<p>Hi y'al jus need your help on this issue,am an international student and am in America on student visa but my fiance' is an American. I dont know if i should change my status from student to being a us citizen,plus i have been here for only 1 semester or should i wait till am about to finish college to change my status. Ps i have known my fiance' for 5 yrz so it aint something that happened overnight.</p>
<p>If you marry a US citizen, you will be eligible to apply for permanent resident (green card) status. Here is the link [USCIS</a> - Green Card](<a href=“http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD]USCIS”>http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=ae853ad15c673210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD)</p>
<p>If you become a permanent resident because of marriage to a US citizen, you can apply for citizenship when you have been married for three years.</p>
<p>One more question,do permanent citizens enjoy the same rights as US citizens like get a good job without having to go through lots of paper work and also apply for fin aid in uniz and also get into top graduate uniz. thank you for your help…</p>
<p>^ yes, except that getting into a top grad school has nothing to do with being a resident/citizen of the US. its all about your grades.</p>
<p>depr91, i heard tz alot more difficult for an intl student to get into a grad school,so am just confirm datz al and thank you 4 ur ans</p>
<p>If I was going to be narky, I would say your chances of getting into a good grad school depend a lot more on whether you can significantly change the spelling and punctuation you’ve shown here when you’re doing your applications!</p>
<p>If you are planning on getting married in any case, there is no reason that you would be better of applying to grad. school without having a green card (the opposite in fact)</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>@fisheee:
would you care to explain why it is “the opposite”?</p>
<p>And I’m not sure but isn’t it more difficult for international students to get funding for grad school? Can someone clarify?</p>
<p>Reasons why you would be better off applying for grad schools with a green card in hand:</p>
<p>-you won’t have to reapply for a student visa in your home country
-better chances of getting financial aid
-eligible for some govt services
-easier to find housing
-part time work possible</p>
<p>
I gather that someone has never dealt with barely-intelligible foreign TAs. Lucky you! Student visas come with limited work permits for on- and off-campus employment. And for what it’s worth, international students who go straight to graduate school after college don’t need to reapply for a student visa. </p>
<p>That being said, I switched from a student visa to permanent residence a few years ago and it did make my life easier. I have less paperwork to deal with now and I qualify for NSF funding :)</p>
<p>"And for what it’s worth, international students who go straight to graduate school after college don’t need to reapply for a student visa. "</p>
<p>Really? I have a letter right here (from a grad school in New York) that states that my visa will only be valid for the two years of the course, and if I wish to apply for further study I would need to renew the visa from my home country with a new acceptance letter from the school.</p>
<p>If you are on a regular F-1 student visa, you are allowed to stay in the country as long as your I-20 is valid. Your university can extend your I-20 or transfer it to another university for further study, without any need to apply for a new visa. However, if you leave the country once your visa is expired, you have to apply for a new visa before you may re-enter the country.</p>
<p>That’s interesting, thanks Barium.</p>