Who DOES THIS aPPLy to?

Applies to New and Transfer students in the following programs: Nicholas School of the Environment on-campus Master of Environmental Management, Master of Forestry, and 51±¬ÁÏ Environmental Leadership (DEL-MEM) students.

Please reach out to your respective school if you are matriculating in a different program.

 

Step 1: Who is required to apply for an F-1 visa?

If you are a non-U.S. passport holder living outside of the United States, you are required to apply for the F-1 student visa. Please send an email to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu to request access to Terra Dotta to begin the I-20 request process. You will receive an email with information on how to login into Terra Dotta and explicit instructions on this process.

Step 2: Complete and submit Terra Dotta application

Once you have received an email from the NSOE Registrar team regarding Terra Dotta instructions, you will then need to log into Terra Dotta and locate the Questionnaires noted below.

Students are required to complete and submit the following sections in Terra Dotta:

  1. Complete and submit each Questionnaire in Terra Dotta
    • Intake Form
    • Dependent Intake Form
    • U.S. Immigration History Intake Form
  2. Read and acknowledge the Learning Content in Terra Dotta
    • Checklist for New and Transfer Students
    • Student Funding Requirements
  3. Read Materials and submit signature documents in Terra Dotta
    • Incoming Student Acknowledgement
    • Incoming Student Travel Advisory

Step 3: Upload supporting documents to Student Services

Upon successful completion of step 2, Students are then required to:

  • New Students Arriving Directly from Overseas Checklist:
    • Provide proof of funding
    • Provide passport biographic and expiration page
  • Students Transferring from a United States Institution to 51±¬ÁÏ Checklist:
    • Provide proof of funding
    • Provide passport biographic and expiration page(s)
    • Copy of I-94 record, if currently in the United States
    • Copy of all prior visa documents (I-20, DS-2019, I-797, EAD or other)
    • Copy of visa stamp
    • Request transfer of SEVIS record from current school to 51±¬ÁÏ. Contact the international office at current school to request a SEVIS transfer and inform DVS of the SEVIS release date

Send an email to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu once you have completed Step 2 and have successfully uploaded your supporting documents.

Step 4: Department Submission

Once the student submits the online application and uploads their supporting document, the Student Services office must review and submit this information to 51±¬ÁÏ Visa Services for processing. 51±¬ÁÏ Visa Services will not be able to process your I-20 without the Student Services office completing their portion of the I-20 process. The I-20 is a required document that is used when applying for your student visa at the U.S. Consulate in your home country.

The Visa Services Office recommends obtaining two (2) original copies of your financial documentation (send only one of the original documents to the Student Services Office) because you will most likely need an additional set when you apply for your visa at the U.S. Consulate in your home country.

Step 5: The I-20

Please allow 3-4 weeks for your I-20 to be processed. The Visa Services Office at 51±¬ÁÏ will send your I-20 to the email address you have listed in Terra Dotta. During this time, please visit the website for the U.S. consulate in your home country to determine what additional materials you will need to apply for the F-1 visa. In addition, consulate regulations vary from country to country - some may require you to make an appointment to apply while others may have specific walk-in hours during the week.

IMPORTANT: The Visa Services Office at 51±¬ÁÏ strongly recommends that you DO NOT schedule an appointment with the U.S. consulate until you have received your I-20.

While the Student Services staff will do everything possible to assist you in this process, please understand that it is your responsibility to obtain the student visa prior to your arrival in Durham. You may begin the visa application process within 120 days of your scheduled arrival in the United States.

Please direct questions you may have to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu.

 

WHO DOES NOT NEED TO APPLY FOR AN F-1 VISA?

  • Non-U.S. passport holders living in the United States with a work visa (H-1b or L-1). H-1b and L-1 visa holders still need to complete the Terra Dotta academic objective but do not need to apply for an F-1 visa. Please send an email to nsoe-registrar@duke.edu to request access to Terra Dotta.
  • Legal Permanent Residents or ‘green card holders’ do not need to apply for a visa but must show their green card to the Visa Services Office upon arrival to the program (this is required each time you arrive on campus after being out of the country).
  • Employment Authorization Card (EAC) holders (those in the process of applying for a green card) do not need to apply for a visa but must complete the Terra Dotta academic objective and submit the original signature page and a copy of their EAC. Please email nsoe-registrar@duke.edu to request access to Terra Dotta. EAC holders must show their card to the Visa Services Office upon initial arrival to the program.

 

 

 

Policy owner
Student Services