otiliabujor

Here is my story… I have tried to change my status from a B1-B2 tourist visa to an F1 student visa when I came to the US. It took a very long 5 months and it is not over yet. Read and learn! I entered the country on an B1 visa on the 5th Dec 2010 I applied for San Antonio Community College on 19th of March and finally submitted my I-539 and I-20 forms on 29th Apr 2011. The school submitted them for me, after I paid all the fees. The International Student Office told me that I would get the visa in 6 weeks, in time for Summer School. Went back a couple of weeks later to submit more documents and was told by Rosa Pobles at the International Student Office that the visa will take 2 and a half months to process, which coincided with the message from USCIS. Rosa went on maternity leave, I also tried calling Christine repeatedly but then discovered she resigned… I fell out of B1 status on the 4th of June, my I-94 expired. I waited and called USCIS the whole summer. In July, I found out that my papers were sent to a processing centre in Vermont that was currently processing papers received on the 12th of March… I could not obtain any information on the speed at which they process these papers. I applied for an expedited processing by phone quoting financial distress. Strangely, the response to my request was sent in 5 working days- it was a NO! I received a Request for more Information from USCIS on the 10th of Aug,.. the school semester was supposed to start on the 22nd of Aug- almost lost hope… I called a lawyer I initially consulted- Ms. Ruth McChestney and Faye Kolly at DeMott and McChestney in San Antonio. They charged me 500 USD promising me that “they will send the papers immediately (it was a Fri) and there is a small chance the USCIS will reply in few days, in time for the school semester. I was already registered for classes, after many trips to the school and a special request. They did not file the documents until a week later, on the 22nd of Aug when the semester started. I would not have paid if I would have known there is no chance to get the papers by the 22nd of Aug, felt cheated. It turned out that the San Antonio Community College- SACC did not submit my financial records- none! I had provided bank statements and a sponsorship letter stating I have the funds to sustain the tuition fees and the living expenses for the duration of the course I got the approval of my F1 status on the 22nd of Sep!! that was almost 5 months. The document was stating that I should begin school on the 17th of Oct, which would mean I have to take courses I do not need for my major, as all the courses I need are not offered in Flex 2. I am planning to talk to the lawyer and find a way to start my courses in spring… I hope it works.

Here is my story… I have tried to change my status from a B1-B2 tourist visa to an F1 student visa when I came to the US. It took a very long 5 months and it is not over yet. Read and learn! I entered the country on an B1 visa on the 5th Dec 2010 I applied for San Antonio Community College on 19th of March and finally submitted my I-539 and I-20 forms on 29th Apr 2011. The school submitted them for me, after I paid all the fees. The International Student Office told me that I would get the visa in 6 weeks, in time for Summer School. Went back a couple of weeks later to submit more documents and was told by Rosa Pobles at the International Student Office that the visa will take 2 and a half months to process, which coincided with the message from USCIS. Rosa went on maternity leave, I also tried calling Christine repeatedly but then discovered she resigned… I waited and called USCIS the whole summer. In July, I found out that my papers were sent to a processing centre in Vermont that was currently processing papers received on the 12th of March… I could not obtain any information on the speed at which they process these papers. I applied for an expedited processing by phone quoting financial distress. Strangely, the response to my request was sent in 5 working days- it was a NO! I received a Request for more Information from USCIS on the 10th of Aug,.. the school semester was supposed to start on the 22nd of Aug- almost lost hope… I called a lawyer I initially consulted- Ms. Ruth McChestney and Faye Kolly at DeMott and McChestney in San Antonio. They charged me 500 USD promising me that “they will send the papers immediately (it was a Fri) and there is a small chance the USCIS will reply in few days, in time for the school semester. I was already registered for classes, after many trips to the school and a special request. They did not file the documents until a week later, on the 22nd of Aug when the semester started. I would not have paid if I would have known there is no chance to get the papers by the 22nd of Aug, felt cheated. It turned out that the San Antonio Community College- SACC did not submit my financial records- none! I had provided bank statements and a sponsorship letter stating I have the funds to sustain the tuition fees and the living expenses for the duration of the course I got the approval of my F1 status on the 22nd of Sep!! that was almost 5 months. The document was stating that I should begin school on the 17th of Oct, which would mean I have to take courses I do not need for my major, as all the courses I need are not offered in Flex 2. I am planning to talk to the lawyer and find a way to start my courses in spring… I hope it works.

Here is my story… I have tried to change my status from a B1-B2 tourist visa to an F1 student visa when I came to the US. It took a very long 5 months and it is not over yet. Read and learn! I entered the country on an B1 visa on the 5th Dec 2010 I applied for San Antonio Community College on 19th of March and finally submitted my I-539 and I-20 forms on 29th Apr 2011. The school submitted them for me, after I paid all the fees. The International Student Office told me that I would get the visa in 6 weeks, in time for Summer School. Went back a couple of weeks later to submit more documents and was told by Rosa Pobles at the International Student Office that the visa will take 2 and a half months to process, which coincided with the message from USCIS. Rosa went on maternity leave, I also tried calling Christine repeatedly but then discovered she resigned… I waited and called USCIS the whole summer. In July, I found out that my papers were sent to a processing centre in Vermont that was currently processing papers received on the 12th of March… I could not obtain any information on the speed at which they process these papers. I applied for an expedited processing by phone quoting financial distress. Strangely, the response to my request was sent in 5 working days- it was a NO! I received a Request for more Information from USCIS on the 10th of Aug,.. the school semester was supposed to start on the 22nd of Aug- almost lost hope… I called a lawyer I initially consulted- Ms. Ruth McChestney and Faye Kolly at DeMott and McChestney in San Antonio. They charged me 500 USD promising me that “they will send the papers immediately (it was a Fri) and there is a small chance the USCIS will reply in few days, in time for the school semester. I was already registered for classes, after many trips to the school and a special request. They did not file the documents until a week later, on the 22nd of Aug when the semester started. I would not have paid if I would have known there is no chance to get the papers by the 22nd of Aug, felt cheated. It turned out that the San Antonio Community College- SACC did not submit my financial records- none! I had provided bank statements and a sponsorship letter stating I have the funds to sustain the tuition fees and the living expenses for the duration of the course I got the approval of my F1 status on the 22nd of Sep!! that was almost 5 months. The document was stating that I should begin school on the 17th of Oct, which would mean I have to take courses I do not need for my major, as all the courses I need are not offered in Flex 2. I am planning to talk to the lawyer and find a way to start my courses in spring… I hope it works.