Postdoc in US for a Married Indian Physics PhD Holder: Visa Help & Chances

[arpit2agrawal]

If a married Indian Physics PhD holder wants to go for postdoc in US then
1. Do universities in US help him getting visa?
2. How are chances of US government granting visa to him? I mean do you guys know some people like this who got US visa?

 

[ZapperZ]

The US Govt. doesn't grant you visa without any cause.

You need to get accepted for a postdoc position first. Then the institution that has accepted you to that position will then process and submit your visa application.

Zz.

 

[arpit2agrawal]

The US Govt. doesn't grant you visa without any cause.

That I know.

You need to get accepted for a postdoc position first. Then the institution that has accepted you to that position will then process and submit your visa application.

I want to know, do US universities sponsor visa for postdoc candidates? It seems yes from your answer.
And are there good chances of US government granting visa to postdoc candidates?

 

[ZapperZ]

We seem to start going around in circles here, because I've answered your questions already.

Yes, Universities do have postdoc positions. If an institution has offered you a postdoc position, then unless there's something in your background that disqualifies you from getting a visa, you'll usually get one. I'm not sure why you are worried about having "good chances".

Zz.

 

[arpit2agrawal]

I'm not sure why you are worried about having "good chances".

That's because till the time I complete PhD in India, I will be married and probably have a kid also. So if I then decide to go for postdoc to US, I'll have to take my wife and child along with me. So I am afraid US government will reject my visa because if not, then they would have to grant 3 visas (one for me, one for my wife and one for my child). Do US government grant 3 visas in such case?

 

[ZapperZ]

Look, there ARE international students who brought their immediate families along. If whoever is sponsoring you also provide living allowances for your dependents, then there's a good chance all of you could come. But you have to show financial evidence that you can support everyone in your family. A postdoc wage might not do that.

In any case, I don't want to provide such level of detailed information, because this is not something I know well. Besides, the USCIS can reject things with no apparent reasons. Till you try it, you won't know.

Zz.

 

[arpit2agrawal]

Okay. Thank you.

 

[arpit2agrawal]

But you have to show financial evidence that you can support everyone in your family. A postdoc wage might not do that.

I heard PhD earning is not enough to support family. Now you are saying even postdoc wage might not be enough. Then which wage is enough? Assistant professor? Or Tenured associate professor?
I mean one spends say 5 years in PhD and than say 6 years in postdoc (3 postdoc of 2 years each or 2 postdoc of 3 years each, whatever) and than 5 years assistant professor without tenure and than tenured associate professor. At what stage do physicists earn enough to plan family? (considering they don't choose to go for industrial job).

 

[ZapperZ]

I heard PhD earning is not enough to support family. Now you are saying even postdoc wage might not be enough. Then which wage is enough? Assistant professor? Or Tenured associate professor?
I mean one spends say 5 years in PhD and than say 6 years in postdoc (3 postdoc of 2 years each or 2 postdoc of 3 years each, whatever) and than 5 years assistant professor without tenure and than tenured associate professor. At what stage do physicists earn enough to plan family? (considering they don't choose to go for industrial job).

You need to keep in mind that a "postdoc" is a temporary position.

The salary and benefits for a postdoc position is as varied as there are universities in the US. The amount of money you earn varies tremendously based upon where you work, what region of the country you work, and the research grant that you work under. You are being hired by someone who received research funding, and he/she sets the amount of money they expected to pay for that position.

Zz.

 

[arpit2agrawal]

At what stage do physicists earn enough to plan family? (considering they don't choose to go for industrial job).

I am curious to know that.

 

[twofish-quant]

You need to keep in mind that a "postdoc" is a temporary position.

And most post-docs don't end up with research faculty positions. Typically, people get two post-docs of three years. If you are really, really lucky you might get a third, but once you have three post-docs, people will toss your application into the waste bin if you apply for a fourth.

The salary and benefits for a postdoc position is as varied as there are universities in the US.

Yes. However even the best paying post-docs are temporary positions and you'll be looking for work once your contract ends. At the post-doc and junior faculty level, the big problem for family is not so much the income, the problem is the lack of stability.

 

[twofish-quant]

So I am afraid US government will reject my visa because if not, then they would have to grant 3 visas (one for me, one for my wife and one for my child). Do US government grant 3 visas in such case?

If you are a post-doc, you will likely get a J-1 or H-1B visa and your wife and kids will get J-2 or H-4 visas. If you get admitted, then getting a visa is not usually a big issue.

 

[twofish-quant]

I mean one spends say 5 years in PhD and than say 6 years in postdoc (3 postdoc of 2 years each or 2 postdoc of 3 years each, whatever) and than 5 years assistant professor without tenure and than tenured associate professor. At what stage do physicists earn enough to plan family? (considering they don't choose to go for industrial job).

It depends on the standard of living. As a Ph.D., you will be making roughly the same amount of money as low level jobs like janitors or garbage men, but janitors and garbage men manage to have families. One other thing that happens in college towns with large number of foreign students is that most of them have "underground economies" in which the people that work in restaurants and ethnic stores are often spouses of graduate students. This is highly illegal, but it happens.

A lot depends on your priorities. My wife and I wanted kids so we had them quickly, and then I changed the rest of my life around my kids. It is *possible* to be a post-doc and the raise a family, but it wasn't possible to get a post-doc and raise a family with the standard of living that I wanted to give my kids, so I got out of the system and jumped to industry. Other people make different (and equally good choices).

One thing that helps Chinese students a lot is that there is a very strong transnational network of people, so Chinese students that want to go into the US for their undergraduate, Ph.D., or post-doc get very good information about the consequences of those choices. I'm pretty sure that something like that exists for your country (India?) so your best source of information are Ph.D.'s that have ended up in the United States.

 

[arpit2agrawal]

You need to keep in mind that a "postdoc" is a temporary position.

The salary and benefits for a postdoc position is as varied as there are universities in the US. The amount of money you earn varies tremendously based upon where you work, what region of the country you work, and the research grant that you work under. You are being hired by someone who received research funding, and he/she sets the amount of money they expected to pay for that position.

Zz.

Who is this "someone"? A tenured professor of the university or what? And how much money does he make for himself?