Helping a friend with student visa

[geowrian 22,337]

4 hours ago, lucybelle said:

Extended family will not pay, it will just be for show. Which is why I said it wouldn't work.

You were right...and it looks more suspicious than anything helpful.

The sponsor path looks better than the "quick deposit" path, especially if it was deceitful in that why weren't actually intending to sponsor anything.

 

She has reapplied and has a new sponsor. That's a good start.

The remaining risk is that she was denied under immigrant intent, and it sounds like she has ties to family members in the US that will need to be overcome.

[Boiler 45,413]

The previous shenanigans will be on her file.

[SalishSea 17,779]

Tuition for foreign (and out of state) students is a big source of revenue for public universities.

[lightson 74]

Can they get a student loan? I took my student loan letter from India to the interview though they never asked me about finances in the interview. 

[Nat&Amy 623]

3 hours ago, lucybelle said:

I told her to get a letter from the cousin sponsor to say why she planned on sponsoring, any though as to what it should have?

 

Draft:

 

To whom it may concern,

 

My name is xxxx. I am writing this letter as a sign of intent to sponsor my cousin, xxxx, during her education at xxxxx university. She has explained to me her desire to be on the athletic team and I believe her training will be superior at xxxx university. She has obtained a large athletic scholarship and informed me there is a small portion left over of a sum of $5000 per year. I am happy to help her with this amount while she is studying at xxxx university.

 

thank you for your time, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.

 

name

phone number

addresss

The issue here is that the cousin might have been one of the reasons why they denied it on the basis of immigrant intent. A relative in the US willing to help them financially means that she might get that support even if she chose to stay and not return to her home country. It's an assumption that is very difficult to overcome, especially when you are 18 years old with no strong ties to your country. I don't see how the letter from the cousin will help.

[Nat&Amy 623]

One thing that usually makes those cases easier is when the scholarship to study abroad is granted by the applicant's local government. That does not reduce the risk of a student breaking the rules of their visa but they normally need to sign several documents that list penalties if they don't return home. At the end of the day, the only question that matters is: does this applicant have higher chances of staying in the US or returning home? The evidence and the information she provides need to make a case for the latter, and with limited financial resources, few ties to her home country and a cousin in the US, it will be hard to convince the CO of her intentions to return.

[lucybelle 453]

1 hour ago, Nat&Amy said:

The issue here is that the cousin might have been one of the reasons why they denied it on the basis of immigrant intent. A relative in the US willing to help them financially means that she might get that support even if she chose to stay and not return to her home country. It's an assumption that is very difficult to overcome, especially when you are 18 years old with no strong ties to your country. I don't see how the letter from the cousin will help.

Yes I was worried when I heard about the cousin. Unfortunately it's already done and we can't take back that they know about her.

52 minutes ago, Nat&Amy said:

One thing that usually makes those cases easier is when the scholarship to study abroad is granted by the applicant's local government. That does not reduce the risk of a student breaking the rules of their visa but they normally need to sign several documents that list penalties if they don't return home. At the end of the day, the only question that matters is: does this applicant have higher chances of staying in the US or returning home? The evidence and the information she provides need to make a case for the latter, and with limited financial resources, few ties to her home country and a cousin in the US, it will be hard to convince the CO of her intentions to return.

Perhaps she could apply for a loan from Ecuador? Even a small $1000 loan?

[Boiler 45,413]

I know this is third hand but obviously study abroad never mind the US is not cheap.

 

Presumably she has worked out how much all this is going to cost including living and travel costs and how she is going to cover this, sounds like a spreadsheet situation.

[lucybelle 453]

I also just found out she (and her family) has been granted a US tourist visa in the past. I told her to bring evidence that she has been to the US before and has retuned on time back to her home country. Would it be important to show that her family has also gone to the US and returned? Or is that not as important?

[Boiler 45,413]

Her prior trip would have been declared as part of her application.

[bmqsg5h3 12]

Getting an international athletic scholarship is very difficult. She must be very talented (What's she doing? basketball, volleyball, soccer, tennis or gymnastics?) After visa denial, has she contacted her team, athletic department and/or international student office of the university? They should take care of her.

[lucybelle 453]

44 minutes ago, t-ten said:

Getting an international athletic scholarship is very difficult. She must be very talented (What's she doing? basketball, volleyball, soccer, tennis or gymnastics?) After visa denial, has she contacted her team, athletic department and/or international student office of the university? They should take care of her.

She's swimming. She wants to train in the USA to try to make the Olympic team. She is quite good for her country. She contacted the university and they were basically like "there's nothing we can do" Which is true. I mean they can't force the US government to give out visas.

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

3 hours ago, lucybelle said:

She's swimming. She wants to train in the USA to try to make the Olympic team. She is quite good for her country. She contacted the university and they were basically like "there's nothing we can do" Which is true. I mean they can't force the US government to give out visas.

Hope she can make it work out. Some years back a bunch of guys from my home country got swimming scholarships to the University of Arizona and broke the Olympic & world records when they won their gold (4x100 relay).  For an athlete from a developing country with limited resources, the US holds brilliant opportunities to excel at sport.

 

 

 

Edited July 26, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[lucybelle 453]

22 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

Hope she can make it work out. Some years back a bunch of guys from my home country got swimming scholarships to the University of Arizona and broke the Olympic & world records when they won their gold (4x100 relay).  For an athlete from a developing country with limited resources, the US holds brilliant opportunities to excel at sport.

 

 

 

Thanks so mUch for this comment! I decided to have her focus on the athletic portion of "why" she wants to go to a university in the USA. I told her to get all her medals she has won, any newspaper clipping, articles that mention her and bring them. I told her make sure the CO doing the interview understands that the scholarship she received is athletic based. I told her to say she wants to continue training in the USA with hopes to make the Olympic team and represent Ecuador in 2020.

 

Shes been given a tourist visa. She's been to the USA and back. They have trusted her before. She needs to prove why she needs to study outside of the USA, and this is why. Hopefully this (plus all the other stuff I told her to get together) will be what she needs!