This is an archive. See the current website at www.summer.harvard.edu.
This page contains content from the Summer School 2009. For current information, visit the Harvard Summer School website at www.summer.harvard.edu.
If your primary reason for coming to the United States is to study and you will be enrolled full time at the Summer School, then the F-1 student visa is the appropriate visa for you. You are considered a full-time student at Harvard Summer School if you are enrolled in 8 undergraduate or graduate credits in general program courses, or if you are enrolled in a noncredit, full-time intensive Institute for English Language (IEL) program.
If you are currently studying at another US institution on an F-1 visa and do not intend to return to that institution in the fall, you should apply for an I-20 from the Summer School and submit a Transfer into Harvard form and copies of pages 1 and 3 of your current I-20 to the Summer School with your other I-20 request documents no later than April 30.
If you plan to attend the Summer School and then enroll full time in fall 2009 at another US institution, it is important to enter the United States on an F-1 student visa in June for your studies at Harvard Summer School.
Canadian citizens are not required to get the visa stamp, but they are required to have an I-20 certificate.
Request the I-20 certificate for the F-1 visa when you first register for Summer School courses or apply to one of the following selective admissions programs:
Requirements for requesting an I-20 (see below) must be met by April 30.
The application period opens for the Secondary School Program in December and for IEL programs in mid-February. Registration for general program courses begins Tuesday, February 17.
Visa processing times vary from country to country. Ensure that you request your I-20 early enough to receive your visa by your departure date. The Summer School needs three to four weeks after you have met all the I-20 requirements to process your request. You may check the status of your I-20 application by logging into online services and selecting “Student Information and Status” from the main menu. Once the I-20 has been mailed, a FedEx tracking number will be listed.
You must meet all of the following requirements, no later than April 30, for an I-20 certificate to be issued to you.
An I-20 certificate will not be issued if you do not meet all these requirements by April 30.
Please note: I-20s are not issued to students who apply to study abroad programs; BIOS S-111; MATH S-300, S-307, or S-310; or to students who register for distance education courses that they will not attend on campus.
Visiting Canada during the summer. If you plan to travel to Canada while studying in the United States, you should visit the Canadian consulate in your home country before departing for Summer School to determine if you need a Canadian visa stamp.
If you have an I-20 from the Summer School, you must check in with a Harvard international student advisor during Opening Weekend and before picking up your ID card.
If you have an I-20 from the Summer School, you may add courses online but may not withdraw from courses or change credit status online. You must submit all course withdrawals, even those that are part of course changes, with the course change and withdrawal form to the Registrar’s Office for approval.
If you are on an F-1 student visa, you must remain enrolled full time in the program for which your I-20 was issued (either an IEL intensive program or general courses taken for undergraduate or graduate credit). If you do not comply with this requirement, you are considered out of status and are subject to removal from the United States.
If you are interested in enrolling in one 4-credit course or in one or two Institute for English Language evening courses, consult the US embassy or consulate in your country to see which visa is appropriate or required for part-time study.
B-2 visas are for people whose main reason for visiting the United States is tourism. If students intend to pursue full-time study, the B-2 and the B-1 business visa are not appropriate.
Many countries, including Canada, are part of a visa-waiver program. Citizens of these countries may travel to the United States as tourists without obtaining visa stamps on their passports. The rules regarding study are the same for the visa-waiver program as for the B-2 tourist visa; full-time study is not appropriate. If you enter the United States under the visa-waiver program, you are admitted for a 90-day period and cannot change your visa status or extend your stay in the United States. You should check with your local US consulate or embassy for more information.