In GRacademic we want to explain the basic differences between the different categories of “Student Visa” that can be processed by international students who wish to apply to language programs, academic programs or those who wish to acquire professional skills in the United States.
F1, M1 and J1 visa are nonimmigrant visas as they are only granted to those people who are able to prove that they do not intend to stay in the United States permanently. And they will study during a full time schedule (19 hours per week).
MAIN DIFFERENCES:
- F1 Visa (Student Visitor): The F1 visa is for those students who study a language program, degree program (associate or bachelor’s degree) or academic program (certificate, diploma, postgraduate, master’s degree, etc) in a school , university or college approved by the Immigration and Customs Control Service according to the Exchange Student and Visitor Information System (SEVIS). The validity time of condition F1 is given by the I-20 issued by the school. Students can request as many extensions as they wish and are free to change their educational institution and type of program. For example, you can move from linguistic program to academic program and vice versa. So you can stay in the United States as long as you are studying in a school with a valid I-20.
- M1 Visa (Vocational Student): The M1 visa is for students enrolled in non-academic programs (other than language training) or “vocational study” programs generally known as mechanical studies, technical studies, which include but are not limited to the following courses: Dance, cooking, music, photography, art, design, flight courses or cosmetology courses, for example. The M1 visa is valid for one year only. Students can request extensions for a maximum stay of up to three years. In addition, students with M1 visas can generally only change their educational institution within the first six months of the program.
- J1 Visa (Exchange Visitor): This type of visa is appropriate if you go to the United States with an academic or cultural exchange program. It is the most common among professors and researchers and also for special programs such as Au Pair. On the other hand, these type of visa are generally only granted once in the life of each person and although their duration depends on the particular program, they are usually for a maximum period of 1 year.
The F1 and J1 visa allows you to work (on certain occasions) and with certain peculiarities (CPT for professional internships or internships while studying and then OPT when you are close to graduating, after graduating). The M1 Visa only allows you to do internships of up to 6 months for study program. We will deepen on this subject of Work and Study in the US in another entry of our blog.
It is important that you know the differences so that you are very clear about what type of visa to apply if you wish to study in the United States. Anyway you can rest assured because our advisors will always indicate the best solution according to your profile and travel requirements. Contact us!
