ISSS-BU News . 04 February 2008. ISSS-BU News
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: This is a longer than usual edition of ISSS-BU News. We encourage readers to scan the contents for articles of interest to you.
In last week’s edition of ISSS-BU News, we included the Spring 2008 Academic Calendar. Although the dates were correct, we made an error in designating the Easter and Passover holidays. Therefore, the entire calendar is reprinted, with corrections, below.
CONTENTS:
1. Spring Semester 2008 Academic Calendar (corrected)
Jan 28 |
|
Classes begin |
Feb 8 |
|
Course add and course-drop/delete deadline* |
Feb 8 |
|
Last day for undergrad seniors to submit an application for degree for Fall 2008 |
Mar 19- May 9 |
|
Registration and Academic Advising for Fall 2008 |
Mar 21 |
|
Residence halls close 9 a.m. |
Mar 21-30 |
|
Spring recess (Easter) |
Mar 30 |
|
Residence halls open 2 p.m. |
Mar 31 |
|
Classes resume |
Apr 4 |
|
Course-withdraw (with a “W”) deadline* |
Apr 18 |
|
Recess (Passover) Classes end at 1:00pm |
Apr 18- Apr 21 |
|
Recess (Passover) Residence Halls remain open |
Apr 22 |
|
Classes resume |
May 9 |
|
Last day of classes |
May 10-11 |
|
Reading period |
May 12-16 |
|
Final examinations. Residents must vacate residence halls 24 hours after last exam |
May 17 |
|
Graduate Commencement |
May 18 |
|
Undergraduate Commencement |
2. Welcome New International Students to ISSS-BU News
We are pleased to welcome our Spring 2008 new student subscribers to ISSS-BU News. Each Monday, ISSS-BU News brings you information regarding immigration and other U.S. federal regulations, announcements, and employment opportunities.
The best way to read ISSS-BU News is to first scan the “contents” section for articles of interest to you. Weekly editions of ISSS-BU News are also posted to the ISSS website; http://isss.binghamton.edu Just go the website and click on “ISSS-BU News.”
Generally, the website is updated each Monday with the latest issue. The ISSS website also includes a helpful section titled “regulatory updates” that archives all the articles in ISSS-BU News related to immigration regulations.
3. National Holidays for February
The following countries are celebrating national holidays during the month of February.
Country |
Date |
Sri Lanka |
4-Feb |
New Zealand |
6-Feb |
Grenada |
7-Feb |
Iran |
11-Feb |
Lithuania |
16-Feb |
Gambia |
18-Feb |
United States |
18-Feb |
St. Lucia |
22-Feb |
Brunei Darussalam |
23-Feb |
Guyana |
23-Feb |
Estonia |
24-Feb |
Kuwait |
25-Feb |
Dominican Republic |
27-Feb |
4. Are You Maintaining a Full Time Course Load?
The ISSS would like to take this opportunity to remind students in F-1 and J-1 status that you are required to be registered for a full-time course load each semester.
Minimum Full Time Course Loads:
1 credit or more per semester that can be certified as full-time by department. Such students, if they are registered for less than 9 credits, must submit the Graduate School's "Certification of Full-Time Status for Students Not Receiving Tuition Scholarships" form to their department each semester for filing with the Graduate School. This form may be found at the following website: http://gradschool.binghamton.edu/documents/FTCForm.pdf
5. Be Sure You Have Permission in Advance to Take Less Than a Full-Time Course Load, If Applicable to You
There are very few exceptions to the full time course load rule for students in F-1 status. Those exceptions include academic difficulty, medical condition, and completion of study, and there are strict criteria for each. In every instance, you must obtain PRIOR authorization from the ISSS. Only once you receive this authorization from the ISSS can you then drop the course. A F-1 student who drops below a full course of study without the prior approval of the Office of International Student and Scholar Services will be considered out of status, and must be reported in SEVIS as having dropped below a full-time course load without authorization.
There is a special form for each of the three exceptions, available in the ISSS and as a downloadable document on the ISSS website, visit: http://isss.binghamton.edu/forms/index.html
and scroll down to “request for reduced course load.”
Each form must be completed by the student (and in the case of reduction in course load due to academic difficulty or due to completion of study, completed by the student's academic advisor) and approved by the ISSS before the course may be dropped.
For detailed information on the rules that allow for a course load reduction for F-1 students, stop by the ISSS to obtain a handout on "Permissible Reasons Under F-1 Regulations to Register for Less Than a Full Time Course Load" or view the handout on the ISSS website at:
http://isss.binghamton.edu/imm/lesscourse.htm
Questions or concerns regarding this requirement? Come to the ISSS or send an e-mail message to isss@binghamton.edu
6. International Student Handbook is Now On-Line!
The Office of International Student and Scholar Services is pleased to announce that the BU International Student Handbook is now on line! This is the same handbook we make available to new students at Orientation, and the contents have been updated for Spring 2008.
The advantage of the on line handbook is that much of the information is very valuable to new students, who may find the on-line edition easier to consult than the paper version. Further, current students who have outdated copies of the Handbook from when they participated in Orientation can now have the advantage of viewing the latest materials with ease.
The Handbook is available at: http://isss.binghamton.edu/Handbook/index.html
A contents index may be viewed on the left side of the screen.
7. Nurse Appointments Available at Health Service
In an effort to reduce student wait time, University Health Service is implementing direct Nurse Appointments by telephone. Call 607-777-2221 to schedule a same-day or next-day nurse appointment. Walk-in services remain the same. For more information, call University Health Service at 607-777-2221.
8. Attention Undergraduates! Interested in Becoming an Orientation Advisor for Summer 2008?
Are you interested in becoming an orientation advisor for 2008? Attend an informational meeting. One will be at 5:00p.m. Tuesday, February 5; the other is at 3:30p.m. Wednesday, February 6. Both meetings will be in the [Old] University Union West Lounge.
For a job description and a list of job requirements, visit: http://orientation.binghamton.edu/index.cgi?page=advisorselection
9. Internship and Job Fair is February 14th. Attend a Workshop on “Preparing for a Job Fair” on February 8.
The annual Internship & Job Fair will be held Thursday, February 14th from 11:00am to 3:30pm in the University Union Mandela Room and Old Union Hall. Over 75 organizations will be present to discuss internship & job opportunities. Non-Profit, Government, and For-Profit organizations will all be in attendance. Visit the CDC website at http://binghamton.erecruiting.com/stu/cf_details?fhnd=2892
for a list of participating organizations. This fair is for ALL BU students!
To prepare international students for the Fair, the Career Development Center, in co-sponsorship with the Office of International Student and Scholar Services, will offer a special workshop for international students titled “Preparing for a Job Fair,” on Friday, February 8, 2008 at 1:30pm in Academic A, Ground Floor Room 23.
As always, CDC encourages all students to register with eRecruiting, their online career system. There are currently numerous post-graduation opportunities and Internships listed. New positions are added daily. In addition, eRecruiting hosts a wealth of career exploration information.
10. Special Program to Honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Rescheduled to February 8
The following program was originally scheduled to take place on Friday, February 1. It has been rescheduled for Friday, February 8. Binghamton University will honor the memory of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Friday, February 8 with a campus and community celebration titled “Beloved Community: The Art of Living Dr. Martin Luther King’s Dream.” The event will take place at the University Downtown Center on Washington Street at 7:00pm. Flutist and Producer Pamela Whitman will perform a multi-media work that integrates photography and music. Community participants are invited to co-create their version of the Beloved Community. Twenty-five volunteer community participants will accept the assignment to document via photographs, their vision of a Beloved Community here in the Greater Binghamton area. For more information, call the Multicultural Resource Center at 607-777-4472.
11. State Symphony Orchestra of Mexico To Perform at BU’s Anderson Center February 16
The Anderson Center for the Performing Arts is privileged to be the only concert hall to offer two concertos for the American tour of the State Symphony Orchestra of Mexico on Saturday, February 16, 2008 at 8 p.m. The program consist of Joaquin Rodrigo’s best known work, Guitar Concerto de Aranjuez, Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op.43, and Sergei Rachamanioff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op.30.
Enrique Bátiz, one of Latin America’s most famous orchestra conductors, will conduct the evening’s performance with one of the world’s best known classical guitarist, Alfonso Moreno, featured as soloist along with pianist, Leonel Morales.
Tickets cost $21 for students; $36 for BU Faculty, Staff and senior citizens; and $41 for the general public. For tickets and information, call 607-777-ARTS or visit http://anderson.binghamton.edu
12. Organization of American States (OAS) Announces the Availability of Interest-Free Loans for Students from Latin American and Caribbean Countries.
The Leo S. Rowe Fund helps citizens from Latin America and Caribbean countries to finance their higher education and achieve their educational and professional goals in universities across the United States by awarding interest-free loans.
These highly subsidized loans are made with the understanding that upon completion of their studies, beneficiaries commit to repay the loan in full and return to their home countries to apply their knowledge and training to the economic and social advancement of the developing countries within the Americas.
1889 F St NW 6th Floor
Washington, DC 20006
E-mail: rowefund@oas.org
Web page: www.oas.org/rowe
Tel: 1(202) 458-6208
Fax: 1 (202) 458-3897
The Rowe Fund was established in 1948 by a bequest in the will of Dr. Leo S. Rowe, who was director of the Pan American Union from 1920 until 1948
13. Upcoming Job Fair in NYC for Japanese-English Bilinguals
An upcoming job fair for Japanese-English bilingual students, the New York Career Forum, is just a month away.
2008 NEW YORK CAREER FORUM
February 29th & March 1, 2008 (Fri. & Sat.)
Penn Plaza Pavilion Exhibition Hall at the Hotel Pennsylvania
401 7th Avenue, New York, NY 10001
http://www.careerforum.net/event/ny/index.asp?lang=E
35 global companies are expected to attend, and travel scholarships are available.
The job fair is for
- all Japanese-English bilinguals
- all majors (both technical and non-technical)
- anyone interested in a full-time or internship position
Companies will be holding interviews at their booth during the event. Students are encouraged to register early and apply to companies online prior to the event to receive maximum results. Registration and attending the event is free.
Travel Scholarships are available to help defray the cost of traveling, and students can easily apply online through the website of the sponsor, Disco International, at:
http://www.careerforum.net/event/ny/index.asp?lang=E
This link is also the site for on-line registration and additional information.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the staff at cfn@careerforum.net
14. Income Tax Issues: Incorrectly Withheld Social Security and Medicare Tax
We would like to remind our readers that during tax season, each issue of ISSS-BU News contains an article on U.S. income tax. To reference previous articles, go to the ISSS web site and select from the back issues of ISSS-BU News (the first income tax article appeared in the December 3, 2007 issue). You will find them at: http://isss.binghamton.edu/news/2007.html
Today's income tax article is about incorrectly withheld Social Security (FICA) and Medicare Tax from earnings (wages), and how to get the money refunded to you.
Different kinds of taxes are withheld by employers. The W-2 form (Wage and Tax Statement) sent to you by your employer each January has boxes for reporting withholding of Federal Income Tax (box 2), Social Security Tax (box 4), Medicare Tax (box 6), State Income Tax (box 17) and local income tax (box 19). This article focuses on box 4 and box 6.
F-1 and J-1 students who have been in the U.S. in this status for 5 years or less (2003 or later), and J-1 scholars in the U.S. in this status for 2 years or less (2006 or later) who have been employed ON CAMPUS are exempt from Social Security and Medicare Tax (boxes 4 and 6). F-1 and J-1 students who worked off campus with the appropriate work authorization (economic hardship employment or practical training) are also exempt from these two taxes. However, F-1and J-1 students in the U.S. in this status for more than five years, J-2 dependents, J-1 scholars and faculty in the U.S. for more than two years, those in other non-immigrant statuses, and those who worked without authorization ARE subject to Social Security (FICA) and Medicare Tax.
If you are an F-1 or J-1 student who thinks that Social Security and/or Medicare Taxes were withheld from your pay incorrectly, because you were in the U.S. in this status for less than five years and had appropriate work authorization, then U.S. federal regulation requires that you contact the employer who issued you the W-2 and inform them of the error, AND ask that they refund you the money. If the employer cannot or will not issue the refund, there is a special procedure you can use to obtain a refund of Social Security and Medicare Tax. This procedure is entirely separate from filing your income tax forms.
Come to the ISSS for the special handout "Procedures for Claiming Refund of Social Security Tax." It includes two special IRS forms, Form 843 and Form 8316. This document is also available on line at: http://isss.binghamton.edu/taxes/procFICA.html You will be required to show on the forms that you attempted to contact your employer first. You will also be required to attach copies of your work authorization, a copy of your I-94 card, and a copy of your W-2 form. It all gets mailed to the IRS office in Austin, Texas. You should keep copies of everything you send and allow from eight to ten weeks for processing.
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