Attend university during green card process (adjustment of status)

[garyforums]

Summary: Can I attend university (2 yr full-time Masters degree) while I am on adjustment of status?

Details:
I am currently on an H1B visa. My fiance is a US citizen by birth. We plan to get married in June 2015. Up until this point we have not looked into any of the legal issues.. we assumed it is quite simple; you get married, then you apply for a green card. Right?

Anyway, the complication is that I would like to go get a Masters degree starting in July/August 2015. Meaning the degree program starts just one or two months after our marriage. If we weren't getting married, then I know the procedure would be to apply as an "international student", and the college would give me an I20 to apply for an F-1 visa.

However since we are getting married, what should I do differently? If we apply for a green card immediately after marriage, then I will be on "adjustment of status" when college begins.

Question 1 - Can I attend university while I am on adjustment of status?

Question 2 - Will I in fact be in "adjustment of status" stage at this point, or does it take a few months to reach even the "adjustment of status" stage? (Do you get an "adjustment of status" form or card or something, and if so how long does it take to get that?)



Alternatively, here are a couple of options I am willing to consider (and looking for opinions on these):

Option 1 - We don't apply for the green card right after marriage; I start college on an F1, even though married to a US citizen, and then apply for the green card during or after the program. Will this cause problems? I expect I might get denied an F1 since I am already engaged to a US citizen (our engagement photos are posted on facebook)

Option 2 - We get married now, rather than wait until June. Of course there is no guarantee I will have a GC by July, since the whole process seems to take up to 9-12 months, so I don't know if this option will make a difference. Also we are currently in different cities due to jobs; our plan was to move in together after marriage in June and I will quit my current job at that time. I suspect if we get married now, USCIS will have a problem with us not living together? (we have been dating 4 yrs and have lot of photo evidence)

Please let me know your thoughts on question 1 and 2, or if I should instead be considering option 1 or 2.

Thank you

 

[newacct]

Yes, you can study while I-485 pending. You do not need an I-20 or F-1 status. And in fact you likely cannot go into F-1 status at this point because it requires that you not intend to immigrate on it at the time you get it, and you already intend to immigrate. You can study on H1b status too for that matter (although it sounds like you will not be in H1b status when you start studying).

Adjustment of Status is the process that you apply for with I-485. You will be considered "I-485 pending" or "AOS pending" from when they receive it until when it's finally decided. When the I-485 is approved, i.e. when they "adjust" your "status", you will become a permanent resident (have a GC).

You definitely do not need a GC in order to be able to study. Many colleges don't even care about your status. But if they do, an I-485 receipt should be sufficient. After you married, you can file I-485 within weeks (after you get the certified marriage certificate) if you have everything ready. And you get the receipt days after filing.