Student visa- sponsor ill

[Kanja 201]

Hi all, 

 

A friend of mine is housing an international student. He is not related to the student but more like a family friend. The students financial sponsor is ill. It is not clear if they are terminal or not and the health care systems in the country of origin are not good , so it’s not looking good. 
 

Either way, it doesn’t look like the sponsor will be able to pay next semesters fees either because they may not be alive or may not be able to work/do business because they are recovering. 
 

Does anyone have any experience in this? I’ve advised the friend and student to speak to the DSO, the student has been doing exceptionally well in school and maybe the school can offer additional academic scholarship and perhaps help them petition for a hardship work visa. I was just curious if anyone has ever successfully done either or know of anyone who has done either. The friend is willing to increase their support of the student but wouldn’t be able to cover the entire tuition. 
 

thanks in advance! 

[jan22 3,043]

Part of the requirements for the issuance of a student visa is showing current funds available to fund the entire first year of school and a funding stream that will support the entire program.  There are strict limitations on a student-visa-holder's ability to work -- on-campus only, in a job that does not displace a US citizen or LPR, no more than 20 hours per week.  The available jobs tend to be low-paying positions for the most part. 

 

There is no such thing as a hardship work visa. There is a provision where USCIS can grant a hardship work permit, but in the current economic condition I'm not sure they would be eager to do so.  She appears to meet the requirements to be at least considered. Check out the "F1 off-campus employment" section at the following website https://www.ice.gov/sevis/employment#offCE.

 

Unfortunately, if the school cannot offer additional financial aid in some form that will meet the gap between what the friend can provide and what she needs, or she secures another qualified sponsor to provide funds, or gets the work permIt and a job that provides sufficient income, she may have to take a semester (or more) off until she has the required funds available.  You've given the best advice -- the student should talk with the DSO as soon as possible.

Edited November 1, 2022 by jan22

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

Another option if more financial support from the current school is not forthcoming - if the student transfers to a college where average grades are lower than the current one, they may be luckier finding merit scholarships. Many US students follow this route of hunting merit to get funding, and although funding is always more scarce both for foreign students and transfers it might be worth looking into as a possibility if nothing else pans out.  Good luck.  

[Kanja 201]

1 hour ago, jan22 said:

Part of the requirements for the issuance of a student visa is showing current funds available to fund the entire first year of school and a funding stream that will support the entire program.  There are strict limitations on a student-visa-holder's ability to work -- on-campus only, in a job that does not displace a US citizen or LPR, no more than 20 hours per week.  The available jobs tend to be low-paying positions for the most part. 

 

There is no such thing as a hardship work visa. There is a provision where USCIS can grant a hardship work permit, but in the current economic condition I'm not sure they would be eager to do so.  She appears to meet the requirements to be at least considered. Check out the "F1 off-campus employment" section at the following website https://www.ice.gov/sevis/employment#offCE.

 

Unfortunately, if the school cannot offer additional financial aid in some form that will meet the gap between what the friend can provide and what she needs, or she secures another qualified sponsor to provide funds, or gets the work permIt and a job that provides sufficient income, she may have to take a semester (or more) off until she has the required funds available.  You've given the best advice -- the student should talk with the DSO as soon as possible.

Thanks- sorry, yes I was referring to the hardship work permit.

 

they did show funds to pay for 1 year of studies but of course if someone is Sick and needs to pay for healthcare that takes priority unfortunately.  Their country doesn’t really have a health insurance system, everything is cash. Also, the account that needs to be shown isn’t the students account so the student doesn’t even necessarily have access to the funds even if they showed funds for four years of studies. 

Edited November 1, 2022 by Kanja

[Kanja 201]

48 minutes ago, SusieQQQ said:

Another option if more financial support from the current school is not forthcoming - if the student transfers to a college where average grades are lower than the current one, they may be luckier finding merit scholarships. Many US students follow this route of hunting merit to get funding, and although funding is always more scarce both for foreign students and transfers it might be worth looking into as a possibility if nothing else pans out.  Good luck.  

Thank you- I don’t think I follow “if average grades are lower than the current one”?

 

I like  the idea of transferring to a cheaper school overall though. 

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

3 minutes ago, Kanja said:

Thank you- I don’t think I follow “if average grades are lower than the current one”?

 

I like  the idea of transferring to a cheaper school overall though. 

As an example: someone whose grades are good enough to get into a top 20-50 school, decides to go to a school ranked maybe 100-200, because their grades will be well above average and they will be in the top x% of students that get merit scholarships. Specific rankings aside this is the reason a lot of kids that could get into upper tier schools go to places like U Alabama Huntsville or ASU Barrett -  the schools are still good, and these kids get into the honors colleges with serious merit $$ that turns $50-70k annual spend into maybe $10 or $20k. Again - this is harder for a foreigner and for a transfer, but it’s worth looking into what options may be around. 
 

How far along in their studies is this student? If only a freshman now, maybe a local CC for sophomore year to ease the financial pain but keep credits in line with local state 4-year college requirements might be an option. CCs are also more expensive  for foreign students than locals but should still be significantly cheaper than a 4+year. This probably isn’t an option if the student is further along in their studies though.

[Kanja 201]

Just now, SusieQQQ said:

As an example: someone whose grades are good enough to get into a top 20-50 school, decides to go to a school ranked maybe 100-200, because their grades will be well above average and they will be in the top x% of students that get merit scholarships. Specific rankings aside this is the reason a lot of kids that could get into upper tier schools go to places like U Alabama Huntsville or ASU Barrett -  the schools are still good, and these kids get into the honors colleges with serious merit $$ that turns $50-70k annual spend into maybe $10 or $20k. Again - this is harder for a foreigner and for a transfer, but it’s worth looking into what options may be around. 
 

How far along in their studies is this student? If only a freshman now, maybe a local CC for sophomore year to ease the financial pain but keep credits in line with local state 4-year college requirements might be an option. CCs are also more expensive  for foreign students than locals but should still be significantly cheaper than a 4+year. This probably isn’t an option if the student is further along in their studies though.

Oh that makes perfect sense! Thanks 

 

they just started this semester. This semester is already paid, it is next semester they r a bit worried about though to be fair next semester isn’t unpaid yet 😊.

 

i will suggest they start looking into cheaper schools.

 

thanks a bunch for the advice.