Green Card Holder and Civil Service Jobs?

[jennylo87 7]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm in the final stretch of the Green Card Process (CR-1) for my husband. We're looking into jobs for him, he has a PhD in Neuroscience, along with two post-docs, all from the U.K. My question is about Green Card Holders and working for the Civil Service, I cannot find an answer to whether this is permitted or not. I know they cannot work in federal roles- but as the County level? There are a few open-competitive positions for a Forensic Biologist at the County level he's interested in applying for- but nothing specifies if the applicant must be a US citizen. The role does not require any kind of security clearance. Maybe someone has come across this issue in the past or can advise?

 

Thanks! 

[Roel 7,192]

Call the employers and ask. Can't be more simple than that.

[Boiler 45,486]

I would also recommend calling them and asking.

[Marieke H 2,498]

I'm a Green Card holder and work for a State government agency. When I applied for this job, I didn't even call to ask if I was allowed to apply. I think if job openings are strictly for citizens the requirements usually say so. But you can always call and ask. 

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

2 hours ago, jennylo87 said:

Hi everyone,

 

I'm in the final stretch of the Green Card Process (CR-1) for my husband. We're looking into jobs for him, he has a PhD in Neuroscience, along with two post-docs, all from the U.K. My question is about Green Card Holders and working for the Civil Service, I cannot find an answer to whether this is permitted or not. I know they cannot work in federal roles- but as the County level? There are a few open-competitive positions for a Forensic Biologist at the County level he's interested in applying for- but nothing specifies if the applicant must be a US citizen. The role does not require any kind of security clearance. Maybe someone has come across this issue in the past or can advise?

 

Thanks! 

I think for the county and state level you will be fine, but it depends on the state as well. Just like you said for the Federal level he can not apply for those jobs.  What states is this, and have you looked at any local universities or colleges?

[Lemonslice 4,840]

3 minutes ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

I think for the county and state level you will be fine, but it depends on the state as well. Just like you said for the Federal level he can not apply for those jobs.  What states is this, and have you looked at any local universities or colleges?

Green card holders do work at the VA hospital here, just lower hiring priority.  Not all federal employment is restricted. 

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

9 minutes ago, Lemonslice said:

Green card holders do work at the VA hospital here, just lower hiring priority.  Not all federal employment is restricted. 

They might be contractors and not actual federal employees, but of course this is the VA we are talking about so it may be possible.

[jennylo87 7]

20 hours ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

I think for the county and state level you will be fine, but it depends on the state as well. Just like you said for the Federal level he can not apply for those jobs.  What states is this, and have you looked at any local universities or colleges?

Thanks everyone. I did e-mail a representative from the civil service with my question, no response yet. I think it's like you've said- at the County/State level, there shouldn't be an issue. We are located on Long Island, NY (so, it would be Suffolk/Nassau County Civil Service).  My husband has briefly entertained the idea of working at a college/university, but that would most likely entail low-paying adjunct work. We're looking at something more viable and solid, hence- civil service. 

 

Thanks all!

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

27 minutes ago, jennylo87 said:

Thanks everyone. I did e-mail a representative from the civil service with my question, no response yet. I think it's like you've said- at the County/State level, there shouldn't be an issue. We are located on Long Island, NY (so, it would be Suffolk/Nassau County Civil Service).  My husband has briefly entertained the idea of working at a college/university, but that would most likely entail low-paying adjunct work. We're looking at something more viable and solid, hence- civil service. 

 

Thanks all!

This is not necessarily true. If he is in to research he could find a university/college to do some research/work with a department there. I knew several people that did this in California at Caltech.

Edited June 1, 2018 by Cyberfx1024

[jennylo87 7]

3 minutes ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

This is not necessarily true. If he is in to research he could find a university/college to do some research with a department there. I knew several people that did this in California at Caltech.

Yes, that's true. He's not really thinking about research anymore- he left a post-doc, partly because of the temporary nature of the work (2-3 yr contracts, constantly chasing the next one, etc).  If something lined up, maybe he'd take it? I work in higher ed, so he's also entertained the idea of getting a NYS teaching license from my job for free, to teach science. From my perspective, the civil service would be the more solid solution. 

[yuna628 9,676]

Your husband has a PhD? I would absolutely take a look at university, colleges, even hospitals. That's what my husband did. Most academic positions pay decently too, especially for a GC holder that needs to establish themselves in the US. He may have had other jobs in his life, but here he's back to square one as a first-timer (and you know the kind of poor pay a first time job gets). It may not be as much initially as you might have expectations for, but it's critically important to get a foot in the door and have a record of US employment. I wouldn't discount research positions either. The most valued thing an employer looks for is having US-based experience and then good qualifications.

 

If nothing specifically implies he needs US citizenship, there shouldn't be an issue with trying to apply.

[CEE53147 559]

Green card holders are eligible for some federal jobs.  The issue is that not that many positions require a PhD. Also, hiring is very competitive.  He should expect to take something to get US experience and make contacts.  Good academic jobs are the hardest to get.  He might need to be a post doc just to get a foot in the door.

 

I think you/he are setting your sights awfully high given the overabundance of unemployed PhDs in many fields. A recent study of some STEM fields showed that fewer than 50% of new PhD graduates had full time jobs; all others either returned to their home country, took post docs, or were still looking.

[jennylo87 7]

13 hours ago, CEE53147 said:

Green card holders are eligible for some federal jobs.  The issue is that not that many positions require a PhD. Also, hiring is very competitive.  He should expect to take something to get US experience and make contacts.  Good academic jobs are the hardest to get.  He might need to be a post doc just to get a foot in the door.

 

I think you/he are setting your sights awfully high given the overabundance of unemployed PhDs in many fields. A recent study of some STEM fields showed that fewer than 50% of new PhD graduates had full time jobs; all others either returned to their home country, took post docs, or were still looking.

Thanks for your response. I did hear back from a Civil Service HR rep, and the rep did indeed confirm my husband's eligibility. As long as he is legally allowed to work in the U.S., he's eligible to apply to Civil Service jobs, except a few within the Police Department.  

 

We're well-aware of the employment/underemployment situation of PhD's (in all fields), we're both PhD's, and I work in higher ed admin (I knew the faculty route wasn't for me). Funny enough, he had two friends come over last week, who are both Post-Doc cancer biologists in Boston. I make more then them working in college admin- it's just unfortunate given how hard they work, and the future prospects. But, that's all to say there are many, many opportunities here to be had. Thanks, all! 

[Steeleballz 7,550]

On 5/31/2018 at 11:18 AM, Lemonslice said:

Green card holders do work at the VA hospital here, just lower hiring priority.  Not all federal employment is restricted. 

 

   Yep, I think the HR page for many VA positions says open to USC's, but non-citizens may be hired for the position if no qualified US citizen can be recruited.

[CEE53147 559]

They do a great disservice to people encouraging PhD study when most positions require less specialized education.  The salary situation is generally not reported.  One of my children with an MS had a quarterly performance bonus nearly that of his PhD holding sibling's ( working as a full time faculty member) annual salary.  That was on top of a salary over 1 1/2 times sibling; overall that year he made about 3 times the PhD holder. He also made more than DH who was a faculty member/administrator with nearly 40 years in academia at the time. The key was that he was gaining experience during the time sibling was working on PhD.  That experience makes him extremely valuable to his employer. Both are doing what they wanted to do.