The International Students and Scholars Office

International House North
524 Riverside Drive, Ground Floor
Phone: 212-854-3587
E-mail: [email protected]
isso.columbia.edu

Columbia University, continuing its tradition as a preeminent world center of learning, welcomes more than 15,000 students, post-graduate interns, researchers, professors and accompanying family members from over 160 countries.

The ISSO serves the immigration and documentation-related needs of students and scholars at Columbia, beginning with the issuance of Certificates of Eligibility (form I-20/ DS-2019) that admitted students need to apply for F and J student visas.

After students arrive on campus, ISSO advisers take part in the students' school or department’s new student orientation program by providing an immigration information session.

Throughout the year, we monitor federal regulations relevant to international students' stay at Columbia and broadcast timely alerts and updates through the ISSO website and ISSO news email messages.

The ISSO provides:
• travel signatures on I-20s for students who will travel and return from a trip abroad during their program
• employment-related workshops and webinars
• documentation needed for Social Security number applications
• information sessions by nationally recognized immigration attorneys on employment-based visas after student status
• tax workshops (February - April)
• tax preparation software for international students who are nonresidents for federal tax purposes