LouisB

agree, also it takes quite some time to really know a place.

i always thought I wanted to be on the west coast, after many holidays etc. However 3 years in NYC I am still busy learning and exploring and seeing how diverse it is, I can see why many New Yorkers do not leave. Living somewhere changes your perception of it fully, maybe better, maybe worse, but it takes a year or two to really know a place, especially a big city. My view anyway. Holidays are skin deep surface layer fun, good place to start of course but also such a skewed view.

even different areas of the 5 boroughs of NYC are totally different, let alone all the variation over the whole country...

Steerpike

Isn't #1 a negative for the OP, since the OP doesn't have a degree? I thought having a degree was an absolute 'must' for a green card, so without one, how can he ever achieve his goal? Perhaps getting a degree now would not be a bad plan of action ... I would expect it to be pretty easy once you have actual experience in the field.

It's certainly true that a 'visit' doesn't prepare one, but - in reality, nothing short of living here prepares you for living here so a giant leap of faith is required in most cases. How does anyone really prepare? It's not like you can take a 6 month sabbatical from your current job in UK and hang out here making sure you will like it.

I personally visited San Francisco on holiday in 1981 while still at University and loved the place (also visited San Diego, LA, New York). That was what set the gears turning in my head. In 1983, I was lucky enough to get assigned to a project in the US for 2 months (in the cold, boring, mid-west), and that solidified my desire to live and work here. Before returning from this assignment, I was able to find a company willing to employ me and get me a Green Card (1983 was a better time for this ... ). Essentially, everything turned out great - I never once regretted the move. The only thing I didn't comprehend (as a naive 25-year-old) was how dysfunctional the healthcare system is. This wouldn't have changed my decision, however.

civilservant

You're right, it will be a problem - although not insurmountable if able to show 12 years progressive experience. I actually missed that he didn't have one in the initial post, I thought he said he did.

scrubbedexpat099

A degree is not an absolute must for a GC.

scrubbedexpat099

Hib not GC.

Steerpike

Perhaps to be clearer - a degree is not a requirement for a GC if you are pursuing the GC through marriage, and other paths. But if you are trying to get a GC through work, then a degree in your chosen field of work is quite important. In my case, my GC application required the company to justify my existence. An ad was placed in the local paper and any 'local' applicant had to be considered ahead of me. Of course, this ad was stupidly specific and written with my personal experience as the requirements ... so it was not hard to reject any applicants. But regardless, a degree was stated as a requirement.

scrubbedexpat099

https://www.uscis.gov/working-united...reference-eb-3

TexanScot

Whilst most applications generally have on, it's not an absolute requirement for H-1B either - I know at least one degree-less person who was petitioned for one this year on the basis of progressive experience.

Had they been selected in the lottery I'm not sure what their chances would have been of being approved without an RFE, but the attorneys were certainly willing to try.

But yes, generally having a degree will make things significantly easier for most people.

scrubbedexpat099

I think we all agree to that.

UkWinds5353

Good observations. The United States is very much like a quilt of various cultures some of which can have subtle similarities and totally opposite ways of life. There are states that share common geographical boarders but hold juxtapositions via political, cultural and economic influences. Even the family tree of those different states' inhabitants can be from different areas of the world. Places like North Carolina can feel so different from Georgia despite being a short distance apart.

neill

On the degree bit -- actually most that come on H-1Bs avoid submitting a subsequent GC application that requires them to have a degree, as most foreign Bachelors degrees are not found to be equivalent to U.S. 4 year degrees. You would find that most applying on the EB-3 route choose the "Skilled Worker" route and submit an LC that shows their job can be completed by someone with experience "equivalent to a degree", but not necessarily needing a degree.