While a student visa looks quite simple, really just a piece of paper, it can take a few weeks or even months to obtain! A student visa allows a current or prospective student to stay in a country for 90+ days safely.

Here is a run down of what it took for me to get my student Visa.

Overall the online application process has been quick and painless…quite the relief! Honestly that hardest part was just being patient and waiting for my Norwegian university to send me my letter of acceptance. I am naturally a huge planner so being forced to wait for months on end was quite the challenge for me!

Once officially receiving my acceptance letter to BI Norwegian Business School, I was able to go online and submit my personal information onto The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration’s website. The main reason why I had to wait to officially be enrolled to get my Visa was that I needed a student ID number and an official Norwegian mailing address.

Here’s a crazy fact…it costs over $600 to get a Visa!

Despite the fact that I pay thousands each year for a college degree (a piece of paper), I was still a bit shocked to know how much it cost to document myself in Norway.

The most intriguing part of the application process was the trip to the Norwegian Visa Application Center in Chicago. I have heard so many stories about how the Foreign officials can be intimidating but luckily my trip went pretty smoothly!

The drive to Chicago is around 3 hours from my hometown so my mom and I decided to make it a girls trip. I am very grateful for her ability and willingness to take time to accompany me to the city.

We arrived an hour prior to my scheduled appointment to be sure we could find the consulate and get snacks (iced vanilla lattes and Garett’s popcorn).

When the time came to arrive at the consulate, my mom and I went up to the 17th floor as instructed but she was quickly told she needed to leave the building and wait for me to complete my application solo.

This is the part where I felt really bad for her because I ended up waiting for my appointment for TWO HOURS!

This was one of those times where I was extremely grateful that I have a book on me at all times because I wasn’t allowed to have my phone out and passing time without a book would have truly been painful! (Luckily the chairs in the consulate also looked like knock offs of Herman Miller’s so I killed a bit of time trying to remember the name of the products).

It was intriguing seeing all of the different people inside of the consulate…honestly I thought more might be blonde with blue eyes (Okay maybe that is a little stereotypical) but there was quite a mix. Lots of couples with babies and an older gentleman with a large briefcase who seemed to be helping a young boy through an application.

When it came time for my appointment, it took less than 10 minutes. The “interview” that I had been prepping myself for was completely nonexistent. The only thing that required my presence was that I needed to retake my visa photo. I was honestly impressed because the photographer seemed to have a great eye for detail and kept asking me to move my head 2 or 3 millimeters in specific directions and knew right away if I over or under compensated.

So after waiting two hours and then turning in my paperwork for 10 minutes (tops) I was told I could pay and leave. $675 later, I am patiently waiting for my passport to be mailed back to me with a fresh new student visa inside.

While the visa application process was a bit boring and extremely expensive, it was not the least bit stressful for which I am very grateful!

It is a bit mind-blowing to thing that acquiring my visa was the last big thing I needed to do before booking a flight and heading straight to Norway this fall!

I am relieved knowing the majority of the work is behind me so now I can enjoy my summer internship and appreciate the people around me!

The biggest virtue I practiced while applying for my student visa was definitely PATIENCE. From waiting for my BI Norwegian Business School acceptance letter to literally waiting 2 hours to sign my visa application, I was constantly reminded that good things come to those who wait and despite not seeing the end result right now, I know I will be glad I took time to wait for this awesome trip to happen!