Information and resources for

Prospective Students

Information for Current International Students

Information and Downloadable Forms

Curricular Practical Training (CPT)

• CPT Information (please download and read carefully)
• CPT Student Request Form
• CPT Advisor's Recommendation

Optional Practical Training (OPT)

(See 'What's New!' on the ISS home page for this semester's OPT workshop schedule)

• OPT Information (please download and read carefully)
• OPT Request Form

I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization)

• I-765

International Student Requirements

The following requirements are mandatory for all NMSU students who have an F-1 or J-1 visa:

Full-time enrollment

F-1 visa status students must be enrolled full-time in fall and spring semesters, with very few exceptions, to remain in-status. For graduate students, this means at least 9 credits in the fall and spring semester. For undergraduate students, the minimum is 12 credits per semester. Only one class of your minimum credit load may be an online class. DO NOT DROP BELOW the correct figure or you endanger your student status.

Health Insurance

All international students (with F-1 status) and family members who hold F-2 status are required to have NMSU health insurance at all times. Students are barred from registering until proving health insurance coverage.

Address changes and personal data

Please remember that all international students are required to notify the ISS office within 10 days of any local address change. Make the correction to your address record on your MyNMSU page, and then notify our office by email of your change.

It is important that at all times we have (in addition to your local address) your NMSU email address, another email address, your local and/or cell phone number, and an emergency contact for you. If this information changes, please let us know.

New documents

Also, if you get a new passport, or a new visa, our office will need a copy of any new documents that you have received. Keep in mind that if your I-20 is current, you do not need a new visa if you do not travel outside the United States. Your passport, however, should be valid at least 6 months in the future at all times.

Current signature

You need to get a new signature on your I-20 document from our office every six (6) months, to verify that you are still in-status and in good standing as an F-1 visa status student at NMSU. This is especially important if you will be traveling. For a current signature please allow one business day for processing.

Services

Documents

Our office, International Student Services (ISS), can provide current students with the following documents:

• New I-20 in case that you:
  • need an extension to complete your degree (we need this information in an email from your academic advisor)
  • lost your original I-20
  • have changed your major or degree (if beginning a new degree new financial documentation is required)
  • need an I-20 for family members (spouse and/or children) to travel to the U.S. (additional financial requirements apply)
• Passport renewal letter, to assist students in getting a new passport from their country's embassy or consulate (please provide a scan of your current passport ID page)
• Family visit letter, to enable your family to visit the U.S. (spouse and/or children only)
• Social Security number ISS memo, to allow students to receive a social security number after finding on-campus employment. You'll need to have your employer provide you a memo on NMSU letterhead first (please bring to ISS office), that states what position you've been hired to work in.

For these documents, please allow five working days. Documents will be sent via PDF document form from our office to your NMSU email address.

Please use the Document Request Form to request one of the above documents.

If you need assistance with your documents or need to have a question answered, please contact Dianne Gobrick, our immigration specialist. If you are waiting on a document request you have submitted, you'll receive an email from Dianne when your document is ready for pick-up.

Other document requests

Address verification and enrollment verification letters must be requested from the Registrar's Office, located in the Educational Services Building, ph. 646-3411. There is no fee for these requests. Please allow 1.5 days processing, and pick up the item in person with your NMSU ID.

If you are applying to another university, you will need to order your NMSU academic documents sent to that institution. To do so, use an Official Transcript Request Form (available in the Registrar's office), or order online at the Registrar (see 'Transcript Information' in the left menu). It is possible to order a transcript in paper form, electronic delivery, via the secure and fast eScrip-Safe® system, or sent in paper form by overnight express. It may be preferable to use the online eScrip-Safe® service if your new university is a eScrip-Safe Network receiving member.

ISS Social, Educational and Cultural Programs

Our office is involved in various community outreach programs. If you are interested in participating in the Friendship Family Program (FFP), the International Speakers Bureau, or assisting other students and new students, please visit our offices (Educational Services Building, Room 8) and speak to Sean Milton, International Student Advisor, or reach Sean by email. Download the FFP application; please read it carefull and return the application after completing it to Sean in person.

Each fall semester, ISS sponsors and organizes the 'International Festival' for international students to share their countries and cultures with the university community and the city. If you are interested in this event, organizational meetings will be announced on the FSN in the months prior. Funding for students to purchase relevant items for their displays is available through ASNMSU (Associated Students of NMSU).

ISS is involved in other social events as well. Each August, ISS holds a welcome event for all new and returning international students - a picnic, barbecue, or reception. Later in the fall semester, a community group holds another picnic, with ISS assistance. These events are announced via the FSN and on our webpages and Facebook page.

Information and Events - the FSN Network

ISS manages an online listserv group (the 'FSN,' Foreign Students Network), which serves the international student community. If you have items to buy or sell, need a roommate, need to find a translator, etc. or would like to post information about a coming event of interest to the international community, you may post this information to the listserv by emailing to fsn-nmsu@nmsu.edu. All new students are added to this group automatically. If you are not on the listserv, you may join the network by sending a request to be added to the list, to the same email address.

Guidelines for using the FSN:

1. When posting to find a roommate, indicate whether you are looking for a male, female, or either, and any other important information (such as smoking preference).
2. For your privacy, it is recommended that you do not use your full name in your message. If you want to identify yourself, first name is sufficient.
3. Your message can be sent one time in a two-week period.
4. Please proofread your message carefully before emailing.
5. If you are selling multiple items, please include them all in one email.
6. Please avoid postings about religious and political issues (messages about national holidays are acceptable).
7. Postings are allowed in English only.

Other Assistance and Advice

If you need information about NMSU or Las Cruces and don't have a good resource, or don't know where or how to begin looking, feel free to stop by our office or email us for help. We'll do our best to get you the information you are looking for.

Student Organizations

University life is about more than studying and tests. There are more than 200 student organizations on campus, and you should be able to locate a group based on almost any interest you may have. Or, you may be interested in starting your own organization. See a list of current NMSU student organizations, and see the Campus Activities page to learn more. It helps to become an active part of the campus community - get involved!

Contact us

The best way to contact our office and to communicate with us in general is by email. You'll find our phone number at the bottom of this page.

Mary Jaspers, Assistant Director, Admissions; Director, ISS

Dianne Gobrick, Immigration Specialist, ISS

Sean Milton, International Student Advisor/Recruiter, ISS