Homeland Security: Performance of Foreign Student and Exchange Visitor Information System Continues to Improve, But Issues Remain
Published: 2005-03-17T00:00:00

Fast Facts:

Highlights:
section_title: Why GAO Did This Study
paragraphs: The Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) is an Internet-based system run by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to collect and record information on foreign students, exchange visitors, and their dependents--before they enter the United States, when they enter, and during their stay. GAO has reported (GAO-04-690) that although the system had a number of performance problems during the first year that its use was required, several SEVIS performance indicators were positive at that time (June 2004). Nonetheless, some problems were still being reported by educational organizations. In addition, concerns have been raised that the number of international students and exchange visitors coming to the United States has been negatively affected by the U.S. visa process. Accordingly, the Congress asked GAO to testify on its work on SEVIS and related issues. This testimony is based on its June 2004 report, augmented by more recent GAO work, reports that we issued in February 2004 and 2005 on student and visiting scholar visa processing, and related recent research by others.
section_title: What GAO Found
paragraphs: Indications are that SEVIS performance has improved and continues to improve. In June 2004, GAO reported improvement based on several indicators, including reports showing that certain key system performance requirements were being met, trends showing a decline in new requests for system corrections, and the views of officials representing 10 educational organizations. DHS attributed this performance improvement to a number of actions, such as installation of a series of new software releases and increased Help Desk staffing and training. However, GAO also reported that several key system performance requirements were not being formally measured, so that DHS might not be able to identify serious system problems in time to address them before they could affect the successful accomplishment of SEVIS objectives. Further, some educational organizations were still experiencing problems, particularly with regard to Help Desk support. GAO also reported that educational organizations were concerned about proposed options for collecting SEVIS fees. Accordingly, it made recommendations aimed at improving system performance measurement and resolving educational organizations' Help Desk and fee concerns. Since June 2004, DHS reports that it has taken steps to address GAO recommendations, and in particular it has taken a number of actions to strengthen Help Desk support. Moreover, educational organizations generally agree that SEVIS performance has continued to improve, and that their past fee collection concerns have been alleviated. However, these educational organizations still cite residual Help Desk problems, which they believe create hardships for students and exchange visitors. Most of these organizations, however, do not believe that SEVIS is the reason for the declining number of international students and exchange visitors coming to the United States. These declining numbers were cited in a recent report by the Council of Graduate Schools, which describes declines in foreign graduate student applications, admissions, and enrollments between 2003 and 2004, and further declines in these applications between 2004 and 2005. The report attributes the decline to increased global competition and changed visa policies. In this regard, GAO recently reported on the State Department's efforts to address its prior recommendations for improving the Visas Mantis program (under which interagency security checks are performed to identify applicants who may pose a threat to national security by illegally transferring sensitive technology). According to this report, a combination of federal agency steps resulted in a significant decline in Visas Mantis processing times and in the number of cases pending more than 60 days. The Council of Graduate Schools' report also recognizes the recent Visas Mantis program changes as positive steps.

section_title: Letter
paragraphs: We appreciate the opportunity to participate in the Subcommittees’  hearing on the federal government’s progress in tracking  international students in higher education. As you know, a central  component of this tracking is the Student and Exchange Visitor  Information System (SEVIS), an Internet-based system run by the  Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to collect and record  information on foreign students, exchange visitors, and their  dependents—before they enter the United States, when they enter,  and during their stay. The system, which is the focus of our  testimony, began operating in July 2002, and DHS required its use  for all new and continuing foreign students and exchange visitors  beginning in August 2003.
SEVIS automates the manual, paper-intensive processes that  schools and exchange programs had been using to manage and  report information about foreign students and exchange visitors.  With SEVIS, schools and program sponsors can transmit  information electronically to DHS and the Department of State. The  system’s two main objectives are  ●  to support the oversight and enforcement of laws and regulations  concerning foreign students, exchange visitors, and schools, as well  as sponsors of exchange visitor programs who are authorized by the  government to issue eligibility documents, and  ●  to improve DHS’s processing of foreign students and exchange  visitors at ports of entry, through streamlined procedures and  modernized data capture.
Our testimony today is based on a report that we issued in June  2004 on SEVIS performance, augmented by our recent work to  determine DHS efforts to strengthen system performance since that  report, reports that we issued in February 2004 and 2005 on student  and visiting scholar visa processing, and related recent research by  others.
All work related to our testimony was conducted in accordance with  generally accepted government auditing standards. Our SEVIS work  was performed at DHS and State headquarters in Washington, D.C.,  and at 10 educational organizations, from December 2003 through  March 2004; we also conducted follow-up work at DHS  Headquarters and 6 of the 10 educational organizations in March  2005. Our work on student and visiting scholar visa processing was  performed from May 2003 through January 2004, and July 2004  through February 2005 at several locations: DHS, State, and Federal  Bureau of Investigation (FBI) headquarters in Washington, D.C.; and  U.S. embassies and consulates in China, India, Russia, and Ukraine.
subsections: section_title: Background
paragraphs: Within DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)  organization, the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) is  responsible for certifying schools to accept foreign students in  academic and vocational programs and for managing SEVIS.  Schools and exchange programs were required to start using SEVIS  for new students and exchange visitors beginning February 15, 2003,  and for all continuing students and exchange visitors beginning  August 1, 2003.
The following tables show the number of active students, exchange  visitors, and institutions registered in SEVIS as of February 28, 2005.
SEVP is also responsible for providing program policies and plans;  performing program analysis; and conducting communications,  outreach, and training. Regarding SEVIS, SEVP is responsible for  identifying and prioritizing system requirements, performing system  release management, monitoring system performance, and  correcting data errors.
The Office of Information Resource Management, also part of ICE,  manages the information technology infrastructure (that is,  hardware and system software) on which the SEVIS application  software is hosted. It also manages the SEVIS Help Desk and the  systems life cycle process for the system, including system  operations and maintenance.
The software for the SEVIS application runs on a system  infrastructure that supports multiple DHS Internet-based  applications. The infrastructure includes common services, such as  application servers, Web servers, database servers, and network  connections. SEVIS shares five application servers and two Web  servers with two other applications.
To assist system users, the SEVIS Help Desk was established, which  provides three levels of support, known as tiers:   ●  Tier 1 provides initial end-user troubleshooting and resolution of  technical problems.  ●  Tier 2 provides escalation and resolution support for Tier 1, and  makes necessary changes to the database (data fixes).  ●  Tier 3 addresses the resolution of policy and procedural issues, and  also makes data fixes.
SEVP uses a contractor to operate Tiers 1 and 2. Both the contractor  and the program office operate Tier 3. According to an SEVP  official, contactor staff for Tiers 1 through 3 include the following:  Tier 1 has 21 staff, Tier 2 has 6 staff, and Tier 3 has 13 staff.
Data are entered into SEVIS through one of two methods:  ●  Real-time interface (i.e., an individual manually enters a single  student/exchange visitor record) or  ●  Batch processing (i.e., several student/exchange visitor records are  uploaded to SEVIS at one time using vendor-provided software or  software created by the school/exchange visitor program).
subsections: section_title: SEVIS Data and Users
paragraphs: SEVIS collects a variety of data that are used by schools, exchange  visitor programs, and DHS and State Department organizations to  oversee foreign students, exchange visitors, and the schools and  exchange visitor programs themselves. Data collected include  information on students, exchange visitors, schools, and exchange  visitor programs. For example, biographical information (e.g., student or exchange visitor’s  name, place and date of birth, and dependents’ information), academic information (e.g., student or exchange visitor’s status,  date of study commencement, degree program, field of study,  and institution disciplinary action), school information (e.g., campus address, type of education or  degrees offered, and session dates); exchange visitor program information (e.g., status and type of  program, responsible program officials, and program duration).
SEVIS data are also used by a variety of users. Table 3 provides  examples of users and how each uses the data.
section_title: Following Significant Early Challenges, SEVIS Performance Improved, but Problems Remained
paragraphs: In 2002 and 2003, when SEVIS first began operating and was first  required to be used, significant problems were reported. For  example, colleges, universities, and exchange programs could not  gain access to the system, and when access was obtained, these  users’ sessions would “time out” before they could complete their  tasks. In June 2004, we reported that several performance indicators  showed that SEVIS performance was improving. These indicators  included system performance reports, requests for system changes  to address problems, and feedback from educational organizations  representing school and exchange programs. Each indicator is  discussed below.
subsections: section_title: Some Key System Requirements Were Being Met, but Not All Were Being Measured
paragraphs: Whether defined system requirements are being met is one indicator  of system performance. In June 2004, we reported that performance  reports showed that some, but not all, key system requirements  were being measured, and that these measured requirements were  being met. Table 4 shows examples of key system performance  requirements.
However, we also reported that not all key performance  requirements were being adequately measured. For example,  reports used to measure system availability measured the time that  the system infrastructure was successfully connected to the  network. While these reports can be used to identify problems that  could affect the system availability, they do not fully measure SEVIS  availability. Instead, they measure the availability of the  communications software on the application servers. This means  that the SEVIS application could still be unavailable even though the  communications software is available.
Similarly, program officials stated that they used a central  processing unit activity report to measure resource usage. However,  this report focuses on the shared infrastructure environment, which  supports SEVIS and two other applications, and does not  specifically measure SEVIS-related central processing performance.  Program officials did not provide any reports that measured  performance against other resource usage requirements, such as  random access memory and network usage.
Program officials acknowledged that some key performance  requirements were not formally measured and stated that they  augmented these formal performance measurement reports with  other, less formal measures, such as browsing the daily Help Desk  logs to determine if there were serious performance problems  requiring system changes or modifications, as well as using the  system themselves on a continuous basis. According to these  officials, a combination of formal performance reports and less  formal performance monitoring efforts gave them a sufficient  picture of how well SEVIS was performing. Further, program  officials stated that they were exploring additional tools to monitor  system performance. For example, they stated that they were in the  process of implementing a new tool to capture the availability of the  SEVIS application, and that they planned to begin using it by the end  of April 2004.
However, unless DHS formally monitored and documented all key  system performance requirements, we concluded that the  department could not adequately assure itself that potential system  problems were identified and addressed early, before they had a  chance to become larger problems that could affect the DHS  mission objectives that SEVIS supports.
section_title: Trends in Reported System Problems Indicated Improved Performance
paragraphs: Another indicator of how well a system is performing is the number  and significance of reported problems or requests for system  enhancements. For SEVIS, a system change request (SCR) is created  when a change is required to the system. Each of the change  requests is assigned a priority of critical, high, medium, or low, as  defined in table 5.
Each change request is also categorized by the type, such as  changes to correct system errors, enhance or modify the system, or  improve system performance.
In June 2004, we reported that the number of critical or high priority  change requests that were created between January 2003 and  February 2004 was decreasing. Similarly, we reported that the  trends in the number of new change requests that were to correct  system errors had decreased for that same period. Over this period,  the number of corrective fixes requested each month between  January 2003 and February 2004 decreased, with the most dramatic  decrease in the first 7 months. Figure 1 shows the decreasing trend  in SEVIS new corrective change requests between January 2003 and  February 2004.
section_title: Educational Organizations Reported that System Performance Improved, but Identified Residual Problems Despite DHS Efforts to Address Them
paragraphs: A third indicator of performance is user feedback. According to  representatives of educational organizations, overall SEVIS  performance at the time of our report had improved since the  system began operating and its use was required, and the program’s  outreach and responsiveness were good. In addition, these  representatives told us that they were no longer experiencing earlier  reported problems, which involved user access to the system, the  system’s timing out before users could complete their tasks, and  merging data from one school or exchange visitor program with  data from another.
However, seven new problem types were identified by at least 3 of  the 10 organizations, and three of the seven problems were related  to Help Desk performance. Table 6 shows the problems and the  number of organizations that identified them.
At the time of our report, DHS had taken a number of steps to  identify and solve system problems, including problems identified  by educational organizations. In particular, DHS steps to identify  problems included  ●  holding biweekly internal performance meetings and weekly  technical meetings,  ●  holding biweekly conference calls with representatives from  ●  establishing special e-mail accounts to report user problems, and  ●  having user groups test new releases.
Further, DHS cited actions intended to address six of the seven  types of problems identified by the educational organizations. These  included releases of new versions of SEVIS and increases in Help  Desk training and staffing. These officials also stated that they were  evaluating potential solutions to the remaining problem.
Table 7 shows the problem types, the number of organizations that  identified them, and DHS’s actions taken to address each.
Despite DHS actions, educational organizations told us that some  problems persisted. For example:  ●  Although the program office increased Help Desk staffing in March  2003, representatives from seven organizations stated that slow Tier  2 and 3 Help Desk responses were still a problem. In response,  program officials stated that the majority of calls handled by Tiers 2  and 3 involve data fixes that are a direct result of end-user error, and  that fixing them is sometimes delayed until end-users submit  documentation reflecting the nature of the data fix needed and the  basis for the change.   ●  Although the program office began in June 2002 providing training  to Help Desk staff each time a new SEVIS release was implemented,  representatives from 5 of the 10 organizations stated that the quality  of the Help Desk’s response to technical and policy questions  remained a problem. According to program officials, Help Desk  response is complicated by variations in user platforms and end- user knowledge of computers. The officials added that the program  office is working to educate SEVIS users on the distinction between  platform problems and problems resulting from SEVIS. Further,  they said that Help Desk responses may be complicated by the  caller’s failure to provide complete information regarding the  problem. Program officials also stated that supervisors frequently  review Help Desk tickets to ensure the accuracy of responses, and  these reviews had not surfaced any continuing problems in the  quality of the responses.
section_title: SEVIS Fee Was Not Being Collected, and Educational Organizations Were Concerned about Fee Payment Options
paragraphs: Various legislation requires that a fee be collected from each  foreign student and exchange visitor to cover the costs of  administering and maintaining SEVIS, as well as SEVP operations. In  2004, we reported that 7 years had passed since collection of the fee  was required, and thus millions of dollars in revenue had been and  would continue to be lost until the fee was actually collected. We  also reported that representatives of the educational organizations  were concerned with the fee payment options being considered  because the options were either not available to all students in  developing countries, or they would result in significant delays to an  already lengthy visa application and review process, and increase  the risk that paper receipts would be lost or stolen.
As we then reported, DHS’s submission of its fee collection rule  went to the Office of Management and Budget in February 2004, and  it received final clearance in May 2004. The final rule, which was  effective on September 1, 2004, (1) set the fee at $100 for  nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors and no more than $35  for those J-1 visa-holders who are au pairs, camp counselors, or  participants in a summer work/travel program, and (2) identified  options for students and exchange visitors to pay the fee, including  ●  by mail using a check or money order drawn on a U.S. bank and  payable in U.S. dollars or  ●  electronically through the Internet using a credit card.
According to DHS officials, another option for paying the SEVIS fee  permits exchange visitor programs to make bulk payments to DHS  on behalf of J visa-holders.
section_title: DHS Continues to Take Steps to Address Our Recommendations
paragraphs: To help strengthen SEVIS performance and address educational  organizations’ concerns, our report recommended that DHS   ●  assess the extent to which defined SEVIS performance requirements  are still relevant and are being formally managed;  ●  provide for the measurement of key performance requirements that  are not being formally measured;   ●  assess educational organization Help Desk concerns and take  appropriate action to address these concerns; and  ●  provide for the expeditious implementation of the results of the  SEVIS fee rulemaking process.
According to program officials, a number of steps have been taken  relative to our recommendations, and other steps are under way.  For example, program officials stated that they have established a  working group to assess the relevance of the requirements in the  SEVIS requirements document. The working group is expected to  provide its recommendations for changing this document by the end  of March 2005. The changed requirements will then form the basis  for measuring system performance.
Program officials also stated that they are in the process of selecting  tools for monitoring system performance and have established a  working group to define ways to measure SEVIS’s satisfaction of its  two main objectives, relating to oversight and enforcement of  relevant laws and regulations and to improvement in port of entry  processing of students and visitors. In this regard, they said that  they have begun to monitor the number of false positives between  SEVIS and the Arrival Departure Information System to target  improvements for future system releases.
Program officials also reported that they are taking steps to address  Help Desk concerns. For example, they said that they continue to  hold bi-weekly meetings with educational organizations and directly  monitor select Help Desk calls. They also said that Tier 1 Help Desk  staffing recently increased by five staff, and the knowledge-based  tool used by the Help Desk representatives to respond to caller  inquiries had been updated, including ensuring that the tool’s  response scripts are consistent with SEVP policy. Additionally,  these officials stated that they are reaching out to the Department of  State to more quickly resolve certain system data errors (commonly  referred to as data fixes), and said that a process has been  established to ensure that high-priority change requests are  examined to ensure correct priority designation and timely  resolution. As of January 1, 2005, SEVP also established new  performance level agreements with its Help Desk contractor, and it  has been receiving weekly Help Desk reports to monitor  performance against these agreements.
DHS also began collecting the SEVIS fee in September 2004.  Additionally, it introduced another payment option, effective  November 1, 2004, whereby students can pay the fee using Western  Union. This method allows foreign students to pay in local currency,  rather than U.S. dollars. Program officials also stated that DHS has  developed a direct interface between the payment systems and  SEVIS and the State Department’s Consolidated Consular Database  (CCD). According to these officials, this allows the consular officer  to verify without delay that the visa applicant has, in fact, paid the  SEVIS fee before completing the visa issuance process.
section_title: SEVIS Educational Organizations Report That Performance Continues to Improve, but Some Problems Still Persist
paragraphs: According to representatives of educational organizations, overall  SEVIS performance continues to improve. We contacted 6 of the 10  organizations that were part of our 2004 report on SEVIS  performance, and representatives for all six organizations told us  that SEVIS performance has generally continued to improve. In  addition, five of the organizations stated that there were no new  system performance problems. All of the organizations stated that  they did not have any concerns with the SEVIS fee implementation.
However, most representatives stated that some previously reported  problems still exist. For example, representatives from five of the  six organizations stated that slow Tier 2 and 3 Help Desk responses  in correcting errors in student and exchange visitor records were  still a problem. Three representatives stated that these corrections  can take months, and in some cases even years, to fix. Two of the  three stated that this has a major impact on the individuals involved.  One organization reported that some exchange visitors’ records  have been erroneously terminated, and as a result, the visitors’  families are unable to join them in the United States until a data fix  occurs. According to the representative, this creates a very difficult  situation for the individuals and makes it difficult to retain them in  their academic programs. A representative for another organization  reported that two participants’ records erroneously indicate that  they have violated their status as exchange visitors. Were these  individuals to leave the country to visit their families before a data  fix is made, they would be denied re-entry.
In addition, representatives from three organizations stated that  they were still experiencing problems with downloading and  manipulating data from SEVIS. For example, one representative  reported an inability to pull reports on the exact number of  exchange visitors in its program and their status. This person  expressed concern because DHS holds schools and programs  accountable for tracking exchange visitors, but then does not give  them the tools necessary to do so. Further, representatives from two  organizations stated that they were still experiencing problems with  incorrect Help Desk responses. For example, one representative  reported that he was erroneously told by a Help Desk employee that  there was no need to correct an individual’s record of training, yet  another Help Desk employee correctly stated that a fix was needed  and gave detailed instructions on how to make the correction.
Last, representatives from all six organizations stated that there  have been declines in international students and exchange visitors  coming to the United States. However, representatives from four of  the six stated that SEVIS was not a factor, while representatives  from the remaining two stated that SEVIS was just one of many  factors. Other factors cited as contributing to this decline, which are  discussed in the following section, were a lengthy visa application  process and increased competition by other countries for students  and exchange visitors.
section_title: Recent Report Cites U.S. Decline in International Graduate Students, While Recognizing Recent Efforts to Improve Visa Processing for Science Students and Scholars
paragraphs: A recent Council of Graduate Schools report indicates that foreign  graduate student applications, admissions, and enrollments are  declining. According to the report, international graduate  applications to U.S. colleges and universities declined 28 percent  from 2003 to 2004, resulting in an 18 percent fall in admissions and a  6 percent drop in enrollments for the same period. In addition, while  2005 data on admissions and enrollments were not yet available, the  report cited a 5 percent decline in applications between 2004 and  2005. According to the report, the declines in 2004 and in 2005 were  most prominent for students from China and India. It also noted that  between 2004 and 2005 applications were unchanged from Korea  and up 6 percent from the Middle East.
The report attributes this decline to two factors: increasing capacity  abroad and visa restrictions at home. According to the report,  countries in Europe and Asia are expanding their capacity at the  graduate level through government policy changes and recruitment  of international students. At the same time, the report says that the  U.S. government has tightened the visa process since September 11,  2001, inadvertently discouraging international graduate students  through new security procedures and visa delays.
The Council of Graduate Schools also recognized recent federal  actions to improve the student visa process. These actions are  directly related to our work on the State Department’s Visas Mantis  program—an interagency security check aimed at identifying those  visa applicants who may pose a threat to our national security by  illegally transferring sensitive technology. The program often affects  foreign science students and visiting scholars whose background or  proposed activity in the United States could involve exposure to  technologies that, if used against the United States, could potentially  be harmful. In February 2004, we reported and testified that there  were delays in the Visas Mantis program and interoperability  problems between the State Department and the FBI that  contributed to these delays and allowed Mantis cases to get lost. We  determined that it took an average of 67 days for Mantis checks to  be processed and for State to notify consular posts that the visa  could be issued, and that many Visas Mantis cases had been  pending 60 days or more. We also determined that consular staff at  posts we visited were unsure whether they were contributing to  waits because they lacked clear program guidance. Accordingly, we  recommended that the State Department, in coordination with DHS  and the FBI, develop and implement a plan to improve the Visas  Mantis process.
In February 2005, we reported that Visas Mantis processing times  had declined significantly. For example, in November 2004, the  average time was about 15 days, far lower than the average of 67  days that we reported previously. We also found that the number of  Mantis cases pending more than 60 days has dropped significantly.  Our report recognized a number of actions that contributed to these  improvements and addressed other issues that science students and  scholars face in traveling to the United States. These actions  included adding staff to process Mantis cases; defining a procedure  to expedite certain cases; providing additional guidance and  feedback to consular posts; developing an electronic tracking  system for Mantis cases; clarifying the roles and responsibilities of  agencies involved in the Mantis process; reiterating State’s policy of  giving students and scholars priority scheduling for interview  appointments; and extending the validity of Mantis clearances.
Although we also identified opportunities for further refinements to  the Visas Mantis program, we believe that the actions outlined above  should allow foreign science students and scholars to obtain visas  more quickly and to travel more freely. We did not determine the  effect of these actions on the overall volume of international  students traveling to the United States. However, representatives  from the academic and international scientific community have  indicated that they also believe the actions will have a positive  impact. For example, the Association of American Universities  identified the extension of Mantis clearances as “a common-sense  reform that removes an unnecessary burden that caused enormous  inconvenience for thousands of international students and  discouraged many more from coming here to study.”
In closing, indications are that SEVIS performance has improved  and continues to improve, as has visa processing for foreign science  students and scholars. Moreover, recent SEVIS-related initiatives  demonstrate program officials’ commitment to future  improvements. This commitment is important because educational  organizations continue to report some persistent system problems,  primarily with respect to Help Desk responsiveness in making  certain “data fixes.” These problems can create hardships for  foreign students and exchange visitors that can potentially have  unintended consequences relative to these foreign students and  exchange visitors applying to and enrolling in U.S. learning  institutions. Therefore, it is important for DHS to effectively manage  SEVIS performance against mission objectives and outcomes, as  well as against system requirements. To this end, we have made  several recommendations to DHS concerning SEVIS performance  management.
Messrs. Chairmen, this concludes our statement. We would be  happy to answer any questions that you or members of the  subcommittees may have at this time.
section_title: Contact and Acknowledgments
paragraphs: If you should have any questions about this testimony, please  contact Randolph C. Hite at (202) 512-3439 or hiter@gao.gov, or Jess  T. Ford at (202) 512-4128 or fordj@gao.gov. Other major  contributors to this testimony included John Brummet, Barbara  Collier, Deborah Davis, Jamelyn Payan, and Elizabeth Singer.
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