Visa Experiences

[Neha]

I am starting this thread so that anyone who goes for a visa interview
can post their experiences. It will help the rest of us who are yet to
take their visa interviews. Please post which consulate you went to
and what were the questions asked to you and your reply to them.
People can also post when they are planning to take an appointment.

[zach]

Has anyone from Chennai booked their Visa interview date yet? The site
keeps giving me pop ups saying there aren't any appointments
available. Is this a problem with the site, or is there no way to
select a date you want?

[prashanth]

"...is there no way to select a date you want?..."
twss zach

for anyone else facing the same problem:
Go to the VFS site and and enter your data,it'll always say 'all slots
full' if you enter student as purpose (it wont if you enter tourism/
business/terrorism).
Click on the highlighted link for 'out of turn emergency' ...it shows
you the available dates for a student visa interview.

That's because even if you apply really early,the visa office holds
all student applications till 120 days before reporting date,making
all student visas emergency appointments by default.
At least that's the way i understood it,it doesn't work any other way
for me.

[zach]

@prashanth: twss.. lol.. didn't think you would ever pull one out of..

paid the HDFC fees today, go those chalans with the barcodes and
numbers that they require at the consulate. apparently you can only
set up an appointment 48 hrs after paying this money at HDFC. all the
details are at the following site:
https://www.vfs-usa.co.in/Home.aspx

it's a little late to put this up, i know, but i'm putting it up
anyway

[Neha]

Hi all

Hasn't anyone taken the visa interview yet apart from Kaushik...??
If yes, then pple please post your experience or at least the
questions you were asked.
It might help others who are yet to take the interview.

Thanks
Neha

[Mohit Singh]

first  |  < previous  |  next >  |  last showing 114-123 of 123  Jun 12 (1 day ago) Romit @ swagata, kunal i said u must be the first to get a visa to UT-Austin from this community.........!!! anyways gr8 to see ppl getting their visas left and right! Jun 12 (1 day ago) Romit @ Kunal yes true seems very few top notch students need to interact with us commoners - may be pride, may be something else.............who knows??!! well the bane of the matter is we all will be heading to the US and u have to prove urself there too no matter how good u r!!! Jun 12 (1 day ago) abhinav @ Romit and Kunal, I don't comment on this intercation thing but I'd say this. " For consultancy jobs, it doesn't matter if you are from an IVY leargue or from a univ. ranked arnd 250". I donno the stats but given the market conditions, I'd wanna see how many of those IVY /BIG 10 ppl. end up with full-time positions after graduation (including me). * I said "consultancy jobs" bcoz thts where post MS frustration leads many students (including those coming from IVY/BIG10/Top 50 univ.) I am not against IVL or BIG 10 univs. but if ppl. just wanna end up with a s/w job ( thru consultancy), they might wanna reconsider spending 20 -30L. (thts just my opinion). and btw I went to BIG 10 and I am gng there again ( felt like speding more than $800/900 per credit is nothing but a waste of money). *Ignore typos Jun 12 (23 hours ago) Kunal deepak is also a member of this community. like i said, he seldom posts, but he did write bout his visa experience after a little persuasion from my side. jus go bak a few pages. The VO really grilled him, according to UT Austin student's standards. Jun 12 (23 hours ago) Romit @ Kunal oh ok then i must have missed his VI 12:40 pm (21 hours ago) Pratham Wheeeeeeeeezzzza !!!! [8)] Destination : University of Southern California, Los Angeles Major: Electrical Engg. Visa Interview Location : Mumbai Waiting time : 2.5 hrs Date of Interview: June 11 Time of Interview : was scheduled for 8.15.... bt had to wait till 10.45am Any instances before the interview: Choked on the sandwich at VFS lounge Stumbled while gettin into the bus n ripped my shoe . Jst b4 the intew, there was this guy behind me who was so nervous that he was shivering... as if he was going to be called to the counter and summarily executed... Counter No.: 7 VO description: A young Caucasian lady with burgundy hair and twinkling eyes. As I walk into the booth, the VO gets interrupted from behind, leaves her desk after telling me that she'll be back in a jiffy. I utilize the time to look arnd in the booth n find a camera staring at me. Jst then... VO: G'morning ! Sorry abt that Sir ! Me: its allright. 'morning to you too. VO: Plz pass the pink token. Me: there u go, ma'am. VO: So, USC? What are u going there for? Me: For my MS in EE with VLSI as specialization. VO:VLSI? what is that? Me: told VO: Wow! I'm glad somebody is doing it... Me: (sheepish grin.... she is obviously unaware of the competition...) VO: Who's payin? Me: my parents, ma'am VO: And what do they do? Me: Told VO:do u have siblings? Me: A bro whos a year younger VO: and what does he do? Me: He will be an engineer in a couple of months VO: Nice. a family of engineers ! Me: (Flash my set of whites at her...) VO: I am approving ur visa sir. ur passport will be couriered to ur home shortly. hv a good time in LA ! Me: i sure will ! good day to you, lady! VO: good day sir ! Misc Advise: Dress rich. be confidant. feel good. Dont choke on the sandwich and mind ur step While i was typing this, I received my passport by courier..! 5:24 pm (16 hours ago) delete M()h!t.... Destination : Carnegie MEllon Major :MS in mechanical engg.. Visa Interview Location :US embassy delhi Waiting time : around an hr Time of Interview : 1:30 pm Any instances before the interview:well my counter was changed..as my hands sweat a lot..and the scanner was not pickin my finger scan..so i was asked to go to the near counter Counter number : initially 11 number..but then later shifted to 10 number counter Visa Officer Description(optional): the only lady in the lot....in late 30's aftrer succesffuuly gettin my finger scan..she made a victory sign...and then wished good afternoon Dialogues : Me: good afternoon ma'am Vo: so carnegie mellon...nice Me:thank you ma'am VO which course Me: MS in mechanical engineering.. VO: how much was ur gre.. Me:1310 VO: and how much was ur scor ein quant? Me: 800 VO: Is it funded or unfunded? Me: Unfunded.. VO: what does ur father do? Me: he is chief manager in IOCL VO:Ok...which all admits you have got.. Me: besides ths 7 more admits...(she started counting in her fingers. as i was saying the names of univs)USC, Duke, vanderbilt, UFL (with aid), SUNY-STONY brook, NJIT, IIT, chicago... VO: why are u not goin to USC..? Me: CMU has not resorted to mass recruitment of students...so the selectivity is still intact...and then the brand image of Carnegie Mellon will help me fortify my MS degree and get a job when i will come back to India( iread this reason in some post only..of our seniors batch/..) VO: good..ur visa is issued..u will get it by courier in less then 5 days... me: thank you ma'am thats it..that was my visa experience.. mohit

[Ramkumar Krishnan]

Hi - My Visa Experience at Hyderabad Consulate! 

Visa Approved! Not a document asked - Finished in less than a minute! 

VO: Good morning!

Me: Good morning! 

1.) VO: What is ur purpose of going to the USA ?

     ME: To pursue Masters 

2.) VO: What is ur undergrad percentage 

     ME: Told

3.) VO: Who is sponsoring ur education - told.

4.) VO: Where does your Father work - Told. 

Then looks at I 20 and sees that it is Carnegie Mellon University and she turns and goes inside and tells her colleague something.

She comes back and asks me if I am specialising in Robotics! ( I presume the ONLY reason for her to ask if I am specialising in Robotics is coz her colleague, who comes shortly after must have specialised in robotics :P - read on )   I smiled and said no maam I am interested more in Communications! ( I knew by this time, visa is almost assured! ) 

then Her colleague comes and asks & makes some small talk! She was like "Oh even I have been to CMU and its a Great school - they have great professors and their research is real good. Meanwhile VO is busy filling up the computer data... And then I continue talking to the lady about why I am going and what are my research interests... after that the colleague left...

Then VO smiles and says Ur Visa is approved! Thats it.. No documents nothing... Trust me guys, the name Carnegie Mellon only is enuf to get u thru ! All the best guys for ur Visa interview! Just BE CONFIDENT ! Mine was a most pleasant n wonderful visa experience ! 

Cheers 

Ram

On Sat, Jun 13, 2009 at 4:11 AM, Neha <nehagra...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Arvind Gopalakrishnan]

HI
 
I had my visa interview yesterday in Hyderabad. It went of pretty smoothly I Must say. 
 
I am elaborating what happens from the time you reach the consular office gate.
The watchmen near the gate will first check your appointment letter. Make sure you have no sealed envelopes. I was carrying a spare set of sealed transcripts and had to open the envelope.

 
Once you get in to the consular office, they will scan your documents.

Inside they will also ask for your BLUE hdfc receipt and passport DS forms I20 and SEVIS. They will make sure you have filled all the DS forms properly.
Then you are led to a queue where they will take the same above mentioned documents cross check, take your finger prints and give you a token number.

Once you are called, it will state which counter you are supposed to go to. The interview was really quick.

I say Hi Good Afternoon...

SHe nods and says HI

She takes those same documents looks at them, then asks for my degree certificates. Looks at them, asks me

You already have a masters degree, why do you want to do one more??

I tell her that I have realised that I wanna learn more on core technologies as that's what gives differentiation to any product and blah.

She asks where  have I been working and for how long?

I answered...

She asked me what was my salary and what is my father's(my sponsor) salary.

I answered...

She asked what was my fathers occupation...

I answered...

She says your visa is approved your passport will be couriered to you in 5 days.

I say thanks have a nice day!

Thats it... it was really quick....

Im sure all of you will have a cool interview.

ALL the best

CHeers
Arvind

On Sat, Jun 13, 2009 at 4:11 AM, Neha <nehagra...@gmail.com> wrote:

[lavanya subramanian]

Hi folks,

 

I had my visa interview at Chennai.

 

1. The time of the interview was 7.30 AM. People for the 7.30 and 7.45 slots were allowed into the consulate at around 7.15AM.

 

2. I was asked to join the queue for document checking/verification rightaway. Here, the people at the counter take the essential docs (DS forms, i20, degree cert, GRE/TOEFL score reports) and arrange them in a folder and give it back to you. I was then asked to go to the next building for the actual interview

 

3. The actual interview happened around 8.00 AM. This is when the counters open and VOs start coming in.

 

I : Good Morning (give my documents in the folder given at the verification counter)

 

VO : CMU and with funding. (Flips through my docs) I don't have to ask you anything

(Types on his comp while making small talk)

       Your passport will couriered in 5 working days

 

4. I called VFS Chennai at 044-42316767 to check my passport status, for collecting it across the counter. The status can also be checked on the VFS site. The passport has to be sent to VFS from the consulate, before you can collect it across the counter (Mine was sent the next day). I collected my passport at the collection centre at the following address : No.14, New No.4, Sadasivam Street, Gopalapuram, Chennai-600086.

 

PS: There was a guy being interviewed at another counter. He was asked his university's mascot.

 

All the best,

Lavanya.

 

[Karan Handa]

Moral of the story:
CMU ROCKS!!

[Neha]

Hi all,

I guess most of you must have had their visa interviews (except me, I
have an appointment on 13th July). Was the interview peaceful with
everyone or did someone had a problem as well..?? Also did anyone get
the visa for more than the duration mentioned in I20 ?

Thanks
Neha

On Jun 13, 12:17 pm, Karan Handa <kara...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Moral of the story:
> CMU ROCKS!!
>
> On Sat, Jun 13, 2009 at 9:33 PM, lavanya subramanian

> <lavanya....@gmail.com>wrote:

>
> > Hi folks,
>
> > I had my visa interview at Chennai.
>
> > 1. The time of the interview was 7.30 AM. People for the 7.30 and 7.45
> > slots were allowed into the consulate at around 7.15AM.
>
> > 2. I was asked to join the queue for document checking/verification
> > rightaway. Here, the people at the counter take the essential docs (DS
> > forms, i20, degree cert, GRE/TOEFL score reports) and arrange them in a
> > folder and give it back to you. I was then asked to go to the next building
> > for the actual interview
>
> > 3. The actual interview happened around 8.00 AM. This is when the counters
> > open and VOs start coming in.
>
> > I : Good Morning (give my documents in the folder given at the verification
> > counter)
>
> > VO : CMU and with funding. (Flips through my docs) I don't have to ask you
> > anything
> > (Types on his comp while making small talk)
> > Your passport will couriered in 5 working days
>
> > 4. I called VFS Chennai at 044-42316767 to check my passport status, for
> > collecting it across the counter. The status can also be checked on the VFS
> > site. The passport has to be sent to VFS from the consulate, before you can
> > collect it across the counter (Mine was sent the next day). I collected my
> > passport at the collection centre at the following address : No.14, New

> > No.4, Sadasivam Street, Gopalapuram, *Chennai*-600086.

>
> > PS: There was a guy being interviewed at another counter. He was asked his
> > university's mascot.
>
> > All the best,
> > Lavanya.
>

[zach]

Neha,

I had a really smooth interview. I don't think you will have a
problem. The guy in front of me at the counter had a bit of a rough
interview, but the VO didn't seem to care anymore after she saw the
I-20. You just have to seem like you didn't rehearse your replies.

The visa I got was for 5 years. A little too much longer than the
duration given on the I-20.