Organization

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Academy Training Center (ATC) is responsible for key training of all Immigration Service Officers and other personnel under the Department of Homeland Security. On March 1, 2003, USCIS assumed responsibility for the immigration service functions of the Federal Government. The ATC has been delivering immigration courses for over a decade and has more than 8,000 Immigration Service Officer (ISO) BASIC graduates since 2008. BASIC is the first step in cultivating a workforce that honors public service, boasts unparalleled immigration expertise, operations with absolute vigilance in matter of national security and public safety, displays sensitivity where human factors are involved, and demonstrates unsurpassable standards of professionalism and ethical conduct. ISO BASIC curriculum includes fundamental principles of immigration law; naturalization and citizenship; family- and employment-based immigration; customer service; interviewing techniques; refugee, asylum and humanitarian policy; national security, fraud and other eligibility considerations, and will ready new immigration officers for the task of adjudicating immigration benefits accurately. The ATC is dedicated to providing a first-rate education through a highly personalized, learner-centered seminar approach to teaching and learning.