Remember I said I was going to the USA? Now, here’s the story:
I have been awarded a scholarship to undergo a turtle conservation training in the USA by the Asian Scholarship Program for in situ Chelonian Conservation. The scholarship is only awarded to two participants from the Asian countries every year, since the inception in 2000. I am the first participant to represent Malaysia, and the other participant is a male Laotian student who is doing his Master’s.
It is a 4-month scholarship, and involves professional training in the conservation of turtles (including sea turtles, freshwater turtles and tortoises, I presume). The flow of the program has yet to be finalized but according to the Director of the Program, we (the Laotian Cambodian student and I) would be spending one month visiting turtle scientists and turtle research centers in New Jersey, Tennessee, Florida and maybe California.
And the remaining 3 months would be spent at the Wetlands Institute at Stone Harbor, New Jersey. The training will be conducted at the Wetlands Institute, together with other local participants.
I am not sure how the program is going to be like, so I really can’t be making plans to meet anybody in the US. Plus, I would be under the care of the Director of the Program, so it might not be a very good idea to “go out and meet friends I’ve never met”, if you know what I mean 
But if it’s convenient for you to come and see me, I am sure it wouldn’t be too much a problem (directions to the Wetlands Institute) 
But I need a favour from you guys..
I have applied for a US Visa online, and my interview at the US Embassy has been scheduled for next week. Have you applied for a US Visa recently? How did the interview go? What were the questions that were asked? Was it tough?
Please share with me your interview stories!
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so proud of you! go turtles go!
WAHHH!!! you’re so lucky and blessed. a good reward for all your hard work too!! hmm, seems like so many ppl are going to the US suddenly. I’ve never been there though, so can’t give you any tips. :p um…ask evelyn?? she’ll be back in a week.
according to a friend who got her visa to study there, she said just be honest during the interview. it’s ok one.
good luck pelf!! congrats!! (^_^)
WOOHOO! CONGRATS!
YAY! Congratulations! As for the visa interview thing… it’s not really an interview per se. They just ask a few questions to:
1. make sure you’re really doing what you say you’re gonna do in the states
2. make sure you can actually speak english.
so they’ll ask you simple questions about the program. it’s all very easy, no stress
be confident. the biggest mistake i see when i am in the embassy is people hesitate and go “uh,” “uhm,” “er.” after all, they are only trying to make sure you aren’t going there to defect and become an illegal immigrant 
Hi there! First of all: CONGRATULATIONS! Heard from Feli about the good news, you must be really excited!
Anyways, I just applied for the US Visa (mine is under business visa) but I guess it works about the same. Below are some tips that you may wanna know heads up before you get to the US embassy:
A. Before you go
1. Make sure all your relevant documents are with you (scholarship official offer letter, the online US Visa app form, etc.). Photocopy them if you have to.
2. Know where the embassy is and plan your travel time. Do estimate the time you should be reaching there assuming also the traffic flow and finding the place in case you don’t know where it is at yet. (It is quite near KLCC though but I haven’t seen any public transports there. If your friend is dropping you there, she/he may need to come back again to pick you up. Let’s give it about 1/2 hour least in approx. or alternately you can give a call when you are done. McDonalds are pretty nearby in case she/he looking for a place to wait while having breakfast)
3. You don’t really have dress formal.. just smart casual will do.
B. At the embassy
1. There will be a guard on duty out there.. no worries, he is a really nice guy and he will guide you around in case you are lost about how to go about it (in my case, I was hopelessly lost!).
2. Pass over your IC to the officer at the window next to the locked door (I tried to open it… silly me) and then the door will be opened for you.
3. Step right into the small room and surrender your bag and everything else in your pocket for scanning. You can bring your bag in but without electronic gadgets (even your car keys with the alarm control and earphone has to be left behind). Other than that, you’re good to go when they give you a tag…
4. Just walk up the staircase into the main entrance. Basically what you see there is what you get (as far as US application is concerned). As you enter, another guard stationed on your left will check your bag again. He will ask you for your Visa type and issue you a number. Then you may be required to wait at the right partition of the hall before your number is being called. That part of the place is very empty (and it’s okay) and you will be called very soon.
C. Inside the Visa app office
1. The place inside is going to be very familiar to you if you are a bank frequent.. cos it definitely looks and feels like a bank (only narrower) where people are being interviewed over the counter. There are several counters which will call your number for certain processes.
2. Just keep watch for your number being called. The first one would be to surrender your Visa app form, passport and the bank reciept. The second counter will have your fingerprints recorded (be careful but be nice- this chinese lady at this counter is pretty strict and she can be very blunt if anyone is not cooperative). Then the third time your number is being called - that is the interview.
D. The interview
1. Basically.. well… it would depend on who you get as your interviewer and in what purpose you are applying the Visa for (so the sets of questions may vary. You can’t go wrong if you know your stuffs well and it helps to be confident and smiley).
2. One thing perhaps I can share is that there is a high probability that they will ask about the general things in your personal life. Be prepared to answer that one but it is nothing major.
3. And yeah.. bear in mind (which you may have already known by the time you walked in there) that all interviews can be heard over the loudspeaker. Yes… but there is nothing to be concerned about actually.. find it as an entertainment as you wait for your turn (I did.. and it’s interesting what you might hear when you eavesdrop sometimes.. :P)
4. Before you know it… the interviewer will sorta be done with all the questioning and small talks (if you get a really friendly one) - and he/she will let you know about the results right there and then. You will be issued a small pink card to claim your passport the next day - where your Visa will be printed on a separate piece of paper but sticked into one of the pages of your passport, most likely a 10 years Visa like mine and everyone else of course… (which means you might have to stay a day longer in KL to retrieve it, otherwise pass the card to someone who can pick it up for you. No biggie.)
And that is all that you may wanna know.. the rest of it is just normal, walk out, climb down the stairs, get to the right side of the ‘fortress’ room, give up the pass, retrieve your stuffs from the small window… and your are good to go!
There you go.. I really hope this helps and not too cheong hei(perhaps some of them if not most, you have already heard of but nevertheless… :D)
All the best in the interview. I’m sure it’s gonna be breezy for ya.
And again.. congratulations!
Cheers!
Eve
Hey, congratulations! Hope the trip is fruitful and interesting. What a great opportunity this is. You totally deserved it. All The best!
This is one of those golden opportunities that many people dream of. You have worked hard to obtain this so congratulations. Best of luck in everything you do. I’m looking forward to seeing your posts about your life in the US. =)
wah congrats! what a great opportunity… make sure you take lots of pics!!!
Hi… Long time since I last dropped by, been out of blogosphere for quite a while…
First of all, congratulations! So happy for you! What’s more, this is what you wanted.
My mum went for the interview years back, when visiting my uncle and his family in the States. She passed through smoothly and easily, and I think you will too. One thing the interviewer did ask of mum though, which she couldn’t produce, was pictures of family members in Malaysia, as a kind of evidence that she wasn’t going to ‘jump airplane’ or anything, and would return to Malaysia after the visit. But, since you are going on official sponsorship, that should be fine.
Congratulations! Hope you have a safe and memorable trip.
Congrats! Congrats! I am going to miss you so badly….
I wanna go too. (Do you mind smuggling me to the States? I am OK sitting in the luggage for eerr.. a ‘few’ good hours) Wuakakakak
Don’t worry, take it all in stride.
The US visa interviews can range from really tough to a nice chat - depends on the person interviewing you. Don’t worry to the stage that you will stiffen up. Take a deep breath, and tell yourself it’s just a conversation.
I was asked on my education background, my job, and what I was going to do in the US. Nothing major. The only curve ball thrown at me was if I thought working in the US would be attractive to me, to which my answer was yes, but I’m happy with my job now, and I think I prefer to keep travelling around in Asia in my current job.
Hi Pelf - I live in the US, so can’t add any suggestions for the interview. Looks like you have some good ones already, though. Good luck, and Congratulations! You are most deserving of this opportunity.
-Will
way to go pelf!!!!
congratz!
Pelf will be our turtle superhero and save all our turtles when u come back!
WOW! congrats pelf! hope your interview goes well =) So you gonna invite us to visit you while you’re there? hehehee =P
Hey congrats on the scholarship! I didn’t know they have turtles up in New Jersey
Congratulations! I feel so proud and happy for you.
THANK YOU guys, for all the congratulatory messages and well wishes
I wouldn’t exactly say that I deserve this, but I am grateful that I am given a chance to do this. I never knew that I would have a chance to go to the US for anything (a vacation or even a training), let alone a fully-sponsored 4-month professional training!
This is even better that whatever I could dream of, really!
I would like to visit you in New Jersey. You will be a 3 hour drive from New York. You can’t get much further in New Jersey from New York City than where you are going… oh, maybe that is why there are living turtles in the water there.
If you have a chance, also visit Cape May, which is near where you will be. A pretty town, beautiful beach. I visited 20 years ago… before getting busy :–)
I got my visa in 2004. I brought my doctor’s recommendation letter along and the process was simple, I was approved right away, no interview. The officer said, “God speed!”. Keke…
Awww… brings back memories. Congratulations! It’s just a short duration scholarship but I am already very proud of you. I wish to go to the U.S. by academic achievements too! But I’m so not smart or studious. Only some pretentious pandai-pandai intelligence.
Are you applying for J1 visa?
If you get a nasty interviewer, you might be asked to show evidences of social economic ties and other binding ties back home that will compel you to return after the short stint, Many years ago, I was denied the visa during the first time under section 221(g), but it was approved after submitting more evidences of house ownership, saving in the bank, letter from my thesis supervisor, etc,
The nasty interviewer I got the first time basically denied everyone’s application that afternoon I was there. The second time, I tried to avoid getting her, so I asked to be interviewed in Mandarin. I got a Caucasian interviewer who could speak Mandarin, but he interviewed me in English because he knew I could speak English. :-)
Yay! Way to go! Congratulations and say hi to the turtles.
Wow! Congratulations!!! I’m so proud of you. Make Malaysia proud ya.
Congratulations on the scholarship, dai kah cher!
It’s definitely not easy to get another chance like this, and I’m glad you’ve made it! All the best and hope that we can still keep in touch!
Take care!
Congrats!! I am sure your trip will be fantastic and rewarding. Trips like this help you learn so much about yourself as well that whatever happen you’ll end up growing a lot through the experience. Good luck, hopefully you’ll keep us updated when you are in the USA, it would be nice to read about your experience.
Wow, that’s so cool! Especially on a scholarship, you’re truly lucky (I know you worked for it).
I have plenty of experiences with the US not with visas though (I’m exempted…). I’d say, be honest, straightforward, don’t take it for yourself if they are a bit… er… “rude”. They just want to see you’re gonna do what you’re supposed to do (= study) and leave the country after that. So make sure you don’t emphasize on knowing too many people in the USA, wanting to stay after etc.
Good luck!
Hey, I just had to comment. I saw an old comment you wrote on this guy’s page about his “wordpress” spelling. That made me laugh… Anyway, I just wanted to tell you to relax a little.. Noone really worries about little nonsense like that.. Unless you work for the company are writing tech docs or whatever…. Hehehe, sorry, I had to tease you…. So I like your page, it’s very cool… Good luck with the U.S thing.. Take care.. I’m in NYC, stop by and say hello…
If you end up going to florida, please drop a note on my blog at arthritisquest.com. I’m originally from south florida and grew up on a turtle preserve (freshwater), just a few miles from the beach. Also, we had a tortoise but we had to give it away.
Congratulations babe…All the best for your future
Pearl
Congratulations! Hope you get what you want out of this opportunity.
Aww wow this will be amazing, you must take pictures and post them (obviously!) I love turtles and tortoises, I really want one
Also just want to say your layout for your blog reminds me of Loco Roco!
What parts of the US will you be in? I’m in St. Louis, dead smack middle of the US… I could give you advice… maybe.