GC during residency?

[manishb123]

Hi
I am enquiring about the possibility of green card processing during residency?

I have a offer to join residency at an hospital in Chicago. I am trying to negotiate with them if they would do my Green Card during residency so that I have a Green Card by the time I finish Residency.
I spoke to the chair and he said they will do what ever is possible by the law. He is not sure what they can do and asked me to contact a lawyer.

Is it possible?
Does anyone know anyone in particular who has got green card during residency?

Thanks

 

[hadron]

residency is not considered a 'permanent position' --> no GC

I know someone who got sponsored by one of our affiliated hospital for a GC in the OR category as 'chief resident / research associate'.

So, while you are a resident they can sponsor you for a position afterward.

Get an H1b out of them and start looking for a job that sponsors you for GC early during residency.

H1b is the best you are going to get out ofthem.

 

[mithya]

Peds J1 and waiver jobs

Could anyone shed some light on waiver jobs after Peds residency? My wife (currently on H4), has an offer to join a top 10 Peds program, but the university won't do an H1b. What is the post-residency scenario in Peds? She may also go in for a fellowship post residency.

Thanks in advance.

 

[lalalala]

the importanat question is not of post residency scene but the cost u have to pay for doing residency under Ji, going by my personal experience i would not touch J1 visa

 

[hadron]

H1B or not to be !


> Could anyone shed some light on waiver jobs after Peds residency?

Everybody I know in peds who wanted a waiver job, found one. Some are better than others, but in the end everyone got hooked up somehow. Generally it is harder than for family practicioners and easier than for internists (my personal impression, not scientifically founded)

> My wife (currently on H4), has an offer to join a top 10 Peds program,

You guys have to make a decision:
She would most likely be able to find 'A' peds residency on H1b, usually out of match. But more likely than not, this would be at a small community type program with little name recognition and often training of questionable quality.
Most people in peds from these types of programs end up doing a fellowship at a more prestigious place if for nothing else then to boost their CV .
So, if she indeed has an offer for one of the top programs, it is definitely worth considering it from a career and training standpoint (does she have training in your home country, if yes, the quality of her program here is less important. Most indian pediatricians run circles around their average US counterparts in the first place)

> but the university won't do an H1b.

Many universities don't. It is usually some sort of policy and even if the chairman or PD would love to give you an H1b, the university legal office won't.

> What is the post-residency scenario in Peds?

VA (Veterans Administration):
- short of the US becoming desperate and starting to employ child soldiers, I don't see much of a perspective for pediatricians here.

Conrad30:
- I believe all states participating in the conrad program sponsor primary care pediatricians
- some states sponsor fellowship trained pediatricians
- with the recent change in the Conrad30 laws, some states might be able to sponsor pediatricians for hospital based positions such as NICU/PICU/PedER even if the hospital is not in an underserved location.

HHS (ex USDA program):
- does include pediatricians
- last thing I know, the program is still on hold

ARC (Appalachian regional commission):
- does sponsor any primary care doc including primary care peds
- does not sponsor anyone with fellowship training
- I believe they require that the state has turned you down for numerical reasons
- very restrictive conditions. You read their rules you get the impression that they hate doctors.

DRA (Missisipi Delta Authority):
- relatively new program
- Siskind&Susser drafted the program, it is pretty liberal
- should include specialists

All of the folks I know in peds went through one of the Conrad30 programs. Some are subspecialists (nephro, NICU, PICU), most are hooked up with some sort of primary care day-job.

> She may also go in for a fellowship post residency

Chances are that by then you will have your GC or citizenship (as a wild guess I will assume that you are an IT guy ;-))
You might want to consider this:
- do the top10 peds residency now
- do a 3 year waiver job, accumulate some dough.
- do a fellowship on EAD
- live happily ever after

 

[manishb123]

J1 to H1

Thank for the explaination.

I am in a similar confusion. I have a residency offer from a top Pediatric program. However they do not offer H1B visa. They only accept residents on J1 visa.

I have a question. If my spouse gets a residency on H1B visa. Can I be sponsored as a dependent for GC while I continue to complete residency/ fellowship on J1 visa?

Please advise. I have numerous H1B offers but this program is very good.

 

[J1victim]

spouse on H1 and planning on J1

....I have a residency offer from a top Pediatric program. However they do not offer H1B visa. They only accept residents on J1 visa.
I have a question. If my spouse gets a residency on H1B visa. Can I be sponsored as a dependent for GC while I continue to complete residency/ fellowship on J1 visa?

YES, you can be sponsored as a dependent for GC. BUT ...
AFTER you have fulfilled the HRR of the J1 that you will be taking.
means you will have to get either
- a J1 waiver (based on persecution/hardship/work in VA or underserved area) OR
- go back to your country for 2 years.

Remember, we used to read, "Once a quinsy always a quinsy!"
Well now it is... "Once a J1 always a J1"
.

 

[vidhun]

Bottom line....

Forget the top 10 ped program and the J1 head ache that comes along with it... all the programs are pretty much the same at the end of the day... its what you can get out of your training and not so much the program... Unless, your wife is aiming to become a Professor in Yale/Harvard in about 20yrs from now... then it maybe important to graduate out of a Univ... but if she is going into Pvt practice... Who cares about the Univ training that you have...

J1 is a HHHUUUGGGEEE head ache you don't want if you have a choice......

Good Luck

 

[lalalala]

that what i said before,
only the people who go through the experience of Ji waiver know where the shoe pinches, take it if no other choice , otherwise you will come back for more advice after three years of residency

 

[J1victim]

J1: to take or not to take

..... only the people who go through the experience of Ji waiver know where the shoe pinches, take it if no other choice , otherwise you will come back for more advice after three years of residency

bingo!

don't worry manishb123. someone wil be there to help you out in these forums if you decide to go for J1.

option suggested by Hadron is not bad either (but may have a problem):
...........................
Chances are that by then you will have your GC or citizenship (as a wild guess I will assume that you are an IT guy ;-))
You might want to consider this:
- do the top10 peds residency now
- do a 3 year waiver job, accumulate some dough.
- do a fellowship on EAD
- live happily ever after
.........................
problem:

the waiver job for pediatrics may be in an underserved area where the other spouse may not get a job. so you may have to live separately for these years.
.

 

[hadron]

H1b OR NOT TO BE

Unfortunately it is not allways so simple:


- If you have any perspective to get a GC within the next 2-4 years (your spouse, your spouses job, lottery, large personal wealth), try to stay away from the J1 at ALL costs.

- If you don't have a perspective for a GC outside of your own employment as a physician, the penalty for a J1 is not as big. Instead of filing for your GC from your first post residency job, you are tied to taking some sort of waiver job for the first three years. Some of these jobs really blow, others are at market salary and market conditions. Many waiver jobs are in a position to sponsor for a GC with relative ease as they typically had an ongoing recruitment effort anyway.

- Having a J1 opens up more opportunities for fellowships. While at the residency level it is quite realistic to find a hospital desperate enough to use an H1b as a recruitment tool, at the fellowship level you are typically out of luck. If you do your residency on H1b, you have to be prepared to put a year or two of primary care between residency and fellowship in order to get a GC through that job (and you are only in a marginally better position than someone who needs a waiver job.)

- There seems to be a trend that the more interesting programs don't sponsor H1b (with exceptions). If you are looking to do a competitive fellowship such as cards or GI, you want to be at a name program. If you want to spend your days as a geriatrician, a residency at your local community hospital won't stand in your way. If you plan on doing something that allows you to make serious money, a university residency program on J1 might be a better idea.