International Student Services

F-1 Student Admissions

What is an F-1 visa student?
An F-1 student is someone who has been granted permission from the U.S. federal government to enter and remain in the United States temporarily as a full-time student. F-1 students must follow special regulations to maintain their visa status.

Here are just a few of these important regulations:

• Must always be a full-time student except during school vacation.
• May work on-campus for only up to 20 hours per week.
• May not work off-campus without special permission from the immigration service.
• Must always have a valid passport.
• Must have proof of financial support.
• Must follow special procedures for transferring schools, traveling, and reporting changes to personal and financial information.

In order to receive a Form I-20 for an F-1 student visa, students must submit all of the following documents to the International Admissions Office:

1. An Application for Admission or the Online Application for Admissions
   
   
2. Proof of completing secondary school and official transcripts from any and universities attended. Include English translation if necessary.
   
   Students who attended college or university outside of the U.S. must submit an official course-by-course evaluation of their transcript from an international transcript evaluation service such as Educational Credential Evaluators at www.ece.org or World Education Services at www.wes.org. Visit the website of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (http://naces.org) to find a list of acceptable evaluation services.
   
   

3. Proof of English proficiency. If English is not the primary language spoken by the student and the language of educational instruction, students must submit proof of advanced English skills. Proof may be any of the following:

   • TOEFL. The minimum score for admission is 61 on the iBT, 173 on the CBT or 500 on the PBT. . Test results must be sent to JCTC directly from the testing service. The scores must not be older than 18 months. The TOEFL institutional code for JCTC is 1328. For more information about the TOEFL visit www.toefl.org.
   • Language Training Program. Proof of successful completion of the advanced level of the University of Louisville Intensive English Language Program or successful completion of the fifth level of the University of Kentucky English as a Second Language Program.
   • College English 101 and 102. Completion of College English 101 and 102 or its equivalent with a minimum grade of B from an accredited American institution.

   ***JCTC can NOT issue the Form I-20 to international students who need ESL classes or who do not meet the above English requirements.***
   
   

4. Proof of Financial Support for $19,912
   
   
5. Complete the Application for the I-20 Form
    
6. JCTC Transfer Report

Because it can take several weeks to obtain an F-1 visa, students who currently live outside the United States should submit all of the above documents no later than the following dates:

• For Fall Semester Admission (begins in August) – June 25
• For Spring Semester Admission (begins in January) – November 15
• For Summer Session Admission (begins in June) – March 15