J1 visa - International student doing PhD - postdoc / licensure

[chubbychops]

Hi all,
I am an international student doing my Clin Psych PhD and about to start internship - I have a couple of questions regarding visas for postdocs and licensing - currently on a J1 and trying to figure out whether I am better off switching to an F1 or not. My internship will allow me to stay on a J1 but I'm worried that it will be difficult to get a clinical postdoc/unlicensed psych job for the year of supervised hours I will need for licensure in New York. I would have to switch sooner rather than later before my current visa expires next year. I would rather not switch to an F1 because my spouse cannot work on an F1, but will if i have to. I also would prefer a clinical postdoc/unlicensed job than a research one.
Have any of you international students got a clinical postdoc/unlicensed job on a J1 visa under Academic Training? And has anyone gone on to get licensed in the US on Academic Training on a J1 (some states require citizenship, but others don't) - I am open to getting licensed in stated other than new York. Would love to hear whether others have done this..
Thanks!

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[procrastin8r]

Hi, chubbychops! I can't answer your question, but your message reminded me of an email my DCT sent out a few days ago: the APAGS blog did a post on international students re:internship. Here it is: International Students and the Internship Process

Hope that helps! Good luck

 

[nononora]

Hi all,
I am an international student doing my Clin Psych PhD and about to start internship - I have a couple of questions regarding visas for postdocs and licensing - currently on a J1 and trying to figure out whether I am better off switching to an F1 or not. My internship will allow me to stay on a J1 but I'm worried that it will be difficult to get a clinical postdoc/unlicensed psych job for the year of supervised hours I will need for licensure in New York. I would have to switch sooner rather than later before my current visa expires next year. I would rather not switch to an F1 because my spouse cannot work on an F1, but will if i have to. I also would prefer a clinical postdoc/unlicensed job than a research one.
Have any of you international students got a clinical postdoc/unlicensed job on a J1 visa under Academic Training? And has anyone gone on to get licensed in the US on Academic Training on a J1 (some states require citizenship, but others don't) - I am open to getting licensed in stated other than new York. Would love to hear whether others have done this..
Thanks!

I was a former F-1 student who used CPT for internship and OPT for post-doc. In looking at the J-1 Academic Training options, it looks like you get 18 months pre-graduation and 18-36 months post-graduation so that's certainly more than enough.

What will an F-1 visa get you that a J-1 cannot? It looks like the hiring of an F-1 or a J-1 visa holder is a pretty similar process on the employer's end.

You can also make an appointment at your university's International Students Office - I imagine this is a question they would have some experience with.

 

[chubbychops]

Thanks for this procrastin8r- I hadn't seen it!

 

[chubbychops]

I was a former F-1 student who used CPT for internship and OPT for post-doc. In looking at the J-1 Academic Training options, it looks like you get 18 months pre-graduation and 18-36 months post-graduation so that's certainly more than enough.

What will an F-1 visa get you that a J-1 cannot? It looks like the hiring of an F-1 or a J-1 visa holder is a pretty similar process on the employer's end.

You can also make an appointment at your university's International Students Office - I imagine this is a question they would have some experience with.

Hi nononora,
Thanks for your post - I think the J1 limits the direct client contact experience you can get and while some internships will work around this, I'm not sure whether postdocs would do the same (and not entirely sure how to find out - I'm thinking about sending out a blast of emails to currently advertised post docs enquiring about this..).

The international office in my school initially put me on the J1 - they have not had many international students in this program and were not aware of the internship requirement and subsequently wanted me to switch when they became aware of their mistake (3 years in..). But by then my husband was working and I didn't want to switch for several reasons (the expense of flying home to get new visa, the time and effort, drawing attention from immigration for switching visas, spouse not being able to work) so I am trying to hold off on talking to them about it until I have a clearer picture myself because I'm guessing they will just tell me to switch to F1, which ideally I would like to avoid!
Do you mind me asking what you did visa-wise once you got your postdoc? Did you stay in the US and get licensed? Did you have any difficulty with licensure on the F1?