The US Consulate in Hyderabad has responded to the growing concerns of students by extending the student visa season by two weeks. The Consulate-General in Hyderabad made the announcement on 'X', stating that student visa interviews will now be conducted until the end of August. Although plans to increase the number of slots were mentioned, specific figures were not disclosed.
This decision was prompted by the difficulties faced by students trying to secure US visa appointments, leading to an online petition initiated by students in Hyderabad. Many students had been struggling for over six months to book slots.
The situation worsened when 10,000 F-1 visa slots were quickly filled within five minutes after their release on a Sunday midnight, leaving numerous students stranded in the portal's waiting room. On the other hand, when some tried to refresh the website, it showed a timeout.
The F-1 Visa (Academic Student visa) allows you to enter the United States as a full-time student at an accredited college, university, seminary, conservatory, academic high school, elementary school, or other academic institution or in a language training program.
Concerns grew among these students as the fall semester commencing in September drew closer without clarity on their visa statuses.
Currently, Hyderabad holds the record for the longest wait time for US visa appointments at 299 days, while other major cities like Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai have significantly shorter wait times.
The petition, spearheaded by Darsh Golecha, a prospective student at Harvard, highlighted the frustrations faced by applicants, as reported by TOI. Golecha, accepted for a master's program starting in August, expressed his discontent over the continuous hurdles faced in securing a visa slot since November 2023. Similarly, other students, like H S Kumar and A Rajeshwari, shared their distressing experiences of encountering errors, portal crashes, and payment issues while trying to schedule their visa appointments for universities with impending start dates.
The extension of the student visa season in Hyderabad by two weeks aims to alleviate the pressure on students and ensure that they have sufficient time to complete their visa processing before the academic year begins.