Foreign Student wanting advice regarding a JD and US visas Forum
Forum rules
Anonymous Posting
Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are sharing sensitive information about bar exam prep. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.
Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned."
Anonymous Posting
Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are sharing sensitive information about bar exam prep. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.
Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned."
-
JDApplicantNYC
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2015 6:17 pm
Foreign Student wanting advice regarding a JD and US visas
Completed just the first year of NZ law school before moving to the US. The dean understood my motives to earn my law degree overseas so the one year of law school I had finished was easily credited with a certificate of proficiency https://cdn.auckland.ac.nz/assets/law/f ... %20(2).pdf. I chose not to stay and finish a NZ law degree after several expat lawyers, recruitment agents and legal organizations advocated that a JD was much more beneficial than a foreign LLB and US LLM. Even though New York is one of the few states that does allow foreign graduates to sit the bar advised that firms and NGO's still favored a JD, unless a foreign graduate had at least four years experience at a top tier firm with the possibility of transfer in addition a JD is required to practice at any government agency. Since a JD is a graduate degree unlike a LLB any non law degree was needed prior preferably awarded in the US as it would make it easier to get an immigrant visa. A permanent visa is needed to get any type of US law school funding, scholarships and/or financial aid otherwise I will have to pay for law school in full. Since arriving in New York I have worked as a legal analyst on two J1 visas before submitting a green card application in June 2014, ideally I would like to remain working full time and attend night school. The one thing I underestimated was how hard and long the green card process is, I may very well settle for a student visa even though I will only be allowed to work part time as I would still really like to earn a JD. I have worked with numerous immigration lawyers on obtaining a green card but any additional visa knowledge, advice or suggestions is welcome.
