Each
college/school sets program degree requirements for its graduate majors.
For information on program degree requirements, contact the Office of Graduate
Studies and Sponsored Programs
at (956) 548-6552.
For more information please contact Ms. Gracie
Moreno, Administrative Assistant at Gracie.Moreno@utb.edu.
The University
of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College
Undergraduate Admissions - Tandy Hall 115
80 Fort Brown, Brownsville, Texas 78520 •
(956) 882-8200
Office
Hours:
Monday -
Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Office (956) 882-8295
• 1-800-850-0160 •
Fax (956) 882-7810
Comments to admissions@utb.edu |
