Hosting Exchange Visitors

To qualify for a short-term or research scholar category program, the prospective exchange visitor must have a bachelor’s degree in hand at the time of application. If there is a question as to whether the exchange visitor’s degree is the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree, a third party credentials evaluation may be necessary. Prospective exchange visitors who do not yet have a bachelor’s degree, but are enrolled as a degree seeking student in their home country, may qualify for the student intern category.

The scholar must provide proof of sufficient funding to support themselves and any J-2 dependents for the duration of their stay. The current minimum funding amounts are: 

• $2,000/month for the J-1
• $900/month for the first dependent (spouse or child), 
• $500/month for each additional dependent (spouse or child) 

Please note that if a range of funding is given such as $1,400 – $1,800, OIS will use the lower amount when calculating financial information.

Funding may come from NC State as part of the terms of the appointment, an outside source – such as the visitor’s home institution or government, or personal funds. Non-NC State funding sources must be accompanied by recent (within the past 6 months) documentation on the organization’s letterhead, clearly indicating the amount of funding the scholar will receive for their program activities at NC State. Personal funds, such as bank statements, must also be recent, include the scholar’s name, and represent liquid (readily available) funds. If a family member will fund the exchange visitor, they will need to complete and submit a Sponsor Affidavit of Support form. All funding documents must be in English or accompanied by an accurate translation into English. 

The Department of State (DOS) requires all participants of the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program to have and maintain health insurance which covers the exchange visitor and all accompanying family members for the entire duration of their DS-2019 . For more information on the specific coverage requirements, please see our page on health insurance requirements for J-1 Exchange Visitors. It is important to note that U.S. health insurance is required even during periods when the principal J-1 or any J-2 dependents are temporarily abroad during the program period. Scholars and dependents are required to provide proof of adequate insurance when they check in with OIS. Failure to maintain adequate health insurance for the principal J-1 and all active J-2 dependents is considered a violation of the Exchange Visitor Program regulations, which will result in termination of the J status for both the J-1 and J-2 participants.

Prior to issuing a DS-2019 form, the sponsor (OIS on behalf of NC State), must verify the visitor’s English language proficiency. The level of proficiency must be sufficient for the visitor to interact with English speakers, successfully participate in their program, conduct research at an American university, and to function on a day-to-day basis. In consultation with our Intensive English Program on campus, a CEFR Score of B-1 has been determined to be the minimum to meet this proficiency level. OIS requires scholars to upload documentation of English language proficiency prior to issuing a DS-2019 form.

The exchange visitor must have a NC State faculty supervisor during their entire stay and the visitor must hold a full time HR appointment within the department (minimum 30 hours per week for J-1 Scholar categories and 32 hours per week for the J-1 Student Intern category).

Department Users must initiate an application for short-term and research scholars in  GlobalHome. Please consult the J-1 Scholar Request Procedures page to view the full instructions. The application for the student intern program is different from the scholar categories and is detailed here.