I140 Application - Major of Study
I have 4 years of experience in IT industry after completing my Bachelor's of Science in Chemistry (from US)
PERM ETA9089 filed on my behalf has the following:
Education : Bachelor's
Major field of study : Science
Alternate Field of Study: Computer Science or Foreign Equivalent
Number of months experience required : 24 months
My PERM was approved and waiting for I140 to be filed.
I had few computer related courses as a part of my curriculum along with computer certifications completed after the bachelor's degree.
My concern is about Major of study. Will my Bachelor's of Science in Chemistry degree be considered as 'Science' for Major of study?
Thank you.
Bro,
This seems the unique case. Not sure if sajha users have gone through it. I would recommend you to check with your attorney instead of depending on forum's suggestions. Also, post your question at trackitt.com. You might hear some response there
OK here is the deal, if you job requirement / job posting had Science as required field of study you should be fine.
So yes, you should be fine
Mine was similar case as well. You have to provide proof that experience is more relevant than your degree.
You will get a RFE if enough evidence is not submitted.
These are documents to thrive for:
1) Expert analysis letter
2) Explanation from scholar/professor/educator in the field saying experience gained is equivalent to degree or similar kind of letter. ( In my case, I asked my own professor and he wrote)
3) Analysis from your supervisor/director explaining how you are qualified for the field although you have degree in different field.
4) Analysis letter from your lawyer putting points together how you are qualified for the job although with different major.
5) Any other documents or scholarly article that supports the evidence ( my case Lawyer used college course manual)
Your lawyer should be aware of these docs. Good luck.
Thank you @roomrent969, @fdpower and @8848m for your feedbacks.
@8848m: Like you suggested, I will try to gather supporting documents. Also, talked to an employer and as per him, major of study should not be a problem ( I do not have direct contact with attorney. So basically have to depend on middle person.).
To add, I have a graduate certificate (not degree) for Information Technology from State University. On my PERM application, this graduate certificate is not mentioned since I got this certification after applying PERM. Can I still add these on my I140 application and will it make any difference?
No you cannot add those cert you got after applying perm. That would be a straigt denial , plus you dont even ahve the certificate degree as requirement so at that point that is useless anyways.
I differ from fdpower
Any supporting documents should help the case. Lawyer should know exactly what documents will hurt or help your case. Major of study might not be a problem in your case as per your employer since 4 years of experience already in the field. My case was 2 years of experience. So, I submitted all above mentioned documents. Goodluck mate.
Did you get 4 yrs of exp with employer who filed PERM? If so, USCIS doesn't consider this experience.
I think you should be fine with Major field of study : Science as you have bachelor of science in chemistry.
Once again, thank you all for your valuable input.
@edipre: It is 2 yrs from previous employer and 2 yrs with current employer (who filed PERM).
Last edited: 22-Feb-17 03:37 PM
"I had few computer related courses as a part of my curriculum along with computer certifications completed after the bachelor's degree"
If you got after undergraduate and before joining the employer who filed PERM , you should be good to prove USCIS you have sufficient IT experience/exposure for the position.
.
According to me you are safe but still talk to attorney .
Just to point out one thing @edpier told
Yes you can use same company experience as long as the job has changed. As in you were in position A for 2 years and promoted to position. The job responsibility however has to be different by 50 percent.
8848m , yes you can add the degree certificate as a side document but the certificate would probably be not be valued if it was not part of the job requirement. Regardless , you can check other forum as well for confirmation.
@edipre: "If you got after undergraduate and before joining the employer who filed PERM , you should be good to prove USCIS you have sufficient IT experience/exposure for the position."----I got this Graduate IT certification after joining the employer who filed PERM but before filing PERM itself (Certification completed May 2016 and PERM filed Nov, 2016). However, this certification is not mentioned in job requirement.
I will just explain all this to employer & attorney (if possible) and let attorney make decision.
Thank you all for your feedback and suggestions.
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