Every Foreign Student Needs a Visa to Enter U.S.

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We continue our series of reports about how foreign students can attend a college or university in the United States. Our subject this week is government rules and requirements for entering the United States to study.



Every foreign student who has been accepted to study in this country must have a legal document called a visa from the United States government. A visa permits a foreign citizen to travel to the United States and request permission to enter the country. The rules for getting a visa can be found on the State Department Web site. The address is unitedstatesvisas.gov. United States visas is all one word. Another State Department Web site for students from other countries is educationusa.gov and The EducationUSA website in Taiwan.

If you are requesting a visa for the first time, you may have to appear at AIT's consular section to talk to an official. Each student should communicate with AIT's Visa Section to find out how to arrange for an interview. AIT's Student Visa Website

It is important to apply for the visa early. State Department officials say national security is the most important issue in deciding if a person will be permitted to enter the United States. Officials must find out if a student is on any list of people with possible links to terrorists.

AIT can not issue a visa more than ninety days before the start of the educational program in the United States. If you are a student studying in the United States for the first time, you will not be permitted to enter the country more than thirty days before the start of your classes.

Foreign students accepted at an American school will receive a document called a Certificate of Eligibility. The State Department says each student must enter the country using the certificate provided by the school he or she will be attending. It is a violation of the law to enter the country on one school’s certificate but attend another school.

You are permitted to stay in the United States on a student visa for the length of your period of study. That means you can stay as long as you are a full-time student. Your college or university will provide the government with reports about your education as long as you continue to study there. We will have more information about that next week.

And that’s the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach.

Accrediting Agencies Play Important Part in U.S. Higher Education

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Earlier, we talked about the first steps to take if you want to study in America. We also discussed the differences between a college and a university. And we looked at online education.



We said last week that students should find out if a school that interests them is accredited. But just what does that mean?

Accreditation is a process. The goal for a college or university is to show that its programs meet accepted levels of quality. The United States Department of Education does not accredit schools. But the law requires the secretary of education to publish a list of private accrediting agencies recognized as dependable.

Accrediting agencies are nonprofit organizations. They develop educational goals, then they examine schools to make sure those goals are met.

The first step in the process is for a college or university to request accreditation. Then the school does a study of itself to measure its performance against the requirements.

The accrediting agency sends a team of specialists who decide if the school meets the standards. The agency will observe an accredited college or university every few years.

Schools must be accredited in order for students to receive government financial aid. Accreditation also makes it easier for students to move credits from one school to another. And going to an accredited school can help in getting a good job later.

One accrediting agency is the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. It says the United States has more than four thousand accredited colleges and universities that award degrees. More than two thousand five hundred other accredited programs do not award degrees.

The agency's Web site lists schools and programs that are accredited by recognized organizations in the United States. And it talks about when to a suspect that a program is not really accredited. The address is chea.org.

And that’s the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. Next week, learn about government rules for students who want to study in the United States.

Considering an Online Education Program

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Online education is our subject this week as we continue our Foreign Student Series. Our reports are for students around the world who would like to attend a college or university in the United States. Programs where students take classes by computer over the Internet offer a way to earn a degree from home.


Online learning is also called distance education. Many American colleges and universities have been offering it for years.

One example is New York University in Manhattan. The School of Continuing and Professional Studies began online classes in nineteen ninety-two. Its Virtual College has taught more than ten thousand students from across the United States and other countries.

Last year, the School of Continuing and Professional Studies launched NYU Online. It offers NYU's first online programs to earn a bachelor’s degree. Programs are offered in three areas: leadership and management, information systems management and social sciences.

University officials say classes are highly interactive, where students communicate with each other and their teachers. Some classes require students to all log in at the same time so they can attend live lectures by a professor. Students can also ask questions and work together on team projects.

The university says classes are taught by NYU professors who have been trained in online teaching.

International students must take two admissions tests before they can be accepted into the program. These are the SAT and the TOEFL. We will discuss these tests later in our series.

The cost to attend NYU Online depends on how many classes a student takes. It can cost as much as fifteen thousand dollars a year. NYU offers no financial aid for international students in this program. You can get more details at nyu.edu.

Many other schools offer online education. Students should be especially careful of programs that offer a degree in return for little or no work. These are known as diploma mills, and are illegal in the United States.

Educational advisers also say that before you enter any program, make sure the work will be recognized in your country. You should also make sure the schools you are considering are accredited. That will be our subject next week.

Choosing Between a College or a University

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What is the difference between a college and a university? This is the subject of part three in our series for students who want to attend a college or university in the United States.



Colleges and universities have many things in common. Both provide a greater understanding of the world and its past. Both provide education in the arts and sciences. And both can help prepare young people to earn a living.

Students who complete their undergraduate studies either at a four-year college or a university receive a bachelor’s degree. One difference is that many colleges do not offer graduate studies.

Universities are generally bigger, offer more programs and do more research.

Modern universities developed from those of the Middle Ages in Europe. The word "university" came from the Latin "universitas." This described a group of people organized for a common purpose.

The word "college" came from a Latin word with a similar meaning, "collegium." In England, colleges were formed to provide students with places to live. Usually each group was studying the same thing. So college came to mean an area of study.

But a college can also be a part of a university. The first American universities divided their studies into a number of areas and called each one a college. This is still true.

Programs in higher learning may also be called schools. The University of Arizona in Tucson, for example, has eighteen colleges and ten schools. They include the colleges of pharmacy, education, engineering and law. They also include the schools of architecture, dance and public administration.

College is also used as a general term for higher education. A news report might talk about "college students" even if they include students at universities. Or someone might ask, "Where do you go to college?"

Today, most American colleges offer an area of study called liberal arts. These are subjects first developed and taught in ancient Greece. They include language, philosophy and mathematics. The purpose was to train a person's mind instead of teaching job skills.

Our Foreign Student Series continues next week with a report about online education. International students can learn more about higher education in the United States at educationusa.state.gov.

Starting Out

This week, in our Foreign Student Series, we discuss the first steps to studying in the United States.

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There are more than four hundred of these offices around the world. In Taiwan, you can find the EducationUSA Advising Centers at this website: www.EducationUSA.org.tw

Step two is to start gathering information about the different choices in higher education programs in the United States.

Some schools, for example, offer one-year certificate programs. These are in subjects like computer programming, public relations and administrative work.
Junior or community colleges offer a two-year associate degree. These programs can prepare students for skilled jobs. Or, if students want to continue their education, many universities accept this work as the first two years toward a bachelor's degree.

To get a bachelor's degree, students traditionally take general subjects during the first two years. These include areas like history, literature, mathematics and science. After that they take classes in their major area of study.

At the graduate school level, a master's degree can take up to three years to complete. A doctorate can take four to six years. But some medical specialties, for example, require years more of study.

Whatever you choose, educational advisers say you should begin to plan at least two years before you want to start classes in the United States.

The address of the State Department Web site for international students is educationusa.state.gov

Next week, the subject is the difference between a college and a university.