Come to the United States Legally and Study

There aren't many ways to come to the United States legally any more. You basically have to be a refugee, get married to a U.S. citizen or "green card" holder or fit into one of several very narrow categories of privileged people. If you are feeling lucky and are a citizen of a nation permitted to participate, you can put your name in for the "Green Card Lottery." There is a more secure way to come to the United States, though. Have you ever thought about studying in this country?

When I moved from New Mexico to New Jersey my first job was with Harvest English Institute. This is a private franchise of language schools that actually has the proper government authorizations to receive international students. There are two ways you can take advantage of this opportunity.

First, you can apply for a tourist visa in your home country to come to the United States. If approved, once you are here you can put in a separate request for a change of status. The school can actually help you with quite a bit of the paperwork. The trouble with this option is that if you leave the United States after changing status to "student" you will not be able to return and continue as a student without doing another request.

Second, you can apply for a student visa while still in your home country. On a regular student visa you can leave the United States while studying here to visit friends or family from time to time in other countries and return to continue your studies.

Either way, you can generally stay in the United States for around 8 years or so as a student. You don't have to stay at Harvest Institute, and once you are comfortable with your English skills you can transfer to a regular university or accredited vocational program that is approved to receive international students. There may be options for changing your status to permanent as well, such as in the event that you marry a U.S. citizen or legal resident while here.

Note: I am not a lawyer and none of the above is to be considered legal advice for the purposes of immigration. If you have any questions, contact the U.S. embassy or consulate nearest you for more information. Also, at the time of this writing I am not employed by Harvest English Institute and receive no material benefit for explaining these options.

See Also:
Websites of U.S. Embassies, Consulates, and Diplomatic Missions
Harvest Institute