Check list !

You can find THE list, “things that should be taken to US” in net. I followed the same list and let me tell you it’s not the same scenario now.

There are few things which are not available or expensive or things which you should bring for sure and what not to.

1. Jacket – NOT required. You can buy it here for sale. Price depends on brand. But you can get a Jacket from 30$.

2. Gloves Muffler, caps and earmuffs - You can buy it here. Mostly each varies from 10-15$

3. Thermals – Jockey doesn’t work here. You can buy Fleece brand in Wal-Mart here, which is really good. Top cost 10$ and bottom cost 10$.

4. Long boots – Better to buy here. Cost starts from 40$.

5. Formal Shirts and Trousers are expensive here. So it’s better to bring a pair. You mostly use for your Presentations and Career fair (which is only one per semester).

6. Jeans are pretty cheap. It starts from 10$ here (Aeropostale, H&M, American Eagle) and even tops. You need to wait for the sale. Just bring few clothes remaining you can buy here.

7. You can bring traditional clothes because GISA organizes events on Diwali. You may need it then.

8. You can buy Blankets and Pillows here. Blankets varies from 15-40$. Pillow starts from 3$.

If you bring air pillow, it will help you for initial use.

Things you should definitely bring from INDIA:

1. Pressure cooker and a non-stick pan (they are expensive here).

2. Chilly Powder ( It doesn’t taste good here)

3. Ginger garlic paste (ginger taste is different here)

4. Tamarind.

5. Try to bring Dosa mix.( Powder Rice and Black gram. You can add water to it and make Dosa here. Better than to buy Dosa mix every time)

6. Turmeric powder, Mustard seeds, Cumin seeds, Coriander seeds, Asafoetida, Cloves, Cardamom seeds, Cinnamon, Poppy seeds, Bay leaf are expensive. The spices only Indians use cost more so better bring them.

Bring all the masala products also.

7. Peanuts are expensive so bring it from India.

8. Don’t forget Knife. A good knife costs 20$ here.

9. Spoons and Forks are costly compared to India, so better add to your list.

10. US plug adapters.

11. Calculator if you have one if not you can buy here.

12. Indian brand biscuits better bring it with you guys.

13. If you like Maggie well and good you can find them here. But if it’s another brand like Foodles better bring them.

14. Bed sheet at least one.

15. Chapati roller stick, its expensive here like 10$.

16. Hair oil depends you guys again.

17. Spectacles better have extra pairs. Recommended to bring tool set if possible.

18. Water bottle.

Things which are CHEAP and not required to carry:

1. Rice – It’s available here for 10lbs – 22$. So you can bring a small quantity for initial use.

2. All purpose flour / Maida – Pretty cheap

3. Salt, Sugar.

4. Books / notepads.

5. Cotton.

6. Microwave bowls are not too expensive.

7. In Dollar store, you can buy most of the miscellaneous items for 1$ each.

So, even if you guys forget any don’t panic. You can it here 

Doubts which I got :

1. “You can’t carry Rice” -> It’s okay no big deal, in air port they won’t pester Students. So take your chance. I bought 2Kgs for initial use.

2. “If you bring Pickles they will catch you in your port of entry” -> Do not bring 15kgs of pickle, if you bring then yeah you may get caught.

When we stand in line for Customs, dogs sniff our luggage and if the aroma is too strong then that’s all ! So keep them deep inside not near corners.

3. I am talking about Emirates, you may not like the food. You can carry chapathi rolls in your hoodie

4. Always carry all the set of Documents with you. I-20 and Passport are super important.

5. Carry 20,10,5,1$ bills, to change your luggage in your Port of Entry you need these bills.

In JFK, you need 5$ bill.

6. If you missed your domestic flight because of delay in flight or near immigration or customs, don’t panic. Just explain them your situation. It happened twice to me.
They will give you next flight. If they didn’t ask them in a stronger version, with "it’s not my mistake " attitude.

7. For every medicine you are carrying have prescription for sure.

8. All Cheese burgers have beef so, Vegetarians be careful.

9. In Dubai, to make a call to India you can buy a calling card. It costs 9$. It’s better than any travelling sim.

Finally got my VISA ! What next ?

You may find many websites to tell frequently asked questions in VISA interview. Even I followed them all. Finally I took my token number and standing in line. Few situations I witnessed there are

1. Can you tell me your University address?                                                           
2. What is the Mascot of UB ?
They asked such silly questions too 

The questions they asked me are simple.
1. What is your GRE?

2. Why did you choose this University?

3. Did you contact any Professor in the University? (Try to remember few Professors names at least)

I finally got my VISA.


The first thing I was worried about is the place where I can stay. I got in touch with few seniors here in Buffalo and got to know about the housing. There are both North and South Campus

1. Those who are interested in having their individual bedroom. Then South side suits them. There you can find individual bed rooms. Many places like Tops, Tim Horton’s and McDonalds are like 10 – 15 min walking distance. If you are four members, room rent is going to be like 300-380 per head. Gas bill and electricity bill is extra.


Pros: Center for many places. Individual bedroom.                                                         Cons: Only one bath room for all. Electricity bill and gas bill are too high. Difficult to come back from University especially in Winter nights.

2. In North you have few options
Triads apartment: You will get two bed and two bath. So you got to share your bed room. And only two people sign the lease. Other two are like non-legal (Which is pretty common here).  If you are four members, room rent is going to be like 260-297 per head. There is no Gas bill. Electricity bill is in between 10-15$ max. It’s a best place to stay in winter. It’s only 10 min walk to campus. There is stampede 5 min away.


Pros: Near to campus. Winter nights won’t be horrible. Low electricity cost.
Cons: Bed room sharing.

You can stay in Sweet home apartments also, but they are expensive (700-900$ per head).

We have a pick-up service to an Indian store here called as Super Bazaar. Wal-mart is just opposite to it so, it makes grocery shopping easier. You have a make a bill about 25$ I think, to use the pick-up service. The amount usually varies so don’t worry.

So, it doesn’t matter where you stay you use this for your shopping.

Finally I chose the place I am interested and sent the advance lease amount to one of the senior bank account. We need to send few of the documents required like I-20, VISA stamp and few forms to reserve an apartment. On May 21^st I got my apartment reserved. 

US Student (F 1) VISA Application Process

On April 30^th 2014, mail summary was my application has undergone an initial review and so that I can check the status of my application by visiting the UB International Admissions. Back to back I got Username and Password.

Here was the link, https://inted.oie.buffalo.edu/intadmit/intadmitdev/application_status.asp 

After a day, I-20 tracking number was updated and through the available link in the UB International Admissions Website I enrolled for International Orientation with UB Person number.

Enrolling for Orientation should be done before flying. It does not matter after receiving I-20 or not, because it requires only UB Person number to enroll.

My Suggestion : Enroll after receiving UB Person number later we may forget about it, better to wrap it up.

On May 4^th 2014, I got my I-20 !

To be done after having I-20 in hand :

If you are looking for a Loan then beforehand make a list of Banks with respective interest rates and make sure you have all documents required.

Bank manager ask for an I-20 to start the Loan process.

It took me two weeks to get Loan Sanctioned letter. But for Visa Interview Loan processing letter is also accepted.

US Student (F 1) VISA Application Process

Step 1: Booking your Visa date - as a student you would be applying for the F1 visa. You will need the I-20 from the university you want to study at, to book a date.

1. Complete the DS-160 form.

Refer http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/in-niv-ds160info.asp.

The link to the actual form is available at the bottom of this page. You do not need to upload your photo in the DS160 form. Your photo (& fingerprints) will be taken during your OFC appointment (details given in point 4).

Note: In case you make a mistake in the DS-160 form (which you realize after submitting the form), just fill and submit a new DS-160 form.

Note: You need not submit the DS-160 form to book a date, but you need the form

Number before you proceed to STEP 3

Please refer to the DS-160 FAQ section at the end of this document.

2. Create an Account at http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/index.html. Once you create an account and login fill in the required information step by step till you come to the payment page. (do not go to the update profile tab)

3. Pay your VISA Application fees. You can pay this online (online payment receipt takes 2 days to get activated) or you can pay it at Axis Bank or Citibank (the receipt is activated generally On the same day). Refer http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/in-niv-paymentinfo.asp. Before going to the bank, you must print and carry the applicable U.S. visa fee collection slip (called the

Stanley Cash Deposit Slip) which is available after logging into your profile. The exact fee amount is available here http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/in-niv-visafeeinfo.asp

4. Book your dates. Continue with the booking of the visa date by logging into your account. You will be asked to book 2 dates

A: Visa interview appointment. You can select your dates according to your convenience.

Generally dates open up only 2 to 3 weeks in advance.

B: OFC (Offsite Facilitation Center) Appointment - where you will be only be fingerprinted and photographed. This is not an interview, but just an administrative process. You will need to carry the following documents for the OFC appointment.

· Passport (which does not expire at least for 6 months from the start of your course)

· Appointment confirmation letter

· DS 160 Confirmation page

· I-20

You will be required to select your OFC Appointment date at least 1 day before your visa date.

5. Pay your SEVIS Fee. All students have to pay the SEVIS fee. This fee has to be paid at least three working days prior to the actual visa date.

NOTE: You do NOT have to pay the SEVIS fee to book your visa date.

To pay the SEVIS fee you will have to visit the website www.fmjfee.com. Here you will have to fill the I-901 form and pay $200 as SEVIS fee.

Print the receipt (I-901 form) that you get after paying the fees.

While paying the fees, the site gives you an option for an expedited receipt delivery of the payment receipt at an additional payment of $35. You need NOT avail this service. Just print the online receipt that you receive on confirmation of the payment and that is sufficient. You do NOT require the original receipt.

You can print the SEVIS receipt immediately or it can be printed later by accessing your SEVIS payment information online.

Note:

· If you do not have a printer readily available, you can email yourself the DS-160 confirmation page, appointment letters etc and can print it later.

· Black and White printouts are fine (of the DS 160 confirmation page, appointment letters, SEVIS payment receipt). You do NOT need a color printout.

· You will need to finalize the university before you submit the DS 160 form and/or pay the SEVIS fee.

· If a date is not available online, don’t worry. You can always get a convenient date by trying later. Dates generally open up only 2 to 3 weeks in advance. You can check the approximate visa available date’s at http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/in-niv-waittimeinfo.asp

· You cannot appear for your visa interview more than 120 days before the start date on your program (as mentioned in the ‘No later than’ date on the I-20). You will not be allowed to enter the U.S. more than 30 days before the start date as on your I-20

Part 2: Showing how you plan to finance your education

Step 2: Deciding on your financials.

The most common ways that you can sponsor your education is

· Education Loan

· Funds from family (parents/grandparents/ brother/sister etc)

Educational Loan

If you are planning on availing an education loan, please visit your local bank and ask them about the educational loan procedures. Visit 3 to 4 different banks to find out their requirements and interest rates. An educational loan can be obtained from a branch that is closest to your area of residence. Most banks offer a loan up to Rs 20 to 30 Lakhs (against collateral security) and between Rs 4 to 7 Lakhs without collateral security. You need not have an account with a bank to obtain an educational loan.

Funds from Parents/Family

To demonstrate how much funds are available with your family to support you, please see the document ‘Sample Financial Statement’ below. Prepare a statement similar to this. You do NOT have to get this certified from your Chartered Accountant (CA).

Documents needed during the Visa:

Mandatory Documents:

· Passport

· I-20

· DS-160 Confirmation page (will be stamped during your OFC appointment)

· Visa Appointment letter

· SEVIS Fee payment confirmation page

Note: Photograph is not required. Your photograph will be taken during the OFC appointment.

Other Documents:

Proof of funds (whichever are applicable in your case)

· Loan approval and/ application letter.

· Your Bank Passbooks or Monthly/quarterly Bank Account transaction statements (in case your bank does not issue a passbook). The statements/passbooks should show transactions for the past 3 to 4 months (preferably 6 months).

· All original fixed deposit receipts that you have.

· A statement of your account showing the shares/mutual funds you own and their current market value.

· Originals of NSC/NSS certificates, PPF passbooks etc

· Tax returns for the past three years (at least two years) of your sponsor.

· Two to three recent salary slips of your sponsor (in case your sponsor is employed)

Academic Documents:

· Degree/Diploma Mark sheets, degree certificates (if available)

· GRE/GMAT/TOEFL score cards. If you don’t have a score card carry a print of your online scores.

Your sponsors (if other than immediate family) will have to prepare an affidavit on Rs 100 stamp paper. See the sample document ‘Financial Support Document - Sponsor letter to Visa Officer’ below. You do not need an affidavit, if your parents/grandparents/brother/sister are your only sponsors.

Scholarships/Assistantships from the university

If the university has awarded you a scholarship/assistantship and it is already mentioned on your I-20 then its fine. In the university made your funding decision after issuing an I-20, and the funding from the university does not reflect on your I-20, then you will have to carry the official letter from the university indicating their decision. If the department has informed their decision over email please request them to send you an official letter (by email).

IMP: The amount of funds available to you for your education in the form of Loan, Family support and Scholarships/Assistantships should be sufficient enough to cover the tuition/fees plus living expense for the entire duration of your education (not necessarily twice the I20 amount) .

That is

Loan

+ Funds from University

+ Money in savings/current account of sponsor

+ FD's

+ Demat (shares) valuation

+ Any other financial investments (NSC/NSS, PF etc, except insurance)

Should be more than the total estimated expenses for your education

IMPORTANT: There are no standard guidelines on HOW MUCH funds you need to show for your visa. Just because you can show funds, does not guarantee a visa. Similarly not showing funds does mean that your visa would be denied. Visas are granted based on the visa officer’s evaluation of the important factors:

· Your preparedness and understanding of the course/program you are planning to Pursue.

· Your ability to convince the visa officer that you can afford to pay for your education costs.

Please see below for

· Financial Support Document - Parent letter to Visa Officer

· Sample Financial Statement

Below is a format of an Affidavit of Support to be carried with you during your visa interview.

Please print this letter on a Rs 100 Stamp Paper. (If your parents/grandparents/brothers/sisters are your only sponsors, then you do NOT need the affidavit on a stamp paper. The below statement, printed on plain paper with your sponsors’ signature should suffice)

Affidavit of Support

Date

To,

Visa Officer,

US Consulate

Hyderabad.

I/We, XXXXX XXXXX hereby certify that I/we shall provide all the necessary funding required to

support my son’s/daughter/brother/sister/nephew/niece’s (XXXXX XXXXX) education at XXXXXX

University.

Please find attached a statement giving the summary of the funds and assets available with

me/us. These funds are available without any restrictions to cover all tuition and living expenses

of XXXXXX XXXXXX for the entire duration of his/her education.

If you have any questions regarding the same, please do not hesitate to contact me/us.

Yours Sincerely

XXXX XXXXX

Address

Phone

Email

FAQs about the DS-160 form

Here are guidelines to SOME (not all) of the questions asked in the DS-160

PERSONAL INFORMATION SECTION

Personal 1

Surname & Given Names: Enter you Surname and Given Names as mentioned on your passport.

For eg: Surname on Passport: Joshi and Given Name: Ajay Ramesh

Then in the DS160 form put Surname as Joshi and Given Names as Ajay Ramesh

The name on the DS-160 should match exactly as on your passport.

For those who do not have a Surname on the passport: If the surname section on your passport is blank, then enter whatever is mentioned in the ‘Given Names’ section of the passport under your surname and put FNU in the Given Names section.

For eg: Surname on Passport is blank and Given Name: Ajay Ramesh

Then in the DS160 form put Surname as Ajay Ramesh and Given Name as FNU

Full Name in Native Alphabet – Leave it blank and check the does not apply/technology not available box

Have you ever used other names (i.e., maiden, religious, professional, alias, etc.) – Say NO

Say Yes ONLY if you are a married female applicant who had a passport with a maiden name and currently hold a passport with a new name/surname OR If you ever had officially changed your name/surname by publishing it in the gazette.

Do you have a telecode that represents your name? – Say NO.

Personal 2

National Identification Number – If you have your Aadhar UID number, mention it else leave it blank and click Does Not Apply

ADDRESS AND PHONE

Mention your current address (where you currently reside) and NOT the address on your passport if it different from your current address. Home Address and Mailing address can be same. Your address on the passport is irrelevant information and need not match your current address.

PASSPORT

Passport/Travel Document Type: Select Regular

Passport Book Number: Select Does Not Apply

TRAVEL

Purpose of Trip to the US: ACADEMIC OR LANGUAGE STUDENT (F)

Specify: F1

Have you made specific travel plans ?: Select NO (even if you have booked your tickets).

Intended Date of Arrival: Put approximate date when your plan on leaving for the US

Intended Length of Stay in the US: Write 1 Year, if your masters program is a 1 year degree program. Write 2 years if your program is a 16-24 months program. PhD students can put 5 years. (Irrespective of what you put here your duration of the visa that gets stamped on the passport does not change. Your I-20 may say 30 months or 36 months as the normal duration of the course, but you need not put duration in the form)

Address Where You Will Stay in the U.S.: Put the university address here as mentioned on your I-20.

Person/Entity paying for your trip: Give the name/details of your primary Sponsor here. Even if you are paying through a bank loan, mention the name of your parent/sponsor who would stand as a guarantor for you loan or whose funds you plan to show partially. Mention SELF only if majority of the funds for your education are going come from your own personal savings.

PS: Trip – does not mean just the flight to the US. It means all expenses that you would incur during your stay in the US (tuition + living etc)

TRAVEL COMPANIONS

Are there other persons traveling with you? : Say NO even if some you have booked tickets together as a group.

PREVIOUS US TRAVEL INFORMATION

Mention whatever is true about your past US Travel and Visas

Have you ever been refused a U.S. Visa, or been refused admission to the United States, or withdrawn your application for admission at the port of entry? - If your visa was ever rejected then say ‘YES’. In the explanation just mention the date on which the visa was rejected and the type of visa that was rejected without giving an explanation on what you feel was the reason for the rejection. For instance just write “Visitor B1/B2 visa rejected on ___(mention date) ” or “F1 student visa rejected on ____”

Has anyone ever filed an immigrant petition on your behalf with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services? – Say YES only if you had filed for a US Green Card sometime in the past and explain who had filed a Green Card Application for you and the status of the application.

U.S. CONTACT

Contact Person or Organization in the United States: Mention the name of the Person who signed the I-20 as your Contact Person. The organization name would be the University’s Name,

Relationship to you would be ‘SCHOOL OFFICIAL’, and address would be the University’s address from the I-20 or the university’s website. You may mention the phone number from the I-20 or from the university’s website. You may say ‘Does not apply’ for the email id.

FAMILY

Mention details about your parents as asked. The names of your parents need not necessarily match exactly on their passports. If your parents do not use surnames, then put their first name as the Given Name and Last Name as the Surname.

Do you have any immediate relatives, not including parents, in the United States?: Say YES if you have a brother/sister in the US. If they are on a Visa the status would be Non-Immigrant. If they hold a Green Card the status would be US Legal Permanent Resident.

Do you have any other relatives in the United States?: If you do have uncles/aunt/cousins in the US say Yes.

PS: Saying ‘Yes’ does not affect your visa chances.

WORK/EDUCATION/TRAINING

Present Work/Education/Training Information

Primary Occupation: If you are currently in college (or just finished your final exams) you may select STUDENT. If you are currently working select the occupation that you feel best matches your job profile. If you graduated more than a semester earlier or were working and currently resigned then select NOT EMPLOYED.

For Students/Presently Employed – Mention your College/Company Name, Address. Phone Number etc.

Briefly describe your duties: Mention in just one sentence what you do (do not paste your resume here or write an essay). For instance IT professionals can just write – Software Developer. A student can just write ‘Student of Bachelors of Engineering – Computer Engineering’

If you selected the ‘NOT EMPLOYED’ option, you will see a box asking you to Explain. There if you were a student who graduated a semester/year ago mention: Graduated in (Month Year) and have been working on my Master’s application. If you had a job and reassigned mention: Worked with ___ (company name) till ____ (month year).

Previous Work/Education/Training Information

Give details of all previous jobs that you held after finishing college. You need not mention your Internships / projects that you did during college.

Have you attended any educational institutions at a secondary level or above?: In the Present Work/Education/Training section if you indicated that you are a Student, and mentioned your current college name there then list your previous college (jr college or diploma college) in this section.

In the previous section if you mentioned that you were either employed or unemployed mention all colleges that you attended after 10^th class (for instance your Jr. College or your diploma college and your degree college details) here.

Admission Confirmation !

Many MS Aspirants prepare well to get GREAT scores in GRE and TOEFL/ IELTS and finally select few of the universities based on many factors through Consultancies or Senior’s advice or Location factor what not !

Finally, whoever chose STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT BUFFALO, this blog is for you all guys. 

The only reason to start this blog was, we get many doubts. We do ask others regarding our doubts and the response is of three types

1.Our doubt will be cleared ( Happy ) OR
2.Their response may not cover our doubts completely OR
3. Few reply even without any knowledge regarding the issue.

It may be first time for many to stay outside their house leaving parents. So, we try to be as sure as possible not to make any mistakes. Even I was worried about facing any BAD SURPRISES. 

So, let me tell you my experience from the day, I got my STATUS changed in my Portal to ADMIT.

SO HERE STARTS THE DAY 

Finally, that day had come, when my STATUS changed in my portal to ACCEPT/ADMIT on March 26^th 2014.

But, I did not receive any mail throughout the day. So, I did mail to the Graduate Office regarding my acceptance confirmation and excitement to join the University. After a week, I got a confirmation reply from them with my admission letter.

Next two days, I got mails indicating to submit my FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS to start my I-20 Processing. As I already sent a copy of my Financial Documents to the University through courier while applying, I did reply the same. 

I got a mail mentioning my I-20 processing will be started.

Next ACCEPTANCE CONFIRMATION was asked in the portal. Do NOT MISS it guys.

MY SUGGESTION – CHECK YOUR PORTAL REGULARLY.

After the department has initiated the final review / I-20 process, you will receive an email from the GrAdMIT application system informing you about I-20 / Welcome Packet shipping options. 

On April 9^th 2014, I received an email informing about I-20 / Welcome Packet shipping options. 

An Express mail takes 4 to 5 days of time with tracking number, while a Regular Standard mail may take more than two weeks of time without tracking number.

Be careful guys, the offer stands only for 5 days. So, within 5 days if we opt Express mail you have to make a payment of 25$, if not by default it opts regular Standard mail for free of cost.

Many lost their opportunity by delaying to choose an option. My suggestion is to select Express mail so, you can get your I-20 soon.

To check your I-20 Status,  http://grad.buffalo.edu/Incoming_Students/incoming-international-students/how-to-check-your-i-20-status.html

Follow the link and make your calculations of your I-20 status.

UB PERSON number will be mentioned in the Portal. It is required in future.

Many of my friends did wait for there I-20 status update as it was delayed a little. Let me tell you, as time passes the number of I-20's to be processed count also increases. I-20 processing takes place as “FIRST COME FIRST SERVE” basis.

My Suggestion: As soon as you receive your admit, do mail your Financial Doc's as soon as possible.

PS: CS Students receive their I-20's in mid June.

JUST WAIT TILL YOU RECEIVE MAIL FROM UNIVERSITY REGARDING YOUR I-20 STATUS.