A young software engineer from India faced a sudden setback after his F-1 visa application was rejected at the US Consulate in Chennai. Despite a strong academic background and work experience, the visa officer handed him a 214(b) refusal slip after a short interview.
The candidate, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Information Science and Engineering (ISE) with an 8.15 CGPA from VTU, had secured admission to San Jose State University (SJSU) for a Master’s in Data Analytics. He also had offers from other reputed universities including UMBC, CSUF, and CUB, and a rejection from Indiana University Bloomington (IUB).
In a detailed online post, the applicant recounted the interview process, which began with a routine greeting and submission of documents. The consular officer, a male in his 40s, asked a few standard questions about his purpose of travel, university selection, and educational history.
When asked why he chose SJSU, the student highlighted the university’s academic strengths in big data analytics and artificial intelligence, and mentioned his excitement to learn under renowned faculty. However, the officer interrupted before he could finish.
The conversation moved quickly, with the officer asking about the applicant’s activities post-graduation. The student mentioned his job at Bosch as an Associate Software Engineer, where he worked on Java plugins and the data analytics tool Splunk. Once again, he was interrupted.
The visa officer then asked the applicant to place his fingers on the scanner before concluding the interview with a brief statement: “You will not be given visa today.” He returned the passport and I-20 along with a 214(b) refusal slip, indicating the application was denied due to failure to demonstrate strong ties to the home country.
The student, disheartened by the abrupt end to the process, said, “I didn’t even get a chance to prove my ties to my home country.” With U.S. visa slots currently unavailable, he is now unsure about the next steps and is exploring the possibility of reapplying once interview appointments reopen.