Terms and Definitions
Definitions
Throughout this site we have tried to spelled out each of the abbreviations for your convenience. Please find below a comprehensive list of the abbreviations and designations that we have used throughout this site.
Government Agency Abbreviations
CBP: Customs and Border Protection
DHS: Department of Homeland Security
ICE: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
USCIS: United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
Other Terminology
Designated School Official (DSO): A person authorized by the USCIS to sign I-20s and give advice concerning F-1 non-immigrant status. There are nine DSOs at Emory: Scott Allen in Emory College Admissions and Tamika Hairston in Graduate Admissions; Stephanie Roberts, Terry Eiesland, Joan Lindsey, Angela Guinyard, and James Kamonjoh in ISSS; and Regina Barrett and Amela Porca-Malkic at Oxford College.
DoS: Department of State: The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at DoS has jurisdiction over all J-1 exchange programs.
DS-2019 (formerly IAP-66): Certificate of eligibility for J-1 Exchange Visitor status, prepared by the sponsoring agency, which shows program of study, dates of eligibility, financial information, etc. It is not the visa document.
F-1 status: The majority of students at Emory are admitted to the United States in this student status and hold F-1 visa stamps in their passport.
I-20: Certificate of Eligibility for F-1 student status, prepared initially by the Emory College Admission Office, which shows program of study, dates of eligibility, financial information, etc. It is not the visa document.
I-94: A small white card provided to the non-immigrant at the Port of Entry by the CBP inspector. The card will record the port and date of entry, the non-immigrant status in which the person was admitted to the country, and the date of termination of this status (either a specific date or "D/S"). Additional notations may be made.
International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS): This office serves all international visitors to Emory University and is located in Suite 130 of the North Decatur Building.
J-1 status: Status granted to students or scholars who are on a sponsored Exchange Visitor Program, for example, Fulbright awardees; Emory University has been designated with its own Exchange Visitor Program, P-1-00874.
Responsible Officer or Alternate Responsible Officer: A person authorized by the DoS to sign DS-2019s and give advice concerning J-1 non-immigrant status. Lelia Crawford, the Director of ISSS, is the Responsible Officer for Emory; there are seven Alternate Responsible Officers also in the ISSS office: Terry Eiesland, Stephanie Roberts, Angela Guinyard, Ursula Spitzer, Kate Billings and Joan Lindsey.
SEVIS: The Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, designed by federal agencies to monitor certain aspects of the programs of F-1 students and J-1 Exchange Visitors in the United States.
Visa: The document affixed in a person's passport that allows that person to present him or herself to an immigration inspector at a U.S. port of entry to request the status for which the visa was issued (e.g., "F-1" or "J-1").