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5 Visa Options for International PhD Students

Here are 5 most common visa options international PhD students must be aware of to get an early advantage while focusing on their career transition.
Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017
Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017
To study in the US, you need an F1 visa, known as a student visa. Once you are close to graduating, you must apply for OPT (Optional Professional Training) to work in the US.
F1-OPT.
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Those who graduate from an American university STEM program can apply for an extension of OPT which is for 12 months if they have not already applied for another visa.
F1-OPT extension.
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This Visa is for those who decide to do a postdoc in academia after PhD in US.
J1 visa
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H1B visa.
You can apply for this type of visa if you want to work in industry after your PhD, provided that you still have OPT.
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Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017
Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017
Having a green card makes it much easier to change jobs, and it gives you a more permanent status than J1 or H1 visas.
Green Card
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Want to know more about international student visas? Check out
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