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Visa status will limit programs to which they can apply.
Many PDs don't want the hassle.
Interestingly, the programs most likely to support a work visa are either very selective or rather desperate.
Many PDs don't want the hassle.
Interestingly, the programs most likely to support a work visa are either very selective or rather desperate.
I've got nothing. I interact with far too few international students to know how or if they match.
According to Applying for a Residency Program in the U.S. - A Concise and Practical Guide for the International Medical Graduate by W. E. O. Allison, US Citizens are given priority.
That is interesting. The desperate ones make sense, but perhaps in the competitive residencies they like a little diversity of experience?
I have no experience in the matter, but I think it would depend on the student? If they intended to live in the U.S. that might change their footing with other medical students vs. if they planned on returning to their home country.
We have a fair number of non-US citizens, both IMG and US MD graduates in the neighboring programs and applying to our program (although only one within our program).
#1 Visa status matters. If you look at the program director survey (found here: http://www.nrmp.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/PD-Survey-Report-2014.pdf), you will see that it is an important thing to the people that remember that it exists. In other words, very few program directors think about it, until the practical reality of being able to get the person to their program comes up.
#2 Some program directors do not want the hassle. As @gyngyn pointed out, visas can be a pain in the butt and unless they are used to the paperwork, some offices will not want to do it. That having been said, maybe it is local/regional bias, but that does not seem to be an issue at the vast majority of programs around me and we have a mix of competitive/ non-competitive, academic/community and diverse specialty programs around me.
#3 Certainly at our integrated vascular surgery program (on the more competitive end), we make our rank list completely independent of passport status with the single exception being that IF you are a non-US citizen, then you have to be able to get a work visa.
Do program directors prefer to give out J1 visas instead of H1b visas?
It seems to be more of a regional difference. In areas where we have historically not done it, there is no reason to start. East coast has more programs that either need them or want the very good ones. See @mimelim above.
There are historical as well as policy differences that can make one preferable over another at a particular program or institution (brain drain...).
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From my personal experience you need to be at least a Permanent Resident (green card) to apply to most of the medical schools. A few of them only accept US citizens, and another few will accept few international students (so no green card required).
Also, for the schools that do accept Permanent Residents my understanding is that they have the same priority as US citizens. Although that may be why I am in 4 WL with no acceptances 😛
Edit: never mind, I just saw the word "residency" and I cannot figure out how to remove a post
I am currently running into this issue, so for anyone who is looking for this YES it is a big deal. Program directors are usually not acquainted with this topic as it is far and few between.
Your visa status will not often determine whether you will get invite for interview, but will definitely play a big part in whether they will rank you because it has to be approved by the school's GME who deals with visas. Obviously, the more competitive the specialty is the less likely they will take you.
With that said, most programs will sponsor J1 visa now instead of H1b visa. If you are on J1 visa, you have to submit a statement of need from your country of origin which basically says you are contracted to return to your home country at the end of the residency and commit 2 years of work there. You are also not allowed to apply for permanent residency in the mean while until you finish your two year contract.
With H1b visa it is a work visa, and a preferred options for many people since there is no 2 year clause and no restriction of applying for permanent residency by other means. You can also moonlightning but that depends on the program. However, it is getting very hard to obtain since most programs do not want to go through the paperwork and financial investment.
I found that the more competitive specialties will only sponsor J1 visas while the less competitive specialties (primary care options) will sponsor either H1b or J1. If you are happy with being on J1, then by all means go for the competitive specialties if you want. If you much prefer to stay in the US, then go for specialties that are happy to provide you with H1b.
The main advantage of J1 is that I do not think you will be screened out based on that factor alone, since it is relatively easy to get and most programs don't care as long as you graduate from a US medical school. That means if you have a good app comparable to a US citizen, I think your chance of matching is good.
IF you are from Canada, I heard it might be hard to get a letter of need if you want to go into something else than primary care since the government limits how many applications they will take for the more specialized field.
With H1b it WILL play a part in the application, and you might have to apply more broadly, do something less competitive, and be willing to go to less desirable places. Good way to know is to check their IMG acceptance rates, especially for IM since many IMGs do IM nowadays and that can indicate whether the programs are more receptive to sponsor H1b visas. Your chance of matching is better than an IMG, but less than a US citizen if that makes any sense. You have the credentials, but it has to better than a counterpart's with citizenship. You can see why it is a disadvantage if you are trying to get to a competitive program, even with not competitive field.
Also you can switch from H1b to J1, but not the other way around.
Your visa status will not often determine whether you will get invite for interview, but will definitely play a big part in whether they will rank you because it has to be approved by the school's GME who deals with visas. Obviously, the more competitive the specialty is the less likely they will take you.
With that said, most programs will sponsor J1 visa now instead of H1b visa. If you are on J1 visa, you have to submit a statement of need from your country of origin which basically says you are contracted to return to your home country at the end of the residency and commit 2 years of work there. You are also not allowed to apply for permanent residency in the mean while until you finish your two year contract.
With H1b visa it is a work visa, and a preferred options for many people since there is no 2 year clause and no restriction of applying for permanent residency by other means. You can also moonlightning but that depends on the program. However, it is getting very hard to obtain since most programs do not want to go through the paperwork and financial investment.
I found that the more competitive specialties will only sponsor J1 visas while the less competitive specialties (primary care options) will sponsor either H1b or J1. If you are happy with being on J1, then by all means go for the competitive specialties if you want. If you much prefer to stay in the US, then go for specialties that are happy to provide you with H1b.
The main advantage of J1 is that I do not think you will be screened out based on that factor alone, since it is relatively easy to get and most programs don't care as long as you graduate from a US medical school. That means if you have a good app comparable to a US citizen, I think your chance of matching is good.
IF you are from Canada, I heard it might be hard to get a letter of need if you want to go into something else than primary care since the government limits how many applications they will take for the more specialized field.
With H1b it WILL play a part in the application, and you might have to apply more broadly, do something less competitive, and be willing to go to less desirable places. Good way to know is to check their IMG acceptance rates, especially for IM since many IMGs do IM nowadays and that can indicate whether the programs are more receptive to sponsor H1b visas. Your chance of matching is better than an IMG, but less than a US citizen if that makes any sense. You have the credentials, but it has to better than a counterpart's with citizenship. You can see why it is a disadvantage if you are trying to get to a competitive program, even with not competitive field.
Also you can switch from H1b to J1, but not the other way around.
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The J1 visa is not a good visa.
I generally agree with the above. I recently matched to neurology in a top 10 program that does not typically sponsor H1B but agreed to do it for me; so it can be done! It's a lot of strategizing and planning ahead. You definitely have to be a competitive candidate for that type of leverage and you also need to decide what's more important for you, staying in this country or training at your dream program. I had to rank programs I loved lower because they would only do J-1...
Consider joining this group: Log into Facebook | Facebook It has international U.S medical grads at different stages of training (pre-med, med school and residency) you could ask questions to. Also, this page provides some information regarding visa options and green card info. VISA options/Path to Green Card During Residency for Int'l (F-1) student U.S. medical graduate
Sorry that this irrelevant, but what's an integrated surgical residency? How is it different than a non-integrated?
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