scrubbedexpat099

We have a winner!

helpmeplease123

Well, no, I am planning on doing a masters program and the masters program has clear prerequisites that I do not currently satisfy, community college was the most logical way for me to satisfy them because it gets me already involved in the America education system, rather than taking them online here. I would not go all the way to America just to "shack up" because I had plenty going for me here in the UK and as we are nowhere near getting married I would not be naive enough to risk hurting my career for a relationship. I want to do a masters that is mainly found in the US and that is also where all the top programs are, if i'd wanted to stay in the UK my boyfriend would have found a job here but as it is, he has gone back...I was just explaining why I was quite so upset about the situation.
I know you were probably just joking but I am pretty upset at the moment as i've said and to be honest, although you don't know me, I don't want someone to think that.

scrubbedexpat099

I think you said you wanted to do your course in CA, now the USA is a very large country, it may help to show the your BF is based a long way away and not within commuting distance from the college you are interested in.

helpmeplease123

Well USC is ranked 5th in the country for the masters which is why I mentioned it as I would love to go there and the college I applied to was in Las Vegas (because it seemed to have a really strong international centre and all the courses I wanted) but I was also planning on applying to NYU, Columbia and UNC for my masters too as they are also highly ranked. The officer didn't know that I have a boyfriend, I wouldn't have lied but it never came up.

S Folinsky

Adam Green is the maven on all things on student visas.

CAProgrammer

Have you considered applying for the masters program and asking the school if you can take the pre-requisite classes at the same school where you will be doing the masters?

You have to realise that an international student represents big bucks to a US or UK university as the fees they charge are usually much higher than what they can charge home students. This tends to make them quite flexible about things like pre-requisites.

helpmeplease123

At USC which is my top choice, I can as a limited status student but only if I already had a visa to be in the US, as they don't offer I20s for that - otherwise they let you do it at the same time as the masters in the first semester but I am worried that would be too big of a course load.

Some other Universities e.g. Columbia seem to say we much prefer candidates who have done economics undergraduate level courses, so i'd have a better chance of being accepted rather than it being required and of course I want to increase my chances of getting in as much as possible but again, they don't seem to offer the classes to international students.

retzie

I would investigate terminology carefully. In Australia, a postgraduate diploma requires previous study in the field, while a graduate diploma just requires a degree in any field.

As for the timeline: rushing prerequisites is the path to stress and failure. If you really are committed to excellence in this new career, one more semester should not be a deal-breaker imo.

helpmeplease123

That's true but as the Masters programs start in September, unless I complete the prerequisites in one semester I will have to delay the masters for a full year, which I don't really want to do. I already feel a year behind having given up the MBA place. I am taking some stats and calculus courses online already with UC Berkley and they also have economics classes online so I think I will do both micro and macro and get a temporary job. I think that will work out, I am just so frustrated that I didn't see this coming and that this visa denial might hurt my chances of even just getting to go to the US to see my boyfriend at some point in the next 6 months as tourist for a week or two.

ian-mstm

Actually, and with respect, I wasn't joking. Marriage remains the single most easy way to get to the US - and no one here thinks there's anything wrong with taking both an easy and legal route. But, if you say you're not ready, then that's fine... and kudos to you for knowing it.

Many universities, by the way, have rotating schedules now so it's entirely possible that you can start the MBA coursework in January.

Ian

helpmeplease123

Ian - your comment about getting married didn't upset me, although I know it was a joke I was upset by Boilers inference that I was only going to the US to be with my boyfriend and that i'd not been telling the truth about my motives (maybe I misunderstood though?). It's difficult though with the marriage concept...I know that if we weren't in this situation I wouldn't consider getting married yet (the logical side of my brain at least, the girly side is of course desperate to have a pretty dress and white wedding!) and I know my boyfriend isn't ready and I wouldn't want it to happen because i'd pushed. I hope that we'll get through the next 6 months, although I hate to accept it, if we can't we probably aren't meant to be together. Quite soon after we got together and before he moved over to England to study we had about 6 months visiting back and forth and we managed that, so hopefully we can again (although I think we'll be seeing each other a lot less this time).

I will definitely look into programs that start in January, I have actually just seen that USC offer this so even if I applied for September and needed to, I could probably defer. I just really want to get started, which is another thing that frustrates me about what's happening now, I feel like my life has been put on hold. I am just really hoping now though that I won't have problems with my masters visa but I guess as the officers concerns were regarding the community college program, if I can get into one of the schools i've previously mentioned for a masters degree, that concern would be overcome and they'd have no reason (fingers crossed) to deny me.

Thank you everyone so much for listening to me and giving me the opportunity to voice all my concerns/vent my frustration, I am feeling pretty sorry for myself at the moment and apologise! It happened yesterday and i'm already starting to feel somewhat better though, so thats progress at least!

S Folinsky

I want to point out that no one here has seen the actual application submitted. As explained here, the application seems pretty good, but who knows how it appeared to the ConOff? Also, it is sometimes possible for a knowledgable attorney to make inquiry and get the true scoop and then address the ConOff's concerns.

When I was in practice, this was a major part of consular work.

scrubbedexpat099

I just mentioned what seems to be normal in these situations.

We still do not know if the location of the course and the bf happen to coincide.

terminalvelociraptor

What about a certificate or diploma from the Open University?

http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/undergr...cation/d28.htm

They are open to people who already have a degree and having had experience with both a bricks and mortar Uni and the OU, i must say i have always been very impressed by the quality of their study materials. You do also get access to a tutor and regular tutorials for most courses.

helpmeplease123

No, course and boyfriends location don't coincide, initially that was the hope but it didn't work out in terms of his work. I'm also not entirely sure how the officer would know about him in order for it to affect my application though? I was there in September/October/November (89 days on VWP) and the border guy asked if I was visiting a boyfriend and so I didn't lie of course...could they know about that?!

Thanks terminalvelociraptor - I will have a look into the Open University as well