banji001:
Hi everyone, please and please I want to ask if this details in necessary in my dc160 form, because I finished my high school as at 2014.. please urgent respond is needed

Jcnmode:
My school says I20 process starts in June, do I pay for SEVIS and apply for visa while waiting?

NiklausAkins:

For primary Occupation select NOT EMPLOYED and then you will see a box below, explain what and what you did since 2014.

kenevision:




Thanks ma'am, don't mind my choice of words .

The thing is, I have a family member who has naturalized in US and doing fine financially, with a good credit score. Can he help me apply/access Student Loans with my admission? Is there any hidden catch anywhere why taking a student loan will not be a good idea.

Hope to hear from you!

Thanks.

Alexkene:
A separate thread should be created for undergraduate intending students since 90% of students here are going for postgraduate studies.

No reliable and current information for undergraduate students can be found on here

LagosismyHome:


He is the best person to ask.... he in the system and should be able to answer all this questions

goodemma20:
your I-20 contains your SEVIS ID, you can't pay for SEVIS and apply for VISA without your SEVIS ID. Why the rush anyway?

kenevision:




Thanks ma'am, don't mind my choice of words .

I have a family member who has naturalized in US and doing fine financially, with a good credit score. Can he help me apply/access Student Loans with my admission?

Is there any hidden catch anywhere why taking a student loan will not be a good idea.

Hope to hear from you!

Thanks.

AlterEnigma:
.

Alexkene:
A separate thread should be created for undergraduate intending students since 90% of students here are going for postgraduate studies.

No reliable and current information for undergraduate students can be found on here

abjisperson:
House,..pls I need ur opinion and counselling...am currently waiting for my i-20 to arrive but jus found out that my course is evening/online...is it advisable to proceed or Shud I abandoned it...What I really want to know is, is there any way the VO will found out if "strategic human resource" is evening and online,..that is, is it written on the i-20?...i have never seen an i-20 b4..I need experienced people only to pls respond...

Oben209:
=LagosismyHome=

Please I need your advice on my statement of account .. my sponsors statement of account has been lingering around 5m Naira mark for months but he has a very good inflow and outflow .. which I’m sure in the last 6 months would be over 30 m of inflow and outflow .. tried so many other way of getting funds to the account but none .. I think I have no choice but to send it to the school like that ..
Would the inflow and outflow matter to them than the cash in the account ?.

Please I need people to give their opinions ..

theamerican:


I know you said good credit score and I don't know what that is in this case. What I know is... If your family member is financially stable with an excellent credit score, it's possible that they can apply for a loan. I don't know the relationship between you and this person so I don't know what kind of loan it would be (for example, I know a parent can take a loan for their kids' education and would be liable for its payment, not the kids), but yes I would assume a financially stable person with an excellent credit score has access to loans. Best thing is to discuss it with this relative, like @lagosismyhome said.

The catch is that this relative is the one who would be held responsible for the repayment of that loan. Plus no one can predict if it'd be worth it in the end. A loan is just like capital for an investment. There are risks involved. It all depends on how far your relative is willing to go. No one knows for sure how it's going to turn out. I would take a student loan for myself, debts don't scare me. I take too many risks haha.

This is an opinion, please don't construe as legal advice

LagosismyHome:



If the amount needed for your i20 is 5 million or less than that fine. If it over than 5M Some schools request that the closing balance on the account should cover the needed amount

So i cannot say for sure ... however it ok to show what you have. If it doesn't meet the requirement, usually they come back to you

teedee223:
Hello everyone,

I'm a silent follower on this thread. Learnt a lot from here in preparing for my Visa interview.

I had my interview on Tuesday, 8th of May, 2018 - 6:45 am batch.

Went through 4 security checks before entering the interview hall. Did my fingerprint and document verification also.


Joined the interview queue around 7:25 am ... Overhead other applicant's answers (some approved visa, others rejected)
I had to stop focusing on them so as not to get too nervous.

CGI directed me to booth 10 (around 7:45 am) - a man in his very late 30s


Transcript below:

VO: Good Morning, How're you doing today?

ME: I'm very fine, and you?

VO: I'm doing fine.

VO: Pass me your passport and I-20

ME: (passed)

VO: You're going for Masters. Where are you going for your Masters?

ME: (didn't hear what he said) sorry, I didn't get that

VO: Where are you going for your Masters?

ME: Ooh... (my brain then kicked in) ... University of Illinois. Going for an MBA program

VO: Which school did you finish from?

ME: Obafemi Awolowo University

VO: When did you finish school?

ME: September 2014

VO: What did you study?

ME: (.....) Engineering

VO: What have you been doing since then?

ME: Entrepreneurship. I co-founded a technology startup after school. We build Mobile apps, Web apps, VAS applications and general software solutions for businesses and to solve local problems. We have worked with ... (VO then cuts in)

VO: ok ok ...tell me about a live service you've built that is currently being used.

ME: Currently, we have a Location Based Service that helps ............... to find ................... anytime they need it (explanation was longer than this sha...I continued explaining the service till I saw the satisfactory expression on his face)

VO: So how many staffs do you have?

ME: 15 staffs (developers and product leads)

VO: Are you married?

ME: No

VO: Kids?

ME: No

VO: How do you intend to fund your studies? (total of $60,000 for the first year - $40,000 tuition and $20,000 living expenses)

ME: I have $40,000 in scholarship - $20,000 for the 1st year, and another $20,000 for the 2nd year. I also have $35,000 in student loan for the first year and $10,000 as personal savings

VO: (checked through my I-20 to confirm the scholarship) Can I have the loan approval letter and your statement of account?

ME: Sure. (passed them to him)

VO: (spent about 1 minute reading the loan approval letter and about 3 minutes scrutinizing my personal statement of account)

VO: I'll be approving your Visa now (He then issued the white paper) You can have your I-20 back. Make sure you keep it very well, you'll need it at the point of entry. Failure to produce it means you'll be sent back on the first flight to Nigeria
(at that point, he smiled at me)

ME: (smiled back) Thank you very much (left the hall around - 8:00am)


Thanks to Nairaland and everyone that has shared their experiences so far... It gave me the confidence going for the interview. I made sure I reviewed all the transcripts here and tried to understand why they might have been denied or approved, then used the feedbacks to prepare my answers.


Tips & Advice:

1. Try to go through all transcripts posted here...including the one uploaded to Dropbox (the very first post on page 1 of this thread)

2. We all have different cases to present and support for our visa to be approved.
Try to look critically into your own case and ask yourself if it makes sense to you...Try to review your answers from a VO point of view...
Ask yourself - "If I am the VO, will I approve the visa for this applicant based on his/her answers?" If not, then keep reiterating your answers till they make sense to you. Try to learn from other people's experience (transcripts)

3. Try to attend to the applications yourself (DS-160 form, paying for DS-160, Scheduling interview time etc)
Look at it as a process you have to go through yourself, and you might have 1 or 2 things to learn in the process...

I saw some people turned back because the agent they used filled the wrong application number while paying their DS-160 fee...

4. Create a checklist of all the documents you need (both required and supporting documents), and get them ready and printed at least 48 hours to your interview. This will prevent you from forgetting any document and give you more time to focus on your possible interview questions and answers

5. Create a possible list of all Questions they might ask (based on your own peculiar case) and provide best answers to them
No need to lie in your answers... even if you will, make sure it makes sense, and you can prove them (just incase they ask)

6. Get there early enough (30 minutes before your set time is just OK)

7. You do not need your phone or smartwatch (except you have about 1,500 or 2,000 to give the security guys)

8. Get enough rest before the interview

9. Believe in yourself, talk confidently and of course, your body language is very important too (just be moderate with it)

10. PRAY, PRAY, PRAY & PRAY (you can ask friends and family to join you in prayers too) If you can FAST too... that'll be fine.


Goodluck to future applicants.

harthy007:
Thanks to all those who have contributed here. I am a silent follower of this thread.

Visa approved today at the Lagos Embassy. Time: 6:30a.m

At the stage b4 having my fingerprint done, had an issue, my passport photo had my shadow ..lady requested for another i said the other is same. She went to her superior or so.. who ask her to accept it.. God favour from then on..

Young lady in her late 2Os or early 30s. I was her first interviewee and her mood was cheerful.

VO: Good morning, How are you?
Me:I am Fine, Good Morning
VO: Pass me your I20 and Passport
Me: I did as instructed
VO: Which state are you going to ?
Me:
Colorado, Boulder. My program is at the University of Colorado, Boulder
VO: How did you find out about this school?
Me: it was recommended to me by my industry mentor who is a senior manager at Cisco. He emphasize...V.O cuts in....
VO: Did you apply to any other university?
Me: Yes, I did. I applied to Cornell University, New York, University of California, Berkeley (made a mistake..just flowed and didnt correct myself), University of Maryland College Park.. V.O seems impressed by schools ..started typing
VO: nice, so what will this program do for you
VO: I currently work in the IT industry as a Network Engineer. A masters at this point would equip me with the technical and business skills to design plan and build secure and scalable network systems. It will give me the requisite exposure and experience to advance my career forward as Network Architect
VO: who is paying for your studies?
Me: I was awarded a merit based scholarship and I have a loan and my family support to cover my shortfall.
At this point brings out white paper..
VO: By family support,do you mean your parent or who?
Me: Oh! My uncle, my dad is late.
VO: What does he do
Me: He is a Senior manager in the government parastatal **** in charge of ***
VO: Have relatives there?
Me : No sir
VO: What will you do after your program ?
Me: There are many lucrative job opportunities in my field here in Nigeria. I will return to take up jobs at top ICT multinationals such as Cisco, HP and Microsoft
VO: circled something on white paper and said) Congrats, your visa has been approved, pick up your visa at .....(me:not listening)... Have a nice day
Me: Thank you .. have a great day!

Do mocks if possible .. do not cram, get use to formulating reply based on ur application intent, sop... No need to be tensed

micah1865:
Hi Everyone,

its my first time writing on this thread. I was denied for my F1-Visa on the 11th of May, and ive decided to retry/'refire'. The start date for my course is June 7, and i got the earliest date for an appt. which is on the 1st day of June. Is this a an acceptable scenario or would it void my chances of an approval?

teedee223:
Hello everyone,

I'm a silent follower on this thread. Learnt a lot from here in preparing for my Visa interview.

I had my interview on Tuesday, 8th of May, 2018 - 6:45 am batch.

Went through 4 security checks before entering the interview hall. Did my fingerprint and document verification also.

Joined the interview queue around 7:25 am ... Overhead other applicant's answers (some approved visa, others rejected)
I had to stop focusing on them so as not to get too nervous.

CGI directed me to booth 10 (around 7:45 am) - a man in his very late 30s


Transcript below:

VO: Good Morning, How're you doing today?

ME: I'm very fine, and you?

VO: I'm doing fine.

VO: Pass me your passport and I-20

ME: (passed)

VO: You're going for Masters. Where are you going for your Masters?

ME: (didn't hear what he said) sorry, I didn't get that

VO: Where are you going for your Masters?

ME: Ooh... (my brain then kicked in) ... University of Illinois. Going for an MBA program

VO: Which school did you finish from?

ME: Obafemi Awolowo University

VO: When did you finish school?

ME: September 2014

VO: What did you study?

ME: (.....) Engineering

VO: What have you been doing since then?

ME: Entrepreneurship. I co-founded a technology startup after school. We build Mobile apps, Web apps, VAS applications and general software solutions for businesses and to solve local problems. We have worked with ... (VO then cuts in)

VO: ok ok ...tell me about a live service you've built that is currently being used.

ME: Currently, we have a Location Based Service that helps ............... to find ................... anytime they need it (explanation was longer than this sha...I continued explaining the service till I saw the satisfactory expression on his face)

VO: So how many staffs do you have?

ME: 15 staffs (developers and product leads)

VO: Are you married?

ME: No

VO: Kids?

ME: No

VO: How do you intend to fund your studies? (total of $60,000 for the first year - $40,000 tuition and $20,000 living expenses)

ME: I have $40,000 in scholarship - $20,000 for the 1st year, and another $20,000 for the 2nd year. I also have $35,000 in student loan for the first year and $10,000 as personal savings

VO: (checked through my I-20 to confirm the scholarship) Can I have the loan approval letter and your statement of account?

ME: Sure. (passed them to him)

VO: (spent about 1 minute reading the loan approval letter and about 3 minutes scrutinizing my personal statement of account)

VO: I'll be approving your Visa now (He then issued the white paper) You can have your I-20 back. Make sure you keep it very well, you'll need it at the point of entry. Failure to produce it means you'll be sent back on the first flight to Nigeria
(at that point, he smiled at me)

ME: (smiled back) Thank you very much (left the hall around - 8:00am)


Thanks to Nairaland and everyone that has shared their experiences so far... It gave me the confidence going for the interview. I made sure I reviewed all the transcripts here and tried to understand why they might have been denied or approved, then used the feedbacks to prepare my answers.


Tips & Advice:

1. Try to go through all transcripts posted here...including the one uploaded to Dropbox (the very first post on page 1 of this thread)

2. We all have different cases to present and support for our visa to be approved.
Try to look critically into your own case and ask yourself if it makes sense to you...Try to review your answers from a VO point of view...
Ask yourself - "If I am the VO, will I approve the visa for this applicant based on his/her answers?" If not, then keep reiterating your answers till they make sense to you. Try to learn from other people's experience (transcripts)

3. Try to attend to the applications yourself (DS-160 form, paying for DS-160, Scheduling interview time etc)
Look at it as a process you have to go through yourself, and you might have 1 or 2 things to learn in the process...

I saw some people turned back because the agent they used filled the wrong application number while paying their DS-160 fee...

4. Create a checklist of all the documents you need (both required and supporting documents), and get them ready and printed at least 48 hours to your interview. This will prevent you from forgetting any document and give you more time to focus on your possible interview questions and answers

5. Create a possible list of all Questions they might ask (based on your own peculiar case) and provide best answers to them
No need to lie in your answers... even if you will, make sure it makes sense, and you can prove them (just incase they ask)

6. Get there early enough (30 minutes before your set time is just OK)

7. You do not need your phone or smartwatch (except you have about 1,500 or 2,000 to give the security guys)

8. Get enough rest before the interview

9. Believe in yourself, talk confidently and of course, your body language is very important too (just be moderate with it)

10. PRAY, PRAY, PRAY & PRAY (you can ask friends and family to join you in prayers too) If you can FAST too... that'll be fine.


Goodluck to future applicants.

learner007:
When it's your Time, it's your time...Visa approved today at Walter Carrington. In HIS time, HE makes all things beautiful. Off to work, transcripts later. Thank you to all