AHMEDABAD: For several students from Gujarat, the dream of studying in an American university will take time to be fulfilled despite confirmed admissions.
The US ambassador to India recently announced that action would be taken to expedite student visa pendency, but many students are still waiting for an appointment.
"I got admission to a varsity in Washington and bagged a scholarship. My term begins in July, and I must begin the course on time. However, despite submitting my I-20 form, I have not received a visa appointment. I am left with no choice but to wait," said Ashu Arora, an academic associate who bagged admission earlier this month.
With limited slots opening every fortnight, many students struggle to get appointments. The last slot opened on May 14, and the next is scheduled to open in the first week of June. However, students continue to be concerned as slot availability is a concern.
"I tried booking an appointment on May 14 when the slots were opened. However, the website traffic was so high that I could barely access my account. Many of my friends also faced a similar issue," said Mihir Satasiya, who has bagged admission to an institute in Arizona for a post graduate course.
Kruti Panchasara, another student admitted to Cleveland State University in February, is still awaiting a visa date. "My course is scheduled to begin in August, and I haven't received an appointment yet. After the visa interview takes about 10 days to receive the stamped passport. Therefore, it is important to get an appointment soon," she said.
Noteworthily, students who have faced visa rejection once do not find a slot easily. Bhavin Thaker, an Ahmedabad-based foreign education consultant, said, "The embassy has begun opening appointment slots once in a few days, and we are expecting an announcement for June first week as well. However, the rush of students willing to go to the US for higher education is unprecedented, so the waiting time has remained high. We have observed that students facing visa rejections get fewer chances of new appointments."
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