Congratulations and Welcome to UCONN.

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THINGS TO DO BEFORE ARRIVAL

• Apply for the visa; finish emigration and income tax clearance
• Block your air tickets.
• Learn driving
• Learn to cook
• Apply for a bank loan (if necessary).
• Make your passport valid for 6 months more than your stay indicated in your I-20.
• Get a complete medical and dental checkup done (dental care is very expensive here).
• Get prescriptions and medicines for all common ailments.
• Get your eyesight checked and get a new prescription. Buy at least one extra pair of glasses or lenses (spectacles and eye check-ups are extremely expensive here).
• Get the requisite immunization (especially MMR). Fill in the Health and Immunization record form that has been sent in the I-20 packet.
• All students at the University of Connecticut are required to obtain health insurance. Since the coverage does not begin till the start of the semester, it is advisable to get a short-term insurance policy to cover you till then.
• Inform Tarang about your travel plans.

THINGS TO DO AFTER ARRIVAL

• Open a bank account with preferably both checking and savings account (most students have an account with Webster Bank).
• Go to the International Students and Scholar Services at McMahon to complete the necessary paperwork.
• Get your UConn ID card at the Wilbur Cross building; your ID card can be used for several purposes; you can also put money in it and use it as a debit card in select locations across campus (for more details, visit onecard.uconn.edu).
• If you are here on an assistantship, go to the payroll office in the Budds building to complete the necessary work so that you can start getting paid from the beginning of the semester.
• Apply to get your social security number (everybody on an assistantship would have been provided with a temporary SSN; you need to apply to get a permanent SSN).
• Submit your completed health forms and arrange to get the required immunizations (this will be covered in your orientation).
• Apply to get health and dental insurance ( it is advisable to get both medical and dental insurance; dental care is exorbitantly expensive here).
• Register for courses online after consulting your advisor.
• After all the orientations, you are ready to start student life in the U.S. The last thing to do (or the first thing) is to distribute home-made sweets to the homesick Indian population. This is the easiest way to make friends.