Preparing for Your Arrival

All international students are required to fill out a form called an Arrival-Departure Record (“I-94”), which will be provided on your flight to the USA. You will have to provide your SEVIS fee receipt, passport, visa, I-20/DS2019, financial information, and I-94 card at the port of entry to the Immigration Officer. The Officer will stamp the passport, I-20/DS2019, and I-94 card, all of which you will have to bring to the Office of International Student and Scholars (OISS) at the School of Engineering for immigration processing in order to register for classes. Please note that once you have entered the United States with an I-20/DS2019 or IAP-66 issued by NYU Tandon School of Engineering, you are required by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service to attend the School of Engineering.

Keep your passport, I-20 or DS-2019, SEVIS fee receipt, admission letter, original academic records and any other important documents with you in your carry-on bags. Do not put important documents in your checked bags. We also encourage you to bring photographs, recipes for your favorite foods, an English/home language dictionary, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses for your family and friends, and cultural items to share with other students. Other suggested items would be an international driver’s license, and marriage and birth certificates if you are coming with dependents. Make copies of all your important documents and keep them with you, in a different place than your original documents.

We suggest that you bring Traveler’s Checks, a credit card and/or a small amount of US dollars when you travel from your home country. This will allow you to have cash for food, transportation, hotel and other services.

There are four seasons here. The summer (June – August) is hot with temperatures between 16-35°C or 61-95°F. During the winter (November – March), it can be very cold, with average temperatures between -3-11°C or 25-52°F. Be sure to pack some clothes for cold weather if you have them. There are shops near campus where you will be able to buy boots, coats, sweaters or whatever else you may need once you arrive in New York.

Be sure to bring prescriptions and medical or dental records. Put these documents in your carryon bag. The student health center on campus is open to all students. The university health insurance does not cover dental care – be sure to have dental care done before you leave home.

If you have updated academic records since you applied, please bring these with you. Transfer students should also bring course descriptions and copies of their syllabi, diploma and final transcripts as their academic advisor will need these documents.