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INTERNATIONAL UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSIONS

1. Application Form: The application form must have complete answers. Please print clearly or type your answers.
   1. Question #2: This is the mailing address where your I-20 (immigration document) will be sent. Please make sure that this is the address where you will be residing in order to ensure correct delivery of this document.
   2. Question #3: This is a permanent address where we can contact you. In most cases, this will be your parent’s address.
   3. Question #9: In the U.S., colleges and universities are schools attended after high school, our 12th grade. If you attended a school, (not in the U.S.), that has the word college or university in the title, original transcripts of your work there will be required, unless you make a notation that this was for the equivalent of our 12th grade. (Example “A” levels, “O” levels, or examinations to enter “University”.) Also original transcripts are needed from any other schools attended after the equivalent of our 12th grade. Please make sure that these transcripts are translated into English, and include the subjects you have taken and the grades you made in each subject. It is also very important to have an explanation of the grading system of each school.
   4. Question #15: This test is required for all international students except those whose native language is English. An applicant must score at least 550 on the TOEFL to be considered for admission. Information about this test can be found at many schools or at U.S. embassies, consulates or offices. If information is not available in your country, you may write to Scholastic Assessment Test, Foreign Edition Box 6200, Princeton, NJ 08541-6200, USA. Or you may contact by internet: http://www.toefl.org.
      
2. Certification of Support: U.S. immigration laws require every educational institution to certify that each student admitted has adequate funding to attend school. The Office of Admissions must receive official documents (originals, not photocopied), which show evidence that you will have sufficient funding to cover the costs of attending the University of South Carolina for one calendar year. This evidence will be used to issue you an immigration document (I-20 or IAP-66), which you will need to obtain the F-1 or J-1 student visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate. This original form must be completed by the bank of the person who is funding your studies here in the U.S. This may be your parents, yourself, another family member, or someone else who is sponsoring your education. The dollar amount needs to be in U.S. dollars, and this document needs to either be stamped or embossed with an official bank seal, or must be printed on official stationery. (As a general rule, students need to have a minimum of $21,100.00 U. S. dollars for one year of study***.)
   
3. Transfer Information: International students who are currently attending another school here in the United States must complete this form to verify their immigration status. Students must have their foreign transcripts evaluated by  World Education Services in a course by course format.
   
4. Immunization Requirements: The entire first page must be completely filled out by a doctor in your home country, or by a doctor who has your immunization records on file. On the second page of this form, Section A must also be completely filled out. (Section B of this form is for vaccines that are not required, but are recommended.) If you are from a country that does not require these vaccines, and are not able to get these vaccines before you leave for school, you may get these vaccines here in the U.S. Proof of these vaccines is required before students are allowed to attend classes.

Once your completed original application, original bank certification, original transcripts and WES transcripts have been received and processed, (approximately 4 weeks), you will be issued an I-20 form, which is an immigration document stating that you have been accepted into a degree program here at the University of South Carolina. Once you receive this I-20, you must apply for a student visa at a United States embassy or consulate. This visa stamp in your passport shows the visa status you will hold while here in the United States.

You will need to take your I-20 form, your passport, and a certified copy of your financial support, (some countries require documentation of financial support, while other countries do not), to your country to apply for your visa. (At this time, the majority of embassies require an appointment, so please call in advance for you appointment.) Also, please note, that some countries require that the student return to their home country to obtain the visa, while other countries do not have this requirement. It is up to you to discover and implement the rules of your embassy and your home country.

The majority of international students who come to study in the U.S. and at the University of South Carolina, (including students on exchange programs), obtain F-1 visas. This type of visa allows you to remain in the U.S. as long as you are pursuing specific programs of study and are otherwise complying with the regulations pertaining to the F-1 visa status. However you must make sure that your passport is valid the entire time that you are in the U.S. Also, be aware that students with an F-1 visa, are not allowed to work here in the U.S. except under certain conditions set by U.S. Immigration.

As an international student, you are required by U.S. immigration regulations to enter the country on a student visa. You will be denied entry into the U.S. if you attempt to enter with any other type of visa, (example: tourist or business visa).

Your spouse or unmarried children may accompany you to the U.S. Their names must be listed on your immigration document for family members to obtain the entry visas. Please be sure to indicate on the Application for Undergraduate Admissions that you will bring family members. Students who will be accompanied by family must also show sufficient funding to support their dependents while in the U.S. A minimum of an additional $2,000 for the spouse and $750 for each child should be calculated into the total costs for attending the University for one year. (This figure is based on current tuition rates, housing, meals, transportation, etc. This figure could change and is based on the student’s individual lifestyle and current tuition rates.)

If you are already in the U.S. you will need to obtain a U.S. entry visa only if you plan to leave the country before coming to the University and your current visa has expired OR if your current visa status in not F-1 or J-1.

If you are currently in the U.S. on an F-1 or J-1 visa, but attending a school other than the University of South Carolina, you will still need a new I-20 immigration form issued to you by the University of South Carolina in order to attend school here.

For more information:
University of South Carolina Sumter
International Admissions
200 Miller Road
Sumter, SC 29150-2498
803-938-3762
Fax: 803-938-3901
email

FORMS (Updating - Currently unavailable 11/15/07)

1. International Undergraduate Application Form

2. Certification of Support Form

3. Transfer Information Form

4. Immunization Requirement Form

Note: In order for your application to be considered, all four forms must be completed and returned to

USC Sumter
Admissions Office
200 Miller Road
Sumter, SC 29150-2498