If you are not a citizen or permanent resident of the United States, you will most likely need a visa to study at Andrews University.

Unless you are from Canada or Bermuda*, you will need an F-1 visa, and to receive one, you must first receive a Form I-20. Please complete Steps 2 to 7 to receive your I-20 and F-1 visa.

(*NOTE: citizens of Canada and Bermuda do not need the F-1 visa but do need an I-20; citizens of Canada and Bermuda should therefore follow Steps 2 to 5, skip Step 6, and go directly to Step 7.)

If you already have an F-1 visa, or you already have a visa other than F-1, you may or may not need an I-20. If you already have an I-20 from another school, you may be able to transfer it to Andrews. If you are in one of these situations, or in another situation of uncertainty, please send an email to iss@andrews.edu to confirm your options.

Visitor visas (B-1 or B-2) will not allow you to study in the United States.

You will need to be accepted into a program of study to receive an I-20.

Go here to apply for a program of study. Once you have submitted your application, you can move to Steps 3 and 4, but you will need to be officially accepted into your program of study before your I-20 can be emailed to you (Step 5).

Fill out the I-20 Starter Form and email it to the International Financial Advisor at isfs@andrews.edu.

The International Financial Advisor will review your I-20 Starter Form to understand your background, your academic plans, your intended living arrangements on campus, and your plans for funding your education at Andrews. All of this information is needed to issue an I-20.

Once the International Financial Advisor has reviewed your I-20 Starter Form, you will receive an email response with instructions for creating a budget sheet, which you will do in Step 4.

Follow all directions from the International Financial Advisor for completing the budget sheet.

After you email the International Financial Advisor the I-20 Starter Form (Step 3), you will receive an email response with a budget sheet that the International Financial Advisor has started for you. The International Financial Advisor will use your I-20 Starter Form to fill out the top half of the budget sheet with your personal and academic information and the estimated expenses for your first academic year (or for the entire program if it is less than a year).

You will be instructed to complete the budget sheet by showing the resources you will use to meet the estimated expenses, and you will be required to send financial (and other) documents as evidence of your resources. Specific instructions for what exactly to send will be given by the International Financial Advisor in the response email.

It is important to follow the International Financial Advisor's instructions carefully and completely and send the specific documents as requested or there will likely be delays in the process.

A Designated School Official (DSO) will email your official I-20 once the International Financial Advisor has verified that your budget sheet is complete.

The DSO will attach your I-20 to the email (and I-20s for any F-2 dependents who will accompany you). You will be instructed to print the I-20 in color and sign and date the first page of your I-20 (and the first page of any I-20s for F-2 dependents).

After receiving your I-20 via email from a DSO, you will need to pay the I-901 SEVIS fee by going here. You will need to make this payment before you can schedule a visa interview at a U.S. embassy. Keep your I-20 (and the I-20s of any F-2 dependents), your I-901 SEVIS fee receipt, and your passport together - you will need these for your visa interview.

(NOTE: citizens of Canada and Bermuda do not need to schedule a visa interview at a U.S. embassy after receiving the I-20 but do need to pay the I-901 SEVIS fee; after paying the fee, citizens of Canada and Bermuda should skip Step 6 and go directly to Step 7.)

Once you have received your I-20 and you have paid the I-901 SEVIS fee, contact your local U.S. embassy to schedule a visa interview.

Wait times for visa interviews vary. You can check the estimated wait times at the U.S. embassy near you by going here.

(NOTE: citizens of Canada and Bermuda do not need to schedule a visa interview at a U.S. embassy after receiving the I-20; citizens of Canada and Bermuda should therefore skip Step 6 and go directly to Step 7.)

Make sure that you have all of the documents you need to travel to the United States.

You will need to bring the following documents with you:

• Valid passport with F-1 visa (NOTE: citizens of Canada and Bermuda do not need the F-1 visa)
• Signed and dated I-20 (and the signed and dated  I-20s for any F-2 dependents accompanying you)
• I-901 SEVIS fee receipt