<p>Just want to clarify as to how many years student visa did students get?</p>
<p>4 years</p>
<p>10 char</p>
<p>I got five years actually. Valid until June 2015.</p>
<p>Five years here too, F1.</p>
<p>5 years, F-1.</p>
<p>How come some of them get 4 and others 5 , does it depend on the course you have applied or does it depends from which country you have applied from?</p>
<p>This is what I could find from the US Government website:</p>
<p>How long may I stay on my F-1 student visa?</p>
<p>When you enter the United States on a student visa, you will usually be admitted for the duration of your student status. That means you may stay as long as you are a full time student, even if the F-1 visa in your passport expires while you are in America. For a student who has completed the course of studies shown on the I-20, and any authorized practical training, the student is allowed the following additional time in the U.S. before departure: </p>
<p>F-1 student - An additional 60 days, to prepare for departure from the U.S. or to transfer to another school.
M-1 student - An additional 30 days to depart the U.S. (Fixed time period, in total not to exceed one year). The 30 days to prepare for departure is permitted as long as the student maintained a full course of study and maintained status. An M student may receive extensions up to three years for the total program.
As an example regarding duration of status, if you have a visa that is valid for five years that will expire on January 1, 2009, and you are admitted into the U.S. for the duration of your studies (often abbreviated in your passport or on your I-94 card as “D/S”), you may stay in the U.S. as long as you are a full time student. Even if January 1, 2009 passes and your visa expires while in America, you will still be in legal student status. However, if you depart the U.S. with an expired visa, you will need to obtain a new one, applying at and Embassy abroad, before being able to return to America and resume your studies. </p>
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<p>It doesn’t detail exactly why we get five years though, but as far as I know it’s five years. For much better info, go here: [Post</a> Completion Practical Training](<a href=“ISSO”>ISSO)</p>
<p>Basically that last link has steps that refer to the Columbia International Students office, but it has a pretty good description of how after we complete our four-year course at Cal, we can apply to work in the U.S. for the fifth year that our visa is valid.</p>
<p>Even though the visa /says/ it expires in 5 years, if you graduate after 4 years and are not a full-time student, you cannot stay another year ‘for fun’. You either have to apply for OPT (the Post Completion Training) or leave. The only other option is you transfer and remain a full time student doing Master’s, etc, then you don’t have to do anything after your fourth year, just continue studying.</p>
<p>Someone please correct me if I’m wrong, and sorry for the double post ><</p>