Current students

Basic Guidelines for Maintaining Status

On this page, you’ll find tips and how-to guides to maintain your F-1 or J-1 status and succeed as a student at Shenandoah. 

Maintain full-time enrollment. 

You must be enrolled full-time each semester you are at Shenandoah, which is a minimum of 12 hours for undergraduates and 9 hours for graduate students. (Students in their last semester of study are only required to take the hours needed for graduation.) Related to that: 

Attend  your classes.

At Shenandoah, attendance counts toward your grade. If you miss too many classes, you will fail the class and can be withdrawn at the request of the professor, which will impact your full-time status. Attend your classes, and if for any reason you cannot, make sure you communicate that as early as possible to your professor. If you are not comfortable talking to your professor, schedule an appointment with ISSS. 

Keep your local address updated.

You must let ISSS know within 10 days of moving to a new address. 

Do not work without authorization. 

Do not accept any job–even a gig–until you have authorization from ISSS. Having a Social Security number does not give you permission to work. Working without authorization is the most serious violation you can commit. 

Keep your immigration documents valid at all time.

Your I-20 cannot be extended even one day past your program end date; make sure you request an extension before it expires, or you’ll have to apply for reinstatement. Keep your passport valid at all times. 

Talk to ISSS first.

You must notify ISSS if you change your address, major, degree level, financial support, or name. 

Talk to us before withdrawing from a class or the university. 

Get a travel endorsement.

Before you depart from the U.S., request a signature from ISSS for re-entry. The travel endorsement is valid for one year.