Getting Started - Students
Emory is proud to welcome international students from more than 100 countries to our campus. Most international students require immigration documents produced by Emory University in order to enter and remain in the United States for their studies. ISSS is the main office on campus with responsibility for immigration matters relating to international students. Administrators who work with international students will find the following topics useful.
Immigration Document Production
F-1 Students
Most degree-seeking international students and some non-degree students will enter the United States in F-1 status. ISSS does not produce immigration documents for incoming F-1 students. This process is handled in Undergraduate Admissions by Scott Allen and in Graduate Admissions by Tamika Miles.
J-1 Exchange Visitors
Advisors at ISSS process requests for prospective J-1 Exchange Visitors. Requests for J-1 students enrolling in full-time course work or registering full-time for dissertation research credits should be submitted to an International Student Advisor at ISSS. Please see the link for J-1 Exchange Visitor Program – Students to locate the J-1 Student Request Form along with additional information about welcoming J-1 students to Emory (these forms are also located in the Quick Links box on the right of this page). In order to qualify for Exchange Visitor status, a prospective student must meet certain eligibility requirements. If a student qualifies for J-1 status and expresses a preference to come to Emory as a J-1, the academic program must agree to fulfill additional responsibilities. These responsibilities are listed on the Compliance Form included in the J-1 Student Request Form. We also provide a chart called Comparing F and J Status, which outlines the features of both student visa statuses (available in the Quick Links box at right).
All other requests for Exchange Visitors – including those for students engaged in a prescribed course of study or participating in Student Intern programs – are handled by International Scholar Advisors at ISSS. More information on this process is available in our section entitled J-1 Exchange Visitor Program – Scholars.
Please carefully review our J-1 Category Comparison Chart to be sure you are requesting the correct documents from the appropriate ISSS Advisor.
Orientation
ISSS hosts International Student Orientation on a variety of dates for undergraduate, graduate and professional students in F-1 and J-1 status. Attendance at International Student Orientation is mandatory. These sessions are held prior to the start of each academic semester. More information is available on our Orientation website.
Employing International Students
When hiring international students in F-1 or J-1 status for work on the Emory campus, administrators must pay special attention to the related immigration regulations. Please see our section on Employing International Students for more information on these requirements.
Quick Links
- J-1 Student Request Form (Word)
- Comparing F and J Status (PDF)
- J-1 Category Comparison Chart (PDF)