Should I try to work in a field of national interest (that is currently favored by USCIS) to strengthen my EB-2 NIW profile?

Here’s a post by immigration lawyer Amber Davis on whether you should try to work in a field of national interest that is currently favored by USCIS to strengthen your EB-2 NIW profile:

I get this question a lot - since certain fields are heavily favored right now by USCIS, should I try to find work in my field that overlaps with one of these hot fields? (like AI)

Yes and no.

Yes, in that if that’s something you’ve always wanted to and it makes sense in the context of your profile, definitely go for it. I’ve definitely seen clients who work in subfields of AI that do make sense in the context of their profile.

No, in that if you’re just going to tack on one of these hot fields onto your profile, thinking that USCIS won’t notice that it doesn’t really match, chances are you’ll draw more attention from them for something that appears out of place in the context of your profile and career.

This decision also comes down to how soon you aim to apply for EB-2 NIW. If you intend to apply in 1-2 years, perhaps you can try to find work in one of the more favored national interest fields like AI (but do keep in mind that with the upcoming election, national priorities may change).

If you intend to file in the next few months, best to not suddenly change to a different, more favored field thinking that doing so will give your application a significant boost.

You’ll probably just be inviting more questions from USCIS.

Make your petition work for your career trajectory. Not the other way around - that’s backwards.

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Interested in EB-1A, EB-2 NIW or O-1? Feel free to reach out to Amber at amber.davis@waypointimmigration.org or via LinkedIn messages.

Interested in profile-building for EB-2 NIW and maximizing your chances of approval? Check out Amber’s course, NIW Ready, which helps those of you who want to build a strong NIW profile in 2-3 months. You’ll also be considered for Amber’s refundable case package, which guarantees a refund of only attorney fees if your case does not get approved. At the end of the course, assuming you do the work, you’ll be ready to file.

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