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Recently graduated F1 student out of status without OPT.
Hey there,
I recently graduated from my undergraduate program and was preparing to take the GRE, gather letters of recommendation et cetera for graduate school during my OPT period. However, my final semester of school was rough with 18 cr., 2 on-campus jobs and an unpaid internship all together. In the process, I did not pay attention to the OPT application. After consulting the school, I was told that I can apply up to 60 days after graduation. I wasn't told it was a "grace period" otherwise I would have started the process early. My school has one exclusively international student counsellor who meets on specific days in the middle of the week. In order to get maximum time for my OPT i waited towards the end of the 60 day mark to apply, but I waited too long and was four days late in applying for OPT. The school rejected the paperwork and said I was effectively out of status. This was 5 days ago. Since then I have been researching opportunities to either extend my stay for a couple of month, figure out storage situation or look into graduate school applications. Grad school application don't begin until September. I haven't received any word from USCIS or any other authority figures about my predicament.
Here are my questions:
1) I did not intentionally violate my F1 status. The school doesn't communicate with International students to send any reminders about key dates. Is there any possible way I can stay for a little longer and figure out my situation for my personal belongings and future academic interests? Reinstatement/extension?
2) If I were to leave and apply for a B1/B2 from the country of origin, would my "out of status" situation be seen as a violation and future visa's rejected? My house lease is due to expire at the end of the week and I was planning on storing my stuff and leaving if nothing transpired.
3) In an ideal situation, I was planning on returning on a B1/B2 and then transfer to F1 provided admission to graduate school is successful before the start of Spring 16 semester. Is that transfer possible while remaining in the U.S?
4) I am considering consulting with an immigration attorney's about my case, but I'm unsure if it will be worth the expense. I would prefer staying in order to figure things out.
Thank you in anticipation.
I recently graduated from my undergraduate program and was preparing to take the GRE, gather letters of recommendation et cetera for graduate school during my OPT period. However, my final semester of school was rough with 18 cr., 2 on-campus jobs and an unpaid internship all together. In the process, I did not pay attention to the OPT application. After consulting the school, I was told that I can apply up to 60 days after graduation. I wasn't told it was a "grace period" otherwise I would have started the process early. My school has one exclusively international student counsellor who meets on specific days in the middle of the week. In order to get maximum time for my OPT i waited towards the end of the 60 day mark to apply, but I waited too long and was four days late in applying for OPT. The school rejected the paperwork and said I was effectively out of status. This was 5 days ago. Since then I have been researching opportunities to either extend my stay for a couple of month, figure out storage situation or look into graduate school applications. Grad school application don't begin until September. I haven't received any word from USCIS or any other authority figures about my predicament.
Here are my questions:
1) I did not intentionally violate my F1 status. The school doesn't communicate with International students to send any reminders about key dates. Is there any possible way I can stay for a little longer and figure out my situation for my personal belongings and future academic interests? Reinstatement/extension?
2) If I were to leave and apply for a B1/B2 from the country of origin, would my "out of status" situation be seen as a violation and future visa's rejected? My house lease is due to expire at the end of the week and I was planning on storing my stuff and leaving if nothing transpired.
3) In an ideal situation, I was planning on returning on a B1/B2 and then transfer to F1 provided admission to graduate school is successful before the start of Spring 16 semester. Is that transfer possible while remaining in the U.S?
4) I am considering consulting with an immigration attorney's about my case, but I'm unsure if it will be worth the expense. I would prefer staying in order to figure things out.
Thank you in anticipation.
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