Admissions for International Students

Application for International Students

Students planning to attend HCC on F-1 status must submit/upload a complete application to the Office of International Services & Programs (ISP) by the application deadlines (incomplete applications will NOT be accepted for processing).

Note: If you are an international student planning to attend HCC on a status different than F-1 (Undocumented, DACA, refugee, L visa, H visa, etc.), please visit and follow the instructions for non-F-1 students on https://www.hccs.edu/applying-and-paying/ . If you are an F-1 student applicant, please proceed to the steps below.

What type of F-1 International Student am I? (Click on links below for steps on how to complete each application)

New International Student: I live outside the U.S. and want to attend HCC on an F-1 visa.

Transfer International Student: I am an F-1 student in the U.S., and I want to transfer to HCC.

Change of Status Student: I am in the U.S. on a non-immigrant visa and wish to change my status to F-1.

Defer Attendance Student: I have already applied to HCC but need to change my start date/semester.

Concurrent Student: An F-1 student from another U.S. school who is permitted to take a few classes at HCC.

Readmission for Discontinued F-1 Students: F-1 students with HCC IDs, who have not enrolled at HCC for the last three consecutive semesters (fall, spring, summer), will see a message "Reapply for Admission" on their To Do list with a Verification code and a link to applytexas.com. The readmission will not complete the F1 application process. You still need to complete and save the SEVIS Form I-20 Application‌ as a PDF file. Send it as an attachment to oiss.international@hccs.edu. Write your HCC ID number and your F1 classification (NEW, TRANSFER, COS or CONCURRENT) in the subject line.

Students under 18 years of age: An F-1 international student under the age of 18 who wishes to gain admission to HCC must provide documentation to prove that he/she has achieved the equivalency of a U.S. high school diploma in his/her country by submitting a high school transcript evaluation along with their application. Accepted evaluation agencies are listed here.

Using an Agency

IMPORTANT: Students do not need to secure a third-party agency to gain admission to HCC. HCC staff is available at no cost to students to assist with the admissions and registration process. If a student chooses to utilize the services of a third-party agency, the student should be aware that they assume full responsibility for all actions conducted by the third-party agent acting on the student’s behalf. Although rare, there have been incidents of third-party agencies submitting fraudulent admissions documentation on behalf of a student. If fraudulent activity is committed by an agency representative acting on behalf of a student, the student is fully responsible and may be subject to disciplinary action. Given that third-party agencies often require personally identifiable information from students to act on their behalf, it is also possible for an agent to gain access to a student’s online student account and make changes without the student’s consent.