National Postdoctoral Association

Recent Updates

• Meet NPA's International Officers
  
• Newly listed resource (January 2009) for European researchers in the U.S.A.
  
• Click here to read "Beginner's Guide to Income Guide to Income Taxation for International Postdocs."

International Postdoc Survival Guide

Are you dreaming of finding the perfect postdoctoral position in the USA but feel that you could benefit from guidance from international postdocs already in the USA?  Do you have visa-related questions?  Perhaps you are already in the USA and are now having problems obtaining a credit card?  The International Postdoc Survival Guide is a comprehensive  guide to enhance the experience of doing a postdoc in the USA for international postdocs.  It includes our visa guide, information on what it is critical to know before accepting a postdoctoral position, and much more!  Click HERE to check it out.

White Paper on Visa Reform

The NPA has issued a White Paper on immigration reform, calling on U.S. policy makers and agency leaders to consider changes to laws and regulations governing international postdocs. The NPA White Paper, entitled "International Postdoctoral Researchers and Their Importance to the Advancement of U.S. Science, Technology and National Security" was sent to leading officials in the U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security, along with the leaders of the U.S. House and Senate committees that have jurisdiction over immigration policies. Download a PDF of the White Paper: NPA White Paper on Visa Reform.

IP News Service

17-Month Extension of Optional Practical Training for Certain Highly Skilled Foreign Students

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security released today (4/7/08) an interim final rule extending the period of Optional Practical Training (OPT) from 12 to 29 months for qualified F-1 non-immigrant students. The extension will be available to F-1 students with a degree in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics who are employed by businesses enrolled in the E-Verify program.

Link to DHS website

J-1 Scholar: A New Five-Year Rule and 24-Month Bar

The Department of State has announced an extension of the maximum period of participation from 3 years to 5 years for J Professors and Research Scholars . This new policy became effective on November 4th, 2006 and applies to scholars who have held another nonimmigrant visa within the previous year. However, scholars would have to wait 24-month (two-year bar) before they could apply for another five-year visa once their visas expired. Further information about the Exchange Visitor Program is available on the Department of State Web site.

To read more, click here.

NPA as Advocate for International Postdocs

The NPA is working to enhance the experience of international postdocs in the USA.  Visit our International Postdoc page to find out about action that the association has taken to advocate for the needs of international postdocs. Also, the NPA hosts regional seminars addressing legal issues specific to international postdocs.  Visit the NPA Legal Seminar Series for International Postdocs for more details.

Recommended Resources

• EURAXESS Links is a networking tool for European researchers in the USA. Follow this link for more information on European researchers in the United States.
  
  
• Mentoring International Postdocs: Working to Advance Science & Careers
  An online module available from the federal Office of Research Integrity, developed by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, an NPA member institution.
  
  
• International Graduate Students: Conflicts between Security and Science in the issuing of visas
  A slide presentation by John V. Richardson Jr., Ph.D., Associate Dean, UCLA Graduate Division