Step 1: Visit attorneys in your city

Usually, the first visit to immigration attorneys is free of charge. You can show them your CV. They will make an evaluation of your case. After the visits, you will have a general idea about the procedure of petition.

Step 2: Join the academic association

Membership in academic association is very important for immigration officer to judge your qualification. I joined in three academic associations. One is Sigma Xi, the other two are Society for Neuroscience and American Physiological Society. Copy the membership cards and show them in your petition cover letter as evidence of your academic excellence. It will usually take you at least one month to be admitted to these associations, so do this step as early as possible.

Step 3: Asking for recommendation letters

This step is No. 1 important for your petition. Petitioners need to be aware of the following points:

1. How many recommendation letters? Usually 6 to 8 letters are sufficient.

2. How long are these recommendation letters? It depends. Normally two-page is OK. If the letter is from your PI, then three, even four, pages ispreferred.

3. From whom can I ask for letters? Your PI, your PI’s friends, the faculty you know in your department, even the expert in your field who you never meet with. Letter from independent expert is more persuasive to the immigration officer.

4. Do the experts have to be U.S. citizens? Absolutely not. Actually, you’d better find at least one expert in other countries. That shows that yourfame is not limited within USA

5. If you find the Academy Members or Nobel Prize Laureates to write letters for you, that’s fabulous. But please do not worry if your letter writers are not so big scientists. The contents of the letter are the more important thing compared with the writer of the letter.

Step 4: Looking for journals that would like to invite you to be their manualscript reviewer If you have already reviewed manualscripts for journals, that is wonderful. Print out the mails or emails between you and the editors. If you do not review other’s papers, do not worry. There are some journals that are eagerly looking for reviewers. Write a letter to them, telling them that you can serve as a  eviewer. They will respond to you and may give you a chance.

Step 5: Take these below as the evidence for your eligibility if……

1. You or your research were reported by large media in China or USA

2. You were awarded any prize or prizes

3.You played an important role in any academic conferences

Step 6: Making a list of your publication and the citation.

Step 7: write personal statement detailing your previous, current and futureresearch work. Put more emphasis on its significance on health careimprovement.

After finishing the seven steps, you will need to write a petition cover letter. From Mitbbs note, This letter, usually around twenty pages, uses all the evidence you have collected in the seven steps above to convince the immigration officer that what you are doing current is of national interest.