Bf is International, Please help! :(

[rd31]

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Hi everyone. Please take the time to read this message and post thoughtful comments. I am losing sleep over this! (I am a current medical student btw)

My bf is an international student (on an F-1 visa) who graduated from a prominent Ivy League university with around a 3.65ish GPA. He has a good MCAT score (at least mid-30s) and published biochem research while in undergrad. He applied rather late to med school this year (i.e. late September, early October was when his secondaries were submitted - and he applied to every school he could have given his status). He has no interviews at all and several rejections! It also does not help that he is poor and would have to take out a massive loan for med school (and cannot put money into an escrow account). He currently works in clinical research at a prominent center in New York City.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what we can do? Even alternate/temporary career options would be good to consider at this point, I feel (and please remember he is technically international on an F1 visa, despite being in this country for 14 years). He has a B.S in biochemistry.

Please help! 🙁

 

[ozzi22]

Is the clinical research a paid position ?

 

[rd31]

Is the clinical research a paid position ?

yes it is, but it is only a 2-year position

 

[ozzi22]

Well he should be able to make enough money to live on from there right? Plus he gets to strengthen his application with research experience and perhaps a pub. The only advice i can give, is for him to apply next year early and research schools that accepts international students. Applying to schools that don't accept international students would be a waste of time and money. Also try D.O schools. I know these D.O schools accept international students; UNECOM, PCOM, PCOM-GA, MSU-COM, VCOM, LMU-DCOM, DMU, KCUMB, TCOM, Western, TOURO-NY, ATSU-KCOM, NYCOM, PCSOM, AZCOM, NSU, CCOM. Good luck.

 

[IMSingular]

Get Married??😕

 

[InterStudent]

I'm assuming your boyfriend is working through OPT (optional practical training) that lets him work after his undergrad graduation as a F-1 visa holder. OPT runs out in a year or so, but he can apply for an extension to continue to work if he doesn't get into med schools this cycle. It's called "OPT STEM extension". It's granted only for people with certain majors, but biochem counts as one of them. With the extension, he can work for another 17 months after the initial one year OPT runs out. HOWEVER, there are more regulations for STEM extension than the regular OPT. One of them is that his employer has to be an "E-verify" user. So he should carefully check the requirements. (google it!)

Also he can find an employer who will support his work visa: H-1 or J-1.

As you probably know, if your boy friend does not make it to a med school this year, and his current visa and OPT runs out without any future plan, he will be forced to go back to his country! so, not a bad idea to have a back-up visa plan!

I'm also an international applicant for this cycle and has been in the US for ~10 years (high school and college). If you have more quetsions, you can PM me. I may be able to answer 🙂

It is VERY frustrating to apply as an international since many schools don't even look at you or even if they consider you, they hold higher standards for internationals (I was told so by some admission committee people). But it's not impossible!

 

[Brachyury]

Get Married??😕

OP, if you two decide to get married, consult an immigration attorney before you do anything. Why? Because you want to make sure that you smooth out any details that might complicate the process

 

[ozzi22]

get married??😕

+100000

 

[gravitywave]

where are the loans coming from for school? F-1 is not eligible for federal student aid.

 

[rd31]

+100000

not in the cards anytime soon *sigh*

 

[rd31]

At some schools, international students need to show proof that they have all four years of tuition sitting in a bank account somewhere prior to matriculating (so they don't run into the 'oops I ran out of tuition money' problem halfway through their education). For loans, they either need to have a cosigner who's a US citizen (don't believe these loans are subsidized..) or receive a special loan agreement from their home country (not sure of the specifics, but this was brought up at several finaid presentations). I won't be surprised at all if most international med students come from very wealthy families who can afford to pay the cost out of pocket.

that's another problem: he's poor 🙁. is this whole endeavor pointless? should he consider another career (what would be good alternatives for internationals that aren't nursing or PA)? Is dentistry, pharm, or PhD any easier? medicine is his dream though...this all is so unfair. he's a more valuable member to society than most american citizens I know...

 

[ozzi22]

not in the cards anytime soon *sigh*

why is that?

 

[rd31]

why is that?

private reasons involving families (our relationship is actually a secret)...I understand that this could solve everything, but it's just not possible (at least not possible in the near future)

 

[rd31]

At some schools, international students need to show proof that they have all four years of tuition sitting in a bank account somewhere prior to matriculating (so they don't run into the 'oops I ran out of tuition money' problem halfway through their education). For loans, they either need to have a cosigner who's a US citizen (don't believe these loans are subsidized..) or receive a special loan agreement from their home country (not sure of the specifics, but this was brought up at several finaid presentations). I won't be surprised at all if most international med students come from very wealthy families who can afford to pay the cost out of pocket.

that's another problem: he's poor 🙁. is this whole endeavor pointless? should he consider another career (what would be good alternatives for internationals that aren't nursing or PA)? Is dentistry, pharm, or PhD any easier? medicine is his dream though...this all is so unfair. he's a more valuable member to society than most american citizens I know...

 

[Musclemass]

Hi everyone. Please take the time to read this message and post thoughtful comments. I am losing sleep over this! (I am a current medical student btw)

My bf is an international student (on an F-1 visa) who graduated from a prominent Ivy League university with around a 3.65ish GPA. He has a good MCAT score (at least mid-30s) and published biochem research while in undergrad. He applied rather late to med school this year (i.e. late September, early October was when his secondaries were submitted - and he applied to every school he could have given his status). He has no interviews at all and several rejections! It also does not help that he is poor and would have to take out a massive loan for med school (and cannot put money into an escrow account). He currently works in clinical research at a prominent center in New York City.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what we can do? Even alternate/temporary career options would be good to consider at this point, I feel (and please remember he is technically international on an F1 visa, despite being in this country for 14 years). He has a B.S in biochemistry.

Please help! 🙁

It's good to know that he went to a prominent Ivy school and not one of the lousy ones. And also good to know that he's at a prominent research center in NYC and not at one of many crap ones that are in town.

 

[StoicJosher]

Hi everyone. Please take the time to read this message and post thoughtful comments. I am losing sleep over this! (I am a current medical student btw)

My bf is an international student (on an F-1 visa) who graduated from a prominent Ivy League university with around a 3.65ish GPA. He has a good MCAT score (at least mid-30s) and published biochem research while in undergrad. He applied rather late to med school this year (i.e. late September, early October was when his secondaries were submitted - and he applied to every school he could have given his status). He has no interviews at all and several rejections! It also does not help that he is poor and would have to take out a massive loan for med school (and cannot put money into an escrow account). He currently works in clinical research at a prominent center in New York City.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what we can do? Even alternate/temporary career options would be good to consider at this point, I feel (and please remember he is technically international on an F1 visa, despite being in this country for 14 years). He has a B.S in biochemistry.

Please help! 🙁

OK. I have a little ( but no expert) knowledge on this issue so take my suggestions with a grain of salt.

People have made suggestions about his chances of getting in medical school (MD and DO).

If staying in the country is his priority, there is another path to go.

His best option right now would be to find an employer who will sponsor his H1 visa and allow him to stay and work in the country. There are lots of companies who do that (finding a company who will sponsor you with just a UG degree might be hard). Companies make a lot of money this way - they sponsor someone for $35,000 a year and subcontract them to a different company for a higher salary and make the difference. The key here is finding a company that will sponsor him for the H1 and then for a green card. If that doesn't work, he should find a company that will sponsor him for the H1 for the time being and then search for a company that will sponsor him for both the H1 and green card. That way, he can transition from the F1 to H1 to the green card.

If that fails, he can try to do a master's which will increase his chances of getting an H1 sponsor.

 

[blizzah]

Apply early next year?

 

[rd31]

It's good to know that he went to a prominent Ivy school and not one of the lousy ones. And also good to know that he's at a prominent research center in NYC and not at one of many crap ones that are in town.

Thank you for the helpful comment. I never said any institutions are "crap." But yes, not all Ivy League schools are equal and not all research centers in NYC are equal. He IS associated with what most would consider to be among the premier institutions for both the Ivy League and research centers in New York City. Ivy League (which is nothing more than a sports conference, mind you) and NYC alone are not automatically synonymous with the holy grail...

Again, thank you for your help during this immensely stressful period in my life. Best wishes to you.

 

[rd31]

OK. I have a little ( but no expert) knowledge on this issue so take my suggestions with a grain of salt.

People have made suggestions about his chances of getting in medical school (MD and DO).

If staying in the country is his priority, there is another path to go.

His best option right now would be to find an employer who will sponsor his H1 visa and allow him to stay and work in the country. There are lots of companies who do that (finding a company who will sponsor you with just a UG degree might be hard). Companies make a lot of money this way - they sponsor someone for $35,000 a year and subcontract them to a different company for a higher salary and make the difference. The key here is finding a company that will sponsor him for the H1 and then for a green card. If that doesn't work, he should find a company that will sponsor him for the H1 for the time being and then search for a company that will sponsor him for both the H1 and green card. That way, he can transition from the F1 to H1 to the green card.

If that fails, he can try to do a master's which will increase his chances of getting an H1 sponsor.

Thank you! This was a very helpful suggestion.

 

[rd31]

Yeah, his lateness probably also played a large factor.. And how were his LoRs and application essays? Any possible red flags?

Don't know about his essays (but bound to be good since he was a literature major for 2 years before switching to biochem). He does have strong letters from world-class scientists (this is not an exaggeration).

 

[Brachyury]

It's good to know that he went to a prominent Ivy school and not one of the lousy ones. And also good to know that he's at a prominent research center in NYC and not at one of many crap ones that are in town.

🙁🙁🙁🙁 I'm sorry that the OP apparently hurt your feelings 🙁🙁🙁🙁

 

[StoicJosher]

Don't know about his essays (but bound to be good since he was a literature major for 2 years before switching to biochem). He does have strong letters from world-class scientists (this is not an exaggeration).

Which will probably work in his favor (the Ivy league school and the research). He will have to demonstrate to the labor that he has skill sets that is valuable to America to get that H1 - which is why it is hard to do with just an UG degree. Also, take to a good immigration lawyer - they can speed up the process and cut down the downtown drastically. Do lots of research on the companies - you don't want to run out of the time you have on your H1 (I think it is 6 yrs) and have no one sponsor you for the green card.

Good luck!

 

[tiedyeddog]

that's another problem: he's poor 🙁. is this whole endeavor pointless? should he consider another career

Yes, he should strongly consider another path, atleast as a backup, until he can marry you and get his green card.

 

[IMSingular]

rd31:

May be time to reveal the secret!

Are you US Citizen? If not even if you marry him there may be many years before he gets Green Card. If you are a citizen then it is almost immidiate qualification; peper work, however, may take few months.