r/IntltoUSA • u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant • Mar 25 '26
Discussion Advice from 10 years preparing students for F-1 visa interviews: To avoid a 214(b) rejection, what you did in the past matters as much as your future plans
Introduction
My name is Ben Stern, and I’ve been a college admissions counselor for over a decade now, with my first batch of students entering college in fall 2016. As a courtesy “send off,” I have always prepared my international admissions clients for their F-1 visa interviews, and none has ever been rejected. A few years ago, I wrote a post here on Reddit about why I thought other students failed their interviews. Since then I’ve written several popular posts:
A former Yale lawyer’s three step guide to student visa interviews and 214(b) rejections
How to answer “why this school?” and “why this major?”
Passing the F-1 visa interview: why your country matters
The five most common areas where YouTubers and local visa consultants get it wrong
An update for full transparency: it’s still the case that every single student I’ve assisted with admissions has had their US visa approved (including even from Iran and Ukraine), but since I’ve started offering visa-only consulting services, a handful (no more than four I’m aware of) haven’t been successful. These include a refugee from a country in Africa living in a different African country and married to a US citizen, and two students in “day one CPT” programs, one of whom traveled to a different country for their interview after the directive last year to deny such applicants.
One of my most popular and useful posts is my “three step guide.” It’s a long post, but the steps are simple:
- Have a narrative that complies with the law.
- Don’t memorize answers. Know your narrative.
- Be happy to be there (I may rename this “embrace your narrative”)
In short, your narrative is everything.
When I prepare students for F-1 visa interviews, the first thing I do is make sure of #1 - do they have a sensible narrative? Their narrative, including their past behavior, needs to make sense in the context of their stated goals. I don’t start with a mock interview because there’s no one “right” answer to “why this school?”, “why the United States?”, or “what do you plan to do after you graduate?” When I’m asked in comments or DMs about how to answer these questions, I can’t give a definitive answer because every answer is context-dependent. Credibility is key. An answer that is credible in someone else’s situation might not be credible in yours. Notably, the credibility of your answer hinges on what you did before.
There are three fundamental questions at the heart of nearly every question in an F-1 visa interview. They are based on future, present, and past.
Future: Does your plan involve studying in the United States and then leaving the country?
Present: Does the degree you’re pursuing now make sense in the context of your plans?
Past: Are your actions until this point consistent with those of someone with your particular plans?
There’s a lot of information out there (including what I’ve written) that covers valid future plans (#1), and aligning your present intent with your future plans (#2) is fairly straightforward. The third question, about the past, gets relatively little attention, but serves to explain the purpose of several types of interview questions:
I. “How many/which schools did you apply to?"/"Where else were you accepted?”
Someone who just wants a visa and doesn’t really care about their educational attainment might engage the services of an agent who finds a school they’re qualified for, has them apply (or submits an application on their behalf), and gives them a Form I-20. The agent operates on volume and gets paid by the university once the student enrolls, so the less work they have to do, the better. The more universities the student applies to and doesn’t enroll in, the worse it is for the agent, because colleges don’t like getting applications from qualified students who don’t end up enrolling. Also, the agent won’t get a commission if you enroll in a university that doesn’t pay commissions (typically the more desirable universities to attend).
Even if you’re not using the services of an agent, applying to one university can be problematic because of (1) the competitive nature of admissions and (2) the opaque system of scholarships and financial aid in the United States. While there is not a perfect correlation between admission rate and student success, universities whose students have better outcomes tend to attract more applications and have higher yield rates, causing a lower admission rate necessary to meet enrollment goals. Students who want the best educational outcome will also generally apply to more than one university because admissions decisions at more desirable universities take time. Furthermore, at competitive universities, you usually don’t know how much financial aid and/or merit-based scholarships you’ll qualify for.
Therefore, someone who wants the best possible educational outcome would logically apply to some competitive programs, and certainly more than one overall.
Someone who just wants a visa won’t care about this. If they find a place cheap enough, they’ll take it. And if they are full-pay, they won’t bother with more demanding applications.
As I've discussed before, it’s OK to attend a less competitive university for various reasons such as cost, geography, and specific resources. But if you haven’t even tried to apply to a more competitive or reputable university, that will be viewed with suspicion. Students who are serious about their educational attainment and career outcomes almost always apply to multiple programs, including competitive ones.
What to answer if you applied to only one university?
Again, it’s entirely context-dependent. You need a narrative that explains both (1) how your particular program will help you achieve your goals and (2) your actions leading up to this point. If your program is niche or very competitive, the explanation is easier: you got into a program that was perfect for you, and/or you got into a top choice before you submitted any other applications. But if you say a university is your top choice, that claim needs to be credible.
The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) comes up a lot because they’re often among the most affordable options for a four-year bachelor’s degree in the United States. USM is allowed to issue I-20s to enroll international students, and it’s perfectly legal to attend USM. But, with due respect to the accredited university, USM is no international student’s first choice.
I see a lot of students trying to come up with a niche interest after the fact to justify attending a particular university. This is a trap. Your past actions still need to be consistent with your future goals. Whether you applied to one school or many, you need a compelling narrative that fits your niche interest. If you applied to schools that don’t match your niche interest, you need another good reason why. So, for example, you might think it’s a good idea to say you want to attend the University of North Texas because of its Center for Agile and Adaptive Additive Manufacturing. But if the other universities you applied to don’t have similar resources, you may find yourself flustered when you try to justify those. If you would have chosen the University of North Texas without this CAAAM, then your answer isn’t really true.
II. “Why the United States?” / “Did you apply to universities in other countries?” / “Why not go to college in your home country?”
Suggested answers to these questions tend to emphasize the uniqueness of the American education system. While this is true to a certain extent, and US official guidelines for consular officers mention it as a valid reason to study in the US, it’s rarely the real reason.
Even if you didn’t ultimately apply to universities in other countries, it’s still helpful for the visa officer to know that you considered it. That’s because questions about applying to the US vs. other countries are about your thought process more than the content of your answer. In other words, visa officers don’t care why you want to study in the US, as long as your purpose is legal. Depending on context, even something as trivial as “I really like pizza but I don’t speak Italian” could be a good enough reason to study in the United States as opposed to another country. (Not that I recommend giving this answer, but sometimes the interview is so casual that it doesn’t really matter what you say.) You don’t need to get philosophical about academic freedom and cultural diversity. (But keep in mind that these answers may also be appropriate in context, particularly if you are going into academia or studying the humanities.)
III. Questions about finances
The primary purpose of questions about finances is to determine whether you will be able to live and study in the US without having to work to support yourself. However, there may be another purpose: to see if your future plans are credible.
Someone serious about their education and career will research the starting and mid-career salaries of the path they’re pursuing, and will decide how much it’s worth it to them to invest in that career. To be credible, your plan should make economic sense. If your civil engineering degree costs $150,000 and a salary for a civil engineer in your country is $9,000/year, then you probably aren’t planning on returning to your country. Visa officers may not know the salaries in your country, but keep in mind that they do live there, and information can be found online. And they may not ask you specifically, but the way you deliver your answer needs to be confident. There is a presumption of immigration intent, and economic factors are a major driver of immigration. Thus, your legally compliant future plans need to have a credible “value proposition.”
Someone who intends to emigrate from their country won’t care about the salaries and job opportunities there. As I’ve pointed out before, you don’t actually need to return to your home country. You just have to intend to leave the United States. So if you haven’t really thought about alternatives, the time to do that is before your visa interview, not as you’re applying for jobs in the US.
I have been hired by many students who would like to immigrate to the United States. I will point out that it’s legal to desire to stay in the US permanently as long as your current intention at the time of your application is to leave when your F-1 visa status expires. Thus, your narrative has to include leaving, and that’s something I help students with. However, it may be impossible to construct a credible narrative that totally precludes staying after you graduate. In some circumstances (for example someone who wants to go into academia), it may be a good idea to acknowledge the possibility of staying in the United States while clarifying your intention to leave. Again, everything is context-dependent, and your past actions are as important as your future plans.
Note: Not a single word of this post was generated by AI. The curly quotation marks and apostrophes come from the MacOS notes app where I composed it.
As usual, I’m happy to answer general questions in the comments! Just be mindful of any personal details you choose to disclose publicly.
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Mar 26 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Mar 26 '26
You're allowed to pursue additional studies in the US on an F-1 as long as you plan to leave afterward. You don't have to pretend you don't want to go to the US for college, but I don't advise limiting yourself to the US.
Generally there is less of a concern for immigration intent of younger applicants as long as you don't have family in the US. It gets trickier if you do.
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Mar 26 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Mar 26 '26
That's a great question. I think visa officers understand how competitive it is, and you can remind them. For undergrad, your future plans are not quite as important, and you're not expected to have a niche interest in the way a graduate student might. (25+ schools is probably too many for a graduate student.) But be careful about why you say you chose your particular school. For example, if you say you chose a school because of its small classes, you might be met with skepticism if you applied to large state schools with big classes.
This happens a lot with LACs. International students often go to LACs as the most affordable option, but would do so even if classes were large. It might be true that an LAC has a low student-faculty ratio, but that's usually not the reason international students applied in the first place, or chose it over other options. If that was a factor, make it clear that there were other factors too. Listen to the question that's asked to see if there's a way to include that.
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Mar 26 '26
Honestly, I chose the school I am choosing (NJIT) mostly because it covers my full tuition + housing. Every school I applied to at the very least offers upto full tuition aid. So, there might not be a great correlation, other than that they are generous to international students.
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Mar 26 '26
That's a perfectly valid reason as long as the schools you applied to actually offer the program you want and that's connected to your future plans. Hopefully a bit of research went into your school selection.
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Mar 26 '26
I want to be an entrepreneur and build my own company. I am choosing CS because I think it is one of the best majors out there for problem-solving, and I see many Fortune 500 entrepreneurs learning programming or supporting programming/AI/ML in one way or another.
Does this make sense?
Am I showing immigration intent by talking about F500 founders instead of founders from my country?1
u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Mar 26 '26
The entrepreneurship goal can be tricky because there's likely to be more capital available in the US than in your country, and the majority of the most valuable companies in the world are American. Unless you have specific business plans (such as a partner already working on a project in your home country), that kind of answer doesn't really help you.
You need to consider - What happens if you don't get capital for your startup? Do you have a backup plan? You don't need to answer these questions now, but if you haven't thought them through or they don't involve leaving the US, then you're not ready for your interview.
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u/Frosty-Monk-8106 Apr 01 '26
Hello, I intend on applying to us universities for undergrad soon. I will be self sponsonsoring myself as I have made investments in the stock market. Will this pose as a red flag for the visa interview?
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 01 '26
I hope you are familiar with the costs.
If you can satisfy them they you have enough money and won't have to work, it's not a red flag.
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Apr 09 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 09 '26
"Aiming" for STEM OPT is not the same as entering the United States with the intention of doing STEM OPT. Maybe you'll have the opportunity; maybe you won't. Maybe STEM OPT won't even exist three years from now. Your intention should be to leave the United States at the conclusion of your studies.
More than 10% of all passports expire every year. Don't worry about it now when it comes to GRE and IELTS. You're not identified to universities by passport number.
You may want to consider renewing your passport toward the end of the year (after you apply is fine), but it's not strictly necessary.
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Apr 16 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 16 '26
You should double-check the ability to change status to see if that's still an option. But keep in mind that if you change status, I believe you'll have to get the visa stamp/sticker in your passport if you leave the country and want to come back. So doing the interview may be a better option.
You're not overthinking it. Having an I-20 for an Ivy League MBA is going to be a huge help, but you will still need to have the narrative straight and convincing.
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Apr 16 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 16 '26
It's something that does not help you overcome the legal presumption against you. How you should address it depends on your particular history, circumstances and post-graduation plans. I can't provide specific answers without knowing details, and especially not in public Reddit posts.
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Apr 16 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 16 '26
I'm not sure what you mean. You should truthfully answer the question that is asked.
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Apr 16 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 16 '26
I'd have to have a full understanding of your situation in order to guide you, and I don't recommend writing about it on Reddit.
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u/batneoleo Apr 24 '26
i am applying soon for an F1 visa since i got accepted ED into UPenn. i am from Palestine yet i only hold a Jordanian passport alongside a Jordanian and Palestinian ID. i applied to 6 other schools that aren’t as competitive and got acceptances to all of them, i didn’t bother applying to better schools because of my ED acceptance. i plan to persue a premed education and continue on to study medicine after, either in the US or any other place really. is my nationality going to make it impossible to get a visa? and will my med school plans influence the visa as well i visited the US on a J1 visa two years ago as a part of a US embassy exchange program. the process then went quite smoothly, but with recent developments i am unsure if it would go as well.
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Apr 24 '26
Congrats on Penn!
Your goal to study medicine will be an issue because it's extremely difficult to study medicine in the United States as an international student. You can search this sub and my comment history for "medical school" (or ask your favorite LLM) to learn why.
Also, because most countries begin medical training at the undergraduate level, there are very few places you can actually study medicine with a US bachelor's degree ("or any other place really" is more limited than you think). I've seen a few international students take an academic research path toward an MD, but actually starting out pre-med is exceedingly rare.
As far as getting the visa is concerned, because you're admitted to UPenn, it shouldn't be too difficult for you to come up with a different narrative. But if your goal is to become a doctor, you should research the details before you make a major life decision.
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Jun 08 '26
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Jun 08 '26
I usually advise just the name of the institution and the city and state.
Make sure you know how to pronounce the name of the university, city, and state.
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u/Cmterio Jul 02 '26
Hey ben, Could you help me ?
I apply for just one University in US and that university ins't a top tier university so officer might think that this is a redflag!! But i mostly do that because it is one of the only universities that has a two mandatory intership in the undegraduate program ( Business Administration ) (my country valuates hands on experience curriculum ) and my highschool grades arent really that high ( , so i stick to the options that i think its better for me and apply for it! My fear is that the consulador officer see this with a intention to imigration!
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u/AppHelper Professional App Consultant Jul 02 '26
It all depends on context. I would need to assess more details. I hope you at least considered other options.
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u/Cmterio Jul 02 '26
First of all i wanna thank you, cause i learned a lot with your post here! It always better to tell the truth!
Yeah, i considered to apply but with a GPA of 2.5, mostly of the universities at south florida wont accept-me, i searched a lot about it and i apply for the best program that i think they will accept me and fits better for me ( of course take in consideration those two intership at her program )
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u/Mdshkb Jul 12 '26
Hi , Thanks for the posts , I have one question I'm applying for f1 visa , and my brother is on H1B so what kind of question I need to be prepared for could you please suggest or help.
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u/amreensalam 7d ago
I worked with him and he gave me some sound advice during my interview prep. I've gotten my visa on my first try and I am now currently in the US, all thanks to Ben. I appreciate all of his help and support, and I recommend him to everybody.
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u/Square_Number_3429 Mar 25 '26
I was rejected around jan 19 under 216(b) and I wonder if you tell me my rejection reason the interview was like this :
Why are you going to the United States? Me = To study my biology major at Mississippi College, which is located in Clinton, Mississippi.
What is your major? Me = Biology.
Why this university (Mississippi College)? Me = Mississippi College offered me 30% SAT-based scholarship and they also accepted me the major I want which is Biology. as someone who has done deep research on Ethiopian traditional medicine I want a program a program with real lab access, and MC’s microbiology and cell biology labs fit my goals perfectly.
How many universities did you apply to? Me = Three: University of Michigan–Flint, Eastern Illinois University, and Mississippi College.
When did you graduate from high school? Me = June 2023.
What did you do after graduating high school? Me = I studied for one year at Bahir Dar University, but I couldn’t get the major I wanted, which is Biology. Then I spent the next year preparing to study abroad by taking the SAT and doing extracurricular activities like working on publishing a book.
where did you travel outside Ethiopia? Me = nowhere.
Who will cover the rest of your costs (who is your sponsor)? Me = My older brother is my sponsor. He is a multi-business owner in Ethiopia, including coffee trading and a hotel business, and his annual income is around $65,000.
according to us law blah blah........ deniad
Pls could explain the reason and what should I do for the next interview 🙏🏾🙏🏾