Hello
I am an Australian winner and I have my interview on Jan 21st.
I have a few questions for the wise people of this forum
Hi dafang. Congrats to you and all the selectees on here.
I had a somewhat similar situation. I had my interview last week in Sydney. I had no year 12 certificate because I never did year 12. But I took the testamurs and transcripts of my university preparation program, degree, post-grad degree and post-grad diploma and asked to submit them in place of year 12 certification. They accepted it no problem.
Also I didn't have my medical certificate because it was held up even though I had the exam. The panel doctor wanted information about something from my GP before he would give the clearance. When it became evident that the medical certificate was not going to be ready in time, the panel doctor's advice was to go to the interview at the Consulate anyway and explain the delay. I went to the interview and they were okay with it. They could not issue an on-the-spot visa approval, as they otherwise would have, and gave me a form QF194 that sets out that the visa was refused at the interview but will be issued when I provide the missing document. The form is a standard form and they just tick the document that is missing. The form also lists things like missing vaccinations and passport with more than 8 months' validity. Of course they asked about the delay and I think they made something of an assessment as to whether it was feasible to proceed. It has created a delay for my visa issuance but at least the interview is over, I haven't lost my place in queue and everything is cleared except for the missing doc. The form effectively indicates that I have until September 2013 to get the document in, but of course I will do everything I can to get it done ASAP.
I noticed quite a few other people being interviewed that day were missing a document or more. Understandably, the Consulate staff's patience wore a little thin with a guy next to me who had turned up with a lot of documents missing, but aside from that they were unexpectedly kind and patient in general. I think it definitely helps to have everything in exactly the right order and the correct photocopies. I also had the cover sheet printed from the email they sent that sets out the order the docs must be in. Remember to take a new passport photo and a 3kg Platinum Express Post envelope (costs about $18 at Australia Post) that you have self-addressed.
I actually lost my passport photo on the way to the interview. It must have slipped out of my folder - I had followed the instructions and taken everything out of their plastic sleeves and had no paper clips or bags. When I discovered this missing while waiting in the lobby of the Consulate I taxied home and grabbed the only other passport photo I had. Panic!! Unfortunately it later became apparent that it was from the same set as the original photo I had sent to Kentucky, so it was obviously more than 6 months old and the Consulate wouldn't accept it for that reason. I had to leave the Consulate and go and urgently get another passport photo taken and then re-enter the consulate to continue the interview. I noticed one other person had to do this as well. My advice: put your docs in an envelope not a folder!
Another thing I noticed that was causing a few other people some problems was that they had not provided, and did not have, a US contact name, address and phone number for the delivery of the green card. You should already have provided this on the form you sent to Kentucky and, if you didn't, you need to provide it at the interview.
I wasn't listening on purpose, but I could hear what was going on in other interviews because even though there are partitions for the interview boths, the interviewing officers are the other side of security glass and speak in a microphone and pretty much everyone who is waiting can hear what they are saying to you. You need to overcome any shyness quickly and don't let stagefright compromise your interview.
I don't know about divorce (never married) but they did ask me why I wanted to move to the USA, which city I planned to live in, how I planned to support myself when I arrived, what I would do for work and how I planned to get a job. I asked if they wanted to see the proof that I had brought of the liquid and other assets I have, and they said no and that there is no need to prove anything but education assuming all the other clearances. You have to take an oath at the beginning of the interview with your right hand raised.
Other tips: Allow at least 15 mins for security. From the MLC Centre lobby you take the lift to level 10 which is where, after showing ID and your invitation, you walk through a metal detector (shoes, coats, belts off). But then you wait in chairs until they are ready to take you up in groups to level 59, which is not always immediately. On level 59 there is another check of ID and you proceed through a security door to the main room with a push-button ticketing system and security glass booths down the facing wall kind of like tellers at a bank. When you number flashes up, you go to the booth number indicated. The first time it's for an officer to go through your docs to make sure they are all there, the second time to be interviewed. The interview itself was only about 20 minutes, if that, but the whole thing took me about 90 minutes.
Don't take phones, bags, hats, electronic devices. Bags must be checked at level 10 and it doesn't look like they have a lot of space for checked items. I realised too late that my phone is the only thing I carry now with a clock (I don't wear a watch since I realised a smartphone keeps better time) and because i didn't take it I was stupidly stuck in the lobby with no idea what time it was which didn't help my pre-interview nerves.
So my advice is to go to the scheduled interview and then do the medical that afternoon, and your degree should be fine.
very happy this is all finally over and now I just have to pick a date to leave for the US.