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The Gateway Tower on June 1, 2023, at the intersection of UTA Boulevard and Cooper Street.\u00a0<\/p>\n
File photo \/ The Shorthorn staff<\/p>\n
Campus officials announced plans to provide information and advising to international students after recent changes announced by the Department of Homeland Security Monday. <\/p>\n
A new rule that will go into effect on Sept. 15 caps international students\u2019 visas at four years, regardless of the length of their degree program. <\/p>\n
The university has provided information to international students through email and a series of Microsoft Teams sessions. The sessions explained the rules, discussed their impact and provided students with the opportunity to ask questions, Shelby Boseman, UTA Chief Legal Officer, said in a campus email. <\/p>\n
Students can meet virtually with immigration advising staff without an appointment each Friday in Express advising. <\/p>\n
The changes come amid a July 16th ruling titled \u201cEstablishing a Fixed Time Period of Admission and an Extension of Stay Procedure for Nonimmigrant Academic Students, Exchange Visitors, and Representatives of Foreign Information Media,\u201d by the Department of Homeland Security.<\/p>\n
The following rules will also go into effect Sept. 15: <\/p>\n
Students must file a formal Extension of Stay application with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services if they require more than four years to complete their degree.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The post-graduation and post-Optional Practical Training grace period to depart the U.S., transfer schools or change status is being cut in half from 60 days down to 30 days.<\/p>\n
Undergraduate students will face strict limits on changing majors or transferring institutions during their first year. Graduate students will face a near-total restriction on changing programs or transferring once enrolled.<\/p>\n
Previously, international students were admitted with open-ended status and allowed to remain in the United States as long as they maintained full-time enrollment and complied with the university’s rules. <\/p>\n
The university will also establish a task force to collaborate and discuss the implications of the new rules, share perspectives and help inform decisions affecting various areas of the university, Boseman said in the email. <\/p>\n
Information sessions for faculty and staff are tentatively scheduled for Aug. 27 and Sept. 7. The sessions are intended to help ensure a shared understanding of the rule across the university.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur goal is to provide timely, transparent, and ongoing communication so that everyone remains informed and understands how this rule may affect their area and the University as a whole,\u201d Boseman said. <\/p>\n
@tay._.sansom<\/p>\n