A visit to the American embassy for a visa is naturally quite a stressful event - but as long as you are confident and prepped, you'll have nothing to worry about. Acquiring a visa for Camp America involves a trip to the US Embassy in London, England! Irish applicants can travel to the US Embassy in Belfast but as I am from Scotland it meant I was off back down to London again!
To schedule an appointment for a J-1 Visitors visa (which is the visa for all Camp America applicants receive), you have to follow the step by step guide provided to book your appointment at the embassy. These appointments will be from about 1pm to 3pm time slots - every applicant will select a half an hour time slot.
This is the prime time to select a time which will allow you enough travel time to get to the embassy. Using the London Underground, you can travel from Victoria station to Vauxhall station which is around a 10 minute journey. From there, it is roughly a 10/15 minute walk to the embassy. Make sure you have your google maps out - and you'll probably see hundreds of other applicants on their way too! Consider your trip to the embassy like going through airport security. At the door on the south side of the building, my documents were scanned and stamped to ensure I was here for the correct appointment. Then you will be let into the security building, where your bags will be scanned and you will also walk through a metal detector - like the ones they have in airports!
Note: If you are traveling to the embassy with a parent or a friend who is NOT attending an appointment, they will need to wait outside the security building. (Special shoutout to my mum who waited all that time for me!)
Once through security, you can finally enter the building. The appointment as a whole was filled the queues. At the entrance of the building, you queue to have your documents checked and you will be given a number - this is your number they will call out for you to have your passport and visa approved! Then, you will proceed up an elevator into a very large waiting room (similar to an airport lounge) and you must sit on the RIGHT side of the room. Once your number is called out on the huge screens, proceed to a desk which corresponds to your number.
This part was really friendly - and a happy English man greeted me and got me all excited about going to the US. He scanned my passport and confirmed my documents were all present. He also got me super hyped about going to camp! Once that stage was over, I had to proceed to the LEFT side of the room. Again, to wait for my number to be called again and repeat the same process of proceeding to a desk which corresponds to my number.
This part... was a little less friendly. This desk was a bit more like American customs, as it was just questions. Some of the questions were; 'What am I doing at Camp?' 'What do I plan on doing when I return home?' 'Have I ever committed a crime.' All the routine stuff.
They should then tell you there and then that your visa is approved, and your passport will be returned to you with your granted visa within 3-5 days. If there are any issues with your visa being granted, you will be told then and there.
Overall, the appointments were full of waiting. I think I was in the embassy for at least an hour and a half, and maybe 30 minutes of that total time were actually at appointments. Although, it was really fun to speak to other people there with me and see what their camp experience was going to be like! You should try speaking to people in the line with you, then find them once you've been through your appointments! After all, you're all in this together!
My main top tip would be to make sure you have all your documents! There would be nothing worse than forgetting something important!
This includes:
- Your passport
- Your DS-2019 form (which is sent to you by Camp America)
- Your SEVIS 1-901 Payment Confirmation (follow the guide on how to complete and print)
- Your letter of recommendation from CA (on their website)
- Proof of a returning job or university place
- Proof of your appointment at the embassy.
- A VISA Photograph (can be taken in a photo book similar to passport
At the embassy, they didn't even double check that I had all of these documents - but it's better to be safe than sorry!
My mum and I outside the American Embassy!
