Current International Students

F-1 status is granted to students pursuing a full course of study in the U.S. It is your responsibility to maintain lawful F-1 student status.

To stay in status, you must:

• Enroll full-time each semester (unless approved for a reduced course load)
• Keep your I-20 valid and request an extension before it expires if needed
• Update your local address in your student record within 10 days of moving
• Obtain proper authorization before working (on-campus or off-campus)
• Travel with a valid I-20 signature when re-entering the U.S.

For detailed information on maintaining your F-1 status and employment options, visit the related sections below.

This visa/status is usually determined by your sponsor or by the University and at the sponsor’s discretion.

A J-1 student must meet one of two criteria:

your visit is based on an agreement between an institution and/or governments
or
your substantial funding is not personal or from family

Please note that academic training and other employment requests and concerns should be forwarded to your respective Sponsor’s RO or ARO.

Types of J-1 students at Fordham

Exchange students
These students are at our University to enroll full time for one term within one of our formal agreements with another higher education institution. They are not pursuing a degree at our University.

Degree students
These students are pursuing degrees at our institution and the sponsor deems J-1 visa / status to be given to this student.

Non-degree students
Students conducting research obtain and retain our J-1 visa/status are not pursuing degrees or enrolled for course, but they are conducting supervised research pertinent to a degree they are pursuing in their home country.

Fulbright students
Fulbrights do retain J-1 visa/status but they are not our University’s J-1s. The administering the responsibilities for the J-1 program is done by another entity, not our University.

If you are currently in the United States in a nonimmigrant status (such as H-4 or L-2), you may be eligible to study while remaining in your current status. We encourage you to review whether your existing status allows you to pursue studies at Fordham.

In some cases, however, you may wish to change to F-1 or J-1 status in order to begin your degree at Fordham. If you are considering a change of status, please contact the Office for International Services (OIS) at [email protected] for more information about the process.

You may also want to consult with an immigration attorney to help determine which status best suits your circumstances, taking into account your immigration history and future plans in the United States. A list of immigration attorneys who have assisted Fordham students in the past is available for your reference.