Dear imsevak,
I am in a very confused situation. Last monday, I was awarded a very prestigious internationally competitive National Research Council (NRC) fellowship. They sponsor J-1 visas, which comes with 2-yr residency requirement. I also have other postdoc offers which sponsor H1-b visas. I can easily go for these postdoc offers and get H1-b. However, I do not want to miss this NRC fellowship, and was wondering how difficult is it to get a J-1 waiver. I know some folks got it waived, although had to endure the painful clearance processes from home country. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. I have 7 more days to decide on this NRC offer. I appreciate your help in advance