Introducing the ISSS Portal
International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) has changed our case management systems from Terra Dotta to Sunapsis. The client-facing side of the new platform is called the ISSS Portal. The ISSS Portal is now the platform ISSS uses to manage immigration requests at TAMU. The Terra Dotta site is no longer available.
The change to the ISSS Portal was in the best interest of all stakeholders of the Texas A&M international student and scholar community. The ISSS Portal allows ISSS to better serve international students, scholars, and department administrators through a more robust and comprehensive system. The ISSS Portal provide users an enhanced user experience and additional transparency. It also has enhanced data security and system stability as well as advanced functionality for ISSS to meet federal compliance requirements more efficiently.
You’ve come to the right place to learn all about the new ISSS Portal!
Page Contents
- Using the ISSS Portal
- Decommissioning of Terra Dotta
- Webinars
- FAQs
- Communication
- Future Updates
- What's Changed?
- Implementation Timeline
Using the ISSS Portal
The ISSS Portal for international students is now live and available for international students to submit requests!
| Before using the ISSS Portal and before reaching out to ISSS to ask questions: All international students are expected to thoroughly review the resources available on this webpage, including the answers to the Frequently Asked Questions. |
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The ISSS Portal can be accessed at https://isssportal.tamu.edu/. Students will log in using their NetID and password.
New students must meet the following criteria to log in to the ISSS Portal:
- Receive official admission to Texas A&M University
- Accept offer of admission to Texas A&M University
- Claim your NetID and password
- Wait approximately 24 hours after all items above are complete so the system data can update
ISSS Portal Categories
All requests in the ISSS Portal are organized into categories. Students will only see the categories that apply to them. Students will see all categories that apply to them even if they may no longer need some of the requests in a particular category. All students will not see the same categories and therefore will not have the same requests available to them in the ISSS Portal. Use the table below to learn which categories may be applicable to you.
Portal Categories | Who can see it? |
|---|---|
New Students Start Here! | All students (this is the only category a newly admitted student will see until they complete one of the online ISSS check in requests) |
General Student Services | Only F-1 and J-1 students with an Active SEVIS record |
Change from F or J Status | Only F-1 and J-1 students with an Active SEVIS record |
F-1 Academic Program Updates | Only F-1 students with an Active SEVIS record |
F-1 Internships & Employment | Only F-1 students with an Active SEVIS record |
F-1 Post Graduation Work | Only F-1 students with Approved Optional Practical Training (OPT) |
J-1 Academic Program Updates | Only J-1 students with an Active SEVIS record |
J-1 Internships & Employment | Only J-1 students with an Active SEVIS record |
Request Statuses in the ISSS Portal
When you interact with a request in the ISSS Portal, you will see a status for that request. Use the table below to learn about the various request statuses.
| Status | What does it mean? |
|---|---|
| In progress | Student has started request but has not submitted yet |
| Pending office approval | Request is with ISSS |
| Routed to third party | Request sent to department recommender |
| Draft/incomplete | ISSS returned the request to the student, and they need to resubmit it |
| Canceled | Student clicked cancel |
| Approved | ISSS is done with the request |
| Denied | ISSS denied/didn't process the request |
ISSS Post-Launch Observations
- Processing has been smooth from ISSS’s perspective if requests are submitted correctly as instructed.
- We have fewer screens to check + a less manual process to complete most requests.
- The most common reasons for incomplete requests haven’t changed:
- Incorrect information entered, including typos
- Missing/incomplete addresses
- Student is not meeting full-time enrollment requirements
- Student is not enrolled in the required course(s)
- Course(s) not included as required on the degree plan
- Student has not applied for graduation
- Some students have had issues accessing the ISSS Portal
- I can log in, but I don’t know which request to submit.” ≠ “I can log in, but I cannot see any requests.”
- If no requests are available on the left-side menu, contact ISSS so we can troubleshoot.
- Best way is to screen-share via Virtual Drop-in or email with screenshots.
- If there is incomplete or conflicting information in the Howdy Portal, the ISSS Portal, or SEVIS, ISSS may have to consider your request incomplete and follow up with you and/or your academic department, which is time consuming for you and for us. Be proactive and review what each e-form carefully before submitting to avoid these delays.
- Take the time to learn the immigration and university academic procedures applicable to your request so you can help ensure your request is complete.
- Read the content on the ISSS website and in the ISSS Portal carefully so you know what you are requesting.
- Fully read the instructions before starting a request. Before submitting each e-form, read the instructions again to make sure you’ve followed them.
- Most frequently asked questions are published on the ISSS website, which is always available.
- Search for your answer by checking the ISSS and other helpful University websites rather than waiting for an ISSS staff member to answer you directly.
- Having realistic expectations means researching first and then asking questions.
For additional information about the ISSS Portal, ISSS strongly recommends that you either sign up for a webinar or review the webinar information available in the next section. You can also review the answers to many frequently asked questions.
Decommissioning of Terra Dotta
| The ISSS Terra Dotta website (https://tamu-iss.terradotta.com/) has now been fully decommissioned and is no longer available to use. |
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ISSS sent a series of emails (on 11/03, 11/14, and 11/27) to all currently enrolled students as well as international students who last enrolled at Texas A&M within the past 3.5 years to inform them that the ISSS Terra Dotta website (https://tamu-iss.terradotta.com/) would be decommissioned now that we have transitioned to using the ISSS Portal. Students were instructed to download and save any documentation they had in Terra Dotta that they wanted to keep for their records.
ISSS has a copy of all data and documents from Terra Dotta. Limited data and documents from Terra Dotta will be made available to students in the ISSS Portal during Spring 2024. If you have a specific need to obtain data or documents from Terra Dotta before it’s available in the ISSS Portal, you may submit a General ISSS Request in the ISSS Portal. Include a detailed explanation about why you require the requested documentation.
ISSS Portal Webinars
To assist Texas A&M faculty, staff, and international students with the transition to the ISSS Portal, ISSS hosted a series of ISSS Portal Webinars throughout the months of July and August 2023. ISSS presented 9 webinars for international students and 7 webinars for faculty/staff. During each webinar, ISSS shared the most up-to-date information we had at the time about the ISSS Portal. The webinars also covered the basics about how to use the new system and provided time for questions & answers.
Review the content and watch recordings from the ISSS Portal Webinars at the links below:
- View the ISSS Portal Webinar slides
- View a recording of the ISSS Portal Student Webinar from July 27, 2023 (before ISSS Portal launched)
- View a recording of the ISSS Portal Student Webinar from August 11, 2023 (after ISSS Portal launched)
For additional information about the ISSS Portal, view the Frequently Asked Questions page.
Email Communication
To inform the University community about the change from Terra Dotta to the ISSS Portal, several mass emails have been sent out with detailed information. Copies of each email are available at the links below.
Stay tuned
ISSS will continue to update this webpage to provide more information and instructions. For additional information about the ISSS Portal, view the Frequently Asked Questions page.
If you have any questions about the ISSS Portal that are not answered in the FAQs, please email: isss@tamu.edu.
You are also welcome to connect with ISSS or send us an email if you have concerns. Please email isss@tamu.edu if you have questions about how the change to the ISSS Portal will impact international student matters or j1scholars@tamu.edu if you have questions about how this change will impact J-1 scholar and student intern matters.
What's Changed?
For several months, ISSS collaborated with various offices and organizations to:
- Configure the new software, Sunapsis, and the new client portal, the ISSS portal
- Establish and test data feeds between the student information system (Howdy/COMPASS) and the Student & Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS)
- Improve business processes to leverage software functionality
- Redesign, build, and test all international student requests in the ISSS Portal
- Train ISSS staff to use the ISSS Portal
While the bulk of the implementation is taking place behind the scenes, there were times when it affected some of the services ISSS provides. Our priority throughout this process has been to limit the impact on our users.
We continue to be committed to sending out communication frequently to ensure you are informed throughout the process. We appreciate your patience during the transition. For additional information about the ISSS Portal, view the Frequently Asked Questions page.
What's changed?
- The look and feel of the new ISSS Portal hosted through Sunapsis is different from Terra Dotta. It will provide a more user-friendly experience for submission of requests to ISSS.
- The URLs for immigration requests and immigration resources have changed as they are no longer be housed through Terra Dotta
- By default, I-20s and DS--2019s are now delivered to international students and scholars as an email attachment once a request is processed by ISSS. As a result, ISSS no longer needs international students and scholars to provide a mailing option with most requests.
- After a request is processed, ISSS no longer needs to obtain a copy of the I-20 or DS-2019 signed by the international student or scholar.
- Most PDF forms that ISSS is still using for international student processing have been replaced by an electronic process through the ISSS portal.
What has not changed?
- International students still log in via two-factor authentication (using NetID and Password) to submit requests electronically through the ISSS Portal.
- Academic departments still need to review some international student requests electronically before they are submitted to ISSS for processing.
- The required information and documentation for most requests have remained the same.
- The current processes for submitting immigration requests for J-1 scholars and interns has not changed. The ISSS portal does not include electronic submission of immigration requests for J-1 scholars or student interns.
Implementation Timeline
As with any software migration, processing time was temporarily impacted by the transition to the ISSS Portal. ISSS communicated the deadlines by which requests had to be submitted in Terra Dotta for them to be processed before the migration. ISSS staff members scheduled time to process as many requests as possible to ensure the smallest possible impact. For additional information about the ISSS Portal, view the Frequently Asked Questions page.
What was the timeline?
Sunday, July 23:
This was the last date that international student requests could be submitted through Terra Dotta. No international student requests can be submitted July 24 - August 3. Friday, July 28 through Tuesday, August 1 (3 business days). ISSS staff members will not be able to access SEVIS or process any immigration requests.
The ISSS Portal was scheduled to go live to accept international student requests on Friday, August 4.Monday, July 24 thru Friday, August 4 (10 business days):
Virtual Drop-In Advising was not available.Monday, July 24 thru Thursday, August 3 (9 business days):
International students were not able to submit immigration requests during this time. All Terra Dotta requests had closed. The ISSS Portal through Sunapsis was not available yet. Requests for J-1 scholars and student interns could still be submitted.Monday, July 24 thru Thursday, July 27 (4 business days):
ISSS staff members prioritized document processing and successfully processed all immigration requests that were possible to complete by Thursday, July 27th.Friday, July 28 thru Tuesday, August 1 (3 business days):
ISSS staff members were not able to access SEVIS or process any immigration requests.Note: Since immigration requests for J-1 scholars and student interns were never submitted through Terra Dotta, they they could continue to be submitted. However, for these 3 business days, ISSS was not able to process any immigration requests, including those for J-1 scholars and student interns.Wednesday, August 2 and Thursday, August 3 (2 business days):
ISSS staff members gained access to SEVIS again and could resume processing immigration requests. ISSS staff members started using Sunapsis internally to process all immigration requests.Friday, August 4:
The ISSS Portal was scheduled to launch on Friday, August 4th, but it launched early on Thursday, August 3rd! The ISSS Portal is now officially live. On the evening of August 3rd, ISSS sent an email to all international students providing the access link to the ISSS Portal so they could begin submitting requests, if needed.