International Students

International Students: Visas and More

If you live overseas and are considering sending your child to a boarding school in the United States, consider the following five admissions tips for international students.

• I assume you are not an American citizen or a green card holder, and English is not your first language.
• Many students from countries outside the United States want to attend American private schools.
• According to The Association of Boarding Schools, international students make up about 15% of the student population in American boarding schools.

Canva created this picture of an interview.

The I-20 Form

Be aware that not every boarding school is certified by the United States Immigration Service to accept foreign students. Why is that important?

• Always confirm that the school you are interested in is a Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certified school.
• If the school is not SEVP-certified to accept international students, it cannot issue the I-20 form, which is the first step in applying for and obtaining a student visa from the U.S. Immigration Service.
• Once you receive the I-20 from the school you chose to attend, you will pay the I-901 Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) Fee.
• The Immigration Service will not allow your child to enter the United States as a student without the proper paperwork.
• If in doubt, ask the school if it can issue the I-20 form. Do

American boarding schools have been popular with families from countries outside the United States for many years. The International Education Specialists website lays out five reasons why this is so. Why Study In The USA? 5 Reasons and Benefits Make USA The Best discusses international students in American universities. But the same reasons apply to residential high schools here in the United States.

Canada, the United Kingdom, and several European countries also have residential high schools. They certainly offer families options. So, why then are American boarding schools so popular?

Learning the English Language

There's nothing like a language immersion program to develop a young person's fluency in English. And that's precisely what boarding schools in the United States offer. All classes except foreign language classes such as Spanish and French are taught in English. In addition, English is the language used in most extracurricular activities and sports programs that schools offer. As a result, students for whom English is their second language must speak, read, and understand English, both oral and written, during classes, on stage, and the playing field.

Being immersed in an American boarding school's academic and community life also means that students quickly learn how to speak and think in conversational English. In their daily routines, they pick up the common, everyday casual expressions that you and I take for granted. However, they also learn to switch to more formal phrases when the occasion warrants it.

With all this in mind,

The boarding school choices available to international students are as immense as they are exciting. Boarding school fairs, like Linden’s Summer & Boarding School Expositions, are the most comprehensive way to start you on your path to studying at one of these prestigious institutions. This video illustrates what we can do.

Throughout the year, we host events in all corners of the world to meet families, agents, and consultants and introduce them to our network of Premier Boarding Schools from the United States, Switzerland, Canada, United Kingdom, and other countries. The fairs are free and organized months in advance to ensure you receive the most complete information.

When you come to an event, a team greets you and your family and guides you through the process of gathering information and meeting school representatives with programs suited to your goals and interests. Whether you're looking for a brief summer program, an intensive two-month summer course, a full academic year, or a Post-Graduate year, you have many options. Most schools have boarding programs for students ages 14-18. Some schools offer boarding for children as young as eight, and others often have Post-Graduate programs for students as old as 20.

The fairs are held in central hotel exhibition halls typically in the afternoon to early evening. Families are welcomed in and asked if they are looking for a particular program, for example, summer programs featuring ESL in

Recruitment fairs are events held in locations all over the world that are meant to help boarding schools with their Recruitment of International Students. For example, Linden Educational Services holds Recruitment Fairs in both the Fall and Spring from locations such as East Asia, Latin America, Central Asia, Africa, and Europe. It's been doing this for 9 years. Aimed at parents and students who live in locations all around the world, these recruitment fairs put admissions staff from dozens of boarding schools on location in various International cities. You can meet school representatives and ask all the questions you have about American, Canadian, UK, and Swiss boarding schools.

Why would students from overseas consider attending boarding school in the States?

There are many reasons. As a rule, the main one is that parents want their children to have a world-class education. An International boarding school education will strengthen your child's language skills. Not just English, though it is pretty much the lingua franca in the business and professional world today, your child will also be able to learn a host of other languages, including French, German, Italian, Spanish, and Chinese, to name a few. International boarding schools generally offer a rich array of courses in many subjects. As you meet with school representatives, have a list of questions handy so that you will remember to ask about matters pertaining to curriculum.

Boarding schools also offer superb preparation for tertiary or college-level studies. While most boarding schools will follow the American

Use this guide for international students to cover all the topics pertaining to deciding which school to attend, how to apply, and much more. Broadly defined, an international student is somebody who comes from a foreign country, i.e., not the United States of America, whose first language is generally not English. Why would families send their children far away from home to study at a boarding school in the United States? Because of American boarding schools' reputation for a high standard of academic work and for the network of friends and acquaintances that their graduates can build. And also for the solid preparation for university-level work which American boarding schools provide.

American boarding schools have been proactive in seeking out international students. In the fall, individual schools and consortia of schools regularly visit Asia and Europe to recruit applicants.

The following headers will help you explore the concept of boarding schools and explain the admissions process. Contact the school that interests you for detailed answers to your specific questions.

Admissions to Private School: A-Z

Admissions to Private School: A-Z puts all the information you need to navigate the private school admissions process in one convenient place. Whether you are just beginning or have been through this before, you will find help and advice to guide you. Application Calendar

Keep track of all aspects of choosing a school and the application deadlines. This is especially important for students applying from overseas.

Guidelines for