To travel to the U.K. and establish residency while doing research at the University, you will need a General Student Visa. You can apply for a visa up to 3 months before the start of your course at the University.
You may also require an ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) clearance certificate before applying for a visa. The University will inform you if this is needed and will provide you details on the process to obtain the ATAS clearance.
Important information about getting your student visa:
- Visit https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration for contact details and locations of U.K. Consulates in the U.S. and a list of required documents that are required in order to obtain a visa.
- The Entry Clearance Visa is only valid in the U.K.
- U.S. students wishing to travel to other European countries will still be subject to those countries’ immigration rules.
- Re-entering the U.K. following a visit abroad will not be affected.
- All costs associated with obtaining the Visa are the responsibility of the student.
- There is a mandatory personal security-training requirement in place for all NIH personnel, including students, who will spend greater than 30 days abroad.
- The NIH Oxford-Cambridge Scholars Program provides security training in August.
- If a student misses this class, they will not be able to arrange travel to the U.K. until fulfilling this requirement and may have to take a security-training course offered by the State Department at their own expense.
- If you have any questions, please contact the administrators at your University.