Hello,
The program name on my I-20 is listed incorrectly. I have been admitted to a Ph.D. program but my I-20 mentions Master’s under the program information column. Accordingly the program period is also mentioned incorrectly. But all the Funding(Fellowship) related information is properly mentioned. I have informed the International office about the same but haven’t got any response from them yet
I received the I-20 today and my Visa appointment is within 2 days from now. I don’t have enough time to get a new I-20 issued before my appointment. I have the offer letter issued by the department that says about my admission into PhD program.
Is the incorrect information gonna affect my F-1 Visa approval?
Anyone who had this kind of issue in the past please let me know what can be done about this. Your help will be greatly appreciated.
I don’t recommend that you voice your objection to your I-20 degree level at your visa interview. If what you say does not match your I-20, the visa officer is by law required to deny your visa.
If a mistake was made, I would follow the instructions of your Designated School Official (/International Student Office). Changing degree levels in SEVIS is a pretty big deal and will generate a new initial record. (Most other updates, like fixing a typo in your birth date or changing your major, would update your existing record.) Your DSO will know better than anyone here when the best time is to make that update.
It is also possible that no mistake was made. It is not uncommon for PhD programs to be structured sequentially. The university may consider you a Master’s student until you have reached a certain milestone in your program. Earning a Master’s degree and PhD sequentially has advantages for you visa-wise: you would get 12 months of OPT for each degree level, and your future employer would be able to petition for your H-1B work visa under the Master’s cap before you finished your PhD. (H-1B petitions are due in April each year for a start in the following October. April is before the end of the school year…)
I want to throw in a few thoughts on visa validity periods because you voiced concerns about the program dates.
If you apply for your F-1 visa using your current I-20, your visa validity dates would likely match the program dates of the Master’s degree. That does not mean that you have to depart the US at the end of that time period. It just means that if you travel abroad after your visa end date, you have to get a new visa sticker in order to re-enter the US.
That’s because the US immigration system makes a distinction between your F-1 “visa” and your F-1 “status.” A visa is your permission to seek entry into the country. Once you are in the country, your visa doesn’t matter. All that matters is the validity of your status.
The length of your status is determined by the immigration officer at your point of entry into the country. F-1 students are usually admitted for “duration of status” (abbreviated D/S on your entry stamp). That means that you can remain in the country as long as you maintain your F-1 status (for all intents and purposes, that means as long as your university certifies in the SEVIS system that you are enrolled in a degree program and in good standing).
International students can, for example, be admitted for a Master’s degree and then decide to pursue a PhD beyond the expiration date on their visa. Not a problem at all.
Hello,
Thank you very much for the insights provided. The international office responded to my email and corrected my degree level and program dates(An inadvertent mistake on their part). They have sent a copy of the updated I-20 and a cover letter explaining the mistake to present it to the consular officer.
I hope this will fix the issue.
Thank you again.