Spring 2024 | International Services and Engagement Office
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Dear Incoming Triton,
Welcome to UC San Diego!
The International Services and Engagement Office (ISEO) is here to support you as you begin your journey as a new international student at UC San Diego. Please review important information below about the visa process, pre-arrival resources, orientation, and ways to get involved at UC San Diego.
Note: This iNewStudent newsletter runs every other week until August, when the cadence will return to weekly newsletters.
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Newly Admitted and Wondering Where to Start? |
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If you have just recently Accepted your offer of admission to UC San Diego, congratulations! We are so excited to have you as part of our international Triton family. Watch the recording of our First Steps Pre-Arrival Webinar to learn what's required for you to complete your admission package and get started on your visa process.
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Does your Program Begin Before August 1? Request your Visa Documents by May 1! |
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Are you in a graduate program that begins PRIOR to August 1? If so, the recommended deadline to submit your iPortal request for your Form I-20 or DS-2019 is May 1. If you are in one of the following programs and you have not yet requested your Form I-20 or DS-2019 from our office, we strongly recommend you submit your request NOW:
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Full-time MSBA (MS in Business Analytics)
- GPS Summer Prep Program 1 (GLI Academic English: ESL Summer Session I AND ESL Summer Session II)
- MAS in Climate Science and Policy
- MAS in Clinical Research
- MAS in Marine Biodiversity & Conservation
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MS in Computational Social Science
- (RIMSE) Research Immersion in Materials Science & Engineering: Summer Schools
Follow the instructions below to submit the NEW ADMIT: I-20 or DS-2019 Summer Start Program request in iPortal (iPortal.ucsd.edu).
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Request your Form I-20 or DS-2019 via iPortal! |
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The first step in the F-1 and J-1 visa process is to receive your Form I-20 (F-1) or DS-2019 (J-1) visa eligibility document from our office, the International Services and Engagement Office (ISEO). You must obtain this document in order to schedule your visa interview OR as part of the SEVIS Transfer process.
Request your Form I-20 or DS-2019
PREPARE: Review instructions (required funding and documents) at iNewStudent.ucsd.edu under STEP 1.
SUBMIT:
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Note that iPortal requires you to log in with your Student SSO (PID) or Active Directory credentials, so make sure you have completed your account set up, which includes setting up your login credentials.
- Select and fill out the correct NEW ADMIT service form
- Under the Services tab, select the correct NEW ADMIT service form:
- NEW ADMIT: I-20 or DS-2019 Request if your UC San Diego program is beginning in the Fall quarter
- NEW ADMIT: I-20 or DS-2019 Summer Start Program if your UC San Diego program requires you to begin in the Summer
- Remember to SAVE your form when you are done answering the questions.
- After saving your NEW ADMIT form, find it again under the Requests tab.
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Upload the documents the form requires of you.
- SUBMIT the form. Please only click Submit once—it may a few moments for the form to submit.
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Processing time for your I-20/DS-2019 document is 15 business days from the date you successfully complete AND submit your NEW ADMIT request in iPortal. Incomplete requests will cause a delay in processing. We strongly recommend you review the instructions on our iNewStudent.ucsd.edu website under "STEP 1" before starting your iPortal request.
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ISEO Tip: Prioritizing Your Visa Process while Preparing to Move to the United States |
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The visa process involves cycles of "hurry up, and wait", meaning that while you are responsible for moving through the visa process steps, there will be periods of "waiting time": for example, waiting for ISEO to issue your Form I-20 or DS-2019, waiting for your visa interview appointment date, and waiting to receive your visa stamp back from the consulate upon visa approval. (To review the visa process, watch our Applying for your U.S. Visa pre-arrival webinar.)
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What else should you be working on while you wait to be able to move forward on the next step of the visa process? Below are some tips for how to prioritize all of the pre-arrival tasks you are responsible for as an incoming UC San Diego student.
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Submit your pending Admissions Documents, including your WES Course-by-Course evaluation if required. Work on completing any pending admission requirements. Remember that almost all graduate students are "provisionally admitted", meaning that your admission is not finalized until you have successfully completed your pending admission requirements. This should ideally be done prior to your arrival to the U.S. Review the "After Admission Decision" instructions here on the Graduate Admissions website for more information.
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Begin researching housing options, and apply for on-campus housing if preferred. If you are hoping to live on-campus, submit your request for housing on the HDH Graduate and Family Housing website. Additionally, begin to review off-campus housing resources here. You can also watch or review our Graduate Student Housing pre-arrival webinar for an overview of graduate housing options in San Diego.
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Work on completing your health and immunization requirements. All incoming students will be required to submit proof of required immunizations to Student Health Services by early July (Note: If your graduate program begins prior to July, you are expected to complete your health/immunization requirements prior to your arrival to campus!). While the MyChart portal is not yet open for submission of documents, you can begin learning what records you will be required to submit. For more information, watch or review our Student Health: Insurance & Immunization Requirements pre-arrival webinar.
Remember that we strongly recommend you wait to book your travel to the United States until AFTER you have received your visa stamp. For more information on planning your travel to the U.S., see here.
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Our pre-arrival webinars are taking a break for the month of April, but will be back in May!
REGISTER FOR THESE UPCOMING PRE-ARRIVAL WEBINARS
VISIT iNewStudentWebinars.ucsd.edu TO SEE RECORDINGS OF PAST WEBINARS:
Recordings are posted approximately 1 week after the webinar has taken place.
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Must-Do Pre-Arrival Checklist |
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NOW: Submit your request for your Form I-20 or DS-2019. See instructions here.
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May 1: Deadline to request your Form I-20 or DS-2019 through iPortal if your graduate program begins prior to August 1.
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June 1: Deadline to request your Form I-20 or DS-2019 through iPortal if your graduate program begins between August 1 and September 7. But don't wait! Submit your NEW ADMIT request in iPortal now.
- June 1: iTriton Online Training, your required international student orientation course, becomes available in Canvas.
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Early July (date to be announced): Meet immunization and TB screening requirements.
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August 1: Deadline to request your Form I-20 or DS-2019 through iPortal if your graduate program begins after September 7. But don't wait! Submit your NEW ADMIT request in iPortal now.
- September 9: Complete iTriton Online Training on Canvas (becomes available in June).
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Visit the iNewStudent Website |
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This comprehensive site is designed just for new international students, to help you understand the different steps you need to follow before you arrive. Visit iNewStudent.ucsd.edu to review important information about the visa and pre-arrival processes.
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Our friendly and knowledgeable ISEO Staff are here and ready to help you! Connect with our advisors by going to iContact.ucsd.edu.
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Want to see previous newsletters? Visit our website here.
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