The International HPC Summer School 2023 will be held July 9-14 at the Georgia Tech Global Learning Center on the campus of the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. The venue is connected to the school accommodation.
Accommodation for the school has been arranged at the Georgia Tech Hotel, with the following address:
Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center
800 Spring St. NW
Atlanta, GA 30308
United States
Travel from Atlanta Airport (ATL) to Georgia Tech Hotel
We recommend that you take the metro (MARTA) from Atlanta Airport (ATL) to Georgia Tech Hotel. Take the northbound metro from the Airport station (Gold or Red line, in the direction towards Doraville or North Spring Station), and get off at Marta Station North Avenue, which is a ~10 mins walk to the Georgia Tech Hotel. Directions are shown below and the the fare should be $3.50 (including $1 for Breeze ticket, single use) or $4.50 (including $2 for Breeze card, reloadable) – please refer to MARTA fare programs for more information.
IMPORTANT: The Airport metro station is located at the Domestic Terminal (arrivals from other U.S. airports). If you arrive in the International Terminal, there is a free shuttle that takes you from the Arrivals level of the International Terminal to the Domestic Terminal baggage claim and the MARTA station. If you do not exit security, you can also get on the Plane Train in the International Terminal and take it to the Domestic Terminal Baggage Claim. This should be clearly marked but please ask someone if you are lost.
Visa requirements for entry into the U.S.
We cannot provide comprehensive instructions for the diverse nationalities and locations of selected participants for entry into the U.S. Hence the onus is for each participant to determine whether they need to apply for a visa or travel authorization (under the Visa Waiver program for passport holders from a selected list of countries) prior to arrival at the summer school.
A good starting point would be the following link to determine your entry requirements for the U.S.
U.S. Visas (from the U.S. Department of State – Bureau of Consular Affairs)
In particular it links to a helpful Visa Wizard for your specific situation.
If you hold a passport from a select list of countries (e.g. Australia, Japan, many European countries; please refer to full list contained in program link), you can travel to the summer school under the Visa Waiver Program but must apply for or hold a valid Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) approval prior to travel.
For those who need to apply for a visa, please register for the school (requesting a letter of invitation) and initiate the visa application process as quickly as possible as it can take considerable time (whereas ESTA approvals are usually processed in a much shorter time frame for straight forward cases). Generally, a visitor visa B (category B-1 to “Attend a scientific, educational, professional, or business convention or conference“) would be valid for summer school participants. You may also apply for a combination of B-1 and B-2, the latter would also cover tourism activities (e.g. those who wish to stay in the U.S. before/after the summer school for tourism purposes). Finally a reminder to register as soon as possible to request an official letter of invitation with your personal details (e.g. address, passport number) that are normally attached to a visa application.