The launch to land me an American Master’s degree in Information & Computer Science was failed because a visa officer rejected my F1 visa application. The reason: my father, a leading designer in China’s space program, “can not possibly have enough money to support me because he is working for government,” as indicated by the officer at my interview.
There are many reasons leading to a reasonable rejection to a visa application, however, the refusal to my visa on the above ground is not logical.
My father, Mr. Zhang Yongqiang, is the chief designer for the China Satellite at China Academy of Space Technology, China’s equivalent of NASA. Because of his status and reputation, he has traveled the world extensively including three times to the United States and many times to Europe and Australia. While it is true that my father does not receive a salary as high as that of his NASA colleagues, it is quite wrong to assume that people in his status in today’s China can not provide $15,000 for his daughter’s better future. Remember that my father is a very highly achieved space engineer who has a number of technological inventions. He has made very decent money from the proceeds from his inventions and one patent alone which is an energy saving device used in civil aviation vehicles has been bringing him in about 30,000USD every year during the last three years. Ignorance is prejudice. You should have listened to my explanation as why and how my father has so much money, rather than just throw my application out just because of your very limited knowledge about how and why Chinese intellectuals like my father became rich in the 90s.
The program I am going to study is Information & Library Science, which applies the computer technology to library industry. My decision to combine my computer background with this program, rather than sticking on computer and space technology, did not come without very careful and sometimes painful deliberation. A satellite designer’s daughter, and a computer specialist also working in China’s space program, it is natural and traditional for me to pick my father’s business. However, I opted to study a more consumer-oriented discipline for the mere reason that the degree for information and library science will put me in an amazing position to make great money and build great business back into China.
Busy dealing with visa applicants all the time, you may not know what is going on in this business of my choice: one of my friends already made a fortune by contracting Libraries storing old magazines and newspapers into CD ROM. Another friend of mine is also doing a booming business in putting Beijing Library on-line, which is busily under construction. These people’s success is the driving force that set me off to my goal for this degree in Information & Library Science. My father’s money invested in graduate education is a good investment decision, which expects high returns from China’s booming information industry.
It is exactly for the above reason that I did not even bother to apply for space technology programs in which I have better opportunities to land a much better scholarship because of my father’s connections and my straight credit in the field. I did not bother to apply also because: I wanted and my father supported that I should pursue a program that has the best possible money future. Please do not block my road to personal prosperity by rejecting my visa again. You should reject my visa if I am with a space technology program (which will lead to a definite conclusion that the person would try to find a job in the United States because of the sharp money prospect between returning and staying), but you should grant me a visa because of the obvious motivation behind my program for an Information & Library Science Master’s degree.
I trust that you will give my application a kind and positive review.
My application for a student visa was refused on August I , 1997. The reason for the re-fusal, according to the visa officer, is that I am an accountant and should not study theEconomics in the U. S. Therefore I do not have a solid study plan ,and "logically" I haveimmigration intention.
I do understand the "logic" behind the visa officer's reasoning on his rejection. I alsoagree that many visa applicants do not have a real study plan and they treat F1 visa justas a ticket to enter their immigration process to the U. S. However, no matter howmany people dream of immigration to the United States ,I am the one who has absolute-ly no such an intention. Other people's dream is not my fault. Please listen to me and Illgive you my following arguments ：
l. A senior accountant in China Southern Investment Bank with a bachelor's degree inaccounting from China's top business school ,China University of Economics and Fi-nance , I have enjoyed a great success in my career and in my personal life during thelast four years. Going to the US for an advanced study is an important step for me tofurther promote myself professionally back in China ,not a step to abandon my greatjob and family in China. Why I did not choose Accounting program instead of thisEconomics? The answer is simple : An American accounting degree may guaranteeme a good position in your country ,however ,as my real intention is to return to Chi-na to resume my happy life here ,an Master's degree in Economics is certainly a bet-ter choice because the US accounting rules are different from what China adopts.This thoughtful choice of my program proves that your reasoning to reject my visa isjust not right.
2. People go to US for better life. But if life is good enough at home ,no body would becrazy to abandon their country. Considering the take home pay ,bonuses and corpo-rate perks ,my real income is very close ,if not exceed ,to those of my college friendswho work in the United States.
The clock has turned around during the last few years as China experienced an eco-nomic boom and young professionals like me caught the opportunities of life. I wouldnot throw away everything that I have obtained and am proud of to plunge myselfinto chaotic future by illegally staying in the United States after my Master's pro-gram. The United States is always the greatest country that I admire ,however ,whenit comes to career development and personal fortune ,my hope is in China. With thisAmerican Master's degree in hand ,my future in China will be much more greater !
3. I have a perfect family. My husband, who owns an accounting firm in S City andhires about a dozen accountants, is a college sweet heart of mine and a successful ac-countant himself. He is the one never ever wanted to go to US because his businessis too busy to leave behind. If be did ,he may lose his business first and his wife sec-ond because he can not possibly continue his career in your country. Love is price-less, but as you American would like to say: NO MONEY, NO HONEY. My hus-band , the smart accountant ,will be staying where the money is. Alter all , betweenbeing a boss of an established accounting firm in China and a fledgling dishwasher inthe US ,my husband would choose the former. The successful business that my hus-band is doing is another reason why I will definitely come back. Everybody maywant to stay in your country ,but we are exceptions because of our exceptional goodlife here and now in our own country!
4. Having given all the above reasons, I trust that you will understand why I am goingto pursue an Master's degree in economics rather than a degree in accounting in yourcountry. I am very much excited about the greater opportunities, broad career op-tions ,higher social status and many ,many more that my American Master's degreeand my American experience will bring to me when I return.
I respectfully request that you give me a favorable review on my visa application basedon mv previous argument.
My application for a LI visa was rejected on October 30 , 1997 ,while the co-applicant inthe case ,my superior in the company ,was granted the visa.
The rejection, as viewed by us at Beijing FASF Equipment Ltd, a company with therevenue o{ 300 mlillion RMB last year ,is not a good one because it hurts the legitimatebusiness that the company is to expand in the United States. We do understand in gen-eral. the criteria a visa officer used to issue his refusal. However ,I would like to take thisopportunity to present my strong business background and my indispensable function inmy company's scheduled operations in your country for which this LI application is in-tended. I would also like, if I may ,to make it known how a refusal of my B1 visa backin January, 1997 truncated an important business operation that our Beijing FASF E-quipment Ltd. routinely conducts. After reading this letter ,I believe that you will givemy application a favorable review and grant me the visa to start my company's businessin the United States ,which is important to her future.
1. My background: I joined FASF's China operations four years ago and have beenpromoted from entry level to First Assistant Manager and then to General Managerof Eastern China Marketing Department in the company. I am responsible for fivemillion dollars sales for the year of 1996 and more than eight million dollars for thisyear. I am not an ordinary young woman who dreams of coming to America withfanciful ideas. I have built a very solid career in the FASF family ,the world's secondlargest manufacturer in our field during the last four years. As a result , last yearalone, I made a salary of more than 150,000 RMB, good enough to dispel my sub-conciseness to go underground washing dishes in the United States ,as perceived byvour honorable visa officers who rejected my visa applications.
Furthermore ,I have a first class family, which I hate to leave for even a very shortperiod of time. My husband ,Mr. Qian Yongqiang ,had been the senior sales directorat Apple Co. Ltd. until he left the American company to start his own business.My husband employs 60 computer engineers along with other 50 some support staff.We are the lucky ones who caught the opportunities emerged in China in the last fewyears and we enjoy a life envied by our fellow students who stayed in U. S. My ca-reer is so gratifying and my famlly is so well-on ,it DOSN'T make any sense for meto stay illegally in America to have any benefits. Nothing will ever lead me toviolate my visa terms as suspected bv your officers.
It was with this strong professional status and personal background that in January1997 I applied for a BI visa ,which was unreasonably rejected. The purpose for thatBI application was to attend an annual trade conference , "Photo Marketing Associa-tion American 1996". Unable to make the trip to the US, my company sends me toParis to attend a similar event held in France. I went to Paris on November Ist andas scheduled returned to China on November IO ,just two weeks ago. As the mostimportant market and a major source of advanced technology , the United States hasan obligation to let in legitimate businesspersons with genuine intent for their visits.Although a few thousand dollars spent in my recent trip to France would not haveany impact on US economy any way ,the refusal of my BI application was indeed amistake in the long run. By refusing the B1 and this time the L1 visa to me, you areconsistently making misjudgments toward an innocent application and blocking thenormal business activities tlesired by FASF , the great company that I have beenserving for the last four years.
I am a senior FASF manager and have a rich business know how in the filmdeveloping equipment industry and that is the only reason FASF needs me to go tothe United States. Spent a lot of money on this proposed American operation ,mycompany has decided that I am the best choice start and run this business in the UStogether with the company president, Mr. John Li to whom you did issue a LI visaafter the interview. Our North American Company will involve heavily in searching for and purchasing sophisticated film developing equipment a job only a trained andexperienced professional like me can afford. Mr. John Li is the president of ourNorth American company but it is me who will conduct the day to day decision mak-ings in the United States. Refusing my visa ,are you suggesting that some secretariesin the US can function my duties? Have you considered that Mr. Li ,the president ofboth Beijing and New York companies will be commuting between our two countriesand I will be taking care of many important businesses interests for extended periodof time. Your refusal is based on your previous experience in which many appli-cants did cheat their way to the United States by vvay of LI visa, rather than givemy particular case a thorough review.
I know I am young and beautiful and successful and this is not my fault. The realme is that I am a successful marketing manager at FASF family and am designatedto apply my professional experience to my company's future success in the UnitedStates. Considering my happy family here in Beijing, it is not without hesitationwhen I accepted FASF's appointment to my new position in New York which on theother hand is also an exciting opportunity to enrich my professional and personal ex-perience. After all,America is the place where I do want and need some experiencefor my future business in China.
On basis of my previous appeal ,I respectfully request that you give my application a re-consideration and a favorable review.