Those making successful applications will be authorized to issue what are known as Certificates of Eligibility to J-1 visa applicants. They indicate that the applicant has been accepted into an approved program. Each approved program appoints an administrator known as the responsible officer. The responsible officer plays a formal part in dealing with the immigration process for program applicants. There are over 1,500 USIA-approved programs in existence.
Application is made directly to the program sponsor.
Until you have been accepted, you do not qualify for a J-1 visa. The money may come from you, your family or scholarships and salaries that are part of the program itself. Since most exchange visitor programs involve either employment or scholarships, this particular requirement is usually easy to meet. To qualify for an exchange visitor visa you must know English well enough to participate effectively in the exchange visitor program. If your program is for students, you should know that most U.S. colleges and universities will not admit people whose native language is not English unless they first pass an English proficiency test.