I will be taking Mr. Reynard-san, my travel buddy, along with me to Paris to see the sites while Max stays at home. But don’t worry! Max told me he wants to stay at home and protect my room for me 🙂 He prefers the stable, comfortable life whereas Mr. Reynard-san is adventurous like no other. So don’t pity Max. He wouldn’t like that.
Best friends. Max on the left and Mr. Reynard-san on the right.
Hugs and kisses
Goodbye!
Au revoir Max! We’ll miss you.
This must have been one of the most stressful things I’ve done in my college career.
Continuing from my CampusFrance post, after I got the email telling me to start my visa process, I delayed for one or two days. Don’t ask me why. I don’t know. Then, I decided OK, it’s time to book an appointment. First off, searching for the online appointment booking system on the NY French Consulate’s website was difficult for me because of reasons beyond my comprehension. But it’s really simple. On the homepage, on the right panel, there’s a HUGE section with an image that says VISA APPOINTMENTS ONLINE. Click it. Then, click on online appointments. Scroll to the bottom and click on the VISA APPOINTMENTS ONLINE image again. It should lead you to this site. From there, input your info and choose a date on the calendar. VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: Book an appointment right away. (But no earlier than 3 months before your departure date.) During high season (such as the summer), appointment slots fill up so quickly. More so in NY than in other consulates. But still… The website said the next available appointment might be as far as 3 weeks later. But that’s an understatement. I tried to book one on June 15th, but the next available one was August 5th! That’s crazy.
I panicked and panicked. My parents wanted to go on vacation on August 7th. There’s no way that would happen if my visa appointment were two days ahead. Plan B was to leave on August 14th. But that was still too soon for me to receive my long stay student visa. I didn’t know what to do. I researched the HECK out of everything to see if there was an expedition process or something. Sorry to burst your bubbles, but there isn’t. The only thing you can do is constantly check back on the appointment booking system and hope that someone drops their slot. Then, you can swoop in and take theirs right away. Don’t hesitate. Otherwise, someone else might steal it right from your eyes!
First thing I did that night was email Ellen Hampton, the coordinator between MICEFA and students in New York, at least. (Many thanks to Ellen! I pommeled her with questions for a whole week. 😐 And she always responded right away.) I asked her if this appointment time was too late, but she said it was right in time for the start of the program on August 25th. Phew! But still, my family’s vacation plans…
I couldn’t do anything about this, so I set the appointment page as my homepage and began compiling all the documents. It was very late at night (past midnight) and I was a bit hesitant about getting all the paperwork done right then. I wanted to sleep and continue the rest tomorrow. But my conscience got to me and I jumped straight to work. Get it done now. If I wait until tomorrow, my energy might wear off and I will procrastinate. That night, I got so much done. (I’ll go into details a little later.)
And thank god I did. (You never know when an appointment will free up. Beggars can’t be choosers.) The next day, I saw a slot open up. But it was for 30 minutes before my appointment time… Not good. Then, I realized that one of my friends had an appointment for June 21st, however, she didn’t think that she would get the confirmation email from CampusFrance in time since she completed that process much later than me. Funny story: we arranged to switch slots, but the first time we attempted, nothing happened. My friend cancelled her appointment, but I still couldn’t access it. I thought, oh, I guess the system didn’t recognize it or something. Turns out that there was a second message to double check that you want to free up your slot that my friend didn’t see. So when she realized it an hour later, she successfully cancelled her slot and I got it!! Words cannot describe how happy and relieved I felt! And fortunately for me, I already had most of my visa documents ready. (See, it was very good that I listened to my better instincts and did everything right away. I was prepared for an appointment in less than a week.)
Before I discuss my experience at the consulate, let me brief you on what to prepare:
I got a lovely file folder to hold all of my important documents. You should too! You do not want to lose important documents or misplace them. Best keep everything nice and organized 🙂
http://www.consulfrance-newyork.org/LONG-STAY-STUDENT-VISA
I am currently looking at the consulate’s website for the list of documents required, but it has slightly changed. There was a PDF file of what to bring, but some of the stuff on that list conflicted with the things listed on the website. And that was the main source of my stress. For this post, I’ll just go down my list and expand on it. (I made two copies of each of these, one for my record-keeping and one because the website says to have a copy of every document listed. They DID NOT ask for ANY of those copies. But better safe than sorry.) This list only goes for MY experience at the NY French Consulate. Each consulate has different requirements.
LIST OF DOCUMENTS REQUIRED:
Me going crazy with making visa photos (35mmx45mm). I didn’t even end up using any of them! -___-
Aside from the above, you also need to bring in your receipt for appointment booking. This is just to allow yourself entry into the building.
Unnecessary things I brought in case: CISI letter (stating that I have insurance for overseas) – this isn’t necessary for long stay students; my birth certificate, and my learner’s permit (because I don’t have a driver’s license yet…).
GOING TO THE CONSULATE:
Now, onto my experience: I left my house extra early to arrive early at the consulate. I was about 40 minutes early. You don’t have to be that early, but 30 minutes is good time. The visa building is separate from the rest of the consulate. It is located on 74th St between 5th and Madison. (10 East 74th St, to be exact.) The classy Upper East Side with its European-esque buildings. When you arrive at the building, the door is locked. You have to wait for the security guard to open the door. One person at a time. Intense security stuff.
This is the French consulate building.
This is the Visa section of the Consulate.
When I entered, I handed in my passport and my appointment booking receipt. Then I put my bag on a table for inspection, turned off all of my electronics, and walked through metal detectors. The security guard was very friendly to me. He joked about my bag being super heavy, as if I’m lifting weights. Actually, when I walked in, he was excited and asked me if I was on the website Plenty of Fish. That sounds like a dating site. I said no… He told me that he knew someone on there who looks a lot like me. This isn’t even the first time someone has told me that they saw me or a lookalike somewhere where I definitely have never been. These lookalikes! Ugh!
I bumped into a sign on my way up the stairs. Embarrassing! The security guard told me not to be nervous already. Haha, I wasn’t nervous. I’m just clumsy. (Really, I bumped into the same sign several weeks later. :P) Then I took a seat in the waiting area. It resembles a dentist’s waiting area. Chairs, layout, anxiety and all. The seating area was divided in two halves and for some odd reason, everyone would crowd in the right side although there were so many empty seats in the left side. Being the rebel that I am, I sat on left! Oh yeah. At first, I wasn’t nervous at all. But then, I started to get a bit anxious 15 minutes in. And the AC turned on and off every few minutes. Each time the AC turned on, I was scared that I would miss my number (14) being called out because it was so loud and the announcements were low.
I waited for an hour (however, I got there 30 minutes early, so really, I only waited 30 minutes past my appointment time). First I got called up to hand in my application, passport, and pay the fee. (They look like Chase bank tellers.) Then I sat back down. The man who took care of that was very no-nonsense. A bit intimidating, but I am a generally sensitive person. About 5 minutes later, they called my name through the loudspeaker for my interview. There was a cute, young guy there, but gosh, he was more intimidating than the first man. He sounded very friendly with the man before me, but to me, he was quite standoffish.
He looked at my application and said, “Tell me what your schedule will be like.” WHAT?! What does that even mean?! I had to ask him to repeat the question and explain it. I cannot remember what he said anymore or what I answered. But whatever I said, he accepted it. The fingerprints part was embarrassing. There is a small machine to the right where you place your fingers. He was explaining to me how to position my fingers, but I didn’t understand him. I was doing it all wrong. But the whole time, there was a photo right above the machine with images demonstrating how to position your fingers. When the interviewer told me to look at that image, I didn’t even see it until a good 10 seconds later. TEN SECONDS OF TORTURE. He was annoyed at that point. Then came time to actually get my fingers in the right position: index and middle together, ring and pinky. My fingers, however, refused to cooperate. My middle finger loves my ring finger. They never separate. So there I was trying to keep them separated and nervously laughing, partly from the embarrassment and partly from how ridiculous/funny this was. But he was not pleased. He would not have any of it and waited for me to just finish already. I wanted to drown in my embarrassment. Oh the awkwardness! When you’re laughing all alone. Haha
The rest of the interview consisted of him asking for documents, me handing them in, me offering additional documents just in case, him turning them down as if I wasted his time, etc etc. That took about 5 -10 minutes total. Oh, also, they took my photo. A white projection screen came out from above me and lowered behind my back. This was the photo that they then used for my visa. Not the one I handed in. And thank god I looked decent in my visa photo because I am not photogenic.
After all of that, the interviewer told me I was done and to come back starting July 1st anytime between 9AM to 10AM with my passport and the receipt. I was surprised. Did I really just get approved for my visa? Just like that? I didn’t want to frustrate him so I left assuming that’s what he meant.
Then, on July 1st, I came back, handed my passport and receipt to the same guy. Told him my departure date hasn’t changed. Sat down. Waited maybe 15 minutes. Got called back. Received my passport and visa. DONE! This time, he was actually nice that day. And unlike last time, he smiled and said “you’re welcome” and “enjoy your trip” after I told him “thank you!”
This is a special post to my fellow Macaulians. (Is that what we call students from Macaulay? Hehe)
If you’re unfamiliar with the Macaulay Opportunities Fund, here’s a brief explanation, summarized probably inadequately by yours truly:
All Macaulay Honors College students (that is, the CUNY honors college) are entitled to a fund $7500. Oh, it’s kind of like a trust fund and Macaulay is our wealthy parent who makes sure that we are set for our college-career lives. All joking aside, the money is to help fund our study abroad adventures, unpaid internships and research assistantships, graduate prep courses, service projects, etc. As long as you can provide a convincing argument, the money is yours. But otherwise, it sits in the “Macaulay bank,” untapped. To get the money, you have to fill out the proposal and submit various documents. Although you are already entitled to the money (meaning the process is not competitive and the $7500 is already set out for you), it technically isn’t yours until you are approved. The whole proposal is done, I believe (1) to make sure you’re not using it irresponsibly and (2) to help prepare you for writing future proposals (to grants, fellowships, scholarships, etc.). So it’s all in your benefit! But that doesn’t make the actual process any easier.
So here’s a rundown of my experience:
About a week before the Spring semester began, my adviser (shout out to my wonderful adviser, Cheryl!) sent out an email about Opportunities Fund deadlines, including when to submit our first draft, when to schedule a meeting, and when to submit the completed application. I looked at the dates, saw I had time. Decided to take it slow. (A word to the wise, don’t take it slow. Just like medication, everything is best dealt with right away. Quick, done, out of the way. Better to attack it headfirst with great yet brief pain than to drag it out for as long as possible. The latter will only succeed in making you weary by the end.)
I started drafting my Statement of Justification ahead of time. (I already had experience writing one for another scholarship, so it wasn’t so bad.) Still, I procrastinated on this part. Big time. I handed in a rough draft, but Cheryl told me that it was lacking. I needed to show how passionate I am. I needed to “put a little more, technically writing, oompah,” into my essay, “to help convey a sense of excitement, accomplishment, and growth.” I revised it and BAM! Done. 🙂
The rest of the documentation was quite simple for me. So I’ll just do a brief summary of each component:
(This is the document: http://macaulay.cuny.edu/current-students/study-grant/sg-sa.pdf.)
General requirements: all good. I checked everything done. The only thing that I had to really do was the Opportunities Fund Online Quiz. It is very simple to complete once you know the guidelines. Takes like 10 minutes.
Application Documentation:
(Over the course of my abroad experience, I’ll update you on my actual budget.)
Everything is fairly easy. And if you’re going through this program, I just helped you out immensely 😀 Now you don’t have to scour the internet searching for these numbers. I’ve happily provided websites for your reference! Don’t stress the Opportunities Fund portion. There are even bigger obstacles to overcome later on. Save your energy!
Bonne chance!
