NIW Bearings
dismissedOCT182024_02B52032024-10-18 · appeal · Texas Service Center

This is an AAO appeal decision — a case denied once and appealed. It shows how the framework is applied; it is not the filing population.

The Petitioner, a computer science professor, proposed to practice the occupation of computer science, including STEM higher education, build 'manpower' in computing, and conduct research on the convergence of machine learning/AI and high performance computing.

Field: computer science · Read the decision (uscis.gov)

Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive

The Petitioner has not sufficiently described his proposed endeavor.
We agree with the Director's decision this is not a well-detailed description of a proposed endeavor.
We also agree with the Director that the Petitioner's inclusion of a consulting company constitutes a material change in the endeavor.
the general importance of the field of computer science does not confer national importance on the Petitioner's proposed endeavor
the evidence does not establish how the intention to fill a single position would have a national impact on this claimed shortage

AAO decision text

How the evidence was treated

  • recommendation letter · discounted
    The letters of recommendation mainly address the Petitioner's skills or past work.
    AAO decision text
  • resume experience · discounted
    this evidence... points to the Petitioner's past accomplishments and experiences, not the specific endeavor's potential impact
    AAO decision text
  • certification membership · discounted
    Generally, this type of evidence is more appropriate for the second prong when determining if the petitioner is well-positioned to advance the proposed endeavor.
    AAO decision text
  • citations publications · discounted
    Generally, this type of evidence is more appropriate for the second prong when determining if the petitioner is well-positioned to advance the proposed endeavor.
    AAO decision text

Where this case turned

  • Endeavor too vague · p1described as a job role, not a defined undertaking
  • Field importance conflated with endeavor · p1argues the field matters, not the specific endeavor
  • Material change of endeavor · p1the endeavor described on appeal is not the one filed
  • Occupational shortage argument rejected · p1argues a labor shortage — the labor-certification question, not Dhanasar
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Notable

The AAO invoked the material-change doctrine from Matter of Izummi (typically an EB-5 case) to exclude a consulting company the Petitioner added in his RFE response, refusing to consider it in the national importance analysis.

Authorities this decision leans on

From the doctrinal survivor set — 187 authority tests across 47 distinct authorities cleared the differential-lift gates. Only those appear here.

  • 8 C.F.R. 103.2(b)(1)
  • Matter of Izummi
  • Matter of L-A-C-

Cases in adjacent profiles