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Preparation is the most important part of your journey. Please use the following information as a guide.

• Your official high school and college transcripts must be sent by your school or government to SDSU.INTLSUPPORT@sdstate.edu prior to leaving home.
• Leave a contact number with your family, such as the Office of International Affairs.
  • 605-688-5612 or email SDSU.IntlSupport@sdstate.edu
• Special Note:
  • Canadian students do not need visa stamps to enter the U.S., but they must present the Form I-20 or Form DS-2019 at the port of entry to be properly classified in non-immigrant student status.
  • Students who are eligible to enter the U.S. under the visa waiver program should not choose this travel option. Please apply for the appropriate student visa.
• Make arrangements to fly to . The airport code is FSD.
  • If your flight connects in another country, ask your travel agent or airline if you need a Transit Visa (or Direct Airside Transit).
  • You may enter the U.S. 30 days before the program start date listed on your I-20 (Fall 2025 program start date is August 18th), but on-campus housing may not be available yet.
• Arrive at SDSU before Monday, August 18, 2025, for International Student Orientation.
• Tell us you are coming! Complete the Arrival Information Form.
• Research the weather and pack accordingly. Plan to buy winter clothes.
• Tell us if you need a ride!
  • Shuttle services for new international students will be available from August 11th to August 18th, 2025.
    • If you arrive after 11 p.m., we would ask that you plan to stay in a Sioux Falls hotel at your cost for the night. The AeroStay is connected to the Sioux Falls Regional Airport and is just one opportunity in the area. Please plan to meet one of the drivers in the baggage claim area a few minutes before the 11 a.m. shuttle the next day.
  • You will receive a confirmation! When you arrive, there may not be someone at the airport until shortly before the designated Shuttle times. DO NOT take a taxi cab as this will be very expensive (usually around $150 USD). Please wait until the next pick up time to travel to Brookings.
    • If you are unsure of your situation when you arrive in Sioux Falls or have questions, please call or email  at 605-688-5612.
• Make travel plans if you will be arriving before or after the dates for the shuttle:
  • Jefferson Bus Lines is an economical way of traveling to Brookings. Tickets are estimated at around $36 USD (one way):
    • Option 1: You can pre-book your ticket on
      • Departure city would be Sioux Falls, SD. Arrival city would be Brookings, SD.
      • Buses leave from Sioux Falls once a day at 10:30 a.m. and arrive in Brookings at 11:15 a.m.
    • Option 2: You may pre-book a ticket with , Brookings Area Transit Authority, from Sioux Falls to Brookings. Tickets are estimated at $30 in advance or $60 for same day.
    • Option 3: If you have not pre-booked your bus ticket, you can call the Yellow Cab Company from the airport (phone number 605-336-1616) and have them bring you to:
      • Cross Couriers, Ltd, 1500 West Russell Street, Sioux Falls, SD 57104
      • Cross Couriers will sell you a one-way bus ticket from Sioux Falls, SD to Brookings, SD (business hours until 7 p.m. daily).
• Prepare your medical records.
  • Print the “Mandatory Immunization Record”
  • Carefully read the instructions and have the form completed and signed by a doctor or health care provider.
  • Bring the original form to orientation.
• Apply for On-Campus Housing
  • The South ��ֱ���� Board of Regents policy requires that during the first two years from the time they were or would have graduated from high school, all unmarried students who enroll in courses delivered on a main campus for six credit hours or more are required to enter into a housing agreement with the institution unless special permission to room elsewhere is received from the institution.
  • Please go to Residential Life Housing Application. You will need your SDSU student ID number (listed in your admission letter from the university), your MyState username and access to your SDSU MyState account. The housing application will not allow international payments. As a result, please contact Residential Life when the application fee is requested and ask to have the fee deferred to your SDSU tuition and fees account.
• If you have difficulties with the housing application, please email Housing and Residential Life or call 605-688-5148. Common challenges include using the incorrect username/password to login to your housing application or browser issues. For your housing application, you will need your Jacks email address and password to login. Sometimes students do need to clear their cache or use an incognito browser. Once you arrive at the confirmation page, please email Residential Life. They will defer your housing application fee to your Fall 2025 tuition and fees account. Please do not attempt to pay the housing application fee as it will not be processed, and your application will not be complete.
• Apply for Early Arrival Housing
  • Early arrival housing is available to students who will be living on campus for the Fall 2025 semester at a first-come, first-served basis for a nominal nightly fee of $20 per night.
  • The Early Arrival Housing application is located in the same portal as the On-Campus Housing application. Please make sure to list your date of arrival in the application so the staff in the Office of Housing and Residential Life are aware of the date you need to access housing.

• Never leave your luggage unattended.
• Travel with moderate amounts of cash or use credit cards or traveler’s checks for immediate personal expenses.
• Keep your I-20, passport and proof of finances in a safe place.
• Please call our office at 1-605-688-4122 or email SDSU.INTLSupport@sdstate.edu anytime during your travels if there are flight delays.

• Check-in at the Office of International Affairs, Hilton M. Briggs Library 119, or at Orientation. Bring your passport and I-20.
• Attend New International Student Orientation from August 18-22.
• Attendance is required and will assist you greatly in your life in the U.S., Brookings and at SDSU.
• Attend the scheduled Health Record Review. 

• Purchase International Student Health Insurance

  • The Office of International Affairs will host seminars regarding health insurance.
• Pay for tuition and fees!
  • Payment is due by September 5. Financial Guarantees are also due that day. Late Payment = Late Fee.

1. Bank draft from U.S. bank account (pay at the Cashiers Office in Morrill Hall Room 136).
2. Bank transfer from U.S. bank account through your SDSU Self Service account via SDePay.
3. Peer Transfer through your SDSU Self Service accounts via SDePay.
4. Bank Wire Transfer (you will need to request bank wiring instructions from the Cashier's Office in Morrill Hall 136).
5. Traveler’s Checks (You must declare traveling with over $10,000 monetary instruments or risk seizure of funds).
6. Credit Card through SDSU Self Service accounts via SDePay. Add 2.75% convenience charge (commission).
7. Debit Card through SDSU Self Service accounts via SDePay. Add 2.75% convenience charge (commission).
8. Cash at the Cashier’s Office in Morrill Hall 136. Consider other options. We strongly advise against traveling with large amounts of cash. Travelers must declare traveling with over $10,000 monetary instruments or risk seizure of funds.
9. Payment Plan: Only a Credit Card (2.75% convenience fee applies) or U.S. Bank Account.
10. Students sponsored by their Government must set up third-party billing.

• Students living in the Residence Halls must select a meal plan. Students who are not living in the Residence Halls are not required to choose a meal plan but may do so if they wish.
• To sign up for a meal plan:
  • Visit but do not log in
  • Click “Apply for Campus Dining Meal Plan” link on the right-hand side of the homepage
  • Create a new account or log in
  • Select a meal plan
  • Submit request
  • Your meal plan will be added to your tuition bill.
• Meal plans are per semester. If you are living on campus, you will need to sign up for a meal plan each semester.
• Flex Dollars and Block Meals must be gone by the end of the academic year (end of finals week in May).
• You can always add Flex Dollars to any meal plan at any time throughout the semester.

• International students are limited to twenty hours of on-campus employment during academic periods.
• When seeking on-campus employment, please ask for hourly or non-work study positions.
• You must have a job offer in order to obtain a social security card. Once you have received a job offer, please stop by the Office of International Affairs, Hilton M. Briggs Library 119, to find out about the social security card application procedure. Priority will be given to graduates with assistantships.
• On-campus employment is often hard to come by the first-year students who are studying at SDSU. As a result, you should not rely on finding employment to pay for your tuition and fees, living expenses and books.
• The Office of International Affairs will host a Work Authorizations Seminar.

• Students transferring from a U.S. institution to SDSU:
  • Official transcripts should be sent from your college or university to International Support Email.
• Students transferring from a college or university outside of the U.S.:
  • Please use one of the following official websites to evaluate the credits you have taken:
  • A Course-by-Course evaluation (WES) or Catalog Match evaluation (ECE) should be completed BEFORE you arrive.
  • The cost of the evaluation is paid by the student and should be started as soon as you receive your visa.
  • Due to the differences in the educational systems around the world, SDSU reserves the right to require you to take the necessary courses to meet the requirements of your desired program.
  • The sooner you complete the credit evaluation process, the better we will be able to provide you with accurate academic advising for you to fulfill your degree requirements at SDSU.