Going to USA for studies is a dream that many students have especially in the developing world. The rules for getting a student visa could be somewhat different for different nationalities so in this article we will focus on how to get USA student visa for Indian citizens.

It is important that you know the USA student visa requirements pretty well since getting a student Visa for the USA is not very simple. There are lot of procedures that you need to follow. We hope that this article on how to get student visa of USA will help you to decide how you can get the coveted visa. This is a step by step guide that will definitely help you.

1. Planning in advance – This is the ultimate key when you need to get a student visa to the USA. We would recommend that you start the planning a year in advance. A little earlier than that can also do. The earlier the better is the keyword in this case.
2.  You must get your passport ready. The valid Indian passport is the first step to attain student visa of USA.
3. When you want to go the USA as a student you must know that you have to be a good student. You must have good grades from recognized colleges in India before you can dream of getting into the top universities in the USA.
4. Another way you can make yourself eligible for the visa of the USA is by getting a good GRE score. You must pass the GRE test to get an admission into the graduate courses in the USA. You can also appear for the TOEFL along with the GRE in order to make yourself eligible for the student visa of USA.
5. Another point that you must be aware of is that the education in the USA will cost you around fifty lakhs. You must be financially prepared to take this blow. Apart from this you have to ensure that you have enough bank balance in your account to fund the education of the second year. Of course this is a general statement and the amount will vary with the course and university plus any other scholarships and so forth.
6.  Show an interest to return – You in your application must be able to prove that you will come back to the country post your education. Ensure that you can prove this to get the Visa faster. If they feel that you may not come back it may make it difficult to get the visa. Show your property in the country. Show the family that you are leaving behind. These will make your case stronger. If you say that you have no plans of coming back your visa application may get rejected. Well we are not saying that you have to come back. It is just that you have to tell that you have no plans of coming back.
7. The schedule– You must make a schedule for yourself. This is very essential for getting student visa of USA.
8. Around August you must know all about the universities. This will help you to decide which the universities you like. Select four to five universities. Anything more than this number can be difficult to manage.  Make the list after a detailed study and discussion with your friends who are in the USA. You will get good guidance in this when you check the information in the USIEF (United States India Education Foundation). The application also costs. This is exactly why you must select intelligently. If you are an average student you cannot apply to the best universities. Ensure that you apply to the colleges that are not in the top. If you are a brilliant student then you can apply to the best but ensure that you apply to a few average universities too. This will improve your chances to get admission.
9. By the time it is September you must have the letter of recommendations ready with you. You will need two letters of recommendation. These should be from your professors who will tell about your ability in these letters. This will complete the application form. You must ensure that the application is attached with your GRE and TOEFL marks. All your other exams transcripts must be attached to the same. You must select a good courier service to send the application. If it is lost on the way then you will be in more trouble. The university will update it when they receive the application. This is exactly why you must keep tracking if the application was received.
10. By April you will get the I20 which means that you are accepted by the university. Else you will be sent a rejection letter. If you are selected but you will not take the offer as you have got into a better college. Ensure that you do not forget to sent a regret letter. This is very essential.
11. The fees – Now comes the part of getting the funding. You can get a student loan. You can also use your own funds if you have any. You will have to ensure that you deposit a fee that is equal to the next one year’s fee into your bank account. We have already mentioned it before. Get the statement and keep. This can be a hefty figure. Almost equal to twenty five to thirty lakh. You must remember that you can also keep this money for just a day. Caution: Thesedays the visa officers and authorities are getting stricter and more cautious, so if you have deposited your money just in a single step prior to visa application OR if the amount deposited is not in tune with previous deposits, there could be a problem.
12. Filling the SEVIS form – In this step you need to ensure that you fill the SEVIS form. The SEVIS form must be filled completely and correctly. Even a single mistake in this can be a problem. You need to use the I20 that you have got from the college for this purpose.
13. Pay the SEVIS fee – The next step in getting student visa of USA is that you will have to pay the SEVIS fee. This fee is paid online. The fee is about one hundred and eighty US dollars. It can go a little higher at times. When you pay this you will get an acknowledgement. Take a printout of the acknowledgement and the SEVIS form.
14. Pay the VISA fees – Now you can pay the visa fee. This is around one hundred and forty USD. This has to be paid in Indian currency only. It must be paid in a HDFC branch. When you go to pay this fee you must also carry your passport with you.
15. Take an interview date – Now you will have to ensure that you take an interview date. You can take the visa appointment through the VFS website. You will have to select the date from the dates that are available online. You will have to download the form. Fill the form that you have downloaded correctly and completely. Then submit the same.
16. The interview– With this we reach the final step in the process for a student to get visa of USA. On the day of the interview reach the consulate on time. You will be given a time for the interview. Dress up smartly and ensure that you answer the questions with confidence. You must be honest and polite even if you are asked a silly or repeated question.

These are the various steps in the process of how to get student visa of USA.  You must have realised by now that it is not at all simple to get the visa of the USA. It takes a lot of hard work and focused effort to the student visa. You can also meet a consultant who can advise you better on how to get the student visa of USA. They can guide you on how the forms should be filled. They will also help you to select the universities.

These consultants also prepare you for the interview with some mock interview sessions. These consultants charge a fee for the service that they are providing. However, the help that they provide is very important in this process, unless of course you are confident of cracking it all yourself. Good Luck!!