Who Are International Students?
Approximately 1,900 international undergraduate students from over 130 countries attend the University of Minnesota.
For ISSS, international students are defined as students who are in the United States on non-immigrant visas and their primary purpose for being in the United States is to study full-time.
To learn more about the incoming international student class, view OTE’s international student snapshot “Tell Us About Yourself” pre-orientation survey.
International Student Timeline and Checklist
To help you and your students understand the number and order of steps they need to follow, we created a timeline and checklist for undergraduate international students. You can use this visual as a guide when talking about international student-specific requirements.
Arrival Date
The mandatory arrival date for first-year students is August 18, 2025.
The recommended arrival date for transfer students is August 25, 2025.
International students are only allowed to enter the U.S. up to 30 days before the program start date listed on their I-20 or DS-2019 immigration document. This means that the majority of students will not be entering the U.S. until August. However, students who are currently in the U.S. and studying at another U.S. institution may arrive on campus throughout the summer.
How ISSS Keeps New Students Informed
All new international students receive timely information from ISSS throughout the late spring and summer.
New Global Gopher Required Tasks
Required by ISSS. The New Global Gopher Required Tasks in MyISSS guides incoming international students through pre- and post-arrival tasks that they must complete to satisfy visa requirements and prepare for arrival at the UMN. Students must complete all of the Required Tasks to have their AI “Determine Current Visa Status” hold permanently removed.
One of the Required Tasks is the International Student Preparation Course (iPrep). IPrep is an extensive pre-arrival online course in Canvas that helps new international students prepare for their arrival at the University by learning about expectations and specific international student requirements.
ISSS Emails and Website
ISSS regularly sends emails to all incoming international students. As Google applications are banned in some countries, ISSS sends these emails to both the student’s UMN email address and the personal email in their record. These emails include reminders about the New Global Gopher Required Tasks, information about ISSS services and programs, and information about campus resources. Our new student website also has key information to help students prepare for arrival, including tips about the visa application process, living in Minnesota, removing registration holds, getting involved on campus, and more.
You can sign up to receive copies of these messages (click the link for "joining the group") as well as copies of the ISSS Weekly Update, which is sent throughout the year.
Global Gopher Experiences
Global Gopher Experiences (GGE) is a series of webinars and in-person events that aims to prepare students for their transition to the University of Minnesota, prepare them to succeed academically, learn important career skills, and most importantly, meet other Global Gophers! While optional, we highly encourage students to participate.
Webinars are hosted every other week throughout the summer with a different topic at each webinar. In-person events will be held the week before classes begin.
The ISSS Welcome Session is a recurring GGE event held in late August each year. At these in-person events, new students will learn about key action items they need to complete before classes begin, meet ISSS staff and learn about our services, connect and socialize with peers, and have the chance to ask questions.
- All first-year students will be required to attend an ISSS Welcome Session at their mandatory on-campus orientation on August 18, 19, or 20.
- Transfer students are encouraged to attend an optional ISSS Welcome Session as part of a GGE event on August 26.
- While attendance at an ISSS Welcome Session is required for freshmen as part of their orientation schedule, attendance will not be required for removal of the AI “Determine Current Visa Status” registration hold. Only the New Global Gopher Required Tasks will be required for hold removal.
Deferrals (NHS only)
If a first-year student has decided to defer their enrollment, the gap request form must be completed. The deadline to request a gap semester or gap year is July 1. Admissions is willing to work through deadline extensions on a case-by-case basis.
Students approved for a gap year or semester may not enroll at another academic institution, including another college, university, or in a program that grants credit through an accredited institution. Students approved for a gap year or semester that choose to enroll at another academic institution during their gap period will lose their freshman admission status and must re-apply for admission as a transfer student to the University of Minnesota. Transfer applicants must meet transfer admission requirements to their college of interest.
