F-1 visa rejection

[joel226]

Hello,

I am a student from China, applied for an F-1 visa to study English in New York.  The reason is because in the future I want to do a graduate degree in the US but have to improve my English first.  I wanted to save money so I applied to a small private school that is cheaper than some of the big universities that have English programs.  I got rejected under 214(b), so I guess they thought I would not return home after my study.  I was very prepared with all my documents including bank statements but they didn't look at any of them.  The interview was short, they asked me where in China I came from (I said I am studying in Dalian), then they asked why I came all the way to Guangzhou to apply for visa (I said my hometown is close to there so it was convenient), then they asked what I will study in the US (I said English), when I will return home (I said right after the English study is completed), and what I will do when I return home (I said I will prepare to apply for Masters degree in US for future).  I was 100 % honest, but maybe talking about my future plans to apply for school in the US might have gotten me rejected?  Or is it just that the school I applied for did not have a recognized name?  I would greatly appreciate any help.  I am considering applying again to the ESL program at a well recognized university, but I'm not sure how much that would improve my chances.

Thank you for your help.