dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Counseling And Educational Psychology

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
MAlTER OF 0-F-0-
APPEAL OF TEXAS SERVICE CENTER DECISION 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
DATE: JUNE 20,2018 
PETITION: FORM I-140, IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR ALIEN WORKER 
The Petitioner, a guidance and counseling graduate student, seeks second preference immigrant 
classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree, as well as a national 
interest waiver of the job offer requirement attached to this EB-2 classification. See Immigration 
and Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b)(2), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(2). After a petitioner has 
established eligibility for EB-2 classification, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) 
may, as matter of discretion, grant a national interest waiver if the petitioner demonstrates: (1) that 
the foreign national's proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance; (2) that 
the foreign national is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor; and (3) that, on balance, it 
would be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor 
certification. Matter of Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884 (AAO 2016). 
The Director of the Texas Service Center denied the Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien 
Worker, finding that the Petitioner qualified for classification as a member of the professions 
holding an advanced degree, but that she had not established that a waiver of the required job offer, 
and thus of the labor certification, would be in the national interest. 
On appeal, the Petitioner contends that she is eligible for a national interest wmver under the 
Dhanasar framework .. 
Upon de novo review, we will dismiss the appeal. 
I. LAW 
To establish eligibility for a national interest waiver, a petitioner must first demonstrate qualification 
for the underlying EB-2 visa classification, as either an advanced degree professional or an 
individual of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Because this classification 
requires that the individual's services be sought by a U.S. employer, a separate showing is required 
to establish that a waiver of the job offer requirement is in the national interest. 
Section 203(b) of the Act sets out this sequential framework: 
Matter ofO-F-0-
(2) Aliens who are members of the professions holding advanced degrees or aliens of 
exceptional ability.-
(A) In general. - Visas shall be made available ... to qualified immigrants who 
are members of the professions holding advanced degrees or their equivalent 
or who because of their exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business, 
will substantially benefit prospectively the national economy, cultural or 
educational interests, or welfare of the United States, and whose services in 
the sciences, arts, professions, or business are sought by an employer in the 
United States. 
(B) Waiver of job offer-
(i) National interest waiver. ... [T]he Attorney General may, when the 
Attorney General deems it to be in the national interest, waive the 
requirements of subparagraph (A) that an alien's services in the sciences, arts, 
professions, or business be sought by an employer in the United States. 
While neither the statute nor the pertinent regulations define the term "national interest," we set forth 
a framework for adjudicating national interest waiver petitions in the precedent decision Matter of 
Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. 884. 1 Dhanasar states that after EB-2 eligibility has been established, 
USCIS may, as a matter of discretion, grant a national interest waiver when the below prongs are 
met. 
The first prong, substantial merit and national importance, focuses on the specific endeavor that the 
foreign national proposes to undertake. The endeavor's merit may be demonstrated in a range of 
areas such as business, entrepreneurialism, science, technology, culture, health, or education. In 
determining whether the proposed endeavor has national importance, we consider its potential 
prospective impact. 
The second prong shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor to the foreign national. To determine 
whether he or she is well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor, we consider factors 
including, but not limited to: the individual's education, skills, knowledge and record of success in 
related or similar efforts; a model or plan for future activities; any progress towards achieving the 
proposed endeavor; and the interest of potential customers, users, investors, or other relevant entities 
or individuals. 
The third prong requires the petitioner to demonstrate that, on balance, it would be beneficial to the 
United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor certification. In 
performing this analysis, USCIS may evaluate factors such as: whether, in light of the nature of the 
1 In announcing this new framework, we vacated our prior precedent decision, Matter of New York State Department of 
Transportation, 22 I&N Dec. 215 (Act. Assoc. Comm'r 1998) (NYSDOI). 
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Matter ofO-F-0-
foreign national's qualificati ons or the proposed endeavor, it would be impr actica l either for the 
foreign national to secure a job offer or for the petitioner to obtain a labor certification; wheth er, 
even assuming that other qualified U.S . workers are available, the United States would still benefit 
from the foreign national's contribution s; and whether the national intere st in the foreign national's 
contribution s is sufficiently urgent to warrant forgoing the labor certification process. In eac h case , 
the factor(s) considered mu st, taken toget her, indicate that on balance, it would be benefic ial to the 
United States to waive the requirement s of a job offer and thus of a labor certificatio n? 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Director found that the Petitoner qualifies as a member of the profession s holding an advanced 
degree.3 The sole issue to be determined is whether the Petitioner has establi shed that a waiver of the 
requirement of a job offer, and thus a labo r certification, would be in the national intere st. 
At the time of filing, the Petitioner w as "a doctor al student in the Dep artme nt of Counseling and 
Educational Psychology at In addition to 
pursuing her Ph.D., she was working in the aforementioned department as a gradua te teac hing 
assistant and resea rch assistant. 
A Substantial Merit and National Importance of the Proposed Endeavo r 
The Petitioner indicate s tDat she intend s to continue her " research and work in the field of 
Counseling and Educational Psyc hology ." She furth er states: "My current resea rch focu ses on 
studying famili al risk, factor s for academic achievement to reduc e the dro pou t rate in the United 
States. Long term , my resea rch goal is to conduct a compr ehens ive study to ex plore confl ict 
resolution among sepa rated couples." The Petitioner explains that her current and future re ~ea rch is 
aimed at "caree r counseling in making life changing decisions and career options among 
undergraduate students; .family conflict resoluti ons; and advance stress and psychologic al 
management." 
With the appea l, the Petiti one r offers articles that discuss the need for coun seling services in the 
United States , unmet treatm ent needs for those with mental disorders, the quality of care in our 
country for depr essive and anxiety dis orders, and the economic burden to our nation of those 
suffering from depression. The record also includ es a rese arc h article descr ibing the bene fits of 
career counselors in building strategic partnership s between indi viduals and their employ ers. In 
addition, the Petitioner submits a resear ch stu dy indicating that "coun seling rappo rt is a vita l part of 
the therapeutic process and helps expl ain why and when treatm ent is effective. " We find that the 
Petitioner's proposed research and work in the field of counseling and educational ps ychology has 
substantial merit. 
' ' 2 See Dlumasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 888-91, for elaboration on these three prongs. 
J The record rellects that the Petitioner re(.:eivcd a master o(scien cc degree in counseling and guidance (August 2016) from 
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Matt er ofO-F-0-
To satisfy the national importance requirement, the Petitioner must demonstrate the "potentia l 
prospect ive impact " of her work . In addition to the articles describ ed above, her evi dence includes 
letters of support from faculty discussing the potential benefits of her r esearc h aimed at 
reducing student dropout ·rates. For instanc e, professor and chair of the 
Departm ent of Counseling and Educational Psychology at discusses the pote ntial of such 
research to "co ntribute to the reduction of dropout rates in the United States." Simil arly, 
Director of Counseling and Training Clinic, asse rts that "the importance of 
further resea rch to reduc e the rate of dropout in the United States to t he barest minimum cannot be 
over-emphasized." In addition, the Petitioner has submitted docum entation 
indic ating that the 
benefit of her proposed research has broader impli cations for the field , as the results are disseminated 
to others in the field through education journals and conferences. As the P e tit~one r has documented 
both the substantial merit and national importanc e of her propos ed r esea rch, we find that. she meets 
the first prong of the Dhanasar framework.
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B. Well Positioned to Advance the Proposed Endeavor 
The second prong shifts the focu s from the propo sed endeavor to the Petition er's qualif'ications. Th e 
Petition er maintains that her clinical experience offering guidance and counseling to st udents , 
graduate teaching duties, and university research projects render her well positioned to advance her 
endeavor. As previously noted , the Petitioner 's clinical and teaching duties do not mee t the first 
prong of the Dhanasar framework, therefore our analysis under this prong will focus on whether she 
is well positioned to advance her proposed research . 
The Petition er submitted docum entation of her article m 
three conference presentations , professional membersh~s, academic credentials'- and a 
recognition certificate.) She 
also offered 
reference letters discussing her counseling training , clinical work with students , a nd resea rch 
. 6 prOJeCtS. 
4 With regard to the Petitioner's counseling services and teaching assistant duties, while these endeavors have substantial 
merit, the record docs not establi sh that such clinical and instructional work would impact the counseling and educational 
psychology fields and mental health industry more broadly, as opposed to being limited to the clients she serves and her 
studen ts. According ly, without sufficient documentary evidence of their broad er impact, the Petitioner' s clinical work as a 
counselor and instructional activities as a teaching assistant do not meet the "nationa l importance" eleme nt of the first prong 
of the Dhanasar framework. Similarly , in Dhwwsar, we detennined that the petitioner 's teach ing activ ities did not rise to the 
level of having national importance because they would not impact his field more broadly. /d. at 893. 
5 The Petitioner's certificate states that she "has been elected in recogni tion of merit and accomp lishment as a 
student at In addition, she asserts that she was "one of just four individua ls selected 
out of the 53 Counseling and Guidance Students" at The record, howeve r, does not show that select ion for this 
student honor at her university represents a record of success in her field or that it is otherwise an indication that she is well 
positioned to advance counseling and educational psychology research. 
6 We discuss only a sampling of these letters, but have revi e~cd and considered each one. 
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Malter of 0-F -0-
With respect to her research aimed at reducing student dropout rates, the Petitioner asserts that "she 
has influenced and inspired others for the advancem ent of the greater industry." In letters supporting 
the petition , several of the Petitioner's profe s~ors discussed her resea rch that focu sed on stress 
factors experienced by internation al students. For ex ample , associat e professor of 
couns eling at mention s the Petitioner 's article in 
and asserts that her "research has had the subjective effect of helping our unive rsity adm ini strati on 
look carefully at the variety of stressors facing international student s and how to provid e a dequate 
mental health support for depre ssion, separation anxiety, and other psychological issues for this most 
vulnerable population." In addition, associate professor and coordina tor of the 
Counseling and Guidance Progra m at state s that the Petitioner's "research provided 
uniqu e and valuable information that is currenily being used by the faculty members to provide 
adequate emotional and mental health support for newly admitted students. He r r esea rch has 
provided strategies for students to recognize and inanage feeling s of stress." Although faculty from 
note that the Petitione r's research has been helpful to her alma mater, the record does not 
adequately document that her strategies stand to be utilized beyond this single univ e rsity. 
Regardin g the Petitioner 's research project s a t indic ates that " [s]he has done 
intensive background research on why the dropout rate is at 41 percent in public schools, and 
provided recommendations that can reduce this rate to a minimu m." Furth ermore, states 
that the Petitioner examined "how parental activitie s have great impact on the academic performance 
of childr en" and "recommend ed parental practice s that will reduce the rate of drop ou t." 
notes that the Petitioner pres e nted this work , entitled "Familial Risk Factors for Academic issues," at 
the . 3rd Annual Conference in February 2017 , but this confere nce 
post-dat es the filing of the pet ition . See 8 C.F.R. § 103. 2(b)(l) , (12). Rega rdless , we do not find that 
present at ion of her work alone is s ufficient to · establish that the Pet itioner is well positioned to 
advance her proposed research. 
The record demonstrates that the Petitioner has conducted, published , and present ed resea rch during 
her graduate studies at and While we recognize that researc h must add 
information to the pool of knowledge in some way in order to be accepted for publication , 
present ation , funding, or acad emic credit, not ev.ery individual who has performed original r esea rch 
will be found to be well pos itioned to advance hi ~ or her propo sed resea rch . Rather , we exa min e tl}c 
factors set forth in Dhanasar to determine whether , for instance , the individual's progress towa rds 
achieving the goals of the propos ed research, record of success in similar efforts, or generation of 
interest among relevant parti es supports such a finding. ld. at 890. The Petition er has not shown 
that her resea rch has been frequently cited by independent scholars or has otherwise se rved as an 
impetu s for progress in the field, that it has affected clinical pract ice, or that it has generat ed 
substantial positive discourse in the broader academic community. Nor does the evidence otherwise 
demonstr ate that her work constitutes a record of success or progre ss in her area of research. 
In sum, the Petitioner has not demonstrated a record of success or progress in her field, or a degree of 
interest in her work from relevant parties, that rise to the level of rendering her well positioned to 
advance ·her proposed research endeavor. As the record is insuffici ent to dem onstra te that the 
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Matter of 0-F-0-
Petitioner is well positioned to advance her proposed endeavor, she has not established that she 
satisfies the second prong of the Dhanasar framework. 
C. Balancing Factors to Determine Waiver's Benefit to the United States 
As explained above, the third prong requires the petitioner to demonstrate that, on balance, it would 
be beneficial to the United States to waive the requirements of a job offer and thus of a labor 
certification. Here, the Petitioner claims that she is eligible for a waiver due to her unique 
knowledge, skills, and research accomplishments, and based on "urgent concerns" that "are crucial 
to our economy, education and individual emotional health." However, as the Petitioner has not 
established that she is well positioned to advance her proposed endeavor as required by the second 
prong of the Dhanasar framework, she is not eligible for a national interest waiver and further 
discussion of the balancing factors under the thiro prong would serve no meaningful purpose. 
.. III. CONCLUSION 
As the Petitioner has not met the requisite three prongs set forth in the Dhanasar analytical framework, 
we find that she has not established she is eligible for or otherwise merits a national interest waiver 
as a matter of discretion. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
Cite as Matter ofO-F-0-, ID# 1392375 (AAO June 20, 2018) 
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