5 posts tagged “visa”
Yesterday my application for a visa arrived around midday. It was processed with blazing speed:
- Tuesday: Mailed the application
- Wednesday: Application arrived
- Thursday: Application mailed back
- Friday: Application arrived
I must have picked an off-season.
Now for planning and packing. Here are a few of the things I've taken care of or still need to take care of before I go:
- Look up the luggage limits (for each airline!) to see how much I can carry
- Cancel my NetFlix subscription
- Make copies of important documents: one copy for me, and one copy for leaving at home with family
- Copy important addresses and phone numbers, including those of the US Embassy in Japan
- Copy the numbers and phone numbers on all the cards in my wallet, again keeping a copy and leaving one at home
- Shop for clothing, etc., for the trip (guided by The Universal Packing List)
The flight is drawing very close, and I'm still waiting on my Certificate of Eligibility. I was assured it would arrive late this week, but now there's only one day left before mail carriers blackout for the weekend. I hope it arrives today, as I have all the materials ready to (nearly) immediately mail the visa application to Detroit for final processing.
I've also started to think about about what I want to have with me when I finally get on the plane. As an average-sized American guy, will I be able to find clothing once I'm there, or do I need to stock up before I leave? Do I need anything other than clothes and my laptop? I have some Internet searching and JapanesePod searching to do.
This last month was an unofficial blogging break, and surprisingly not because I was tired after writing that series on the welcome packet. To put it simply, nothing happened. I gathered and mailed my materials for the application for the "certificate of eligibility" from Kyushu University (which only required passport photos, personal information, etc.), and bought some plane tickets (through cheaptickets.com, by the way). Quite the boring month, I must say. There's a lot left to do, but I'm ready to quit the planning stages and go there already.
What prompted me to write now is that today I pre-emptively called the university to check on the status of my application*. They told me that it had been approved and that they were planning on mailing it later today (where by "today" I mean their "today," which begins just as mine is ending). Nice timing --- a few days better than their 14-day forecast --- and especially nice news given how little time there is left for error in this visa application process.
According to the page on travel visas on the Embassy of Japan in United States web site, my closest consulate is in Detroit, Michigan, whose application predicts a 5-day turn-around time for student visa applications. Given that my certificate of eligibility won't arrive until later this week, and I have a plane ticket for March 26th, there is reason for alarm. I need to stay on top of things, because there is no longer room for error.
It's nice to see things falling into place.
* I've called the university so many times for similar reasons that by now every person on call knows my name. Every time, I listen to their introduction (in half-understanding) and ask, "英語で、大丈夫ですか (eigo de, daijoubu desu ka - Is English all right?)." I hadn't realized the impression I was making until this time I was immediately asked, "Oh, is this Thomas?" The good part about calling so often is that now I recognize their voices, too, and know when they answer the phone whether the person knows English or will forward me to someone who does.
A few days ago, I finally received my letter of acceptance from Kyushu University. It's dated January 18, but thanks to delays in shipping, and the need to forward from school to my home address, I got it February 1st. It has lots of good information on the trip and a few important-looking documents with Japanese and English translations.
This series is my attempt at summarizing the bits that are relevant to anyone looking to study abroad in Japan, especially if it's in Kyushu, and even more especially if it's with the Japan in Today's World program at Kyushu University in Fukuoka. Part two and part three are now ready.
And now, for part one. Here we go!
In order for them to send a Certificate of Eligibility (to ease the student visa application process to only a few days), I need to send a few items. The first is the certificate application. That there is a page and a half of JTW-supplied instructions independent of the instructions on the application itself should probably scare anyone. But it's okay, they say: "First, take a deep breath and relax---the form you about [sic] to complete is not as difficult to fill out as it might appear."
It then continues to tell me which numbered portions I should fill out ("1 through 8, 10 through 19, and 27 through 32"), with a similar list for the sections I should make sure not to complete under any situation. Loo king over the 3-page application, it doesn't appear to be that difficult, although it reminds me of the application for a summer program in Japan, which had English and Japanese, but the English was poorly translated and difficult to follow. Hopefully this application doesn't have the same problem.
Other, less involved requirements for the application include:
- Proof of enrollment in my home university. For my school, this comes in the form of a certificate which they gave to me in a sealed envelope.
- Five recent, color photos of my lovely face. They're roughly to passport spec.
- Either proof of scholarship or proof of cash. This is to show that we have enough cash to support me for my entire trip---roughly $850 per month. They're not that specific on what "official bank verification" is, but a photocopy of a bank statement may be enough. I guess Japan doesn't want me running out of money and becoming stranded in their country.
- Photocopy of my passport. I must include enough pages to show all of my name, photo, passport number, and issuance/expiration dates.
- Independent Study Project proposal. Each student must take on a Japan-related project for their semester or year at JTW. My project plans will probably make it into a future post.
- Advanced Laboratory Research proposal. If I were a lab kind of person, I would attach one of these for the chance to work in a laboratory while I'm there. Luckily, as a computer scientist, I need no confining lab to do my work.
They also included a mini timeline, listing February as the month in which to make flight arrangements, and March as the month to take my Certificate of Eligibility to get a student visa. I should arrive on March 28 or 29, and be ready for orientation to begin on March 30. And then prepare myself for a two-day "welcome trip" to Beppu, "famous for its onsen (hot spring baths)." Jackpot!
Oh yeah, then classes begin April 3, with language placements following.
The packet is long, so more details will follow when I've had a chance to catch my breath.
Getting ready for my trip, there are a few orders of business which I need to get taken care of right away.
- Travel visa. According to JTW's "Admissions" page, I need to send them "a Certificate of Eligibility, six photos, a copy of your passport and a Certificate of Enrollment, together with a Certificate of Scholarship Award or an Affidavit of Support with Account Balance." That's a bit of paperwork to get together, so I need to get started on that.
- Financial aid application. This application goes to my home university so that they know how much studying abroad will cost me and decide how much money they'll give me. :)
- Immunizations. I've scheduled an appointment with the health center here to get advice on precautions, immunizations, and other health topics relevant to my trip. The only vaccination it looks like I will need based on what the Internet says is for Japanese Encephalitis, but I may be missing something.
In my readings on the Internet I've also read that obtaining a travel visa to Japan is much faster and easier once you have an endorsement by some Japanese institution, which I'll be getting from Kyushu University in the form of a Certificate of Eligibility and Admission. This bypasses some of the background checks the embassy here does before giving me the paperwork. According to a phone call, the whole process will still take a few weeks from me sending Kyushu University the information, them sending me the letter, me applying for the visa, and the visa arriving, but I guess this is an improvement.
To begin the visa process, I'm just waiting on a packet from Kyushu University with the details. They said over the phone that the information they're mailing (which should arrive early next week) is much more detailed and up-to-date than the web site.
Argh, paperwork!
