Do I have a shot at EB1-EA or NIW?

C

CalvinX

Registered Users (C)
Below are my details:

- Education: MS degree in Computer Science, Bachelors degree in Computer Engineering
- Age: 31 yrs old (I don't know if demonstrated achievement by a certain age is a factor)
- Certifications: 2 Professional certifications (in my area of work) from a reputed American professional society
- Reviewer of other people’s work:
a) Member of the Editorial Review Board of the above American Professional Society. I review book manuscripts and recommend if they be accepted for publication
b) Member of the reviewer panel of a leading technical journal in my professional area
c) Member of the reviewer panel of technical papers for an upcoming international conference
- Publications:
a) 5 published papers in international conferences
b) 1 published paper in a professional magazine
c) 2 papers in advanced review with leading journals
d) 1 paper in review for a leading professional magazine
e) 1 paper in review for an international conference
f) 1 chapter in review for an upcoming book by a leading publisher. The book is a compilation of the state-of-the-art research and current issues in my area of work
g) Sole author of a book in my area of work which has been ACCEPTED for publication by a leading American publisher for release summer/fall 2003
h) Signed contract for a second book in my area of work which has been ACCEPTED by a second american publisher, this book is expected summer 2004
i) 5 presentations in national conferences in a PAST AREA OF WORK/RESEARCH WHICH I HAVE SINCE ABANDONED but it still falls in my general area of computer science/software engineering

TWO QUESTIONS-
1) My work is in the general area of improving software quality, and product quality in general. In fact my first book is specifically on software quality, while the second one is on how to achieve better product quality in ALL industries. Since quality is pervasive I tend to think I have a case for NIW. Possibly EB1-EA also with the 2 books, and hopefully review papers being accepted (all papers in review are very solid). Do you agree I have a case? How good is my case (Very strong/Strong/weak/no case)?

2) If you think I qualify, when would be the best time to apply? After the 2nd book is published? (I can then use cut outs of my book reviews from industry literature to show people are reviewing/commenting on my work, and hopefully have good things to say:-}) Or can I apply before? My final H1 expires in summer 2006.

Thanks in advance
 
55%

Hi,
I'd say you have 55% chance for NIW. Certainly you can prove you are "excellent", the national impact aspect needs more thinking, I believe.
 
by "excellent" you mean eligible for EA?

Also I don't quite understand what mysterious formula spit out the 55% number :-(

Yes, I'm aware I'll need a good lawyer. Looks like murthy.com has some good experience in this.
 
I think that by 55% he means more likely than not.

It's difficult to assess an EB-1EA and even more difficult, at least in most cases, to determine whether an NIW has a good shot. I don't particularly like NIWs since they give too much discretion to the INS official. That being said, they are useful and certainly can be done and approved.

The EB-1EA, although it supposedly requires extraordinary ability, really requires satisfying 3 of 10 criteria and demonstrating that to INS. A truly extraordinary person would not qualify if the person for some reason could not show 3 of the 10 criteria (assuming the person never won a Nobel Prize) and a merely person of merely very good ability could qualify if the person could clearly demonstrate at least 3 of the 10 qualifying criteria. The stronger the showing that you satisfy at least three of the criteria, the better the chance. I'd say you have about an even chance, although it is difficult to say for sure at this point. You may stand as high as a 90% chance of approval and it could also be virtually nil. I'd really need to go through all the documents and begin preparing the case to give a percentage that has a fair degree of accuracy.

It seems to me that you should file both EB-1 and NIW if possible. Even if neither case is extremely strong, it increases your chances. It also may be better to wait until some more material is published.
 
Thanks Jim

Yes, I agree with you that it is preferable for me to wait for some more papers to be published. I'm also building as strong a case I can to show I meet at least 3 criteria. I am leaning towards applying late in 2004 for EB1-EA and NIW. I will certainly take advantage of your advice when the time is right.

Thanks for your time.

Regards,
CalvinX
 
EB1 for CalvinX

Dear CalvinX:

I believe you could apply for EB-1 right now, no need for NIW, rather than postpone it
till 2004 for one or two publications (it is not a sound reason), as some have suggested. You qualify for EB-1 right now,
you have just to make the case. You have to establish though
the following:

1. You play a critical role in your organization and/or company
If your company is natianally or internationally acclaimed, that would be fantastic, show documentation of its importance. You
can get letters of support of your boss and others for you role.

2. Get superb letters of suport (+8) from established referrees
attesting to your original contributions to the software science, and their significance-impact to the US and the world. Get some
of these referrees from international experts (If you can).

3. You are a reviewer, great!

4. You have made publications, great!

5. You participate in important scintific societies, great!


I think this is enough! Your package should focus on making the case that what you are doing is unique, no one else is doing it.

Don't wait for one more (quantitative) publication to apply. Application takes time.

Cezar
 
I think you have strong points and weak points.

Strengths:
- reviewer
- publications: books, conferences
- professional societies

Weaknesses:
- no Ph.D.: for NIW, this is major
- no journal publications
- not sure if you can document your field as NIW

I have been told and have seen written opinions that no Ph.D., even though having one is not a prerequisite, is a serious weakness of one's EB1 application.

You should definitely consult with a lawyer. In my opinion though, the best chance you stand is EB1-OR.
 
EB1

In my opinion, you don't need a PhD to get EB-1, especially if you are reviewer of leading journals and write book chapters. These are uncommon
achievements among many PhDs. Most of the PhDs do not reach these milestones, only a small percentage does. You have a graduate degree and uncommon achievements among your peers. Read this:


"The essence of EB1 is to demonstrate that you belong to a small percentage of individuals who have risen at the very top in their field of endevaour. "

The above is the essence of EB-1 category, and
if the totality of your achievements is convincing to the INS, you get it. I can give you a list of non-PhD accomplished scientists with international acclaim. You could find these yourself in your area. Show INS their achievements as proof that PhD is not neccessary to be among the best in a your field, especially
in that of computer science applied specialties.


Yes, you can wait just for acceptance of your submitted publications, and go ahead with EB-1. An accepted publication is absolutely valid work, just show to the INS the manuscript with the acceptance letter. Of course, consult a good lawyer about my suggestions. And I would suggest that you better hire a lawyer
for EB-1. it is a lot of work.

I would not reccomend to go for both, focus on EB-1 first.

Good luck.
 
Response to your suggestions....

First, thanks guys for your advice.

Yes, I tend to think as someone said, a PhD isn't really mandatory, although very much desired (MS qualifies as an advanced degree). Therefore, I'm doing my very best to demonstrate that I have achieved excellence at a young age, beyond my peers, who may be much older than me. I believe having 2 books published under my belt plus about a dozen publications, plus several reviewer positions would give me a decent shot at EB1-EA.

I tend to think the requirement for EB1-OR is a little lower than Extraordinary Ability. So, as a backup I'm contemplating applying for EB1 and either NIW or OR. Any advice?

Regarding OR, my concern is that I'm NOT in a research postion at my job. I'm a software engineer in my company, although I do research in my profession outside of work and write papers etc. Am I eligible for EB1-OR? In other words, only people who work in a full-time research postion can apply for OR?

I also read that the person must have been doing research for 3 years. How would I demonstrate that, except for showing that I have been publishing papers over more than 3 years which shows I'm an active researcher, although not necessarily a full-time researcher? I do afterall have a 40hr/week regular job!

I guess a lawyer can help me here. Reading Murthy's website, looks like she has a lot of experience. Although it is true as someone said, I will have to give a lot of input to the lawyer and ask them to put it in a language that INS understands. I am desperate for this GC, I can affford to mess up on my own. I'm shooting for a summer 2004 filing, 2 years before my 2nd H1 B expires. I really would like to wait until both my books are published, and hope 3-4 more technical papers, 1 of which is close to acceptance for a good journal. Do I absolutely need journal papers, am I screwed without them? How many I need?

Thanks much.....to each of you...insightful advice.
 
The need for attorney for EB-1

I agree 100% that 95% of the work is done by the EB-1 applicant. A good attorney though could help in putting together a solid, convincing case, especially when the candidate has strong and weak points, as most do. But yes, one could do this without a lawyer.

Another thing, if application is rejected or RFE is sent by INS, the lawyer's role could be more crucial, they know all the loopholes better. You know, it is a matter of just doing all that you could, so that you won't regret anything, including not hiring a good lawyer.
 
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