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April 24, 2013

iBuzz

ISSS Walk-In Advising Hours Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday

8:30-11:30am & 1:30-4:30pm

Congratulations to our spring 2013 international student graduates!

For those of you moving on to post-completion OPT, please remember to update your employer information in iStart as soon as possible. For more information, please refer to our Optional Practical Training website. For students who have not applied for post-completion OPT, you have 60 days from May 4 to: Get a new I-20 for a new program at Georgia Tech Complete the Transfer Out e-form available through iStart if you will begin a new program at a different institution Apply for a Change of Visa Status Leave the country

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iBuzz

New Travel Signature e-form and policy

We are nearing the end of the semester, when many students travel outside the US. ISSS has implemented a new travel signature e-form in iStart to ensure that advisors have appropriate information to process the travel signature, ensure a timely signature for students traveling, and ensure greater efficiency in managing this common request. With the introduction of this e-form, the OIE front desk will no longer take I-20s or DS-2019s at the front desk for a travel signature. Instead, students should log into iStart and provide relevant details about the upcoming travel in the new Travel Signature Request e-form for F-1 students or the Travel Validation Request for J-1 students. Travel eform submissions will be reviewed daily and processed in the order they are received. Students will then be notified via an approval email to bring their I-20 or DS-2019 anytime during walk-in advising hours so an advisor can sign it. Walk-in advising hours are Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays 8:30am-11:30am and 1:30pm-4:30pm except during Georgia Tech holidays. We hope this new system will cut down on multiple visits to the office and save both you and the OIE time! The best time to submit this eform is right after a plane ticket is purchased, not days or hours before you travel! Waiting to submit the travel e-form may result in less time than necessary for ISSS to process your flight. In other words, submit the e-form early!

Dont Forget ISSSs Photo Contest While Traveling this Summer!

Document your summer adventures and submit your photos for ISSSs photo contest. Show your GT pride around the world as you take pictures in GT gear. Staying in Atlanta? Take us to Braves games, your research laboratory, the library. Show us what youre up to during the summer! Traveling around the US? We want to follow your adventures as were in our offices preparing for the new students and your return! Traveling home? Make us jealous by sending photos of your moms homemade cooking, your home city, your childhood memories! Submissions should be sent to: emily.dolezal@oie.gatech.edu

Paperless I-94 Process Coming Soon

The US government has published a new regulation that will eliminate paper I-94s arrival/departure records and instead move to a paperless, automated process beginning April 30, 2013. Customs and Border Patrol Officials (CBP) will gather arrival/departure information from visitors passport, visa stamp, and flight manifest and in most cases, foreign visitors will no longer complete the paper I-94 prior to being admitted by a CBP official. Officials will stamp the passport of the traveler indicating the date of admission, visa type, and authorized period of stay. This change will have minimal impact on F and J students and scholars already in the US with a paper I-94 document (white card stapled in the passport). Travelers who have a paper I-94 card are advised to turn it in to the airline official when checking into or boarding an international flight as was customary. International visitors who enter the US after April 30, 2013 will be able to access their electronic record of entry at https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94h by entering their date of travel, visa type, port of entry, and passport biographical information. After the site goes live in late April, a paper receipt can then be printed to show any state or federal agency that may require paper evidence. More information will be distributed by ISSS as it becomes available. Please see the following information from Customs and Border Patrol: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/id_visa/i-94_instructions/i94_rollout.xml http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/newsroom/fact_sheets/travel/i94_factsheet.ctt/i94_factsheet.pdf

Spotlight on our Anne Robinson Clough Conference Grant Recipients!

Yu Shrike Zhang: Doctoral Student in Biomedical Engineering
I am very much honored to receive the Anne Robinson Clough Conference Grant that provided me with the chance to attend the Society For Biomaterials (SFB) 2013 Annual Meeting & Exposition held in Boston from April 10-14. I had two poster presentations during the conference where I was able to explain to my peers in the biomaterials/regenerative medicine community my exciting work on threedimensional, porous, and biodegradable inverse opal scaffolds with a uniform structure and their applications to regenerative medicine (specifically, stem cell therapy and blood vessel regeneration). Besides, I was able to gain precious insights from my peers on future directions of my projects, learn about others research, and importantly, meet up and mingle with new friends, which are all crucial to my future career development. None of this could have been achieved without the support from the grant.

Xiaojing Sun: Doctoral Student in Public Policy

With the generous support from Anne Robinson Clough Conference Grant, I was able to attend the 54th Annual Convention of International Studies Association at San Francisco from April 2 to April 6. During this annual academic conference of International Relations, I participated in the working group meeting on International Political Economy (IPE) of Resource where I interacted with scholars from around the world to discuss the current hot topics in the field. I also gave a talk titled Solar Energy Industry in China: A Policy Perspective in a panel sponsored by IPE. During the talk, I presented my research on the development of the Chinese solar industry. By comparing it to the industry in the U.S. , I drew some policy lessons that can be learned by policymakers in both countries. The opportunity to participate in the conference is priceless not only because it allowed me to get feedback on my research from top tier scholars in the field, it also gave me a rare chance to meet researchers from all over the world who share similar interest with me. I listened to more than 40 talks while at the conference. It helped me discover new research frontier and draw inspirations for my own work.

Attending a summer academic or leadership conference? Apply for the Anne Robinson Clough Conference grant for International Students. This grant was created to assist F-1 or J-1 students at Georgia Tech to attend domestic or international academic or leadership conferences. Find more detailed information, requirements, and the complete application in iStart.

Upcoming Events and Opportunities

TASA Dead Week Skewers
Dead Week Skewers is one of TASAs signature annual events that is completely free to the public. Traditional Taiwanese BBQ will be served to patrons ina fun and relaxed atmoshopere to help relieve some of the stress that comes in preparing for finals. This event is FREE for everyone, so come out, take a break from studying , and bring your friends to hang out with TASA and eat some delicious food. Where: Currant Parking Deck When: 7:30-10 pm Find more information at https://www.facebook.com/events/1365968 23190843/?fref=ts

Survey for International Students

This survey is optional: your participation as a Georgia Tech student is not required. Did you know that adjustment difficulties of international students are often related to losses they experience when they move to a different country? Dr. Kenneth Wangs research team at University of Missouri is conducting a study on this topic, and invites you to participate by completing a 10-minute survey. There will also be an opportunity to raffle for a $50 or $25 gift card. For more details on the study, please click on the following link: https://missouri.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_bOYWzztVZaSZLTf&univ=gatech

Good luck on finals from ISSS!