dismissed EB-2 NIW Case: Data Analytics

U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration 
Services 
In Re: 77 46678 
Appeal of Nebraska Service Center Decision 
Non-Precedent Decision of the 
Administrative Appeals Office 
Date : MAR. 10, 2020 
Form 1-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (Advanced Degree, Exceptional Ability , National 
Interest Waiver) 
The Petitioner , a social entrepreneur specializing in data analytics , 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). 
The Director of the Nebraska Service Center denied the petition, concluding 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 submits additional documentation and a brief asserting that she is eligible for 
a national interest waiver. 
In these proceedings , it is the petitioner's burden to establish eligibility for the immigration benefit 
sought. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1361. 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 science s, 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: 
(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 ofjob 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 (AAO 2016). 1 Dhanasar states that after a petitioner has established 
eligibility for EB-2 classification, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may, as matter 
of discretion 2, 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. 
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 foreign 
national's qualifications or the proposed endeavor, it would be impractical either for the foreign 
national to secure a job offer or for the petitioner to obtain a labor certification; whether, even assuming 
1 In announcing this new rramework. we vacated our prior precedent decision, Matter of New York State Department of 
Transportation. 22 l&N Dec. 215 (Act. Assoc. Comm'r 1998) (NYSDOT). 
2 See also Poursina v. USC1S. No. 17-16579, 2019 WL 4051593 (Aug. 28, 2019) (finding USCIS' decision to grant or 
deny a national interest waiver to be discretionary in nature). 
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that other qualified U.S. workers are available, the United States would still benefit from the foreign 
national's contributions; and whether the national interest in the foreign national's contributions is 
sufficiently urgent to warrant forgoing the labor certification process. In each case, the factor(s) 
considered must, taken together, indicate 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. 3 
II. ANALYSIS 
The Director found that the Petitioner qualifies as a member of the professions holding an advanced 
degree. 4 The remaining issue to be determined is whether the Petitioner has established that a waiver of 
the requirement of a job offer, and thus a labor certification, would be in the national interest. 
At the time of filing, the Petitioner was pursuing a Master of Science degree in Data Analytics from 
I I University. 5 In addition, she was working as a data scientist intern with I I a 
media and entertainment company. 6 
A. Substantial Merit and National Importance of the Proposed Endeavor 
The Petitioner indicated that she intends "to apply the knowledge and skill sets gained from my 
advanced degrees in data science and business into launching my start-up, I I The mission 
of I I is to develop data driven technological solutions to solve social problems such as 
learning difficulties .... " She asserted that her proposed undertaking involves creating "an adaptive 
learning platform for early learning, which customizes and individualizes the learning content to the 
learning rate of each child." The Petitioner further explained that her proposed work is aimed at 
"development of an interactive learning platform that utilizes machine learning to determine the 
cognitive difficulties of students, with the goal of providing learning speed and content tailored 
products to suit individual learning disabilities of students." She stated that her "adaptive learning 
system" individualizes educational content to the learning abilities of each student "by applying 
algorithms to the educational platform." In addition to lesson and test sections, the Petitioner noted that 
her learning platform will include programming that ensures students "keep repeating lessons until they 
are able to pass" and that calculates each "child's learning rate." 
The record includes articles discussing the favorable job outlook for computer and information 
research scientists and data scientists. In addition, the Petitioner offered reports describing challenges 
facing the U.S. education system including inadequate access to technology and income-related 
student achievement gaps. She also provided articles about innovations in education technology, the 
role of artificial intelligence in education, and social entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the Petitioner 
3 See Dhanasar, 26 T&N Dec. at 888-91, for elaboration on these three prongs. 
4 The Petitioner received a Master of Social Entrepreneurship degree from9'tl~-------,1Business School (August 
2015). 
5 In response to the Director's request for evidence, the Petitioner provided a December 2018 letter from ~I --~ 
University indicating that she earned this degree in May 2018. 
6 As the Petitioner is applying for a waiver of the job offer requirement, it is not necessary for her to have a job offer from 
a specific employer. However, we will consider information about her current and prospective positions to illustrate the 
capacity in which she intends to work in order to determine whether her proposed endeavor meets the requirements of the 
Dhanasar analytical framework. 
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submitted a fact sheet for former "President Obama's Plan for Early Education for All Americans," 
two proclamations from President Trump relating to American Education Week, and information from 
the U.S. Department of Education and the World Bank about initiatives to promote early childhood 
education and the positive effects of technology on classrooms and students. The record therefore 
supports the Director's determination that the Petitioner's endeavor has substantial merit. 
In denying the petition, the Director concluded that the Petitioner had not shown that the potential 
prospective impact of her proposed endeavor rises to the level of national importance. For the reasons 
discussed below, we agree with the Director that the Petitioner has not sufficiently demonstrated the 
national importance of her proposed endeavor under the first prong of the Dhanasar analytical 
framework. 
In determining national importance, the relevant question is not the importance of the field, industry, 
or profession in which the individual will work; instead we focus on the "the specific endeavor that 
the foreign national proposes to undertake." See Dhanasar, 26 I&N Dec. at 889. In Dhanasar, we 
further noted that "we look for broader implications" of the proposed endeavor and that "[ a ]n 
undertaking may have national importance for example, because it has national or even global 
implications within a particular field." Id. We also stated that "[a]n endeavor that has significant 
potential to employ U.S. workers or has other substantial positive economic effects, particularly in an 
economically depressed area, for instance, may well be understood to have national importance." Id. 
at 890. 
On appeal, the Petitioner argues that her proposed endeavor to create an adaptive learning platform 
stands to affect economically depressed regions in the United States and has the potential to create 
jobs for U.S. workers. She contends that her business plan and the description of her endeavor supports 
Presidential proclamations and initiatives of the U.S. Department of Education. 
To evaluate whether the Petitioner's proposed endeavor satisfies the national importance requirement 
we look to evidence documenting the "potential prospective impact" of her work. Although the 
Petitioner's statements and business plan reflect her intention to provide a valuable learning platform 
for children, she has not offered sufficient information and evidence to demonstrate that the 
prospective impact of her proposed endeavor rises to the level of national importance. 7 In Dhanasar 
we determined that the petitioner's teaching activities did not rise to the level of having national 
importance because they would not impact his field more broadly. Id. at 893. Here, we find the record 
does not show that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor stands to sufficiently extend beyond her 
learning platform's subscribers and customers to impact her field or the U.S. education system more 
broadly at a level commensurate with national importance. 
Furthermore, the Petitioner has not demonstrated that the specific endeavor she proposes to undertake 
has significant potential to employ U.S. workers or otherwise offers substantial positive economic 
effects for our nation. For example, the Petitioner has not offered sufficient evidence that the area in 
I I wherel I will be located is economically depressed, that she would employ 
7 The issue here is not the broader implications of educational initiatives recommended by the President and U.S. 
Depaiiment of Education, but rather whether the specific learning platform proposed by the Petitioner offers educational 
or economic implications at a level sufficient to establish the national imp01iance of her endeavor. 
4 
a significant workforce in that area, or that her project would offer the city or its population a 
substantial economic benefit through either its employment level or virtual product sales. The record 
does not adequately show that benefits to the U.S. regional or national economy resulting from the 
Petitioner's project would reach the level of "substantial positive economic effects" contemplated by 
Dhanasar. Id. at 890. Without sufficient documentary evidence of its broader impact, her proposed 
endeavor does not meet the "national importance" element of the first prong of the Dhanasar 
framework. 
B. Well Positioned to Advance the Proposed Endeavor 
The second prong shifts the focus from the proposed endeavor to the Petitioner. The record includes 
documentation of her curriculum vitae, academic credentials, "Social Entrepreneur Scholarship" in 
the amount of $3,000 to attend! I Business School, professional certifications, Sigma 
Xi membership,I I business plan, and Memorandum(s) of Understanding with two daycare 
providers outlining the terms of use for her adaptive learning platform. The Petitioner also offered 
evidence indicating that she started a fashion design business in Nigeria, a '.__ ____ ~ __ ____. 
I I small business start-up grant, three endorsements relating to a 
fashion show her company organized, and two reference letters from her professors at I I 
University discussing her graduate work. 
In addition to noting that the Petitioner "did well in both courses" he taught, 
professor of computer and information science atl I University, stated that t~h_e_P_e_t-it-io_n_e_r_b_e_g_a~n 
"development of an interactive learning platform that utilizes machine learning to help determine the 
learning difficulties of students" while attending .__ _____ ____. Business School. I I 
explained that the Petitioner's platform provides information that "can help revise the learning content 
and speed in the intervention if necessary," but he does not offer specific examples indicating that her 
platform has served as an impetus for progress in the field, that it has improved student performance 
in any school districts, or that it has generated substantial positive discourse in the academic 
community. 
With regard to the Petitioner's work in his "Data Mining" classJ I associate professor 
at I !University, discussed the Petitioner's project using "Twitter data from I I to 
build predictive models to identify the geographic location of slums and those people living in slums." 
I I indicated that "[t]his work was particularly notable in the way that it combined unsupervised 
and supervised machine learning methods," but the record does not show that the predictive models 
built by the Petitioner have been implemented, utilized, or applauded by others in her field. 
Furthermore, while the Petitioner's Master of Social Entrepreneurship degree renders her eligible for 
the underlying EB-2 visa classification, her academic accomplishments by themselves are not 
sufficient to demonstrate that she is well positioned to advance her proposed endeavor. We note that 
she earned her Master of Science degree in Data Analytics (2018) and Sigma Xi membership (2019) 
after filing the petition. Eligibility, however, must be established at the time of filing. See 8 C.F.R. 
§ 103 .2(b )( 1 ). In addition, the Petitioner did not offer the criteria for receiving her Social Entrepreneur 
Scholarship. Nonetheless, she has not demonstrated that her academic credentials, professional 
certifications, and Sigma Xi membership represent a record of success in her field or are otherwise an 
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indication that she is well positioned to advance her proposed company or its development of an 
interactive learning platform. 
Regarding the documentation lhowing rat the Petitioner started a fashion design business in Nigeria 
, her small business start-up grant, and the three endorsements she ~--------~ received relating to a fashion show her company organized, this evidence is not sufficient to 
demonstrate that she had a record of success in running her business or in the fashion design industry. 8 
Nor does the evidence show that her past experience in fashion design renders her well positioned to 
advance her proposed endeavor aimed at developing an adaptive learning platform. 
With respect to Petitioner's proposed start-up I I and its development of an adaptive 
learning platform, she offered a detailed business plan that included market analyses, financial 
forecasts and projections, company milestones, and funding sources. Although her business plan lists 
year one milestones such as securing research endorsements, having a fully functional prototype, 
securing start-up funding, and exceeding one million dollars in sales revenue, the Petitioner has not 
demonstrated progress towards achieving these milestones. For example, the record does not show 
that she has secured start-up funding from the organizations identified in her business plan. 9 
Furthermore, while her evidence includes Memorandum(s) of Understanding with two daycare 
providers outlining the terms of use for the adaptive learning platform "being created by [the 
Petitioner]," she has not demonstrated that a prototype of her platform has been deployed and has 
improved student performance. In addition, the Petitioner has not shown that her platform stands to 
be utilized beyond these two daycare providers. 
The record does not reflect sufficient interest from potential customers, users, investors, or other 
relevant entities or individuals to demonstrate that the Petitioner is well positioned to advance her 
proposed company and its development of an adaptive learning platform. Nor does the evidence show 
that the Petitioner's track record of running a fashion design business in Nigeria, business plan for 
future activities, and progress towards achieving her company's goals rise to the level ofrendering her 
well positioned to advance the proposed endeavor. For these reasons, 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 potential job creation 
resulting from her business, her endeavor's contribution to solving our nation's education problems, 
and the importance of her field. She also maintains that there is a labor shortage of qualified computer 
and information research scientists. 10 However, as the Petitioner has not established the national 
8 For instance. the Petitioner did not provide tax returns or audited financial statements for her Nigerian company from the 
time period she worked there (2012-2014) as evidence of her business's success. 
9 The Petitioner's business plan listed National Center for Educational Research, Caplan Foundation for Early Childhood. 
Annenberg Foundation, and American Honda Foundation as possible funding sources. 
10 We note that the U.S. Department of Labor addresses shortages of qualified workers through the labor certification 
process. Accordingly, a shortage alone does not demonstrate that waiving the requirement of a labor ce1iification would 
benefit the United States. 
6 
importance of her proposed endeavor and that she is well positioned to advance that endeavor as 
required by the first and second prongs of the Dhanasar framework, she is not eligible for a national 
interest waiver and further discussion of the balancing factors under the third prong would serve no 
meaningful purpose. 
III. CONCLUSION 
As the Petitioner has not met the requisite first and second prongs of 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. The appeal will be dismissed for the above stated reasons, with each considered 
as an independent and alternate basis for the decision. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. 
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