·
Collect your immigration and related documents
The documents that are especially important are the
following:
o
Passport
o
F-1 visa stamp
o
I-94 admission document
You might not have received a
hardcopy I-94 when you entered the U.S. Instead, your I-94 might have been
stored, in electronic format, on the web site of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection (CBP). If so, you can download it from www.cbp.gov/i94
o
I-20
o
Employment authorization document (EAD), if
applicable (e.g. if you have OPT)
o
Current resume
·
Collect evidence of any previous academic
degrees
Even though you might be currently enrolled in an academic
program, you still might want to get evidence of prior degrees even from
several years ago, for several reasons. First, your most recent degree might
not be the best match for the offered H-1B job, whereas an earlier degree
might. Second, you might not be able to earn, in time for the April 1 beginning
of filing period, a degree from your current program.
If you do not have such evidence with you right now, keep in
mind that getting it could take time, particularly if the academic institution
is outside the U.S., or if Mom or Dad must look for it at home.
In any event, the academic transcript you submit should be
an official one. That is, it should come from the office of the academic institution
(typically the registrar) in charge of grades. It should also carry the
insignia of that institution. Only in rare cases will you need to submit the
transcript in a sealed envelope. Most other times, the transcript can be a
photocopy. An unofficial transcript (e.g. a “print it yourself” transcript from
your academic computer portal system) is unacceptable.
·
Request a credentials evaluation of non-US
degrees
If you choose to, or
if circumstances require that you, rely on a non-U.S. degree, then you will
need a credentials evaluation of that degree. The purpose of such an evaluation
is to show that your degree is the equivalent of at least a U.S. bachelor’s
degree.
One company that provides credentials evaluations is
Educational Assessment, Inc. Their web site is www.educassess.com and their telephone is 706-613-0336.
·
Get certified translations of non-English
documents
Any non-English document you provide must be translated into
English, and be certified. With respect to the translation, you may, but are
not required to, do any of the following:
o
use a professional translation service
o
have the translation notarized
o
have another person translate the document into
English
That is, if you wish, you could translate the document
yourself into English. Then, you can have someone other than yourself review
the translation for accuracy. That person then should certify the translation,
by signing a statement, on the translation, with wording such as the following:
I certify that I am
fluent (conversant) in both the English and ______________ languages, and that
the above/attached English document is an accurate translation of the document
that is in the above-named non-English language. This document is a/n
__________________________________________(English description of document)
Signature _________________________________
Printed Name：________________________________
Address： _______________________________________
Date:
__________________
With respect to any document you provide, the chances are small
that you will need to supply an original version. That is, you probably will be
OK if you submit a photocopy of that document. Needless to say, of course,
neither the original document nor the copy should be altered. Please be aware
that the government does have the right to request an original version.
I hope this information is helpful to you.
The information above
does not constitute legal advice and does not form an attorney-client
relationship.
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