BU Schedules Informational Town Halls Regarding New Federal Cap on International Students’ Time in the US
BU has scheduled multiple information sessions to update the University community on the US Government’s new rule.
BU Schedules Informational Town Halls Regarding New Federal Cap on International Students’ Time in the US
University focused on supporting community as it navigates new policy
Boston University has scheduled virtual, University-wide town halls, and virtual webinars for specific groups, about new federal limits on the time international students can spend at US colleges and universities.
The rule outlining the limits is to take effect on Wednesday, September 15, 60 days from the effective date of the final rule’s publication on July 17. Litigation might delay its implementation.
Previously, international students with F-1 status could remain in lawful status—and transfer, change programs, or extend their stay—as long as they were studying full time or engaging in post-completion employment. The new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rule replaces that policy, with limited exceptions, with a specific end date for study that aligns with a student’s academic program length or a four-year maximum, whichever is shorter. It will also require students to take additional steps to extend their status, and it will impact students, researchers, and nontenure track faculty with J-1 exchange visitor status, as well as I-visa representatives of foreign information media.
“This will be a complicated transition for our international students and scholars,” says Jeanne Kelley, managing director of BU’s International Students & Scholars Office (ISSO). “It will be critically important that they pay close attention to ISSO updates and attend ISSO information sessions to understand how this new rule will impact their status, as well as the status of their F-2– and J-2–dependent family members. International students should continue to consult with their ISSO advisor about their travel plans, visa extensions, and maintaining their visa status.”
It will be critically important that [international students and scholars] pay close attention to ISSO updates and attend ISSO information sessions to understand how this new rule will impact their status.
BU is mounting a robust communications plan to help international students and scholars, and those who serve them, navigate these changes.
ISSO will host a series of virtual town halls for the BU community to explain the new rule on Wednesday, July 29, at 11 am (register here); Tuesday, August 18, at 1 pm (register here); and Wednesday, September 23, at 4 pm (register here).
ISSO will also offer virtual information sessions for students and scholars, based on education level and their role at BU, to discuss the impacts of eliminating the long-standing “duration of status” rule. ISSO will alert the constituencies to these sessions, which will answer students’ questions and guide them through the transition, before and after the new rule takes effect in September.
Beyond the University-wide town halls and ISSO information sessions, BU has other resources for students. ISSO publishes updates and immigration-related guidance on its federal policy updates web page. ISSO’s web page updates continually with federal actions affecting visas and travel. And BU Support Pathways includes information on accessing free, immigration-related legal assistance for students.
Many universities, including BU, formally objected to the cap when it was proposed last year. Boston University officials, citing the National Science Foundation, said that students nationally, and at BU, require a median of 5.7 years to complete a doctoral program.
“Homeland Security’s final rule ending the well-established ‘duration of status’ policy will cause confusion, uncertainty, and bureaucracy for our international students,” says Willis Wang, BU vice president and associate provost for global programs and deputy general counsel. “It will impose new limits on students’ academic flow and educational mobility.”
The new federal rule requires students and scholars to submit formal “extension of stay” or EOS applications, with a fee and supporting documentation, to US Citizenship and Immigration Services, triggering a multistep application process if they want to extend their lawful stay in the country without travel. The rule also tightens eligibility criteria for extensions, potentially necessitating multiple EOS applications from some students.
The rule enacts other changes as well:
- For international students with F-1 status, the post-completion departure window has been shortened from the former 60 days to 30, with the intent to prevent overstays after a student’s program ends.
- Undergraduates with F-1 status are restricted from changing their “educational objective” (major or education level) or transferring to another US college or university during their first year.
- F-1 graduate students are prohibited from changing their educational objective or transferring to another US higher education institution prior to completing their program.
Find information about other changes here.
DHS has argued that the proposed rule is necessary to decrease the number of students who overstay their visas. Students and scholars who are unable to travel or extend their visas can request an extension beyond four years, although higher education experts say such requests are expensive and would prolong what is already a six-and-a-half-month processing time for extensions.
International students should regularly consult with their ISSO advisor and academic advisor to understand how the new elimination of the “duration of status” rule will impact their individual status while at BU.
In a letter to the BU community about the new rule, President Melissa Gilliam and Provost and Chief Academic Officer Colin Duckett wrote, “Since its founding, Boston University has placed a particular value on being a global institution, attracting people from around the world. This commitment is key to who we are today. International students, faculty, and staff, you are vital members of our community and bring so much to it. We are proud of our global legacy and will continue to embrace the deep diversity of international perspectives within our University community.”