<p>Sefago, hi?? Wow i heard about the visa thing. I am so sorry mann! My bro said you should write to the school informing them about what happened. Then ask them if there's anything they could do(i.e maybe plead to the us embassy to set another date for you). </p>
<p>THis same situation happened to a friend of mine and this is what he did. His school contacted the US embassy and they set another date in the next 2 days.</p>
<p>So the best thing to do Sefago is to write to the school as soon as possible so the the school can worry about it.</p>
<p>Hello Sefago. I feel really sorry for you man. The sad thing is that you're not the only one: I know at least 4 other Nigerians who were also arbitrarily refused visas. And they all have the same story - the consular officer didn't look through all of their documents before making his/her final decision. It's kinda freaking me out: Got my interview in a week or so. I think that you should send an email to your school (probably the person that issued you your I-20) and inform them.</p>
<p>Maduka what is your phone number. I am having problem rescheduling another appointment.Anytime I click submit on the visa appointment page it shows this:Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80040e14' </p>
<p>[Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver][SQL Server]Cannot insert duplicate key row in object 'tblapptdetails' with unique index 'IX_tblapptdetails'. </p>
<p>sefago, I am so sorry to hear about the visa refusal. I am heard of cases or reappeal to the cpnsular-but I dont know exactly how it works.</p>
<p>Maduka most people here are class of 2010-later on in the application process other 2011's would start coming on. I am sure someone here would help you. You can mail me if you need help. But dont worry its still quite early. relax and ensure you dont waste you gap year. Good luck man</p>
<p>sefago, I'm really sorry about what happened...but I doubt you can make another appointment online within such a short time; I think the window is six months. personally I think the school can't do much to help cos it's not their decision - at least they issued you an I-20. You could petition the consular officer, but I IMO, your best option would be to contact the USEAC in Abuja [if that's where you're based] or in Lagos, and they can actually appeal on your behalf and things will go smoothly...and lastly pray hard, cos I know in nigeria, the visa issue is a totally different scenario.</p>
<p>hey switch,
am sorry extrememly busy working and i cannot afford to get internet @home ... am no more in skool ..hehe
i dnt really have any problems with e 1-20.. wen i get to mtholyoke since am a transfer student ..it wld be worked out ... have u gotten ur visa yet? u re still coming to amherst right?
.....i can see dat there are new ppl here..welcum</p>
<p>sefago.. am sorry about the visa thingy but i just think u need to push for what u want.....if it comes to the worst, defer the admission, do something very productive for a yr and go for anoda interview..
cos some of ma friends had thesame experience at the embassy...</p>
<p>but i guess u can appeal and get ur skool to fight for you now depending on e ppl in e college.. am sure it can be done ...goodluck dough...</p>
<p>Ukay, it's nice to have you back. Was wondering what happened to you. See you in a month or so.</p>
<p>Sefago. My advice is that you join the EAC as soon as possible. They have helped people that were refused visas to get appointments like a week later using referral letters. I hear that you can't get another appointment until 6 months after if you don't get a referral letter but you have to show that your situation has changed in either case. If you don't want to stay at home for another year, the people at the EAC can help you. I strongly recommend that you join (if you haven't already)</p>
<p>Hi switch,
What does the EAC stand for and where is their location( in lagos). HOW was your visa interview? Explain to me in detail how it went.</p>
<p>I am going for another interview on the 2nd of august. I really need as much help as pssible from you guys. I have several questions I would be grateful if anyone could answer.
1) Is it possible to get a visa if you are going for the second time?
2) I was told at EAC that if you have'nt attended school for a year the probability that you are going to get a visa is 0?
3) What other reasons do they refuse visa requests?
4) Does anyone know someone who is going for an interview for the second time? please let me talk to such a person through college confidential.</p>
<p>1) Yes, very very possible. I met a guy here a couple of weeks ago who received his visa 2 or 3 weeks after being denied at first. His second interviewer asked him: "Why do think I should give you a visa since my colleague denied you one?" Being denied a visa is not a big issue and everything could've been alright with your app. except for some small issue which you may never find out about without insider information. The guy I talked about is not the only one...there are several others here [who I've not met in person, though] who've reapplied and got their visas.</p>
<p>2)If you've been outside school, that's no problem. I've been out of school for 2 years now. What's important is how you've spent your free time so far. For my interview, I brought all the various certificates I'd earned from different programs to prove to them what I'd been doing all this while. Also, I've been interning at the EAC here since January...so you have to have been doing something. You don't have to have certificates to prove that. I also know a guy here who's been out for 1.5 yrs. He reapplied to American schools and I don't think he's been doing anything but reading novels, and he got a visa. Besides everyone in Zim finishes school in December so they all wait at least 6mths before leaving or sometimes 1.5yrs. I've not attended school for 2yrs and I got mine and anyway, most Nigerians are out of school for 1yr before going to university, whether home or abroad and many of my friends got visas to the US last year and of course, we'd all been out of school for 1yr.</p>
<p>3) If you don't come across as someone who knows what s/he's doing e.g. those who have relatives apply for them from the U.S. Also, if you're going to a community college, they may think you're not a bona fide student and may want to use that opportunity to illegally emigrate. Also you have to take the cue and speak out some information you think may be important for them to know and present "every" document you can think of to make your case.</p>
<p>4) No, I don't. Personally, I think it's harder to get a visa in Nigeria within 6mths of denial...they have so many people to deal with. But don't despair. You want to go to Georgetown.</p>
<p>Congrats switch! How was your interview? Just a chat I'm sure...</p>
<p>yeah, sefago, join the EAC and you can't go wrong. But, man, it's a juicy $200 to become a member. Compare that to the $40 fee here. But, really, you don't NEED to join EAC to get a visa...but just look out for all the help you can get and spare nothing.</p>
<p>I have booked an appointment for the 2nd of august. The American Embassy allows you book appointments immediately you have been denied a visa so I will be going for a new interview next week. What do you advise me to say if the interviewer asks me "Why do think I should give you a visa since my colleague denied you one?" .Also ask your friend what he said. I know cases differ but I want to get an idea of what i can say. I have met close to 50 people who have been refused a visa.</p>
<p>Long time. I got my visa two days ago and needless to say, the interview was great. Jrock, I'm assuming that you found out through your internship...Are you on facebook? When are you leaving?</p>
<p>Sefago, congrats on getting another interview so soon. Now you have to deeply reflect on what exactly got you rejected the first time. And from what you said before, it seems that whoever interviewed you did not look at some of your documents. So, that's a great reply for the "Why do think I should give you a visa since my colleague denied you one?" question. Just tell your new interviewer that your last interview was very short and that such and such document was not even taken into account. I know at least 15 people that got their visas on their second attempt after being rejected initially. So, just make sure that you prepare for as many questions as possible and be composed. Don't worry about that one-year thing. I am yet to see someone that got into a US university from Nigeria that has not been out of school for a year or more. I graduated from high school last year and that was not a problem during my interview.</p>
<p>Another thing that you should watch out for is your finances. It would be better to have liquid assets (that is, money). Stocks and landed property may be a good bit of support to show your non-immigrant intent but what the consular officer wants to see is that you have the hard cash to pay for your first year of study as well as subsequent years. Having strong bank statements would be an advantage. But I still know a few people who's bank accounts were not that fat but still had no problem during their interviews. Also, you are exempt from the financial line of questioning if you got a FULL scholarship. Of course you should not tell the consular officer that. If you are asked "How do you intend to finance your education?" You can then answer "I got a full scholarship which covers......My I-20 as well as this financial aid letter can attest to that" or something to that effect. You should also know your school's financial aid policy to the letter. How can you renew your award? I'm assuming that you are on some kind of aid. </p>
<p>Remember to carry ANYTHING that could help. Take recommendations, awards, etc with you. The consular officer may not look at all the things that you take with you but I've never heard someone complaining that he took along too many documents. Just make sure that you sort them into groups that you will remember.</p>
<p>Lastly and most importantly, answer your questions carefully. Beware of technicalities. The officers are out to see if you will lie to them. Make sure that you know exactly what you are saying before you do. Have a plan. You should be able to eloquate what you intend to do with your degree in NIGERIA. Why exactly do you love your school? </p>
<p>Do you know exactly what question broke you during your first interview?</p>