Undergraduate Students
- Step 1 - Request Immigration Documents
- Step 2 - Prepare for Arrival
- Step 3 - Upon Arrival
The International Students & Programs Office (ISPO) congratulates you on your admission to the University of California, San Diego! Once you've been admitted, complete the Enrollment Checklist (Applicant Portal). This includes:
Interested in applying for admission to study at UC San Diego? Visit our Prospective International Students information page for more information about how to become a Triton!
Once you have accepted your offer of admission in the Applicant Portal and paid your deposit to UC San Diego, within the next few days you will receive an invitation email to the Triton Checklist.
If after a few days you did not receive this email, please check your SPAM folder and email aes-messages@ad.ucsd.edu if you have any questions, or need the email to be resent.
Once you have received the email invitation to the Triton Checklist, you will need to create your UC San Diego Triton login.
To make changes to your Contact Information, please log back into your original UC Application and they will notify each campus you applied to of any updates.
Please note the difference between your Personal Identification Number (PID) and your Active Directory username.
Using Active Directory Username for Single Sign-On (SSO): Your Active Directory username is used as your email address and as your username to log into any UC San Diego site that requires Single Sign On. Your PID will not work as a log on username unless it is explicitly stated to enter username or PID.
The TritonLink page provides further information regarding the Active Directory account lookup tool (under Set Up an Account), which allows students to look up their Active Directory username by inputting their PID and last name. From there, students can go to password.ucsd.edu to set the password for their Active Directory account.
DUO is required for all UC San Diego affiliates, including new students. DUO Two-step login is a security feature that reqires verification of identity when loging into UC San Diego protected systems. After setting up your Active Directory credentials, you must register for Duo before you can access any UC San Diego Single-Sign On (SSO) based site or application, such as iPortal .
The DUO app is accessible through the Apple App Store and the Google Play store. For further support, please reference the primary DUO information page and the Service Desk provides full support for DUO if needed.
International students who receive a Form I-20 or DS-2019 will have a program start date listed on the document to reflect the first day of the quarter you were admitted for. This will correspond to the quarter start date listed on UC San Diego's Academic and Enrollment Calendar.
The first date of the quarter will be the program start date listed on your I-20 or DS-2019. However, there are exceptions to this rule for certain students:
Campus Activities Before Program Start Date: Students who wish to partake in campus activities such as orientation, research, or other events in the 30 days PRIOR to the program start date listed on their Form I-20 or DS-2019 may do so without adjusting the program start date.
When UC San Diego issues you a Form I-20 or DS-2019, we are able to create a new SEVIS Record associated with a unique SEVIS ID Number or transfer in a SEVIS Record with an existing SEVIS ID Number from your previous institution. All SEVIS ID numbers start with the letter N. On the Form I-20, the number is on the top right hand side of the first page under the words Student's Copy and above the barcode. On the DS-2019, the number is on the top right hand side of the page in the box above the barcode.
When you receive an I-20 from UC San Diego with a NEW SEVIS ID Number, the following applies:
See the next section, "Transfer your SEVIS Record to UC San Diego (if applicable)" for more information.
The iPortal will open for undergraduate Summer and Fall 2023 applicants on March 1, 2023.
The deadline to apply for your Form I-20 or DS-2019 in iPortal for Fall 2023 is August 1, 2023.
The processing time for your I-20/DS-2019 document is 15 business days from the date of a complete submission; incomplete requests will cause a delay in processing.
For students transferring their SEVIS Record to UC San Diego, 15 days will begin from your SEVIS release date or date of complete submission, whichever is later. If your application is incomplete or invalid, you will be contacted via email directly after an advisor has thoroughly reviewed your request.
Remember, you can check the status of your request by logging in to the iPortal at any time!
Once you've requested and received your Form I-20 from UC San Diego, you are able to request changes (also known as 'amendments') to your document, report changes in your admission or enrollment, or request a reprint. Depending on the type of amendment you'd like to make, you may be directed to a different service (or form) within iPortal:
Change Requested | Service to Use in iPortal |
Updated Program Start Date to reflect quarter of entry into the U.S. |
NEW ADMIT: I-20 or DS-2019 Amendment/Reprint Request
(Instructions below) |
Deferring Admission to a future quarter |
|
Declining Admission to UC San Diego (cancellation of Form I-20/DS-2019) |
|
No changes, just a reprint of your Form I-20 or DS-2019 |
|
Adjusting Biographical Information, Program Major, Program Level, or Funding Reflected on your Form I-20 or DS-2019 for yourself (or for any of your dependents)
|
|
Transferring your SEVIS Record to another school due to declining admission or deferring admission
|
|
Taking a Leave of Absence (Gap Quarter)
|
|
Adding New Dependents
|
*How will my name appear on my I-20 or DS-2019? When ISPO creates a student's I-20 or DS-2019, we follow the official SEVIS naming guidelines as outlined below.
Surname/Primary Name - The Surname/Primary Name is required in SEVIS. If the student only has one name, this field will be used, even if the student's name is their Given Name. No special characters are allowed, and abbreviations such as 'FNU' are not allowed.
Given Name - The Given Name is used for names other than the Surname/Primary Name, such as the student's first and middle names. If the student only has one name, the Given Name field will be left blank, as it must be put in the Surname/Primary Name field. If the student's passport shows two names as the Given Names and no Surname/Primary Name, both names will appear in the Surame/Primary Name field. No special characters are allowed, and abbreviations such as 'FNU' are not allowed.
Passport Name - The Passport Name is NOT REQUIRED. When a student receives their I-20, they may find this field to be blank. This not an error, as it is not a SEVIS requirement.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**Why is the UC San Diego major different from the major listed on my Form I-20 or DS-2019? UC San Diego Major Names are classified by corresponding CIP Codes. The Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) provides a taxonomic scheme that supports the accurate tracking and reporting of fields of study and program completions activity. Classifications are not determined by ISPO. Note that though some CIP Codes may sound different from the major name listed within TritonLink, it does not mean it is incorrect. For example, the CIP Code for Master of Business Analytics is Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods, Other (52.1399). Though this CIP Code may seem incorrect since the major's name, 'Business Analytics', is not clearly listed within the CIP Code, it is indeed correct. A full list of CIP Codes established by NCES can be found on their website.
Restrictions on entering the U.S. once you've received your Form I-20 or Form DS-2019 from UC San Diego will depend on two things: Your SEVIS ID Number and Program Start Date.
Students may use their Form I-20/DS-2019 issued with a Summer 2023 or Fall 2023 program start date to enter the U.S. up to 30 days before that start date, but no later than Friday of Week 2 of your admit term, which is the final day to add courses.
Summer 2023 Early Starts: If your date of entry to the U.S. will be more than 2 weeks after the current summer program start date listed on your Form I-20/DS-2019, you must submit a NEW ADMIT: I-20 or DS-2019 Amendment/Reprint request within the iPortal to receive an updated I-20 with a future program start date reflecting the next available term, Fall 2023. You can then use the Form I-20/DS-2019 issued with a Fall 2022 program start date to enter the U.S. up to 30 days before but no later than 30 days after the program start date listed on their new Form I-20/DS-2019.
Fall 2023 Starts: If your date of entry to the U.S. is after the Friday of Week 2 of your admit term, you must submit a NEW ADMIT: I-20 or DS-2019 Amendment/Reprint request within the iPortal to receive an updated I-20/DS-2019 with a future program start date reflecting the next available term.
*Note that students must consult with their college (undergraduates) or department (graduate students) for permission to begin their classes in a later term.
Note that if your last date of enrollment or last date of authorized Optional Practical Training (OPT) at another U.S. institution is within 5 months of the fall quarter start date, you may be eligible to request to transfer your SEVIS Record to UC San Diego. Please note the information below is ONLY applicable for F-1 students. J-1 Students seeking a SEVIS Transfer should first contact ISPO .
Many students think the term ‘Transfer’ only applies to the transferring of academic credits or units from one school to another. For example, transferring 60 units/credits from a Community College to UC San Diego. However, for international students, the terms ‘SEVIS Transfer’, ‘Transferring my SEVIS Record’, or ‘Releasing my SEVIS Record’ can actually mean something different!
If you are currently enrolled at another U.S. Institution and hold an active SEVIS record and SEVIS ID Number, you may be eligible for a SEVIS Transfer.
If your last date of enrollment or last date of employment on post-completion OPT is within 5 months of your program start date at UC San Diego, you may be eligible to request a SEVIS Transfer.
SEVIS Transfers require coordination between you, the DSO at your current school, and UC San Diego.
After receiving your I-20 (F-1 Students) or DS-2019 (J-1 Exchange Visitors), you must pay your SEVIS fee to activate your document. This fee is paid each time you receive a new SEVIS ID Number.
Students transferring their SEVIS record to UC San Diego are NOT required to pay the SEVIS fee again since their SEVIS ID Number remains the same.