City College of New York

City College is the founding institution of the City University of New York, in Harlem, and its position for a Kazakh applicant sits between Hunter's and Queens College's. Its English requirement is compulsory for anyone on a temporary visa whose native language is not English, but City College runs an Intensive English Program open to students who do not meet the minimum — and, crucially, states that such students can receive an F-1 visa through it. Its procedural rules are unusually explicit and unusually easy to fall foul of: scores expire after two years, City College does not use department codes and warns that scores sent to a department will delay processing, and an applicant previously refused on English grounds must submit fresh scores. The I-20 is issued only after admission is accepted, English proficiency is met and financial resources for at least one academic year are verified, and City College advises allowing at least six months for the process.