New J-1 Scholars Requesting UMass Sponsorship

If you are interested in completing research at UMass in a volunteer or unpaid* capacity, you must first determine which department and faculty member is the best match. Your chosen department and faculty member must agree to sponsor your program at UMass.  The IPO is not responsible for this.

If agreeable, your department will collect various documents from you and submit a New J-1 Request to the IPO. You will receive an email once you can begin your part of the request. Please email us if there are any errors accessing the e-form.

*Paid scholars (post-docs/research fellows, etc.) will follow the standard UMass HR hiring policies. Once you have accepted the offer, your department will start the New J-1 Request Process and you will receive an email to do your portion of the request.

After DS-2019 Creation

Once your DS-2019 is created, you will receive an email with information about applying for a J-1 visa, entering the U.S., the mandatory J-1 scholar orientation, and J-2 dependent information (if any). We cannot email the DS-2019 at this time due to Department of State regulations so you will receive a notification once the DS-2019 has been shipped to the mailing address you provided.

All questions regarding your visa appointment and consulate processing time should be directed to your chosen consulate.

Arrival to U.S.

Once you have your visa and have determined your arrival dates, email us with this information so we can assign you a J-1 Scholar orientation date (note: your department and UMass HR might have a separate orientation schedule for you).

More information about getting to campus can be found here.

You will also receive a “DS-2019 Start Date is Approaching” email. Please follow the instructions in this email.

Once you have completed J-1 Scholar Orientation and the J Arrival form, your J-1 record will be validated. Any updates to your personal information should be sent here.