The Petitioner, a computer science researcher, seeks employment-based second preference (EB-2) immigrant classification as a member of the professions holding an advanced degree, as well as a national interest waiver of the job offer requirement attached to this classification. See Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) section 203(b )(2), 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b )(2).
Service Center Operations (SCOPS) denied the petition, concluding that the record did not establish that a waiver of the required job offer, and thus of the labor certification, would be in the national interest. The matter is now before us on appeal pursuant to 8 C.F.R. § 103.3.
The Petitioner bears the burden ofproof to demonstrate eligibility by a preponderance of the evidence. Matter ofChawathe, 25 I&N Dec. 369, 375-76 (AAO 2010). We review the questions in this matter de novo. Matter ofChristo's, Inc., 26 I&N Dec. 537,537 n.2 (AAO 2015). Upon de novo review, we will dismiss the appeal.
Law
To qualify for the underlying EB-2 visa classification, a petitioner must establish that the beneficiary is an advanced degree professional or an individual of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business. Section 203(b)(2)(A) of the Act.
If a petitioner establishes a beneficiary's eligibility for the underlying EB-2 classification, they must then demonstrate that the beneficiary merits a discretionary waiver ofthe job offer requirement "in the national interest." Section 203(b )(2)(B)(i) of the Act. Matter ofDhanasar, 26 l&N Dec. 884, 889 (AAO 2016), provides the framework for adjudicating national interest waiver petitions. Dhanasar states that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may, as matter of discretion, 1 grant a national interest waiver if the petitioner demonstrates that:
- The proposed endeavor has both substantial merit and national importance;
- The beneficiary is well-positioned to advance their proposed endeavor; and 1 See Flores v. Garland, 72 F.4th 85, 88 (5th Cir. 2023) (joining the Third, Ninth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuit Courts of Appeals in concluding that USCIS ' decision to grant or deny a national interest waiver is discretionary in nature).
- On balance, waiving the job offer requirement would benefit the United States.
Id.
Analysis
SCOPS determined the Petitioner qualified for EB-2 classification as an advanced degree professional because he submitted evidence that he holds a master's degree in computer science from thel I I I We agree. The only issue on appeal is whether he qualifies for and merits a waiver of the job offer requirement in the national interest.
At the time of filing, the Petitioner was a research assistant at the. _____________.where he was pursuing his doctoral degree. The Petitioner initially stated his proposed endeavor is "to integrate lidar, cameras, and sensors into multimodal fusion models to improve the accuracy and detection speed of objects in autonomous vehicles in order to enhance transportation safety and security." In response to SCOPS' request for evidence (RFE), the Petitioner added that he plans "to extend the multimodal object detection framework to enable cooperative perception mechanisms for information sharing among sensors and vehicles, while addressing data security and privacy concerns." He explained that his "goal is to solve the limitations of single-sensor autonomous vehicles in accurately detecting various objects on the road, with practical applications in road safety, traffic management, and smart cities."
A. Substantial Merit and National Importance
The first Dhanasar prong, substantial merit and national importance, focuses on the specific endeavor that the individual proposes to undertake. Id. The endeavor's merit may be demonstrated in a range of areas such as business, entrepreneurialism, science, technology, culture, health, or education. Id. SCOPS determined the Petitioner's proposed endeavor has substantial merit. We agree. In determining whether the proposed endeavor has national importance, we consider its potential prospective impact. Id. This consideration may include whether the proposed endeavor has significant potential to employ U.S. workers (particularly in an economically depressed area), has other substantial positive economic effects, has national or even global implications within the field, or other broader implications indicating national importance. Id. at 889-90. SCOPS determined the Petitioner did not establish the national importance of his proposed endeavor under these factors. On appeal, the Petitioner asserts SCOPS erroneously conflated his proposed endeavor with his aspiration to obtain a position as a professor. The Petitioner claims the evidence directly contradicts SCOPS' conclusion that his proposed endeavor does not have national importance.Inconsistencies in the record
On appeal, the Petitioner reasserts that his proposed endeavor has national importance because it is aligned with multiple U.S. national interests, particularly in enhancing road safety and energy efficiency. The Petitioner submitted articles addressing road traffic injuries and fatalities, using connected vehicle technologies to solve real-world operational problems, vehicle-to-vehicle communications, advancing artificial intelligence research infrastructure through new National Science Foundation (NSF) investments, the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Automated Vehicles Program, the NSF's Division of Computer and Network Systems and Center for p. 3 Efficient Vehicles and Sustainable Transportation Systems, and a report entitled "Ensuring American Leadership in Automated Vehicle Technologies." The Petitioner also states his proposed endeavor involves Advanced and Networked Sensing and Signature Management, Artificial Intelligence, and Autonomous Systems and Robotics, which are included in the National Science and Technology Council's Critical and Emerging Technologies List. While the record shows the Petitioner works in areas aligned with national interests, our assessment of national importance does not focus on the importance of a field or issues impacting a field in general, but instead "focuses on the specific endeavor that the foreign national proposes to undertake."Proposed endeavor too vague Id. at 889. The articles, report, and Critical and Emerging Technologies List do not directly address the Petitioner's specific proposed endeavor. The Petitioner submitted evidence that at the time of filing he had published three conference papers in conference proceedings and one article in a scientific journal and that his publications had been cited a total of24 times. An article from Computing Research News and a letter from M-E-,2 Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the~---------~ explain that in the field of computer science, peer-reviewed conference publications are preferred and are accepted as highquality scholarly articles. The Petitioner also submitted citation rates from Clarivate Analytics which indicate that the top 10 percent of articles in Computer Science have been cited 24 times over the last 10 years. At the time of filing, one of the Petitioner's conference papers had been cited 13 times, another of his conference papers had been cited nine times, and his journal article had been cited two times. The Petitioner's citation record indicates his publications are not among the top 10 percent of articles in his field.Citation record not persuasive
The Petitioner submitted eight articles by other research teams that cite his work. Four ofthese articles cite the Petitioner's co-authored publications after just one sentence in the introduction or a description of the methodology. Four other articles cite the Petitioner's work after just one or two sentences in the text of the articles. The Petitioner also submitted evidence that his research published in two of his co-authored conference papers and his co-authored journal article was supported by grants from the NSF. The evidence of the Petitioner's publications, citations, and funding shows his research has been supported by the NSF, published, and cited by other researchers. The record does not, however, establish that his proposed endeavor has national importance. The citing articles do not discuss the Petitioner's proposed endeavor in depth or otherwise indicate that his proposed endeavor has broader implications in his field commensurate with national importance.No broader implications shown See id. (explaining "we look for broader implications").
On appeal, the Petitioner asserts SCOPS categorically rejected his support letters. The letters from experts in the Petitioner's field attest to his accomplishments, but are insufficient to establish the national importance of his proposed endeavor. Q-Y-, Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the ~---------~ praises the Petitioner's "new techniques to align different sensors while also providing an intermediary for communication between the vehicle and its self-driving platform, which directly advances autonomous vehicle technology" Q-Y- explains that the Petitioner's "novel techniques also improve the ability of vehicle sensor systems to detect distant objects. This information provides vehicles with significantly more time to react, guiding their decision-making processes and improving the safety of the vehicles on the road." Q-Y- does not, 2 We use initials to protect the privacy of the referenced individuals. p. 4 however, indicate that other researchers have relied upon the Petitioner's work or that his proposed endeavor has national or even global implications indicative of national importance.
D-L-, Director of Engineering at I I explains that the Petitioner's "provision of a simple and flexible framework combining data from LiDAR and camera sensors ... enables swift recognition of distant objects, leading to timely decision-making in autonomous vehicle systems." D-L- notes that the Petitioner's research has been published in the proceedings of three selective conferences in his field and states his research "has had a significant impact on the field of computer science and engineering." D-L- does not, however, specify how the Petitioner's research has impacted the work of other scientists and engineers in his field or otherwise indicate that the Petitioner's findings have broadly impacted his field in a manner commensurate with national importance.
Q-L-, Assistant Professor of Computing at the~-----------~ explains that by "introducing a novel framework to refine proposals from camera and Lidar data, [the Petitioner's] new approach has reduced the latency of object detection processes, which translates to an upgrade to vehicular safety." Q-L- also states that the Petitioner's "findings provide evidence that the use of multiple sensors overcomes issues faced in single sensor-based approaches, which forms the basis for the development of newer autonomous vehicles." Q-L- does not discuss how other researchers have relied upon the Petitioner's work, describe any practical applications of the Petitioner's research, or otherwise indicate that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor has national or global implications in his field.
W-S-, Professor of Computer and Information Sciences at the~--------~ praises the Petitioner's development ofa guide to building an autonomous driving vehicle and integration ofLidar sensors into the sensor systems used in autonomous vehicles. W-S- states that the Petitioner "has played a major role in rectifying the shortcomings of existing autonomous vehicles, which translates to massive advances with regards to safety and reliability." However, W-S- does not discuss any practical applications ofthe Petitioner's research or otherwise specifically articulate how his work has broadly impacted his field.
While these letters attest to the significance of the Petitioner's research, they do not discuss any practical applications of his work, how his publications have impacted other researchers in his field, how his research has national or even global implications in his field, or otherwise indicate that his proposed endeavor has broader implications in his field commensurate with national importance. Cf id. at 892 ( stating Dhanasar submitted probative expert letters describing the importance ofhis specific research as it related to U.S. strategic interests).
In sum, the record indicates that the Petitioner's research has been funded by the NSF and disseminated in four publications which have been cited a total of 24 times. The evidence does not, however, establish that the Petitioner's proposed endeavor has national or even global implications or has otherwise broadly impacted his field in a manner indicative of national importance. Consequently, the Petitioner has not demonstrated that his proposed endeavor has national importance.
B. The Remaining Dhanasar Prongs
The Petitioner has not established the national importance of his specific proposed endeavor and does not meet the first prong of the Dhanasar framework. As this issue is dispositive of the Petitioner's appeal, we decline to reach and hereby reserve determination of his eligibility under the second and third prongs of the Dhanasar framework. See INS v. Bagamasbad, 429 U.S. 24, 25 (1976) (stating that "courts and agencies are not required to make findings on issues the decision of which is unnecessary to the results they reach").
Conclusion
The Petitioner has not established the national importance ofhis proposed endeavor and does not meet the first prong of the Dhanasar analytical framework. Consequently, the Petitioner has not demonstrated that he is eligible for and merits a waiver of the job offer requirement in the national interest.
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed.
NOTICE: This constitutes the final decision in this matter. The filing of a motion will not postpone the effect of the decision. 8 C.F.R. § 103.S(a)(l )(iv). Aliens who are not lawfully present, or who are otherwise inadmissible or deportable, may be subject to the commencement of removal proceedings under section 240 ofthe Act through the issuance of a Form I-862, Notice to Appear. Those proceedings may result in their removal from the United States and possible ineligibility for future visas or other immigration benefits.