An electronic news service for international students and scholars, owned by the Office of International Student and Scholar Services at Binghamton University, State University of New York

Visit ISSS on the Web! http://isss.binghamton.edu

Editor's Note: Today, Monday, January 16, 2006 is the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Most university offices, including the Office of International Student and Scholar Services, are closed.

CONTENTS:
1. New International Student Orientation Begins Thursday, January 19
2. Course Registration Information for Spring 2006
3. Spring 2006 International Spouses Program (ISP) English as a Second Language Classes are Starting Soon!
4. Limits for F-1 Students Who Take On-Line Courses
5. Why Do I Have So Many I-20s?
6. Income Tax Information: Form 1098-T, Tuition Statement

1. New International Student Orientation Begins Thursday, January 19

International Student Orientation activities begin Thursday, January 19, and orientation packets will be distributed during orientation check-in, Thursday January 19 from 9:00am to 12:30pm in the University Union Tillman Lobby (in front of the Mandela Room in the Old University Union).

A schedule may be viewed at the ISSS website:
http://isss.binghamton.edu/admission/orientation/program.htm

New international students are asked to register in advance for orientation, and may do so by going to the following link: http://isss.binghamton.edu/admission/orientation/index.htm

2. Course Registration Information for Spring 2006

Please note that compliance with the University's Immunization Requirements is a pre-requisite for registration for new students. New international students with any questions or concerns regarding these requirements will find additional information at the following link: http://health.binghamton.edu/newstudents.htm

The University's BUSI registration system will be turned on for Spring 2006 course registration beginning Friday, January 20, 2006 for new students. The system will be available from 8:00am to 6:00am (22 hours per day) seven days a week until the course add deadline of Sunday, February 5. The system will also be on for course drops and grade option updates until the course drop deadline, Friday, February 3. After that date, the system will allow for course withdrawals until the course withdrawal deadline of Friday, March 24, 2006. Please note that students who drop courses in BUSI during the course withdrawal period will receive a grade of W. For complete information on registration procedures, visit: http://registrar.binghamton.edu/newinfo.html#regdates

Schedule of Classes

The Schedule of Classes for Spring 2006 is available online at http://busi.binghamton.edu/schedule.html . The online schedule is the most up to date and accurate source of course information and is the only published version of the Schedule of Classes.

Students with outstanding debt and students who have not complied with MMR/meningitis immunization requirements, and students from previous semesters who haven't submitted a health form to the Health Service office will be blocked from registering. Students can also view their account balances and pay any outstanding debts through the BUSI Web Center, http://busi.binghamton.edu

Registration Starting Times and Room Assignments

Students are assigned starting times for spring registration according to their total cumulative credits, not including in progress courses. Students can check their total cumulative credits by going to the BUSI Web Center http://busi.binghamton.edu and clicking on 'My Grades and Credits.' Check below for the schedule of starting times.

You can view and print your schedule from BUSI or the BUSI web at any time. Student schedules will not be mailed. Please look online for your classroom assignments.

* Classroom assignments are subject to change. Assignments on the BUSI web are the most accurate and up to date.

3. Spring 2006 International Spouses Program (ISP) English as a Second Language Classes are Starting Soon!

We are very happy to announce that ESL classes for family members and spouses of Binghamton University international students and scholars will begin next week on Monday, January 23 rd . ISP membership consists of spouses and family members of international students and scholars from all over the world. In addition to providing free, weekly ESL instruction, ISP provides the opportunity to learn about day-to-day living in the US, socialize with other spouses, and share experiences.

Anyone who is interested in these classes should attend the placement evaluation. The placement evaluation will be held on Monday January 23 rd at 12:30pm in Room LN 2402 second floor in the Library Tower. If you don't know where this room is, meet Amelia Shafer (the International Student Advisor) at the Library Tower Coffee Kiosk, main floor of the Library North Tower, at 12:30pm. She will walk you to the classroom.

On Monday January 23 rd , from 2:15pm to 3:45pm(after the placement evaluation), there will be an opportunity for students to practice their English conversation skills and participate in ESL activities and games. This will occur in the same room, LN 2402.

Three class levels will be offered during the spring semester. Classes will be held at the following times:

•  Beginner: Mondays and Wednesday from 12:30pm – 2:00pm
•  Intermediate: Mondays and Wednesdays from 2:15pm – 3:45pm
•  Advanced: Wednesdays (only) from 10:00am – 11:30am

All classes will be held in the Library North Tower, Room LN 2402.

Our new ESL instructor is Ms. Cathy Hammons. She has a Bachelor's degree in German from Binghamton University, and a Master's degree in Music. She is currently finishing her studies to be certified to teach English as a Second Language in the public schools. She has many years experience teaching and tutoring ESL to adults. She is a wonderful addition to the ISSS!

If you have a family member who is interested in improving their English skills, they should attend the placement evaluation on January 23 rd or come to the ISSS office to fill out an enrollment form. For more information, please contact Amelia Shafer, the International Student Advisor, at ashafer@binghamton.edu

4. Limits for F-1 Students Who Take On-Line or Distance Education Courses

On-line courses have become increasingly popular for students, and many colleges and universities, including Binghamton, have greatly expanded their on-line and distance education course offerings in the past few years. But, the US federal government limits the number of on-line courses that an F-1 student can count towards a full-time course load during a required term.

Here is the text of the federal regulation:

For F-1 students enrolled in classes for credit or classroom hours, no more than the equivalent of one class or three credits per session, term, semester, trimester, or quarter may be counted toward the full course of study requirement if the class is taken on-line or through distance education and does not require the student's physical attendance for classes, examination or other purposes integral to completion of the class. An on-line or distance education course is a course that is offered principally through the use of television, audio, or computer transmission including open broadcast, closed circuit, cable, microwave, or satellite, audio conferencing, or computer conferencing.

What does this mean?

For Binghamton F-1 students, a full-time course load is required only during the Fall and Spring semesters. There is no requirement that students be enrolled during the Summer or Winter sessions, which are optional. Thus, a F-1 student can take as many on-line or distance education courses from Binghamton or from another institution as they wish (with Binghamton's approval) during Summer or Winter session. But, during the Fall and Spring semesters, an F-1 student is limited to only one on-line or distance education course that can be counted towards a full-time course load. If the course requires the student to come to the sponsoring university's location for a class, examination, or some other purpose integral to the completion of the course, then it is not considered “on-line” or “distance education” for the purposes of the federal definition, and is not subject to the federal limit.

Confused? Don't be. Send your questions regarding on-line or distance education courses to the ISSS at isss@binghamton.edu

5. Why Do I Have So Many I-20s?

When the US federal government established the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) in early 2003, many of the federal regulations governing F-1 and J-1 students changed. Among the most significant regulations were changes to ensure the security of the production of I-20s and DS-2019s, to prevent fraud. As a result, in addition to the initial I-20 issued to students, schools are required to prepare new I-20s for F-1 students whenever a student:

•  Changes or adds a major, minor or concentration
•  Changes level of study
•  Extends the ending date of the I-20
•  Registers for the first time after previously attending another US school
•  Adds a F-2 dependent to the SEVIS record
•  Removes a F-2 dependent from the SEVIS record
•  Needs a new I-20 to apply for a US visa abroad
•  Loses or damages an I-20
•  Has no remaining travel endorsement lines on page 3 of the I-20
•  Applies for reinstatement to student status
•  Applies for curricular practical training
•  Applies for optional practical training
•  Applies for economic hardship employment or employment with an international organization
•  Needs to correct an error or update information on the I-20

Thus, it is not unusual for a student to have many I-20s! This can be frustrating for students, who wonder what they are supposed to do with so many pieces of paper, and need to determine which is the one to use for travel.

Here is advice from the ISSS about what to do with those I-20s:

•  You must save all I-20s, even the ones that are no longer valid or are from a school you previously attended. Keep them together and in a safe place. You may also wish to make a set of photocopies as well (pages 1 and 3), and keep them in a location different from where you keep the originals. Those I-20s represent your immigration history in the United States. When you seek certain benefits from the US government such as employment, you may be asked to present copies of all previously issued I-20s as part of your application.
•  The most recently issued I-20 is your current travel document. To tell which I-20 is the current one, check the issue date in the lower right hand corner of Page 1.

The ISSS knows that multiple I-20s can be cumbersome. The office has had to greatly expand its file space to accommodate the additional I-20 copies in students' files. But, it is all done to be in compliance with federal regulations.

6. Income Tax Information: Form 1098-T, Tuition Statement

This is part of a weekly series of "Income Tax Information" that appear in ISSS-BU News . To view back issues go to: http://isss.binghamton.edu and click on "ISSS-BU News."

Today's income tax article is about Form 1098-T, “Tuition Statement” which is sent by U.S. colleges and universities to its students, to be used by the student, or the student's parents, for claiming an education tax credit on their federal income tax forms. You may receive form 1098-T from Binghamton University.

However, only those individuals who are residents for tax purposes can claim these tax credits. International students who have been continuously in F-1 or J-1 status for five years or less (entered the U.S as F-1 or J-1 2001 or later) generally file income tax forms as non-residents.

International students who have been continuously in F-1 or J-1 status for MORE than five years (entered the U.S. as F-1 or J-1 2000 or earlier) generally file income tax forms as residents for tax purposes, and may be eligible to claim the “Lifelong Learning Credit”, which is based on the information provided on Form 1098-T. For more information on this tax credit, consult IRS publication 970, which can be viewed and printed from the IRS web site, http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf or ordered by calling 1-800-TAX-FORM. Please note that the on-line publication is an 82–page pdf file, and you will need Adobe Acrobat reader or some other pdf reader to download it.

ISSS-BU is a listserv owned and managed by the Office of International Student and Scholar Services, Division of Student Affairs, at the State University of New York at Binghamton. It is the publisher of ISSS-BU News . Permission is granted to freely distribute the information posted to this list as long as its contents remain unchanged.

To sign on to ISSS-BU from an e-mail account on the Binghamton.edu server, send an e-mail message to listserv@listserv.binghamton.edu
Leave the subject line blank. In the message text, type: subscribe ISSS-BU first name last name
Replace “first name last name” with your name.

If your e-mail account is on a server other than Binghamton.edu, send an e-mail message to isss@binghamton.edu
In the message text, type: Please subscribe isss-bu, your e-mail address, your first and last name.

If you are a registered student and don't have an e-mail account, you may claim an e-mail address and password http://busi.binghamton.edu/welcome.html
Be sure to read and follow the instructions carefully. If you encounter difficulty, visit the Help Desk in the lobby of the Computer Services building.